The NCAA made a return trip to the University of North Carolina this week. This time, they wanted to talk to the school's next likely first-round defensive endm Quinton Coples about post-draft party he attended with former UNC teammate Robert Quinn, the St. Louis Rams' first-round pick in this year's draft, and second-round pick Marvin Austin. At issue: transportation.
Snoops spotted Coples with Quinn and Austin in some party photos that appeared on Facebook and EliteDCMagazine.com. (Tried searching that site, the slideshows don't seem to work and the search function takes you to a Twitter page for some kind of vodka). The photos were taken at a post-draft event in DC. At issue for Coples and UNC is how the prospect got to DC and back. College players have to account for trips and the expenses that occur on those trips...because college kids taking road trips is really, really unusual.
Illegal benefits from an agent, including travel accommodations, got Quinn and Austin suspended for their senior season.
I'm not sure how anyone can defend NCAA rules for players, especially when juxtapose these kinds of things with the kind of behavior exhibited by the Fiesta Bowl folks (granted they aren't the NCAA, but it all feeds off the same system). Sure, players should know better since they have no power to change the rules. Still, there has to be a better system than this, right?