Tommy Bowden Cuts Ray Ray’s Scholarship (Updated 3/12)

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The Ray Ray McElrathbey story is a special one. The Clemson reserve tailback gained national fame for taking custody of his 11-year-old brother Fahmarr in 2006, then received a rare waiver from the NCAA that allowed him to get assistance from the university and the public in taking care of his younger brother and still maintain his football eligibility.

Now the truth. Tiger tailback James Davis says McElrathbey didn’t have a say in the matter. The coaching staff decided not to renew McElrathbey’s scholarship for the 2008-09 season.

“He said something about how they weren’t going to renew his scholarship,” said Davis, who has known McElrathbey since their high school days in Atlanta. “It really surprised me. But there’s a lot of stuff you can’t say. It’s something I guess everybody has to learn to live with.”

March 12, 2008 Update
Since StateFansNation will be adopting the Clemson Tigers as our team to follow in March, it is only appropriate the we provide a little defensive support for “our Tigers” this week.

“One of the things you learn after being in this business a while is that stories are rarely as simple as they appear. Take the case of Clemson’s Ray Ray McElrathbey….”

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18 Responses to Tommy Bowden Cuts Ray Ray’s Scholarship (Updated 3/12)

  1. packbackr04 03/10/2008 at 11:29 AM #

    you stay classy Clemson!

  2. VaWolf82 03/10/2008 at 11:38 AM #

    I don’t think that we documented it here….but Tammy also pulled a scholarship offer at the last minute to a high school player from Maryland. I remember reading the article from his local newspaper at the time.

    Basically Bunting and Tammy did the same thing to kids in the same year. The difference between Bunting and Tammy, is that BTB at least felt bad enough to get the kid a scholly to Indiana. Tammy left his “recruit” hanging.

  3. Sam92 03/10/2008 at 11:52 AM #

    it does sound heartless

    not that they *have* to keep the kid on, but just like they *would* if they really cared about him

  4. Lunatic Fringe 03/10/2008 at 11:57 AM #

    The comments here in Tigerland is that basically TB has told Ray Ray that he can still stay at Clemson as a Grad Assistant, but that would be the end of his athletic career or transfer out to another school to play out his eligibility. The talk around here is that you have to commend TB for his honesty in telling the guy where he stands and looking out for what is best for the guy.

    What choice does Ray Ray really have in this matter? He can either stay where he is and give up his athletic career OR uproot his brother once again in order to transfer to another school where he may or may not get assistance from school/public and has a support infrastructure at Clemson to help him look over Farmar.

    I look at that as a load of crap since TB knowingly gave his ship to Harper, the last player to commit on signing day. It is a number’s thing and Ray Ray is now 5th on the depth chart behind Davis, Spiller, Harper, and Ellington while Clemson is over the 85-limit. I realize it is the coach’s choice to renew a guy’s scholarship and to do what is best for the program, but it does not mean I have to like it.

    IMHO…Ray Ray’s athletic career is over, because he is an honorable man that will do the right thing for Farmar. It is a lot more than I can say for TB right now.

  5. LRM 03/10/2008 at 12:21 PM #

    Here’s my take: it sucks for Ray Ray, BUT he is graduating, so where is the problem in him going to find a job like the rest of us did when we graduated?

    He’s fifth on the depth chart so it’s unlikely his NFL career is now on hold because his college football career is over. It isn’t like Bowden cut his scholarship before he could finish school and left him high and dry. I understand this is a special circumstance, but it would seem to me that now armed with the degree his football scholarship allowed him to pursue, he is actually in a better position to work full-time and take care of his brother, right?

  6. CaptainCraptacular 03/10/2008 at 12:29 PM #

    I hope this does put a dent in their recruiting. Who in their right mind would want to play for TB knowing that he gave away the scholarship of someone with as much character as Ray Ray.

  7. Sam92 03/10/2008 at 12:31 PM #

    LRM you make a good point. I didn’t get that part until reading the link. Sounds like he’s set to graduate in August. If his scholarship continues through his graduation, I agree – if Clemson supports him through getting his diploma, they haven’t really pulled the rug out from under him at all.

  8. Noah 03/10/2008 at 2:42 PM #

    There was some stuff earlier about how they had been threatening his scholarship because of his poor academic work. If that’s the case, why is he graduating early?

    Bowden is, obviously, talking out of both sides of his mouth. Yes, he has every right to do this. Doesn’t make it fairly sh*tty behavior.

  9. Howler 03/10/2008 at 3:35 PM #

    A local Clemson reporter on Mark Packer’s radio show said that Ray Ray is being offered a grad assistant position with the school picking up his graduate school tuition. I’m sure he would like to play, but it doesn’t seem like he’s being screwed.

  10. SuperStuff 03/11/2008 at 2:29 PM #

    I know it sucks for him, but I don’t see anything wrong here. He will get to become a graduate assistant and graduate. It’s not like he was going to beat out anybody for playing time. He can leverage that graduate assistant job for another job if he’s smart.

    I wasn’t too confortable with all the special attention he got from the NCAA anyway. Universities have regular students in similar situations of having to take care of siblings while going to school. They don’t get special assistance.

  11. Clarksa 03/12/2008 at 9:30 AM #

    If he was having problems making team functions, why would you offer him a GA position? It sounds like the kid wasn’t making the most of his opportunities.

  12. RegularExpression 03/12/2008 at 9:53 AM #

    ^ My thoughts exactly on offering him a GA position. Also I find this quote in the article interesting:

    Bowden is not going to say anything publicly because he doesn’t want to embarrass the kid. So he’ll take the heat.

    No, but he’ll leak details to a reporter that he is friendly with so the reporter can embarrass the kid.

  13. LRM 03/12/2008 at 11:31 AM #

    Great, we’re adopting the only team who’s basketball program has seen more futility over the past two decades than ours.

    I’m ok with that — at least they play hard every night.

  14. roandaddy 03/12/2008 at 11:51 AM #

    Keep in mind.. Tammy has a player named Courtney Vincent who has already been busted for simple assult and now has a DUI hanging over him. Amazingly.. he keeps his scholly, so sad Ray Ray.. but you are sent packing due to limits.

    Another classy Bowden move.

    Oh yeah.. CV gets a pass b/c Clemsux needs LBs

  15. kyjelly 03/12/2008 at 12:07 PM #

    Who cares we have our own problems!

  16. PackWolf82 03/12/2008 at 2:24 PM #

    Here’s a link to Mickey Plyler’s Blog on Tigernet commenting on the situation from an insider’s perspective if anyone cares…FYI

    http://www.thetigernet.com/blogs/plyler/?entry=ray_ray

  17. Lunatic Fringe 03/12/2008 at 3:34 PM #

    ^^ Be careful assuming Mickey Plyler is an insider.

  18. Noah 03/12/2008 at 3:50 PM #

    From Plyer:

    “Let’s also be perfectly clear here on another subject. Clemson does not run off players because they are third or fourth stringers.”

    REALLY? well, that would probably come as quite a shock to several former players.

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