From the Arizona State board...http://www.cactusranch.com/devils/sd...rd/123550.html
I have it on very good authority that USC has been going back and forth with the NCAA about the proposed sanctions on the athletic program. The NCAA has come back twice in recent weeks and told USC that it was ready to levy sanctions, but each time SC has cried foul and used their legal team to push back on the NCAA. He said that they have even challenged the NCAA's ability to levy certain sanctions, and they have let the NCAA know that they are prepared for a landcape-changing legal battle if the sanctions are too harsh. In other words, SC has stopped playing nice and is now threatening a very lengthy and costly legal battle that would challenge the NCAA's jurisdiction like never before. He mentioned that other schools around the country are pushing the NCAA to stand its ground. He thinks USC is trying to bluff the NCAA into something lighter while "negotiations" are still private. He said that USC would probably reverse course if and when this becomes a public process (like after sanctions are announced). He says it is truly unprecendented for the NCAA to have a school threatening to challenge its role. He said that legal bills for USC are well north of $2 million already, and that SC has no shortage of $ to fight. What will stop USC is the bad press if they try to fight the NCAA and come off looking like spoiled cheaters. Sorry if this is rambling - I am typing as I recall our conversation today.
USC feels they have been successful to a certain degree already. They have already apparently persuaded the NCAA to ratchet down the sanctions on the football program to a certain extent, but USC is not satisfied yet and is still working the NCAA. There is regular dialogue between the NCAA and USC, and most of the dialogue is initiated by USC. He said if 2 days go by without any word from the NCAA, the USC legal team is calling them. The USC legal team feels it can create a bit of a niche in bullying the NCAA, and they think that any success they have this time around can be used to get other universities to hire them - no joke. It's an entrepreneurial opportunity! That's really the way they have been talking.
I don't make this stuff up. I have a business associate who is a real estate tycoon, and he is one of SC's largest boosters - let's leave it at that.
Norman Michaels