Even before Frank Haith has coached one game for the University of Missouri basketball team, the sun is setting on his stint at MU.
The hiring of Haith, who had been coach at the University of Miami, looked questionable when it took place, mainly because of his 43-69 record against Atlantic Coast Conference teams.
But now, in light of what came out in today’s Kansas City Star, it looks terrible.
The Star’s Mike DeArmond wrote about a far-reaching Yahoo Sports investigation in which a wealthy Miami booster — now jailbird — named Nevin Shapiro claimed to have paid a Miami recruit $10,000 to help get him to Miami.
Haith
Shapiro told Yahoo Sports that the transaction was “set up by assistant coach Jake Morton in 2007.” Furthermore, Shapiro said that Haith later “acknowledged” the payment in a one-on-one conversation.
Oh, boy, here we go again with the muck surrounding much of big-time, college sports.
Granted, Shapiro is a felon– serving 20 years for his part in a $930 million Ponzi scheme — and a braggart. That combination, crook and loudmouth, makes his credibility very questionable. But DeArmond dug up evidence that supports the fact that Shapiro had his hands and arms in the stew.
Consider this from DeArmond’s story:
“Shapiro told Yahoo that he provided dinner and a strip-club visit to Arthur Brown (a Miami recruit) and lunch and hotel rooms for Brown, his brother, parents and family adviser Brian Butler in March 2008.
“When contacted Tuesday night, Butler told The Star he and the Brown family did not realize Shapiro was a Miami booster.
” ‘We asked him are you an agent or a street agent or a booster, and he told us no, that he was not,’ Butler said.”
Let’s take a little side trip here….Doesn’t it seem like visits to strip clubs are always popping up in deals like this? It’s not enough for the big shots like Shapiro to flash the cash; no, they’ve gotta show the recruits that they can provide them with the comforts of the flesh, too.
And that’s where this story gets even seamier because the Yahoo story says that Haith himself participated in one strip-club outing with Shapiro and some Miami players.
Just this past week we saw how Missouri Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder got himself in a jam by having his photo taken with a stripper at a club in St. Louis and the photo got out into the public arena. Just doesn’t look good for a guy thinking about running for the Republican nomination for governor.
Here’s the thing about strip clubs. Any guy with half a brain knows that if you intend to patronize them, you want to slip in and out, alone, perhaps wearing a trench coat or ball cap to reduce the chances of being recognized. Then, after you’ve watched the pole dance or engaged in a lap dance or whatever, you get the hell out of there. No photos, no chumming it up with your fellow carousers. It’s in and out and back to your normal life, like your loss of dignity never happened.
I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THAT THE ABOVE SCENARIO DOES NOT COME FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE. I HAVE NEVER BEEN TO A STRIP CLUB. I HAVE NEVER SEEN AN X-RATED MOVIE. I HAVE NEVER EVEN LOOKED AT A PLAYBOY MAGAZINE. ONCE, WHEN I PICKED UP A SPORTS ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE AND REALIZED THAT IT WAS THE SWIMSUIT ISSUE, I THREW IT TO THE FLOOR IN DISGUST.
No, the scenario comes from common sense. Being spotted by anyone you know at a strip club — even a neighbor you don’t care for — does not advance your good citizenship.
…Where was I? Oh, yeah, Frank Haith.
So, it looks like the guy has endorsed the paying of recruits and that he has no problem providing off-color entertainment for them.
The NCAA is investigating.
For his part, Haith said in a statement released by MU last night: “The reports questioning my personal interactions with Mr. Shapiro are not an accurate portrayal of my character.”
Hmmm. Sounds to me like he’s defending his character in general but not denying any specific allegations. Doesn’t look good, does it?
Back to my first paragraph, where I said the sun is setting on Haith’s time at MU. His supervisor is athletic director Mike Alden, who has given every indication that he’s the most straight-laced person on the face of the earth. He doesn’t brook any funny business.
Why, I bet he’s just like me — has never come close to stepping into a strip club.
This expose about Haith is really going to frost Alden. He’s got to be seething. Not only has he got a problematic basketball coach on his hands, the NCAA will be breathing down his neck for the foreseeable future.
No, I don’t like Haith’s prospects. I’ll bet he’s one (season) and done.
JimmyCsays: At the juncture of journalism and daily life in KC 
Appears Mr. Haith is no “paragon of virtue”
I’ll have to check with Charlie Wheeler and see where he thinks Mr. Haith belongs on the virtue scale.
Well I have called it UNIVERSITY of MISERY for the better part of a half century
“I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THAT THE ABOVE SCENARIO DOES NOT COME FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE. I HAVE NEVER BEEN TO A STRIP CLUB. I HAVE NEVER SEEN AN X-RATED MOVIE. I HAVE NEVER EVEN LOOKED AT A PLAYBOY MAGAZINE. ONCE, WHEN I PICKED UP A SPORTS ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE AND REALIZED THAT IT WAS THE SWIMSUIT ISSUE, I THREW IT TO THE FLOOR IN DISGUST.”
I always knew you had something wrong with you:’)
It is true, Ray, that you know me better than a lot of readers and that you’re in a better position to make that assertion. Please refrain from speculating, however, on what exactly might be wrong with me.
been following the story espnu and on yahoo, maybe quin doesn’t look too bad after all..just another hanger on with money to piss away so he he can look good to the girls and try to be a bmoc that he never was…
College sports is pretty corrupt. Anytime there is an intersection of man and money evil is standing on the corners. The NCAA seems to encourage exploration of the grey loopholes in between the black and white lines. One wonders if the leadership at the NCAA, on some level, might not be sadomasochistic.
Just the fact that he coached at “THE U”, given its’ sordid history in all matters Right V Wrong….not to be confused with WRIGHT V BOTELLO….should have been enough to eliminate him from consideration in the beginning.
I just read the Pitch story about Louie Wright suing Tony for libel…Thanks, Smartman.
I think this is a good time to roll out a capsule of the Associated Press guidelines on libel. Here it is…
What is Libel?
This handout is based on information from the Associated Press Style and Libel Guide.
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If someone writes for publication a defamatory statement (a statement in which a person’s reputation is seriously damaged), and that statement is false, and that person is identified in print, even without a name, then libel charges can be brought.
Associated Press’s definition of libel:
Libel is the publication of writing, pictures or cartoons that expose a person to public hatred, shame, disgrace, or ridicule, or induce an ill opinion of a person, and are not true.
Actions for libel result mainly from news stories that allege crime, fraud, dishonesty, immoral or dishonorable conduct, or stories that defame the subject professionally, causing financial loss either personally or to a business (Associated Press Style and Libel Guide 251).
To call a person a murderer, a cheat, a child molester, an alcoholic, a liar, a thief, a drug abuser, etc., can be considered grounds for a libel case.
Any accusation that a member of society has violated common standards of ethical behavior can lead to a libel suit. In short, libel is publication of false information about a person that causes injury to that person’s reputation.
Libel defense:
TRUTH is one libel defense. Remember that it is very difficult to prove truth.
FAIR COMMENT is another libel defense. The press can write an opinion about the performance of anyone who is a public performer including a politician, athlete, movie celebrity, etc. However, if you say something defamatory about that person’s private life, you can be sued. You can say someone is a lousy writer; but, you can’t say the writer is a lousy drunk (unless you can prove it’s true).
“The publication of defamatory matter that consists of comment and opinion, as distinguished from fact, with reference to matters of public interest and concern, provided they do so fairly and with an honest purpose, are not libelous, however severe in their terms, unless they are written maliciously” (Associated Press Style and Libel Guide 251).
MALICIOUS means that the writer knew the information was false and only wrote it to injure the person being written about.
In cases regarding public figures, the person who says he was libeled about his public performance, must also prove the libel had malicious intent (reckless disregard for the truth).
Another libel defense is PRIVILEGE. Privilege applies to libelous statements that may occur during government proceedings or in public documents. All public proceedings, including court sessions and most public records, are privileged and can be quoted even if they are defamatory. They must, however, be quoted in context and not used as a malicious statement used out of context.
ANY DEFAMATORY STATEMENT THAT CAN’T BE PROVEN TRUE AND WASN’T TAKEN DIRECTLY FROM A PUBLIC RECORD OR GOVERNMENT PROCEEDING HAS TO BE CONSIDERED DANGEROUS TO PRINT.
In writing about trials and arrests, make sure you check the record. Before the person is found guilty, always use words like “alleged” or “accused.” In America, everyone is considered innocent before proven guilty.
The Right To Privacy:
When a person becomes involved in a news event, voluntarily or involuntarily, he forfeits some rights to privacy. Similarly, a person somehow involved in a matter of legitimate public interest, can be written about with safety.
However, a story or a picture that dredges up the sordid details of a person’s past and has no current newsworthiness can be considered libel (The Associated Press Stylebook and Libel Manual 261).
Public figures are generally thought of as people who seek the limelight, who inject themselves into public debate. The court says that involvement in a crime, even a newsworthy one, does not make one a public figure.
This is important because if you are proven to be a public figure and someone defames your job performance or ethics or whatever, you have to prove libel and you have to prove malicious intent.
If you are a private person, you only have to prove libel, but not malicious intent. Consequently, it’s easier for private citizens to win a libel case than it is for a public figure to win a libel case.
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Tutorial & Instructional Programs
Gallaudet University
Comments or Questions: VP: (202) 250-2637
Wow Fitz! Talk about exceeding expectations!
Thanks!
Readers: The comment from Smartman that prompted me to post the libel information somehow disappeared from the comments listed above. It was still in my overall comments queue, however, and here’s what Smartman wrote:
So, Fitz, it looks like your buddy Tony Botello might need to borrow TEN LARGE for a retainer. You got his back?
I appreciate the prompt, Smartman. This is a serious issue that could have a lot of repercussions, for bloggers in general and Tony in particular.
Gentlemen: We need to look at the real problem with college sports — money, and programs that have turned their heads to scumbags who have turned the sports programs into a cesspool. The Yahoo reporter has interviewed over 70 current and past players, and each and every one of them said, yes, it happened in both the football and basketball programs. Haith knew what was going on, and he just turned his head to all the problems with his program. If you don’t believe that, then there is a Santa Claus. Mizzou took this guy out of a program that deserves the “death penalty” for both programs, and if they didn’t see this coming, then shame on them because it will happen at Mizzou, because, if you don’t think Bill Laurie won’t do the same thing (if he hasn’t already), then there is an Easter Bunny.