OPINION: Coastal Carolina NCAA Allegations Seem Like Sour Grapes

Posted by Randy on Feb 25, 2011 in Blogs, Men's Basketball, Opinion, Randy's Ramblings | 22 comments

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Hello, and welcome to the inaugural edition of “Randy’s Ramblings.” This blog series will mainly consist of my opinions on major events in the world of Coastal Carolina University. You might not agree with everything I say, and you don’t have to – but please, feel free to join in the discussion. The opinions expressed in these blogs will be my opinions alone, and will not reflect the opinions of CoastalFans.com as a whole.

A small note: if you’re just here to talk smack, there’s a place in the forums for you to do so. Comments that are not discussion-oriented will be deleted.

What better way to kick off my blog with my thoughts on the recent “scandal” involving the CCU Men’s Basketball team? As I read today’s New York Times article detailing the allegations against the program, I came away with but one thought: that Marcus Macellari, the former CCU Forward who filed the complaint against the program with the NCAA, has a major case of sour grapes.

Let’s be honest here – Macellari wasn’t exactly a standout performer in his time as a member of the Men’s Basketball team here at Coastal. In fact, until I read the NY Times’ article, I had forgotten that Macellari was ever on the team. Just for fun, let’s take a look at his statistics over the two seasons he was a CCU basketball player:

2008-2009 Season: Macellari redshirted.
2009-2010 Season: Macellari played sparingly in a few games:

@ Elon: played 1 minute and had 1 foul.
vs. Voorhees: played 3 minutes, had 2 fouls and 1 offensive rebound. 0-1 in Field Goals.
vs. Allen: played 4 minutes, had 1 foul, 1 offensive rebound and 1 assist. 0-1 in Field Goals.
vs. Bridgewater: played 1 minute, had 1 foul, 1 defensive rebound, and 1 block.
vs. Savannah State: played 1 minute.
vs. Cornell College: played 2 minutes, had 1 offensive & 1 defensive rebound, and 1 turnover.
@ UNC Asheville: had 1 turnover, no info available on minutes played.
vs. Gardner-Webb: played 3 minutes and had 1 offensive rebound. 2-2 from the charity stripe, for 2 total points.
vs. UNC Asheville: played 4 minutes, had 1 offensive & 2 defensive rebounds.
vs. Liberty: played 2 minutes, had 1 defensive rebound & 2 fouls. 0-1 in Field Goals.
vs. VMI: played 1 minute, had 1 defensive rebound & 1 turnover.
vs. UNC Asheville (BSC Tourney): played 1 minute.

Now, let’s total his stats up for 2009-2010. Macellari appeared in 12 of CCU’s 35 games played. In those 12 games he played for 23 minutes, had 7 personal fouls, 5 offensive rebounds/6 defensive rebounds (11 rebounds total), 1 block, 3 turnovers, was 0-3 in Field Goals, 2-2 in Free Throws, with 2 total points on the year. (All of this information is available here.)

Man, THERE’S an impact player if I ever saw one! /sarcasm

I know that may sound harsh – but come on, Mr. Macellari. Do you really expect us to believe that you played such an integral role on the CCU basketball team, that Cliff Ellis was doing you a disservice by removing you from the team? I hate to be the one to break this news to you, but it’s my understanding that athletics scholarships are performance-based. If you’re not performing well, you don’t get to keep your scholarship. You’re not entitled to it, nor is it “owed” to you just because you were on the team last year. I’m not trying to rip into whatever Basketball ability you have, because God knows I’m nowhere near good enough to get a scholarship to an NCAA Division I school. However, it seems to me that you should have spent a little less time worrying about whether or not you were done wrong by being cut, and a lot more time worrying about whether or not you deserved to be cut. (With stats like that, I’m finding it hard to disagree with Coach Ellis’ decision.)

The part of the NY Times’ article that stands out to me most is this:

Before Thanksgiving, Macellari said, he spoke with Madison, the N.C.A.A. enforcement official, for 45 minutes in a Courtyard by Marriott conference room in Myrtle Beach. Macellari said the N.C.A.A. had spoken to Coastal Carolina coaches and men’s and women’s basketball players. “I told her that my scholarship wouldn’t have been revoked if these players hadn’t been bribed to come here and offered unfair things,” he said. “These players were bribed to come here to take my spot.” Macellari said he told the N.C.A.A. that Holloway got a “care package full of stuff” that included clothing. If true, that would be a serious N.C.A.A. violation. “Coach Ellis has a reputation for giving money, and I really honestly don’t think Des would have come here if he wasn’t getting special stuff,” Macellari said.

Basically, that reads to me that Macellari got cut from the team, got pissed off about being cut, and decided to seek revenge on Coach Ellis and the CCU Men’s Basketball program by reporting these supposed allegations. Does Cliff Ellis have a checkered past with regards to his coaching practices? Yes. Does this necessarily mean that the word of a kid that basically rode the pine for two years at CCU should be taken as gold? Absolutely not. I stand by my opinion that, until I see some evidence to prove otherwise, I believe that Marcus Macellari has a major case of sour grapes regarding his dismissal from the basketball team.

All that said – will I gladly eat a heaping helping of crow if evidence is presented that proves Macellari’s allegations are true? Yes, I most certainly will. However, for me, the word of a kid who I personally believe is just angry about being cut from the team is not enough. I need to see actual evidence that there was wrongdoing on CCU’s part.

A final thought, if you will – it amazes me that the NCAA took so little time in deciding that Auburn QB Cam Newton was innocent, yet is taking their very sweet time with an investigation that apparently opened nearly 5 months ago. As CCU’s leading scorer, Desmond Holloway is an integral part of our team – his presence (or lack thereof) could very well decide if the Chanticleers make their first NCAA tournament appearance in nearly 20 years. If they decide in our favor, then we get our leading scorer back and have a chance to go to the Big Dance. If their decision goes against us, then Liberty rightfully receives credit for winning the Big South Conference regular season championship. No matter their decision, I feel an expeditious decision is warranted. At the very least, I feel the NCAA should reinstate Holloway until he and/or Coach Ellis are proven guilty.

Thanks for reading my blog – what are YOUR thoughts on this whole situation? Sound off in the comments below!

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Karen

I respect your passion for CCU basketball. Marcus had that passion. Though he was not a starter or NBA prospect, he contributed to the team in helping them win a championship. It is difficult to move up a depth chart when older, more experienced players are constantly cycled through. He worked hard to improve both in sport and classroom. If you were to talk to him, you would find he is not a bitter, sour grapes person. He DID NOT report CCU to the NCAA. After discovering numerous violations, CCU was forced to report themselves. Marcus, like many other coaches, players and staff were interviewed. The investigation started before season and is still going. You are correct in guessing he was upset. It is very disheartening to be replaced and uprooted after Cliff Ellis shook his hand and promised him a CCU graduation.
http://www.facebook.com/randy.akers Randy

@Karen: The information released in today’s statement from CCU, that the University self-reported the allegations after being made aware of them by Macellari, was not available to me when I wrote this blog last night. However, the statement says that the University only reported allegations that were reported to them, not violations that they discovered upon further investigation.

I’m sure Macellari is a nice person, but his quotes in the NYT article definitely make him seem to be a person with a vendetta. Saying things such as, “I told her that my scholarship wouldn’t have been revoked if these players hadn’t been bribed to come here and offered unfair things,” are not things you want to say if you want to win in the court of public opinion.

Of course, most people are quick to take a “guilty until proven innocent” attitude with Cliff Ellis. I happen to be one of the few that doesn’t want to take Macellari at his word until I see hardcore evidence. I’m sure it was disheartening to be replaced, but if his performance was not up to par – then he did not deserve to keep his scholarship.

Thanks for the comment & thanks for reading my blog, Karen!
http://www.facebook.com/randy.akers Randy

Here’s an interesting comment that was made by “Jskittles7″ on The Sun News’ article, http://www.thesunnews.com/2011/02/25/2002547/ccu-program-under-fire.html

“Jskittles7: Look at Macellari’s past, I went to Clay High School in South Bend, Indiana with him and he pulled this same crap in high school when he couldn’t play quarterback on the football team. He thought his big self should be a quarterback with zero footwork and when he was told he wasn’t going to be a quarterback and play varsity as a freshman (like a freshman is entitled to play varsity because he is a big guy) and he and his mother created a story about the starting black quarterback trying to “run them off the road” and filed a police report so he could transfer and play the next year right away instead of sitting out the mandatory year. Look at his siblings, they are all D-1 caliber players, and maybe he feels he needs to live up to his parents are creates these fabrications because he’s embarressed. I also played basketball with Marcus a lot growing up and into High school and he is NOT and NEVER was a D-1 caliber player, so when the coach says he was basically dead weight, he’s not lying. If you can’t perform in 2 years at Coastal Carolina, you should be asking to be let go and revoked on scholarship because you probably aren’t that great. Maybe he should have sucked up his pride and asked to be a walk-on and let his scholarship be used to get talent to Coastal Carolina. They are trying to build a decent program in a small conference and NEED those scholarships to attract talent. So Macellari, if you are not the talent maybe you should step aside and just be happy they were crazy enough to give you a chance at D-1 basketball, not tattle-tell on the entire team and jepordize the best season they have had in a while. Unfortunately, i’m sure he will sue.”

Should this prove to be true, and Macellari has a track record of causing trouble when he doesn’t get his way – I really hope the NCAA takes his past behavior into account.
chs93

Macellari does indeed sound like a whiner. But that doesn’t mean he’s wrong. Especially considering Ellis has left problems in his wake at 2 other programs. And let’s face it, CCU isn’t a stranger to a dubious basketball program. Russ Bergman was lucky to get out when he did.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.nnIts implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.
Laxguy

You take a kid’s scholly away because he doesn’t perform to what was expected? Its not the NBA. To carry this further, you could remove 1/3 of every incoming freshman football class; but no one would bother to come.

Its implicit that if one attends classes and practice, the scholarship continues for four years.