Pat Haden on aftermath of USC losing appeal of sanctions
USC AD Pat Haden joined the show to talk about losing their appeal of major NCAA sanctions.
“We weren’t innocent,” Haden said. “We had a player who knowingly broke the rules. We just believe the penalties imposed were excessive.”
Haden said they asked the appeals committee to cut the sanctions in half. The committee just didn’t see it that way and refused to reduce the penalty.
“I feel very, very badly,” Haden said. “I feel that it’s unfair. I’m very disappointed.”
Dan asked if he had a choice, which would he want back — future scholarships or past successes. Haden said definitely scholarships.
Haden said that schools that follow USC will have a hard time winning the appeals process, because they probably won’t have better cases than USC.
Haden said he believes the BCS will take their 2004 title back. Haden said USC’s president already sent back Reggie Bush’s Heisman Trophy.
Haden said he needs to strengthen their relationship with the NCAA. He thinks players should get bigger stipends. “We have guys who are literally hungry,” Haden said. Haden said they only feed players during the season, and they don’t have enough money left over after paying rent to eat a lot.