Another Late Night Bombshell from Yahoo! Sports – Blake Recommended Wichard to Bama Player

UNC Scandal29

Here is the link to the latest bombshell from Yahoo! Sports writers Charles Robinson & Dan Wetzel. It is also being reported on ESPN.com by Ivan Maisel.

A couple of quotes from the Yahoo story:

University of Alabama defensive end Marcell Dareus informed NCAA investigators that former University of North Carolina assistant coach John Blake recommended agent Gary Wichard to him in a phone conversation last summer, sources told Yahoo! Sports.

The sources said Dareus was extremely cooperative while describing his relationship with Blake to investigators, explaining that the former Tar Heels coach recruited him while he was starring at Birmingham’s Huffman High School. The sources said Dareus told NCAA investigators that Blake had maintained contact with him since that recruitment, and that during the summer Blake called both Dareus and Dareus’ friend, South Carolina tight end Weslye Saunders, to suggest they sign with Wichard. Both Dareus and Saunders were considered potential first-round picks entering this season.

The article also brings up Steve Spurrier’s comments about Blake’s reputation back in August. If you read between the lines, it sounds like Spurrier knew what UNC-CH Associate Head Coach John Blake was up to from the next state away but Butch Davis in the same locker room knew nothing. As Dr. Evil would say, Riiiiiiiight.

This might also explain why Marcell Dareus only got a 2 game suspension from the NCAA for being cooperative wouldn’t it?

The dots start to get connected regarding UNC-CH’s central role in this exploding scandal when you remember that according to this report , Marvin Austin paid for Dareus’ plane flight to Miami and arranged for his hotel room so Dareus could attend the Miami agent party.  Where did Austin get the money?  How many other plane flights and hotel rooms did Mavin pay for surrounding that party?  What was UNC-CH Associate Head Coach John Blake’s role?

A followup to the last Yahoo story, Charles Robinson (@WindyCityScribe) also shared on Twitter some info on the conflicting dates on the financial transactions between Wichard and Blake. Blake’s lawyers claim the payments stopped 3 years ago before Blake came to UNC. Robinson however said:

John Blake’s attorneys are incorrect about the Wichard wire transfers. Six transfers occurred when Blake was a UNC coach. Seeking comment.

Spoke to Blake’s attorneys. They are gathering the financial records and have agreed to be interviewed on Monday. The reporting was right.

UNC fans who want the dates, they’ll be in there for you when these attorneys speak to me and I write it. Again, the reporting was correct.

Last time I’m going to say it before I write my next piece: Gary Wichard wired money to John Blake six times when Blake was a coach at UNC.

Maybe that piece will be the next late night bombshell aiming for those pine trees at Kenan Stadium.

About WV Wolf

Graduated from NCSU in 1996 with a degree in statistics. Born and inbred in West "By God" Virginia and now live in Raleigh where I spend my time watching the Wolfpack, the Mountaineers and the Carolina Hurricanes as well as making bar graphs for SFN. I'm @wvncsu on the Twitter machine.

UNC Scandal

29 Responses to Another Late Night Bombshell from Yahoo! Sports – Blake Recommended Wichard to Bama Player

  1. tjfoose1 10/04/2010 at 12:35 PM #

    There once was a time when everyone would have said that there’s no way a US President could stay in office if he was caught having sex with an intern. Let alone, in the White House, in the Oval Office, and then get caught lying about it on national tv, and in the court room, under oath.

    There are parallels… a sympathetic press (locally anyway), denial, story growing worse, continued revelations, a ‘smoking gun’, numbing of surprise and ‘outrage’, rationalizations, everybody does it, blaming others…

    Not saying what will, or will not happen, just saying…

    There is an ability of some to rationalize and justify just about anything.

  2. Sweet jumper 10/04/2010 at 2:25 PM #

    If UNX buys out Chief’s contract, they are just wasting the money of us taxpayers and the Ram’s Club, excuse me the UNX Educational Fund. If there ever was a case to fire a coach with cause by the terms of his contract, this is it. Whoever is in charge over there needs to grow a pair and take care of business. Now let’s learn about the inner workings of Ol’ Roy’s bball program.

  3. graywolf 10/04/2010 at 5:16 PM #

    Sweet jumper : Now let’s learn about the inner workings of Ol’ Roy’s bball program.

    I think this is the reason Davis is still at Carolina……he knows too much and is willing to take down the university and its sacred cow (basketball program) if he does not get his millions.

  4. TAEdisonHokie 10/05/2010 at 12:51 AM #

    More tonight from Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports:

    Blake-agent transactions came during UNC tenure

    “Lawyers for former University of North Carolina assistant coach John Blake said Monday that their client did indeed engage in multiple financial transactions with NFL agent Gary Wichard during his time with the Tar Heels.

    Last week, Blake’s attorneys said they believed the transactions in an Sept. 29 Yahoo! Sports report had occurred prior to Blake being hired at UNC. But after reviewing financial records over the weekend, attorney William H. Beaver II said the transactions did occur while Blake was coaching at North Carolina. Those financial ties included six wire transfers – in May of 2007, October of 2007, December of 2007, April of 2008, March of 2009 and October of 2009. Beaver also corrected previous statements regarding a $45,000 personal loan to Blake from Wichard’s Long Island bank, and a credit card issued in Blake’s name that was tied to Wichard’s agency, Pro Tect Management. Beaver, of the firm GrayRobinson in Orlando, said both the loan and credit card overlapped with Blake’s time at North Carolina.”

    ….and after the sad story spun earlier by Blake’s lawyers about Blake being in financial trouble and needing money….

    “Yahoo! Sports reviewed real estate records for the house in question, and found that Blake purchased the custom built home on Sept. 21, 1998 for $598,500. Loan records show that he owned the house for almost 17 months after his November 1999 firing at Oklahoma, eventually selling the property for $600,000 on April 14, 2000.

    Other records reviewed by Yahoo! Sports also show that during that same time span, Blake was still collecting money from Oklahoma, thanks to the settlement reached for the remaining four years of Blake’s contract with the Sooners. According to that settlement, Blake was to be paid a total of almost $610,000 from Oklahoma from the time of his firing through the end of 2001. That money included $375,000 in salary, $230,000 from a Nike deal and radio and television contracts, and nearly $5,000 for limited medical coverage.

    Asked if they knew the amount of Blake’s Oklahoma settlement, Beaver and Smith said they did not.”

    So, it sounds like Blake has been less than honest with his own attorneys. Maybe Blake just doesn’t know how to tell the truth about anything.

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