BLOG: Thinking Bout Whitney
When I first heard the word 'Whitney' mumbled about a week or so ago, I immediately thought a certain once-famous singer was coming out with yet another CD filled with bad songs.
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Silly me.
But after being bombarded with story after story about the Whitney Hotel and its involvement with about a half dozen South Carolina football players over the past week, I wish my initial reaction had been correct.
Whitney Houston, I'm sorry.
The way I look at it, this whole Whitney Hotel fiasco is either the most clever marketing scheme ever devised (how much free advertising has the Whitney received over the past week? It has to be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars) or it's simply the latest over-the-top and overblown story by the desperate mainstream media trying frantically to sell a few more newspapers in the middle of August before football season finally - no, mercifully - kicks off.
Personally, I'm betting on the latter. But, hey, that's just me.
I wasn't aware I needed a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Administration to perform this job, but apparently I do.
Here's the entire Whitney Hotel situation boiled down to the core:
-- Some USC football players signed one-year leases with the Whitney to rent room at the hotel for $450.00 per month.
-- Football players living off-campus receive a monthly stipend of $457.00 per month.
-- The leases were approved by the hotel and USC's compliance office.
-- USC has determined the monthly rate being paid by the players is a "reduced rate", that is, below the fair market rate the general public must pay. One story says the "fair market" figure decided upon by the school is $1,200 per month. However, whether that four-figure rate applies to each player or multiple players in case they stayed in the same room, is unclear.
-- The players must pay to the hotel the difference between the rate specified in their lease agreements ($450.00) and the "fair market" rate determined by the school.
-- Nearly every player staying there has moved out and paid off their outstanding bills, or are close to doing so.
-- USC is working with the NCAA to bring this matter to a final resolution before the first game next Thursday night.
There. Now you know.
Frankly, I'd rather listen to every Whitney Houston song in her extensive catalog or, worse, read the entire transcript of the 19-hour interview Tiger Wood's ex-wife (Elin Nordegren, if you care) gave to People Magazine than read another word about the Whitney Hotel.
Inquiring minds want to know! Not.
All this overblown Whitney Hotel coverage has made me feel like that unfortunate fellow in the "Final Destination" movies whose apartment catches on fire. He leaps out the window and while lying prone thinks he has cheated death only to have a pipe smash violently into his eye and skull, killing him instantly.
When I watched that video again on YouTube last night, I said, aloud to no one except our five cats, "Dude, I feel your pain."
Calling the situation "Whitneygate" or "Hotelgate" - as some have done - is disingenuous because the phrase "-gate" presumes a conspiracy to commit a crime in honor of the mother of all scandals, Watergate in the early 1970's, that brought down the Nixon presidency.
Instead, the Whitney Hotel saga amounts to a group of college athletes forgetting the cardinal rule about the NCAA, along with Whitney's hotel manager not covering all his bases before allowing the players to stay there.
College athletes are reminded over and over they don't get anything for free or even at a reduced rate. If they do, it's probably a NCAA violation, so don't even think about it. Several years ago, multiple USC baseball players, including Steve Pearce, received free rounds of golf at a local course. Result? They were forced to sit out games at the beginning of the year.
Since we're told most of the players have moved out of the Whitney and are paying off their final bills, what will the final verdict be? In my opinion, a small handful of players will likely be suspended for a game or two, something that's happened before at USC.
Typically, the NCAA allows the school to pick the game(s) a player must miss, meaning USC might not have a full roster for the Furman and Troy games. Horrors.
In short, when it comes to the ridiculous amount of coverage given this story, the end doesn't justify the means. Considering the huge number of trees that have been killed to cover this story, it will have very little, if any, impact on the 2010 football season as a whole.
Who are the players that could miss games? Weslye Saunders, of course. Possibly defensive backs Akeem Auguste and C.C. Whitlock, considering they missed practice time this week to meet with USC compliance officials. Obviously, there's a sense of urgency surrounding their situations.
In my opinion, the ONLY worthwhile piece of information I've read over the last week in the countless reports about the Whitney is found in a story published today in the Post & Courier.
A paragraph towards the end of the story states Weslye Saunders is still living at the Whitney even though Steve Spurrier has already 'encouraged' him to leave. Saunders, according to the story, is waiting for USC AD Eric Hyman to tell him to leave.
Here's why that information is important: if true, it would indicate the deteriorating relationship - and the lack of trust - between Saunders and Spurrier. At this point, you have to wonder if it's even salvageable. Has Saunders reached the point of no return and the two parties would be better off going their separate ways?
Unfortunately, for all the immense physical talent Saunders possesses, he might not be worth the headache any longer. That's a decision Spurrier will have to make, likely sooner rather than later.
Well, that's it. Sorry, but this is "reduced rate" blog. OK, the people at the Whitney told me to say that.
Excuse me, but I have to start preparing for karaoke night. I'm going with "I Will Always Love You." Should be a killer.
Right now, I care about only one Whitney and as far as I know she's not anywhere near Columbia at the moment.
But, the next time she does come here, would Whitney stay at the Whitney? Just asking.
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