No one but the agent has been implicated to date. How many times were Julio and Ingram supposed to be ineligible last year due to illegal benefits? How'd that work out for the people that reported it? Auburn is #2 in the BCS and Cam is the frontrunner for the Heisman, otherwise this is completely ignored.
Also, keep in mind Cecil Newton has turned over his personal and church financial records to the NCAA to verify there was no improper benefit received. $200k is a lot of loot to stuff under the mattress. I sincerely doubt after his near-miss at Florida that Cam would take this route. Rogers, to date, has ZERO ties to Newton. This is just as worthless a story as the ones that broke about Julio/Ingram last year. I'm still waiting on those NCAA sanctions that everyone talked about from the fishing trip. Give me a break.
There are NUMEROUS details left out of the ESPN article.
From AuburnUndercover.com:
"Rev, Cecil Newton, contacted Thursday afternoon by
AuburnUndercover.com, adamantly denied any wrongdoing by his son, Auburn quarterback Cam Newton, or his family.
He said he has retained a lawyer to represent his son and his family.
"It's not true," Cecil Newton said. "The allegations are completely unfounded, and we've retained an attorney. That's all I can say at this time."
Auburn officials, told by the NCAA they should not comment, only affirmed that Newton remains eligible and is expected to start Saturday's homecoming game against Chattanooga.
ESPN.com reported Thursday that former Mississippi State quarterback John Bond told said Kenny Rogers, a teammate of Bond's at Mississippi State in the early 1980s, contacted him soon after Newton's official visit to Mississippi State during the Ole Miss game in December, and said he was representing Newton.
"He said it would take some cash to get Cam," Bond told ESPN.com. "I called our athletic director, Greg Byrne, and he took it from there. That was pretty much it."
Athletic department sources said Auburn's compliance department, in conjunction with the Southeastern Conference office, looked into the accusations after being made aware of them last summer and determined there had been no wrongdoing by Cam Newton or by Auburn.
The ESPN.com story quoted no other sources by name, nor did it implicate Auburn.
“If Rogers tried to solicit money from anyone, he did it on his own without our knowledge,” Cecil Newton told ESPN.com..
The story was a collaborative effort that included New York Times reporter Pete Thamel and ESPN.com reporters Chris Low and Mark Schlabach."
http://auburn.247sports.com/Article/NEWTONS-FATHER-ITS-NOT-TRUE-4868
A little background on the "agent":
http://sports.espn.go.com/chicago/nfl/news/story?id=5401023
Believe what you will. It is a sexy headline but for now there is no compelling evidence that Auburn or Newton did anything wrong. Chizik touched on it on Tiger Talk today. "Cameron Newton is eligible to play football at Auburn. Period." It seems if there are any repercussions it will be towards the agent or the "agency".