ABJ Story on Alex Abreu

[Blue & Gold]

ABJ on AA.

[Sergeant Zip]

"Were you the ‘Weed Man’ in Akron?”

“For the last two or three weeks, I probably was,” Abreu said.... “I’m just trying to think about my team right now. Obviously, I should have thought about it before."

[GP1]

Excellent article. Puts to rest a lot of the rumors about what went on.

[g-mann17]

This is so close to being so much more disastrous for our program. UA students were buying from him, he's kind of an easily identifiable person. There are not many more rungs in the ladder to "lack of institutional control".

Just like any other athlete that is "poor" I can't possibly have any sympathy for him. Let's think about this for a moment, he needed money, so he took $900 of his scholarship aid and turned it into $1100. So it all started so he could make an extra $200. Seriously? You had $900 to buy weed you idiot and your family and gf know what you are doing with your life. The best gift you could have given them is to not end up in jail.

And that is the biggest problem, is most of these athletes don't appreciate what they have and want that little bit extra. Pryor at OSU, that was for what $300, he was set to bamboozle some poor NFL team in to drafting him in the top 10. If a UA scholarship athlete has enough left over aid to buy $900 worth of weed, I think student athletes get plenty of money.

[Captain Kangaroo]

DALLAS -- Former Dallas Cowboys offensive lineman Nate Newton says his competitive nature led him into the drug business.

"I've always been competitive, I've always been in sports," said Newton, a six-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman who retired after the 2000 season. "I couldn't see myself not being the biggest dope man."

[GP1]

This is so close to being so much more disastrous for our program.

I agree. It was good for the program that he got arrested as quickly as he did. Losing to Can't and getting blown out in the first round of the ncaas would have been the least of our problems had it gone on for a long period. The cops did UofA a favor.

[legendofzippy]

Unless there are some other facts we don't know, this isn't even remotely close to lack of institutional control. The University had a plan in place to deal with this type of issue, and when they became aware of the situation they executed the plan.

He broke the law, but it's not as if coaches recruited him by saying "you can make tons of money selling pot around here". UA suspended its star point guard at a crucial point in the biggest season they'd ever had - hell we might be the example for excellent control systems.

[LZIp]

Pretty in-depth article. Hopefully this crushes some of our poster's glimmer of hope that he somehow wasnt guilty.

[akronzips71]

If you commit a crime with another person, there is always someone waiting to rat you out for a deal of his own.

He was selling on campus. Apparently the only person who did not know he was a dealer was KD.

And there were dozens of people just waiting to throw him under the bus if the time came that it would buy them something.

This guy is too stupid to be in college.

[g-mann17]

Unless there are some other facts we don't know, this isn't even remotely close to lack of institutional control. The University had a plan in place to deal with this type of issue, and when they became aware of the situation they executed the plan.

He broke the law, but it's not as if coaches recruited him by saying "you can make tons of money selling pot around here". UA suspended its star point guard at a crucial point in the biggest season they'd ever had - hell we might be the example for excellent control systems.

The University had no plan, DEA caught the package, APD made the arrest. Maybe read the article properly. He was using University Aid to fund drug trafficking. I didn't say it would be, but it was closer than you would like to admit.

If it had went on any longer than it did, there would be no denying that other people knew about it. Fortunately it was short lived.

[legendofzippy]

If it had went on any longer than it did, there would be no denying that other people knew about it. Fortunately it was short lived.

So what you're saying is that IF the University had screwed up, then the University would have screwed up. Enlightening.

In the real world though, the University took swift and appropriate action.

[Dave in Green]

This pretty much closes the Abreu case for me. Direct quotes from audio tapes of police interrogation don't leave a lot left for speculation. As for lack of institutional control, I suppose it's possible to say that this is several rungs away from it from the NCAA perspective in the sense that a speeding ticket is several rungs away from armed robbery in the judicial system. But looking at the NCAA documentation shows that it's not really that close:

B. VIOLATIONS THAT DO NOT RESULT FROM A LACK OF INSTITUTIONAL CONTROL.

An institution cannot be expected to control the actions of every individual who is in some way connected with its athletics program. The deliberate or inadvertent violation of a rule by an individual who is not in charge of compliance with rules that are violated will not be considered to be due to a lack of institutional control:

• if adequate compliance measures exist;

• if they are appropriately conveyed to those who need to be aware of them;

• if they are monitored to ensure that such measures are being followed; and

• if, on learning that a violation has occurred, the institution takes swift action.

[g-mann17]

So what you're saying is that IF the University had screwed up, then the University would have screwed up. Enlightening.

In the real world though, the University took swift and appropriate action.

No, if Abreu hadn't gotten caught when he did then the University would have been screwed. Just keep living under your rock.

I'm glad DiG pulled the rule set.

• if adequate compliance measures exist; - Abreu was using aid to make drug purchases

• if they are appropriately conveyed to those who need to be aware of them; - One student talking about Abreu to an authority figure and nothing being done

• if they are monitored to ensure that such measures are being followed; and -

• if, on learning that a violation has occurred, the institution takes swift action. - the University delays action, allowing Abreu to play against Can't, MAC tournament with any of the other things happening.

Trust me, it is a lot closer than any of you want to admit.

[legendofzippy]

Trust me, it is a lot closer than any of you want to admit.

Again, you're throwing out a bunch of hypotheticals to support your point. And "Trust me" is always a sure sign that a person doesn't have facts to support their argument.

You could make a stronger case for LIC if you listed the backgrounds on some of our recent football transfers. Everything UA has done there has also been by the NCAA rulebook, but if you're looking to start false panic it's a better place to start.

[Dave in Green]

@g-mann17, I could agree with you if you stated it like this: If Abreu hadn't gotten caught when he did then the University could have been screwed if several other hypothetical scenarios had all come to pass.

Similar hypothetical scenarios could occur almost any time any scholarship athlete is in violation of rules. In that sense, almost every violation of rules by a scholarship athlete is just a few rungs on the ladder away from lack of institutional control. In reality, you need to look at previous instances where the NCAA invoked lack of institutional control. It's pretty rare, and I'm not sure if it's ever been used in the instance of a single athlete at a university with a previously good record of compliance.

[skip-zip]

This is so close to being so much more disastrous for our program. UA students were buying from him, he's kind of an easily identifiable person. There are not many more rungs in the ladder to "lack of institutional control".

Are you serious?? Nobody else related to the basketball program knew about it. Unless we find out otherwise, there is not one iota of "lack of institutional control" in this kind of situation, at all.

[g-mann17]

Are you serious?? Nobody else related to the basketball program knew about it. Unless we find out otherwise, there is not one iota of "lack of institutional control" in this kind of situation, at all.

See how quickly things get twisted. I threw out a hypothetical and people can't fathom that so they try and take it to the point of absurdity.

I stick by my statement and the fact that we were lucky it only lasted 3 months

[zippy5]

Well hypothetically speaking, if Dambrot starts slangin weed to his players, we'd get hit with lack of institutional control as well. Just a few rungs away.

[Dr Z]

Not worth it's own thread, but I found this interesting. This weeks ESPN the Magazine features LeBron, and has an headline article entitled "The Lost Stories of LBJ." Interesting in-depth article worth the read for non haters. The second part of the story focuses on the relationship and paths of LBJ and Maurice Clarett. The end of this section reads:

But while the NFL may not want Clarett as a player, the league did have him address this summer's rookie symposium in Aurora, Ohio. Colleges pay to hear him speak. And in August, he heard from Romeo Travis, a member of LeBron's inner circle. He asked if Clarett could counsel Alex Abreu, a guard at Akron, where LeBron's old St. Vincent–St. Mary coach, Keith Dambrot, is the head man. Abreu pleaded guilty in June to one count of felony drug trafficking. The 22-year-old, who is no longer enrolled at Akron, needed to comprehend that his path was running closer to Clarett's than to LeBron's.

Source

[Dave in Green]

Good read. What an amazing coincidence that Clarett first met LeBron after by chance getting seated next to LeBron's mother at a game. I hope that Clarett was able to speak with Abreu and help him straighten out his life.

[Z.I.P.]

Also not the most relevant of Q's, but I think we all want the best for Rico: Is Alex still on the mainland? Isn't most or all his family still back in the PR? I would be concerned about his support network.

[LZIp]

Also not the most relevant of Q's, but I think we all want the best for Rico: Is Alex still on the mainland? Isn't most or all his family still back in the PR? I would be concerned about his support network.

I saw him around some during later in the summer. Not sure if he still is.