{"id":1680,"date":"2014-08-19T12:33:48","date_gmt":"2014-08-19T16:33:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bigredsportsmachine.com\/?p=1680"},"modified":"2014-08-19T12:33:48","modified_gmt":"2014-08-19T16:33:48","slug":"tuesday-teabag-august-19-2014-notre-dame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/?p=1680","title":{"rendered":"Tuesday Teabag, August 19, 2014 – Notre Dame"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Pop<\/a>

Pop Quiz! Just kidding, you all get A’s.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Fightin’ Irish?\u00a0 More like the Flunkin’\u00a0Irish.\u00a0 Yes, this weeks\u2019 Tuesday Teabag travels to South Bend, Indiana, where the historically beyond reproach Fighting Irish find themselves in the middle of controversy.<\/p>\n

On Friday, it was announced the Notre Dame dismissed four players<\/a> (3 starters) from their football team for academic fraud.\u00a0 Allegedly, the players submitted papers and homework that were prepared by others.\u00a0 The University is handling matters internally, through their \u201cacademic honor code process.\u201d\u00a0 That process has been working overtime as of late, as this is the second academic scandal in as many years for the Irish.\u00a0 Last year, starting QB Everett Golson was suspended for the fall semester for cheating on an exam.<\/p>\n

Normally, when you see the headline \u201cSchool Subject to Academic Probe\u201d or \u201cDivision I Athlete Receives Improper Benefits\u201d you don\u2019t bat an eyelash.\u00a0 It happens all the time.\u00a0 Like here<\/a>.\u00a0 And here<\/a>.\u00a0 And here<\/a>.\u00a0 Colleges are whores for athletic success, as it translates into dollars, lots and lots of dollars.\u00a0 To put it in perspective:\u00a0 Last year<\/a>, teams in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl received $325,000 each.\u00a0 The National Championship Game:\u00a0 $18,000,000 each.\u00a0 EIGHTEEN MILLION DOLLARS\u2026EACH!\u00a0 Now, while some players may not be able to do the math, the difference is a shitload.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no wonder then that schools have created paper-only classes where no attendance is required, and that players are \u201cencouraged\u201d to take these classes.\u00a0 Are you really that shocked to learn that a 19-year-old kid that\u2019s being exploited<\/span> flown around the country playing sports had his \u201ctutor\u201d write a paper for him?\u00a0 Also, when you realize that colleges make a shit ton of money the better their sports teams perform, are you that surprised to learn of an institutional framework designed to help these kids cheat?<\/p>\n

But Notre Dame?\u00a0 They are supposed to be above the fray.\u00a0 They\u2019re so greedy<\/span> idyllic, they won\u2019t join a football conference, preferring to remain independent (and rake in that NBC cash<\/a>).\u00a0 A school that professes integrity above winning, doing things the right way, and always having high moral character.\u00a0 They pride themselves on tradition, honor, and Rudy.\u00a0 But all of that is just a ruse.\u00a0 They are no better than all the other dirtball college programs willing to do whatever it takes to win, even if that means going against your fundamental beliefs (if they were ever there to begin with).<\/p>\n

For the better part of the last two decades, the Fighting Irish have been (at best) a mediocre football team.\u00a0 They lost 9 consecutive Bowl Games<\/a> from 1994-2006, and were never in national championship contention.\u00a0 But all that changed recently.<\/p>\n

\"and<\/a>

and study like a rockstar!<\/p><\/div>\n

Apparently, Notre Dame compromised its core values<\/span> revised its recruiting philosophy and created a less structured academic environment.\u00a0 The result on the field was instant success.\u00a0 Notre Dame played in the National Championship game last year.\u00a0 Sure, they got smoked by Alabama and then had the Manti Te\u2019o\u2019s catfishing saga<\/a> (we\u2019re still confused about that) but the message was clear:\u00a0 The Fighting Irish had returned to national prominence on the field.\u00a0 This year, they were again expected to be competing for the national championship, that is, until this scandal broke out.<\/p>\n

Again, it\u2019s not surprising when you read this about UNC, or Florida State, or Miami.\u00a0 You almost expect it.\u00a0 But Notre Dame has always had this haughty, holier than thou (pun intended) attitude which made you think that they did things the right way.\u00a0 Now, sadly, you realize they are no different than\u00a0the rest of them.\u00a0 It\u2019s all a fraud.<\/p>\n

Stewart Mandel explains it this way<\/a>:\u00a0 \u201cNotre Dame\u2019s calling card has long been academics. \u00a0Come play football at a high level AND get your degree at a national top 20 university and a football program with a 97 percent graduation rate. \u00a0Now, its biggest strength is also a source of embarrassment.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Machine will put it this way:\u00a0 Notre Dame\u2019s a pedophile away from being Penn State.\u00a0 Their well-crafted image is now gone.\u00a0 For those who think that there\u2019s no relation between the Fighting Irish\u2019s recent success on the field and the academic scandal, consider this:\u00a0 with these players dismissed from the team, do you think the Irish have a chance this year?\u00a0 Pretty sure that\u2019s why the cheating occurred in the first place.<\/p>\n

And let’s stop with the nonsense that the coaches, athletic department, and administrators had no idea this kind of conduct existed. \u00a0Like these kids came up with this program on their own. \u00a0At best, the University is willfully ignorant. \u00a0At worst, they are active participants to make sure certain players get the “help” they need.<\/p>\n

Is it in poor taste to give Touchdown Jesus a teabag?\u00a0 Probably, but The Machine\u2019s ticket is already punched.\u00a0 See you in hell, friends.<\/p>\n

Enjoy your teabag.<\/p>\n

\"Best.<\/a>

Best. Academic Advisor. Ever.<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Fightin’ Irish?\u00a0 More like the Flunkin’\u00a0Irish.\u00a0 Yes, this weeks\u2019 Tuesday Teabag travels to South Bend, Indiana, where the historically beyond reproach Fighting Irish find themselves in the middle of controversy. On Friday, it was announced the Notre Dame dismissed … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tuesday-teabag"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2Bp3y-r6","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1680","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1680"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1680\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1684,"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1680\/revisions\/1684"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bigredsportsmachine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}