The Real Bruce Pearl Story
Feb 7, 2005 15:15:36 GMT -6
Post by Bruces Tape Recorder on Feb 7, 2005 15:15:36 GMT -6
Since Guests can not post on the slimey UWM Board, if any of their cretins can read, this is the Pearl story and why Jimmy should never shake that rat-baztards' hand.
I have little doubt that Pearl thought he was genuinely on the side of good versus evil throughout most of Thomas' recruitment. The problem was that his primary source of information was a wannabe broker, Simeon student Renaldo Kyles, whom Pearl was using as an agent of Iowa's interests. And it was undoubtedly Kyles who invented the idea that Illinois was offering large sums of money to Thomas. (This would certainly be a convenient excuse for Kyles if Thomas decided to attend Illinois.) Incidentally, Kyles was given a recruiting weekend to Iowa--for those who doubt that Iowa was using him to promote Iowa's interests.
The damning phone call that turned out to be the smoking gun occurred at the end of a long weekend of calls from Pearl to Thomas. Pearl had called Thomas more than a dozen times that weekend, with Thomas being too nice and naive to tell him to get lost. In the final phone call, Pearl got Thomas to offer the weakest possible verbal assent to Pearl's suggestion of illegal Illinois offers ("uh-huh"). He taped this call without Thomas' knowledge. Pearl spliced the tape, cutting out certain things he apparently didn't want the NCAA to hear, and turned it over to acquaintances in the enforcement division. But even the remaining portion of the tape intimated of illegal offers from Pearl, which Thomas later confirmed.
This tape was the "smoking gun" that cost Illinois a million dollars, trashed Lou Henson's and Jimmy Collins' reputations (perhaps keeping Henson out of the HOF), impacted the reputation of the institution (i.e. "Illinois cheats"), and set back the Illinois basketball program significantly. Pearl has never recanted, saying more or less he had to do what he had to do. He has never taken responsibility for his use of Kyles as an agent and for the false information fed to him by Kyles. Nor did the NCAA care enough to investigate Pearl.
I find it utterly despicable that any school employs Bruce Pearl as a basketball coach. I'm glad that at least Jimmy Collins has guts enough to take a stand. Bruc
I have little doubt that Pearl thought he was genuinely on the side of good versus evil throughout most of Thomas' recruitment. The problem was that his primary source of information was a wannabe broker, Simeon student Renaldo Kyles, whom Pearl was using as an agent of Iowa's interests. And it was undoubtedly Kyles who invented the idea that Illinois was offering large sums of money to Thomas. (This would certainly be a convenient excuse for Kyles if Thomas decided to attend Illinois.) Incidentally, Kyles was given a recruiting weekend to Iowa--for those who doubt that Iowa was using him to promote Iowa's interests.
The damning phone call that turned out to be the smoking gun occurred at the end of a long weekend of calls from Pearl to Thomas. Pearl had called Thomas more than a dozen times that weekend, with Thomas being too nice and naive to tell him to get lost. In the final phone call, Pearl got Thomas to offer the weakest possible verbal assent to Pearl's suggestion of illegal Illinois offers ("uh-huh"). He taped this call without Thomas' knowledge. Pearl spliced the tape, cutting out certain things he apparently didn't want the NCAA to hear, and turned it over to acquaintances in the enforcement division. But even the remaining portion of the tape intimated of illegal offers from Pearl, which Thomas later confirmed.
This tape was the "smoking gun" that cost Illinois a million dollars, trashed Lou Henson's and Jimmy Collins' reputations (perhaps keeping Henson out of the HOF), impacted the reputation of the institution (i.e. "Illinois cheats"), and set back the Illinois basketball program significantly. Pearl has never recanted, saying more or less he had to do what he had to do. He has never taken responsibility for his use of Kyles as an agent and for the false information fed to him by Kyles. Nor did the NCAA care enough to investigate Pearl.
I find it utterly despicable that any school employs Bruce Pearl as a basketball coach. I'm glad that at least Jimmy Collins has guts enough to take a stand. Bruc
