I just watched the Outside The Lines episode on Kolton Houston. This is how outrageous the situation has gotten: Houston recently underwent surgery to remove fatty tissues containing traces of the steroid he was injected with, not because there was a danger to his health, but simply to lower his count for NCAA approval.
It didn’t work. He’s gone from 260 nanograms per milliliter at his first test to 4 ng/ml. It’s clear he’s not using steroids. But he’s not under the mandated limit of 2.5 ng/ml, so he continues to sit.
The NCAA refused to comment for the story. Can you believe the organization didn’t want to take the opportunity to explain how this is about protecting the student athlete?
It’s even harder to believe that Houston’s parents haven’t done what Mark Schlabach suggests, which is to sue the NCAA. Maybe they’re still hoping that Houston will become eligible and the NCAA will accept a petition to grant him back a year of eligibility. If things ever get to that stage, I suspect that Mark Emmert will express surprise over the request.
Get The Picture 
I got choked up watching that for two reasons. One is the purely emotional component of this kid wanting to live his dream, fighting hard to, but can’t. Two, is just how damn proud I am of how the institution has handled this issue, and how they fought and continue to fight for him.
As for Emmert’s comment, that one little statement sums up the arrogance, indignation and sense of righteousness that Emmert and the NCAA display in everything they do. It’s one of the most egregiously reprehensible stances an administrator can make, and nowhere is it more clear how little they care for the well being of the student athlete, than in that statement in the letter to Greg McGarity. Go F yourself Emmert. I think Bulldog nation should flood his office with letters, emails.. whatever it takes to tell him just that.
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+1
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Let’s f’in do this…Free Kolton.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association
700 W. Washington Street
P.O. Box 6222
Indianapolis, Indiana 46206-6222
Phone: 317/917-6222
Fax: 317/917-6888
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I’m in. I say post this as an official entry, and ask for participation. I have two suggestions.
1. Send a duplicate copy to Greg McGarity
2. Make sure you don’t resort to insults. That’s how they disregard your argument. State your stance, but be respectful. Let’s not make ourselves look as bad as he and his organization do.
What do you say senator?
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As many times as we’ve mocked their involvement in collegiate athletics before, make no mistake that now may be the time to deploy Georgia’s US Congressional delegation. Calls/petitions to the NCAA will very likely be fruitless, but those same messages hitting a congress person’s switchboard DOES get their attention. They are always interested in what’s going-on back home, and a letter from one or more of them to Emmert will go a lot farther.
It’s how the machine works, you Georgia residents voted for them, so use them!
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Mark Emmert will burn in hell for how he treats people. He’s his own false idol.
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The NCAA can kiss my ass. They screw over this kid like this, but Cam Newton gets a 2 hour suspension? Let’s not even get into their slimy tactics investigating Miami. it’s a confederacy of turds.
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“It’s even harder to believe that Houston’s parents haven’t done what Mark Schlabach suggest”
One call, that’s all…
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Lol!!! Priceless
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I’m afraid of what will happen to the sport I love, but I’ll still be happy when the NCAA craters eventually. I guess I can hope that Michael Adams will be there to kill it.
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Or leading it when it crumbles
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That’s what I meant.
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I watched it too senator. What a joke the NCAA has become. The biggest thing that sticks in my craw is that Greg McGarity writes letter to the NCAA with well documented scientific data to support his case and not only does Emmert deny the request, he feels the need to state how surprised he was that we were asking. What’s more, these test results were supported by Ron Courson. Courson has a resume packed full of awards and credentials that goes on for days. What idiot at the NCAA could review this case and not realize that this kid is clean and this is a special case? Morons! It’s one thing to deny the request but to throw in that you’re surprised we even made the request is a slap in the face. Mark Emmert is a GD joke. I really and truly think I could run the NCAA better. And this kid could be helping us. He earned the starting job twice. Now he can’t even stand to be around the team when he’s working out. I don’t blame the kid. I’d be heartbroken too. The fact that he had a surgery in an attemp to get back on the field is appalling. That’s just further proof that he’s clean. What Schlabach said about suing them is absolutely correct. If I was Schlabach I would have said a lot more that was on my mind about the NCAA but I digress. He said enough I guess.
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Suing the PGA Tour worked for Vijay!
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Well – the parents have done the reasonable thing. A very small corner that Emmert has painted himself and the NCAA into imo.
Reasonable damages are one thing, but now we are entering new territory for damages imo. The closing argument will carry a ‘Send a Message’ clarion call…
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Nice avatar, wish I’d have done that.
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http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:9262213
8 minute segment OTLines
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And yet Cam Newton did not miss a second of action.
Many have pointed this out, but it truly is absurd to imagine.
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Cam wasn’t at fault because he didn’t know what his dad was doing. Houston didn’t know what the doctor had done. He’s long post the point where he might have had some competitive advantage, so now, the ignorance excuse that was valid for Cam is not valid for Kolton. Seems like a good lawyer could pick this one apart.
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A.J! Your suspension continues…
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It is time for the NCAA to blow up and kmamf. Total bs. I hope O’Bannan and Company kick the shit out of them. Total arrogant idiots. Not that I have strong feelings about this.
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Only two ways to deal with this corrupt organization: 1. Lawyer up and play hardball (i.e. Lightfoot, Franklin and White). 2. Get an insider like Dave Didion hired to whitewash your violations.
Play it straight you get burned.
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“Play it straight and you get burned.” Exactly. Hell, at Auburn, UT, or Alabama, they’d smirk at the NCAA letter and put a guy on the payroll to take his piss tests for him. Problem solved, eligibility restored.
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What’s laughable to me is that they considered Courson’s appeal that his numbers had not risen and are obviously continuing to go down as a substantial enough reason to lift the lifetime ban, but not to allow him to compete. What gives?
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Just watched the video clip- Kolton better get that headlight fixed on his scooter or he’ll learn about enforcement and authority from Athens finest… I’d say 30 days in jail and 2 years probation would be about right for first offense since he has tested positive for roids
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I read every, but never post……but this time is different. It may be time to pick a fight. Shades of William Wallace methinks….time to call the NC “double assholes” out. and send an email or two
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What the HELL is wrong with you people?!? It is patently obvious to me (and should be to you all as well) that an athlete with 2.5 ng/ml of this particular steroid in his system is an evil, cheating pariah. While an athlete with 2.49999999999 ng/ml is a model citizen worthy of the honor of being an officially sanctioned NCAA competitor.
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It would be interesting to see a couple of animal experiments or one approved on people. Inject a small amount of the same material into muscle tisse of one group and show it’s exit from the system after metabolisis. Another group would have it injected into fatty tissue. Another could be injected in both tissues (same animal).
I don’t have to go to the literature to see that experiments have been done before the FDA approved it for use and classified what happens when clearing the system. I’m sure that Courson has researched the literature (with UGA scientists’ help), if not, the drug info insert will list them. Those listed researchers should testify before the NCAA since their level of expertise can be used to teach the medical group employed by the NCAA. They should backup Courson’s work and validate it to all us ignorants. It is ironic that Kolton is getting a degree in Pharmacology. He and the faculty could do a slam dunk on the NCAA just by using the literature.
Even more ironic would be Kolton becoming the expert on these drugs and consulting with athletic groups in the future.
The suggestion to become active as complaintants vs the NCAA on this issue is good. How many of you have embarked on such missions of scientific perception change(think of global warming)? Once you call, a schedule of backup calls should begin to build, but only if you remain very active beyond the initial call. If each person cares enough, it’s possible to get this in front of eyes and consciences by making sure you help grow a group and remind them to continue unabated with more and more people getting involved, else the issue will die back the same way it did from last year.
I’m beginning with the phone # provided above by Cali Ben. This time none of us will be anonymous.
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“How many of you have embarked on such missions of scientific perception change(think of global warming)?
Put your helmet on
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Posted that and then headed for the peyote ashram. Slammed on the ole helmet before the monsters knew I was there. Since you have already mined the dust-up glee, it’s doubtful any catfish will nibble with all those liberal fingerprints around.
Saw the astronaut on CNN and had to say he wasn’t bad, but especially he’s good with this ballad. You like the $3 billion recording studio? He get’s The Nonsmokers’ Cojones Award for that little doodle on Uncle Sam’s nickel.
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Is there any question at all that the NCAA is refusing to budge because of the problems UGA has pointed out with their drug testing system?
McGarity’s letter of 9 July 2011 starts its second paragraph discussing “inherent flaws” in the NCAA drug testing system and notes that only UGA’s diligence on the part of its student-athletes “protect (Mr. Houston) from an unfair and unsupported accusation,” e.g. that Kolton Houston was “still” using steroids and was banned for life. From there, McGarity identifies specific other issues with the NCAA drug testing program.
This was a letter that had to be written to end the lifetime ban. But you can’t tell me, given the ego and arrogance of Mark Emmert, that this direct criticism is why he was “surprised” UGA requested that Kolton Houston be allowed to play. He’s not surprised due to the test; he’s surprised that anyone would criticize and expect to be rewarded for it.
You know, because of the all-important role the NCAA plays in the welfare of student-athletes. Maybe if McGarity had made a case for a great OL increasing the sales and profits of EA College Football 16, the outcome would have been different.
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Absolutely sickening. That’s not a metaphor–literally feeling like I could puke just hearing that.
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the only thing Emmert could have added to his letter to expose himself as an even bigger douchebag would have been “Le NCAA c’est moi.”
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Fear not : “Le bacteria c’est le noir dernier.”, even with the folks at NCAA.
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