Friday’s Scandal Update

In Friday’s scandal news we learn that Rick Pitino got a full 98% of the money Adidas paid Louisville. Pitino got $3 million in two years; the department got $35,000 in the same period. This is the old contract, not the one recently negotiated.

That’s a quick argument for letting the athletes have the benefits of the outside contracts.

Not everyone makes Pitino type money of course and smaller programs may need the boost that shoe contracts give. But surely if the players can’t sign individual deals, the money, or part of it, could be pooled and distributed to the athletes.

We also learn that Pitino’s old boss, Tom Jurich, had an amazing deal which saw Louisville pay his taxes, buy him golf club memberships in two clubs, 16 box seats for the Kentucky Derby and Oaks and eight football and basketball season tickets for life - and the lives of his wife and children.

It goes on.

Coincidentally, while Pitino and Jurich rake in millions, we also learn that the Louisville athletic department isn’t even breaking even.

Go ahead and think that through if you need to, we’ll wait.

Over at the Tulsa paper, Bill Haisten asks whether Oklahoma State will be damaged a little or a lot.

Here’s some interesting insights into former Oklahoma State assistant Lamont Evans.

Former Clemson and current Tennesseee coach Rick Barnes weighs in, saying the game will survive. Well, maybe. But it seems more and more like a major turning point.