Former North Carolina football player Michael McAdoo has filed a lawsuit against the school and the NCAA. Filed Friday in Durham Superior Court, the suit seeks reinstatement for the former Tar Heels defensive end.
McAdoo was declared permanently ineligible for academic misconduct during the NCAA's investigation of the Tar Heels football program.
A hearing has been scheduled for Judge Orlando Hudson's courtroom on July 15.
Assistant sports editor Lorenzo Perez has bounced back-and-forth between The News & Observer's news and sports department several times since joining the newspaper in 1999. His latest assignment has him working with The N&O's ACC writers and online news. E-mail 
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We STILL haven't seen
Mon, 07/11/2011 - 21:29 — mad_maxWe STILL haven't seen Butch's cell phone and/or email records, which were court ordered to be released....
What are they hiding?
As bad as this scandal has looked, we will never know how dirty Carolina's program actually was/is. The corruption in this state is sickening. I wonder if any other school around here would get total support from the UNC system, local politicians, media powers (like Don Curtis), etc...
Regardless of how this whole investigation ends, the damage has already been done. Now we all know, and have proof, that the "Carolina Way" is a load of crap. Despite what their fans have whined about for decades, Carolina is just as dirty, if not dirtier, than the rest of the schools around. Public Ivy my a$$.
Those who continue to support and defend Butch and company are in for a rude awakening and a big slice of humble pie. At some point, this is all going to come crashing down. Cheaters never win in the end...especially the arrogant ones. I just hope that UNC @ CH doesn't drag the rest of us down with them.
Haha
Tue, 07/12/2011 - 00:39 — Heels20Thanks for the good laugh. The conspiracy continues...
You're welcome
Tue, 07/12/2011 - 00:47 — mad_maxBeen too quiet for too long on here!
I know I presented it in an amusing way, but in reality, there are some good points in my post and some questions that should be answered.
quiet
Wed, 07/13/2011 - 11:56 — SurferYep, I am all primed for some witty responses to some well publicised TOB remarks, but alas, it must be too hot for a pig pickin.
got nuthin' from tob
Wed, 07/13/2011 - 12:40 — JPDOhioBut Greg Little has been taking some ribbing from his new Brown's teammates over his parking tickets. And he claims he paid them all. With his own money!
old news
Wed, 07/13/2011 - 14:55 — SurferThe ribbing he deserves and appreciates, no less, but nothing new there unless he goes out to replace the Brown's punter.
so far, so good
Wed, 07/13/2011 - 21:24 — JPDOhioLittle's been getting good reviews at the players' only camps that Colt McCoy has been holding.
And, yes, I will be rooting for Little when he steps on the field in a Browns uniform, which looks like it could be this year after all.
I'm bored
Wed, 07/13/2011 - 15:38 — gvillegatrThese last five or six days as been a bore around here.
JPD, how is your son doing with the wedding "looming" only three or ten days away ? Any good boozing story's (bachelor party) with his buddy's !?
10 days to go
Wed, 07/13/2011 - 21:34 — JPDOhioWeek from this coming Saturday, but I am the lucky Father of the Bride.
My future son-in-law had his bachelor party in New Orleans. I don't know what they did, and I don't wanna know. I did hear some stories, but his dad was there too, so I know we didn't get the good stuff.
My daughter had her party in Pittsburgh. All I know is some guy who was having his bachelor party wherever they were kept coming on to her and some Croatian guys came to her rescue. Other than that, I don't wanna know.
As they say, ignorance is bliss.
My best friend
Thu, 07/14/2011 - 11:01 — gvillegatrHad his Bachelor Party in Nawlins as well. Go, go, go was the theme of this four day weekend. Might have had six hours of sleep.
SOUNDS ABOUT RIGHT
Thu, 07/14/2011 - 12:51 — JPDOhioI would know more, but our kids know better than to tweet anything that would blow back at them.
One other thing. Ours may be the only reception ever in Columbus where the "O-H-I-O" version of Hang on Sloopy is not played and danced to.
A ton of uncertainty
Tue, 07/12/2011 - 02:04 — Heels20The Don Curtis conspiracy theory makes accusers look bad because it's digging for something that isn't there. This whole jumping from Point A to Point B on the cell phones and emails is a weak argument because the public knows nothing. The situation will play out, but this stuff doesn't get taken care of overnight.
In other news, Pacman Jones apparently resisted arrest in a neck brace. Of course, the neck brace part may be the only "news" in that story.
He is going to pay a steep
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 17:30 — growupHe is going to pay a steep price, but he broke the rules. He will have to learn to live with it and lying to the NCAA only makes it worse. The professor, Honor Court, and the UNC-ch football diploma mill all look bad. But hey, just win, right?
Lied ??
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 19:38 — gvillegatrDid McAdoo lie to the NCAA ?? Anybody ?
I think the lying thing is
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 22:19 — mad_maxI think the lying thing is just speculation right now. Not sure though...would have to look through old statements from the NCAA and possibly the NOA to see if it was ever put out there that McAdoo did lie to them.
The speculation does make some logical sense, however. As you pointed out, FSU players got multi-game suspensions for cheating on a test. McAdoo being ruled permenantly eligible would make a lot more sense relative to the FSU situation, if he did in fact lie to the NCAA.
Don't think so
Sat, 07/09/2011 - 09:27 — gvillegatrI'm sure the accusation of lying (msp?) was lumped into the OP simply bc he hates UNC. Cheating is cut and dry. There is no way to lie bc there is obviously a paper trail.
FSU's football team had a mass cheating scandal (all semester) and only got three games, but let's throw the book at one UNC football player who plagerised one paper.
fsu
Sat, 07/09/2011 - 10:19 — JPDOhioHow long ago did that occur? I'm just wondering because the more time that goes by, the less likely it is that comparisons can be made. Enforcement actions and penalties can change over time.
I don't know if it is true, but it sure seems like there are more schools in trouble publicly now than there were at any one time in the past. I get the feeling that maybe the NCAA is trying to send a message here, although, if they are, they are being pretty clumsy about it.
Saw that OSU threw Tressel under the bus yesterday. I doubt it will help their case, because I don't think they were past the probationary period resulting from the Troy Smith and O'Brien problems. I expect the NCAA to hit them hard, but who knows? I thought West Virginia got off pretty lightly the other day.
NCAA Enforcement
Sun, 07/10/2011 - 16:47 — Heels20I don't think the enforcement/standards/penalties change all that much over time. I think one thing that is overlooked is how different all these situations are. People try to compare UNC to USC, saying that Carolina should expect the same sanctions that the Trojans ended up with. That makes no sense, because the situations were so different that they're probably going to be handled differently.
Definitely can't say that I'm one of the people who thinks that the NCAA is inconsistent, and that they're coming down harder on Carolina because they're not a big-name football school. However, I do think you're onto something when you say they're trying to make a statement. The questioning of Coples was stupid, and just an example of how the NCAA wastes time going after small money. They may counter that with the argument that he was at a draft party with two guys who received almost $20,000 in improper benefits during their time in college, but are you going to investigate every athlete seen at parties in facebook pictures if they're at a school with a history of this stuff? Waste of time in my opinion, and I could care less if athletes at any school are going out and partying with former teammates, as long as they're not receiving thousands of dollars worth of stuff that they could never get at most other schools.
Also, NCAA is probably busier now than ever because of social media and paper trails that make it so much easier to bust everyone. If a coach decides to rat on an opposing school, we've reached a time where it's hard to cover that stuff up. Notice how they busted Vernon Davis for providing $20 worth of improper benefits to Carolina's guys. Do you think such a small figure could have been proven a couple decades ago?
Fsu
Sat, 07/09/2011 - 11:43 — gvillegatrIt was in the Spring of 2007 when it came up. There were as many as 20 players who got test answers all semester long.
They got three games a piece and I believe they were done at different times of the year instead of all at once.
Yup, McAdoo got a fair punishment.
Leave it to the
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 21:00 — UNC1998experts to take apart the paper... Facts are facts, and those who judge them are in place. Although all the hard work is appreciated... it will have no bearing... How frustrating it must be!
All kidding aside, we'll see how much firm ground McAdoo's case has. I actually believe an injunction if granted could come in time for the September start of the season. Let's hope he's in shape... just in case. From what I've read and heard from folks such as Cossack and Orr McAdoo might just have a whale of a case. The NCAA might have to either eat their words, open their doors to legal eyes, or write a mighty big check. I certainly hope it's the former.
Well
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 16:42 — Heels20Still haven't seen the PDF of the paper yet. What I had read was that this was over an email where Wiley changed the citations from MLA to APA. If it's true that he plagiarized the whole paper, then that definitely gives the NCAA more of a case. At the same time, I don't know what the typical ruling is for an offense like this. A 2-game suspension is typical for $110 in benefits, but not sure how they handle a situation in which a paper was plagiarized.
University Honor courts are
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 18:21 — dlnorrisUniversity Honor courts are where Frat Geeks get exonorhated after urinating in public or using cheat sheets on tests. They are not courts of law or even legitimate places for discussion of facts and findings. Of course the honor court found the minimal amount of wrongdoing they could justify (get buy with) for a football star with his hand in the cookie jar. I suspect the NCAA has all of the evidence and rules they need to justify the suspension (they do not take such action on whim) and the Honor Court findings will quickly become irrelevant in the court of law.
I'm impressed ...
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 18:50 — gvillegatrAt your knowledge of the UNC Honor Court and the rulings of the NCAA. You talk with such confidence. You must know more than us and maybe more than the HC and NCAA as well. I'm in awe.
Something for nothing
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 16:32 — RaymondSimsHe did something wrong or they wouldn't have kicked him off the team. He had his chance. Even with some education, he is just another "something for nothing" member. I think I see the race card comming up.
Have you read anything else about this guy?
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 16:37 — HeelsforeverHave you read anything else about this guy? The Univeristy, nor the coaching staff "kicked him off the team". The NCAA ruled that he should never play again because he received $110 of inappropriate benefits. Try looking at this from an unbiased point of view and you might just come to the conclusion that permanent ineligibility is a little excessive for the crime the NCAA says he committed.
Not just $110
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 11:39 — YAR8packThe NCAA didn't rule him ineligible solely for $110 in inappropriate benefits. The NCAA also ruled the paper he submitted was very much plagiarized.
Don't believe me? You can download the PDF file of the paper and do a google search on it and see it is very much plagiarized.
I used to reference and search lord Google for plagiarism all of the time when I was a graduate assistant. I caught many a silly, lazy kid doing the same thing McAdoo is in trouble for.
And
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 13:42 — gvillegatrdid you send all of the "many a silly, lazy kid" to honor court or something similar ?
Nope
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 13:52 — YAR8packI made those "silly, lazy" kids walk the plank and fall into a pit of fire and rabid chihuahuas.
Nice use of quotation. Perhaps you should've been a tutor for McAdoo. :-D
silly and lazy kid
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 15:20 — JPDOhioMcAdoo has no legit complaint. If he couldn't muster the energy to edit his paper to least try to make it look original, then he got the penalty he deserves. Since the beginning of time, every serious student knows that, if you are going to plagiarize something, you change things around to make it look like your own work.
The age of the internet and the availability of word processing software has spawned a generation of academic sloths. Back when I was in college, we did it the old fashioned way, with Cliff Notes and selected quotations from the actual text. Now that was creative work. And it was done after we walked to school, uphill, in a snowstorm, every day.
Complaint
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 12:06 — SurferYou are correct, if what Yar says is true. I have not seen the paper so I can not really give an opinion as to whether it was plagerized or not. Oh, and I think it is "uphill both ways".
uphill both ways
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 12:57 — JPDOhioYou are correct.
It is also an uphill battle to instill any common sense in some of these kids. Whether it is a sense of entitlement, lack of parental guidance or just plain stupidity, it is just amazing how poor some of the decisions are that these guys routinely make. It makes me wonder how some of these guys can understand a playbook or get a defensive scheme right.
Common sense
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 13:32 — gvillegatrHow bout some common sense btn state and UNC fans !? ;0)
Getting back to the players and surprised they can comprehend a play book ... It's all most of these kids have ever known or cared to know.
As far as cheating goes, it's safe to say we have all cheated on a paper or "yawned" and looked at someone else test or worse had a test bank or cheat sheet handy.
unattainable goals
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 14:34 — JPDOhioCommon sense between State and UNC fans? Maybe that will happen in October or November (whichever month that nut who is predicting the end of the world has settled on since it didn't happen in June). But, hey, Obama played golf with John Boehner and John Kasich, so maybe there is hope!
Regarding cheating, I am sure there is someone out there that never did, but I haven't met him or her. For the record, when I was in college a hundred years ago, I read the books and wrote the papers on my own with proper use of reference sources, with one exception. I drew the line at "The Mill on the Floss". Any penalty for plagiarism was better than the torture of reading that book in its entirety. It was so bad I remember it to this day, and not fondly. On that one, I cheated and have no regrets.
But in this case he does
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 15:40 — gvillegatrMy opinion of course. He's guilty of one infraction. He served his time for the one infraction (a season out of school). He deserves another shot under a massive telescope.
C'mon YAR, you know you
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 13:35 — mad_maxC'mon YAR, you know you can't present factual evidence here!
Seriously, you are spot on. I hope some of the folks here actually take the time to check out the pdf file you're talking about before responding.
pdf
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 12:03 — SurferHave not seen the pdf, so we will just believe whatever Yar says, I guess.
Paper
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 14:39 — mad_maxFigured most would have seen it somewhere by now. Then I realized that no UNC message board would allow it! Haha, nah, here it is...starts on page 127:
http://media2.newsobserver.com/smedia/2011/07/05/22/21/NQ5tK.So.156.PDF
Yup
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 15:48 — Heels20I don't read UNC messageboards either way, but I usually wait for a legitimate media outlet to release that info. Not sure what the standard punishment is from NCAA for plagiarism, but I can't imagine it's anything good.
Let's compare it to
Fri, 07/08/2011 - 19:37 — gvillegatrFlorida State football players and what they did and how the NCAA punished them.
These football players actually were given answers to exams.
They got three game suspensions.
Fair ? Not to UNC and McAdoo.
Such is the NCAA ...
$110 and help with citations
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 16:26 — Heels20Nice job, NCAA. You caught "the tator."
More than Citations
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 11:42 — YAR8packGot caught for more than just citations. Go download McAdoo's paper, reference and search it on lord Google.
Where?
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 13:20 — Heels20Where'd you get a PDF file, and which paper was it? Honor court only found him guilty of one charge, leading to probation for fall of 2010, suspension in spring of 2011 with the option to re-enroll in summer of 2011.
I think YAR is right...the
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 13:33 — mad_maxI think YAR is right...the paper is embarrassingly plagiarized. He copy and pasted countless paragraphs (the majority of his paper, in fact) from websites and books without citing them...he even stole part of it from another student paper.
Also, after reading the NCAA's statement in response to the lawsuit yesterday, I don't think they agree with the honor court's judgement. They say that they take academic integrity very seriously, and that they will defend their ruling.
Makes you wonder what was actually in the 2 counts that the honor court cleared McAdoo of...
Be a man and take some responsibility.
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 15:46 — PowderedToastManWow...he's suing someone because he was too stupid to stay in college.
Be careful
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 16:11 — HeelsforeverBe careful throwing out accusations. Read the document and you'll find that his total improper benefits amounted to $110. There were no doubt some bad apples in Chapel Hill, but Michael McAdoo does not appear to be one of them. According to the document he believed that Marvin Austin paid for his part of the hotel room and for his admission to a nightclub. You may decide to believe that he is simply lying, but what person would be satisfied with only $100 in benefits if they knew extra benefits were available and also was the kind of person who would accept extra benefits? Now that a case has been brought forth we will find out if the NCAA has evidence that has not been shared.
wow. NINE MAJOR
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 15:21 — bppackwow. NINE MAJOR VIOLATIONS...and some still think it's a witch hunt. unc-ch has been discgraced nationally...yet some still only worry about on-field success. if academic integrity mattered at unc-ch, Butch would be gone. sadly, it doesn't.
The
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 14:46 — jblues1969The complaint:
www.ncicl.org/assets/uploads/article/McAdoo%20Complaint.pdf
The petition for immediate reinstatement:
www.ncicl.org/asse...rticle/McAdoo%20Docs.pdf
Come on, N&O, you have to actually report on this story. You started the witch hunt in the first place, so it's not surprising that you'd try to cover up the facts that reveal that the academic side of the story was simply hysteria with no substance.
HOLY COW .... I thought ...
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 20:03 — AgentPierce"Come on, N&O, ..... You started the witch hunt in the first place,
after reading that..
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 14:56 — UNC1998earlier.. I must say both the NCAA and UNC stand to "lose" in this case. The facts brought forth in the Honor Court were blatantly ingnored when giving out punishment. Also, it appears the NCAA totally got wrong some of the accusations in the NOA. I second the call for a "full and thorough" investigation on this. It's all a matter of public record. That shouldn't be too difficult for an outfit with the size and manpower of the N&O. If the earlier ruling is somehow reversed.. that will make the total of players ruled ineligible to 3. Two of which would have no eligibility left after being suspended last year. In the end, McAdoo may yet contribute to what is now considered one of the best defensive lines in college football. Hooray Heels!! Hooray America!! Where the truth eventually comes out.
agree
Tue, 07/05/2011 - 16:00 — SurferJust hoping that this can be resovled quickly, which in most cases, is unlikely. But the young man certainly deserves reinstatement given the facts presented.