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| CCFFL looking into possible improprieties in Palmetto State Football program | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| By DAVID ZOOK | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A completely unbiased source | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Palmetto, S.C. -- Luke Staley was driving a $60,000 Cadillac Escalade just months after signing to play football for Palmetto State University in 2001. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| That fact and a number of possible improprieties within the Beer Goggles football program have drawn the interest of an CCFFL investigator. CCFFL enforcement representative Bubba Franks interviewed dozens of Duff Beer University boosters last month about their knowledge of potential CCFFL rules violations. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Franks flew into Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport on Apr. 6 and spent months finding information on various websites about potential violations, including: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| �Whether the parents of players were given jobs because their sons signed to play for the BeerGoggles. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| �Whether BeerGoggles coaches where involved changing high school transcripts for ineligible players. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| �Whether the thirteen brand new Cadillac Escalade's driven by the Palmetto St football team were purchased with their own funds. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| �Whether the mother of a BeerGoggles player cashed thousands of dollars in checks after her son signed to play for Palmetto. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Palmetto St. Athletic Director Charlie Tisdale said the school self-reported Staley's use of the sport utility vehicle, which was owned by a Palmetto St. graduate who lives near the campus in Columbia. Tisdale said he had no knowledge that the CCFFL was looking into anything concerning the school's football program. "Our Administration from the president on down, have not heard anything from the CCFFL. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Franks, who was unavailable for comment, also is investigating potential violations within Morristown University's football program. Dallas Honeycutt, AD of Morristown, boasted of his schools cheating and claimed to be to good to ever get caught at it. Honeycutt also claimed to have knowledge of the reason for the investigation of Palmetto St. "Hell yeah I know why, cause the transcript I had and everyone else in this league had for Staley cleary showed that he was ineligible, he simply didn't have the core requirements. Is there any other reason that a player of his caliber could have gone undrafted? But, somehow his grades are good enough to get into Palmetto St. I guarentee you every damn team in this league turned em in." | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| On September 27, 2001, Staley reported stolen a 2001 Cadillac Escalade, worth an estimated value of $62,000, according to an Anderson (S.C.) Police Department incident report. Staley told police that the sport utility vehicle was stolen from the Ramada Inn in Anderson, which is about 15 miles from his hometown. The vehicle was owned by Palmetto State alumnus Michael Bishop, the police report said. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "This was self-reported to the CCFFL during that time," Tisdale said. "Staley was alowed to continue. It was looked into by the university, and we convinced him to just buy the SUV outright with the money we'd already given him. We applauded his self reliance and ignored the matter completely. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| When reached on a cellphone on Wednesday, Bishop declined to talk about the incident or explain why Watson was driving his car. "I think that case may still be pending" Cauthen said "cheap-ass Staley only gave me $2,000 for it and that's after all the money I'd already given him.". | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Staley, 21, is enrolled at Palmetto State Penn after numerous arrests for marijuana possession, conspiracy to commit adultery, peeping into the cheerleaders showering area and for preventing Morristown to assend to their rightful place as CCFFL champions. Staley was convicted in March and sentenced to 24 years of hard time. According to Tisdale "Staley is a good kid who's just had a couple of bad breaks. He will always be welcome in the Palmetto State family. In fact, we are hoping that he will be eligible for parole in 2014 so that he can rejoin our team and help lead us to another division title. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Staley scored a crapload of TDs in 2001, leading the Beer Goggles an 8-3 mark and a berth in the Brady Bunch Bowl. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||