http://www.fox19.com/story/27085584/tube...c-football

"Sometimes you have to put your foot down and say there's no more of it," Tuberville added. "I've had problems at other schools and everybody has problems, but when you have a sequence of problems then it kind of gets underneath your skin."

"Bottom line, no more second chances. It's their job to stay out of harm's way. It's their job to not be in the wrong place at the wrong time. If there's a situation where I know they've done something wrong, it's done. Over."

UC's Tuberville fed up: 'No more second chances'

Tom Groeschen, tgroeschen@enquirer.com 2:50 p.m. EDT October 28, 2014


UC coach Tommy Tuberville is tired of warning his players to behave.(Photo: The Enquirer/Gary Landers)

Tommy Tuberville is angered by the recent run of arrests that have tarnished the University of Cincinnati football team's name, and the Bearcats coach vowed Tuesday that it all will stop.

Now.

Tuberville, speaking at his weekly media luncheon in the Bob Goin Team Room of UC's Richard E. Lindner Center, went on the offensive before the topic arose.

"Before I bring it up for questions, I will make a statement about the problems that we're having on our football team," Tuberville said. "I'll be the first one to tell you that we've had problems."

It was the first time Tuberville was available to the Cincinnati media in person since Sunday, when Bearcats linebacker Marcus Tappan became the latest of several recent UC football player arrests.

Quarterback Jarred Evans was arrested the week before Tappan. There also was the Sept. 14 incident when one UC player (Alex Thomas) was arrested, a second (Hosey Williams) was cited and two others (Leviticus Payne, Ey'Shawn McClain) were found with outstanding warrants when police responded to a party where gunshots were fired.

"We do have a mentoring program, we have a training program for our kids, we talk to them," Tuberville said. "But I'm like everybody else, I'm kind of fed up with it. We're not going to have it anymore if they're going to be on this football team."

Tuberville he has always believed in second chances, within reason.

"Sometimes you have to put your foot down and say, listen, no more," he said. "These players represent this football team, this university and this city, and I'm not going to have it. I've had problems at other schools and everybody has problems, but when you have a sequence of problems, it kind of gets underneath your skin."

Tuberville said he is tired of addressing the whole team on Sundays with sharp words, when only a handful of players have been in trouble.

"No more second chances, bottom line," Tuberville said. "I owe it to the city, this university and this football team to put good kids on the field that are going to do what we ask them to do."

Tuberville noted that UC has a life skills director for athletics, and that the school is evaluating resumes to fill an open football player development/life skills slot.

"We're going to implement programs, hopefully bring in some pro players to talk," Tuberville said. "It's usually more effective if you bring kids in like your former players, to mentor and talk. We already have a program in place, but we'll keep adding to it."

Tuberville continued:

"It's our job to educate these kids on and off the field, how to handle themselves. We've got a lot of 18- and 19-year-olds here that have 15-year-old brains and maturity. When you have that, they make stupid decisions. I've had enough of it, and I'm sure everybody else has too."

Tuberville said he naturally wants to read about good things about his players, not bad things, when he picks up his daily newspaper.

"Don't get your name in the paper, don't get into a confrontation with the police, because I am on the police side," he said. "If they are confronted with our players, I am on the side of the policemen, because that's the way it should be.

"Our players know that and they understand it, but for some reason some of them are not listening. I think we got their attention this week."

Tuberville then opened it up for questions. When he said, "No second chances," did that mean that the next UC player who gets into trouble will be off the team?

"Starting right now, yes sir," Tuberville replied. "Starting last week, really."

Tuberville then amended that answer, slightly.

"But again, there's going to be a circumstance or two where they might not have done anything, but I don't want to see their name in the paper. Now a certain situation like that, they're done for the year.

"Now, they'll still be on the team and maybe go through spring practice, but they won't be playing anymore. It's their job to stay out of harm's way, to not be in the wrong place at the wrong time. If there's a situation where I know they did something wrong, it's done. Over."

UC senior quarterback Munchie Legaux said the players should welcome the hard line taken by their coach.

"Every week, he preaches going out and doing the right things, protecting the C, representing the University of Cincinnati in the right way," Legaux said. "Guys chose not to do that, but we have to set examples around here and that's what he's doing. He's making sure that guys follow the rules."

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/ucathlet.../18064525/

(10-28-2014 01:11 PM)Bearcat2012 Wrote:  http://www.fox19.com/story/27085584/tube...c-football

"Sometimes you have to put your foot down and say there's no more of it," Tuberville added. "I've had problems at other schools and everybody has problems, but when you have a sequence of problems then it kind of gets underneath your skin."

"Bottom line, no more second chances. It's their job to stay out of harm's way. It's their job to not be in the wrong place at the wrong time. If there's a situation where I know they've done something wrong, it's done. Over."

Love it, some people act as if it is difficult to stay out of trouble. It really is not.

(10-28-2014 02:37 PM)BeerCat Wrote:  

(10-28-2014 01:11 PM)Bearcat2012 Wrote:  http://www.fox19.com/story/27085584/tube...c-football

"Sometimes you have to put your foot down and say there's no more of it," Tuberville added. "I've had problems at other schools and everybody has problems, but when you have a sequence of problems then it kind of gets underneath your skin."

"Bottom line, no more second chances. It's their job to stay out of harm's way. It's their job to not be in the wrong place at the wrong time. If there's a situation where I know they've done something wrong, it's done. Over."

Love it, some people act as if it is difficult to stay out of trouble. It really is not.

Maybe times are different than they were in the 90's and I wasn't a football player...but I partied as much as the average college student at UC and not once did I find myself running from cops , clocking a guy in the face or smashing in someones window to their home.

We can say it's all talk , but I applaud TT for being out in front on addressing this to the fans and media , unfortunately seemingly on a weekly basis, and not hiding behind the old "we are addressing this internally" stance . I truly believe he is pissed off.

"We do have a mentoring program, we have a training program for our kids, we talk to them," Tuberville said. "But I'm like everybody else, I'm kind of fed up with it. We're not going to have it anymore if they're going to be on this football team."

So who's in charge of the mentoring program now? Wasn't the last guy (director of player welfare and development) dismissed after rubbing his wiener on a 73 year old woman in a supermarket? Just saying...

I'm glad to hear this. It should be zero tolerance at all times. These young men are given an opportunity that many would die for, and then they screw it up.

No problem with this. I do believe in second chances in certain circumstances, but there have been too many incidents this year and Tuberville is doing what he needs to do to protect our university and our football program's image.

As long as someone isn't arrested for mistaken identity or wrongfully accused. Being arrested does not equate to guilt.
NBA: Dante Cunningham struggles to clear name


Dante Cunningham

Former Minnesota Timberwolves forward Dante Cunningham spends time with his dog, Ruger, in his... Read more

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — It was after 4 a.m. when Dante Cunningham pulled his truck back into the driveway of his suburban Minneapolis home and saw the police waiting for him.

Officers put the handcuffs on the Minnesota Timberwolves' reserve as soon as his feet hit the pavement. The reality of his situation and the domestic assault charges that were on their way didn't really sink in until he was lying in a jail cell and the lights went out.

"The whole time I was like, 'I'm OK. I'm out of here. Things will be fine,'" Cunningham recalled. "Then it went dark and I was like, 'This is not a joke. I'm really in this.'"

In the six months since, charges have been dropped and police have concluded that Cunningham's accuser fabricated some of the allegations against him. But those six months have also seen domestic violence in sports thrust into the headlines like never before, thanks in part to the Ray Rice scandal in the NFL.

Cunningham feels like those handcuffs have never been taken off.

He is now an ex-Timberwolves forward, an NBA free agent who is living in a motorhome at a campground near the campus of Penn State, where a former college teammate is on the coaching staff and runs him through workouts. He is staying in the motorhome for reasons of convenience and not monetary. But the journeyman player who was hoping to get a new multi-million dollar contract this summer says he hasn't even gotten an offer for the league minimum because teams have told them it's too risky to bring him in.

"At this point it's about justice and it's about clearing my name," the 27-year-old forward told The Associated Press. "Clearly this adds a terrible stigma to my name. ... Now when anyone looks up Dante Cunningham, oh, wasn't he the one that was in trouble? There's nothing out there saying there was a false charge and now we have to change it. We have to bring justice to this situation so that this doesn't happen again."

Cunningham helped Villanova reach the Final Four as a senior and NBA scouts and executives were intrigued by his blue-collar mentality forged during an upbringing by a strict military family near the nation's capital. The Portland Trail Blazers drafted him in the second round in 2009 and he spent the next five years building a reputation as a dependable role player who could defend multiple positions.

He signed a three-year deal worth more than $6 million with Memphis in 2011 and was traded to Minnesota a year later.

Cunningham met Miryah Herron last year and lived with her for eight months in a whirlwind start to their relationship. The two had an argument early on April 3, and that's where their stories take wildly divergent paths.

Herron told police that Cunningham kicked in the door to their bedroom, choked her and slammed her head against the wall. Cunningham says he kicked the door in more than a week earlier after he accidentally locked his keys in the room.

Herron had red marks on her neck and a bump on her head but did not require medical attention, according to police. Cunningham says he is not responsible for the marks and the only time he touched Herron was when he grabbed her wrist to get her to stop hanging on his truck as he drove away to cool off.

Cunningham missed one game while he was in jail, but the team and league did not suspend him in adherence to a collectively bargained policy of letting the legal process play out before deciding on a potential punishment.

Cunningham was arrested again three days later after Herron told police that he violated a protection order by calling her from his hotel room phone and sending her Skype messages, including one that allegedly read "ur dead mark my words dead."

According to the police report obtained by the AP, phone records from Cunningham's hotel room show that no outgoing calls were made the night he was there and surveillance cameras indicate he never left his room until police arrived to arrest him. An investigation of the IP address for the device that sent the threatening messages found that the messages were sent from a device inside Herron's home, not Cunningham's phone.

"Evidence does not show that Cunningham sent the messages and in fact, it appears Herron sent the messages to herself in an attempt to frame Cunningham," Medina Police Officer Charmane Domino wrote.
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/dc3128fba...clear-name

This is why our judicial system deems someone innocent until proven guilty.

As CTT stated in an earlier presser, unfortunately in sports players are treated as guilty until found innocent. This will come back to bite the NFL and other sports entities in the ass down the road.

When i was at UC, during the 90s, the football team had more than its fair share of rowdy a$$ dudes. They were notorious for coming through parties and wrecking shop. Some cats from s. florida killed someone, etc, etc, etc. One of the main differences now, versus then is that people (ie the media) seem to give a crap and cover the story. All in all, I think things are worlds better now. It's great that Tubs is taking a stand. Image matters. Esp when the spotlight is on.



mc

It would seem things could be made easier if the NCAA curbed behavior prior to an athlete stepping foot on campus. Obviously, they aren't going to bite the hand that feeds them but if they simply stated anyone with a felony, misdemeanor or what have you... isn't eligible for an athletic scholarship. They can attend under their own financial obligations but no free handouts. Of course most wouldn't be able to and colleges aren't going to keep superstars with checkered pasts out of their programs. And it would probably lead to more "handlers" and "sponsors".

Outstanding decision. Mandatory really... the only play he could make right now with the press we are getting. Of course, if Gunner Kiel, Johnny Holton or Mike Boone get arrested for underage open container, I may change my tune.

(10-28-2014 07:43 PM)rath v2.0 Wrote:  Outstanding decision. Mandatory really... the only play he could make right now with the press we are getting. Of course, if Gunner Kiel, Johnny Holton or Mike Boone get arrested for underage open container, I may change my tune.

Make that any running back on the roster. Those position meetings have to be pretty lonely affairs these days.

(10-28-2014 07:56 PM)subflea Wrote:  

(10-28-2014 07:43 PM)rath v2.0 Wrote:  Outstanding decision. Mandatory really... the only play he could make right now with the press we are getting. Of course, if Gunner Kiel, Johnny Holton or Mike Boone get arrested for underage open container, I may change my tune.

Make that any running back on the roster. Those position meetings have to be pretty lonely affairs these days.

So that begs the following questions: Is RDA IV still unable to play physically? Or is he using an injury that occurred several weeks ago to guarantee him another year of eligibility at Tennessee?

If its the latter, very upsetting that a team captain would abandon his team when he could help in the backfield. Something has transpired since he has now been removed from the roster. And I guess those in the know aren't talking. And those in the media aren't reporting.

I know one thing - UC should shelve their opening game day video. Nothing like a non-roster player being highlighted.

(10-29-2014 09:28 AM)Ragpicker Wrote:  

(10-28-2014 07:56 PM)subflea Wrote:  

(10-28-2014 07:43 PM)rath v2.0 Wrote:  Outstanding decision. Mandatory really... the only play he could make right now with the press we are getting. Of course, if Gunner Kiel, Johnny Holton or Mike Boone get arrested for underage open container, I may change my tune.

Make that any running back on the roster. Those position meetings have to be pretty lonely affairs these days.

So that begs the following questions: Is RDA IV still unable to play physically? Or is he using an injury that occurred several weeks ago to guarantee him another year of eligibility at Tennessee?

If its the latter, very upsetting that a team captain would abandon his team when he could help in the backfield. Something has transpired since he has now been removed from the roster. And I guess those in the know aren't talking. And those in the media aren't reporting.

I know one thing - UC should shelve their opening game day video. Nothing like a non-roster player being highlighted.

if he's healthy and available to play, do we know for sure that he abandoned the team, or did the coaching staff abandon him? i don't think he volunteered to move to the slot WR. We're so stacked at WR it wouldn't make any sense. if he wants to transfer, so what? He may end up in the state of Tennessee, but he probably won't be a Volunteer.

(10-29-2014 10:21 AM)eroc Wrote:  if he's healthy and available to play, do we know for sure that he abandoned the team, or did the coaching staff abandon him?

I don't know which happened. That's my point. Just very strange that a team captain is magically removed from the roster and no one is talking or reporting on it.

Munchie is awesome. It is nice to have a leader on the team who others respect immediately standing behind the coach's decision.

(10-29-2014 10:24 AM)Ragpicker Wrote:  

(10-29-2014 10:21 AM)eroc Wrote:  if he's healthy and available to play, do we know for sure that he abandoned the team, or did the coaching staff abandon him?

I don't know which happened. That's my point. Just very strange that a team captain is magically removed from the roster and no one is talking or reporting on it.

it's very strange and a little sad. He's been an ambassador for the program up until this point. if he does jump ship to another school i don't fault him. Wouldn't want my last year playing the game to end this way.

(10-29-2014 10:56 AM)eroc Wrote:  

(10-29-2014 10:24 AM)Ragpicker Wrote:  

(10-29-2014 10:21 AM)eroc Wrote:  if he's healthy and available to play, do we know for sure that he abandoned the team, or did the coaching staff abandon him?

I don't know which happened. That's my point. Just very strange that a team captain is magically removed from the roster and no one is talking or reporting on it.

it's very strange and a little sad. He's been an ambassador for the program up until this point. if he does jump ship to another school i don't fault him. Wouldn't want my last year playing the game to end this way.

That's what makes this issue come back around on point with this thread. The team is obviously lacking leaders that can self-police their teammates. But the guy that, as you put it, has "been an ambassador for the program" is quietly off the roster.

I think certain things do not merit "One and done". Anything beyond underage drinking or a joint first time, one game out. Second time, goodbye for a year and you must beg to return.

Resisting arrest, B&E, etc., one and off to JC or The U.