UNC Parking Woes

[SCMatt33]

Documents released today show that a group of UNC football players racked up over $13,000 in parking tickets over 3 years. The documents were requested by media outlets covering the NCAA investigation. There is certainly no wrongdoing here, and I must admit, if UNC parking is anywhere near as vindictive as Duke parking, those numbers are actually impressively low.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Documents released today show that a group of UNC football players racked up over $13,000 in parking tickets over 3 years. The documents were requested by media outlets covering the NCAA investigation. There is certainly no wrongdoing here, and I must admit, if UNC parking is anywhere near as vindictive as Duke parking, those numbers are actually impressively low.

I saw that on a few sites, and while I love to jump on unc's woes, this should be a non-story. Not unless they come out and say that the fees were forgiven, or if they find that went unpaid in a ratio that is out of balance with the rest of the student population.

[superdave]

The only thing I hate more than parking tickets is getting towed. It's too bad all these Unc guys didnt get towed.

Super "That's the nicest thing I have to say about that" Dave

[Biscuit King]

You guys are missing the boat here.

First off, it's $13k in fines for (supposedly) only 11 players. And some of those 11 didn't get any tickets, according to UNC. So that's over $1,200 per "student-athlete," and the majority of those tickets, according to UNC's public safety web site, are still unpaid.

There are some very interesting questions raised:
1. How were these students allowed to register for classes, in violation of UNC rules, with so many unpaid tickets?
2. If some of the tickets were paid, who paid for them? $1,200 is a lot for a student, especially for these athletes who supposedly can't afford a pizza.
3. Why are there at least 28 vehicles associated with 11 or fewer players?
4. Why are some of these vehicles very expensive and new?
5. Why did at least one of the vehicles have three different license plates associated with it?
6. Why did some of the vehicles have what appear to be dealer tags on them?

This is not just about the amount of money for the tickets (which I personally think is obscenely high for a college student). It's about improper benefits -- potentially in the form of cars, ticket payments or exemptions from university policies for regular students.

[SCMatt33]

You guys are missing the boat here.

First off, it's $13k in fines for (supposedly) only 11 players. And some of those 11 didn't get any tickets, according to UNC. So that's over $1,200 per "student-athlete," and the majority of those tickets, according to UNC's public safety web site, are still unpaid.

There are some very interesting questions raised:
1. How were these students allowed to register for classes, in violation of UNC rules, with so many unpaid tickets?
2. If some of the tickets were paid, who paid for them? $1,200 is a lot for a student, especially for these athletes who supposedly can't afford a pizza.
3. Why are there at least 28 vehicles associated with 11 or fewer players?
4. Why are some of these vehicles very expensive and new?
5. Why did at least one of the vehicles have three different license plates associated with it?
6. Why did some of the vehicles have what appear to be dealer tags on them?

This is not just about the amount of money for the tickets (which I personally think is obscenely high for a college student). It's about improper benefits -- potentially in the form of cars, ticket payments or exemptions from university policies for regular students.

This is absolutely a non-story. I only posted it because it's funny to see numbers that large in parking tickets. To address stuff point by point:

1. Nobody said they were all unpaid. As for the ones that were unpaid, they are still under appeal. I wouldn't expect them to have to pay until the ticket has upheld. The comment earlier about vindictive parking workers is only partly a joke. They will ticket you for anything and everything, sometimes inappropriately.
2. I would guess that Terrelle Pryor paid for them, he had some extra cash laying around. Seriously though, the article mentioned that this was over the course of 3.5 years. That's less than $200 per semester. They aren't all rich to be sure, but seeing as their parents aren't paying anything in tuition, room, or board, I'd guess that $200 per semester (which can be racked up in just one ticket BTW) isn't too terrible for them.
3. The article states that each car was registered to a student, parent, or grandparent. If my parents drove down to help me move in, left the car in a fire lane while carrying something to my room for five minutes, and then got ticketed, it would look like $250 in my name in the report.
4. I'm not sure where you're getting this, I don't see it in the ESPN article I linked. Is there a different source or did I just miss it? Anyway, even if they were new, it's not like every student athlete comes from a poor family. You'd have to see specific cars linked to specific athletes before getting into those accusations.
5/6. Again, I don't see this stuff in the ESPN article, but people move necessitating plate changes, especially if their an out of state student. Again, I would need to see specifics on cars being linked to players.

Overall, I don't think this is an Ohio State situation, nor is it really a scandal related story, which is why I didn't post it there. I just thought it was fun to post some lighter side news about our rivals having big parking fees.

[RoyalBlue08]

You guys are missing the boat here.

First off, it's $13k in fines for (supposedly) only 11 players. And some of those 11 didn't get any tickets, according to UNC. So that's over $1,200 per "student-athlete," and the majority of those tickets, according to UNC's public safety web site, are still unpaid.

There are some very interesting questions raised:
1. How were these students allowed to register for classes, in violation of UNC rules, with so many unpaid tickets?
2. If some of the tickets were paid, who paid for them? $1,200 is a lot for a student, especially for these athletes who supposedly can't afford a pizza.
3. Why are there at least 28 vehicles associated with 11 or fewer players?
4. Why are some of these vehicles very expensive and new?
5. Why did at least one of the vehicles have three different license plates associated with it?
6. Why did some of the vehicles have what appear to be dealer tags on them?

This is not just about the amount of money for the tickets (which I personally think is obscenely high for a college student). It's about improper benefits -- potentially in the form of cars, ticket payments or exemptions from university policies for regular students.

How exactly could a football player get a parking ticket from a vehicle with various license plates or dealer plates? If a car gets a parking ticket with dealer's plates, I'm pretty sure the dealer just got the ticket, no? (Doesn't a parking ticket imply the driver was not in the vehicle at the time?) Sounds like someone is just making things up.

[devildeac]

Didn't see this posted yet. Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrMz3k1r2vg

[devildeac]

Another local link. Must be from a State fan.

http://www.wralsportsfan.com/voices/blogpost/9739188/

[davekay1971]

The part that most burned my britches was the mention of tickets for parking in handicapped spots. It's certainly not an NCAA violation, but the idea of a college athlete, the picture of health, pulling his vehicle into a handicapped spot ticks me off. Healthy people using those spots is one of my pet peeves.

As for the rest of it, while there are certainly some curious aspects, it all seems add up to a non-story as far as potential NCAA violations go. If Butch hiring Blake, letting Blake run wild, letting agent runners crawl all over his program, hiring a tutor/nanny who coincidentally wrote papers for his players, etc isn't enough to put this dirty program on probation, the parking ticket irregularities sure won't.

[hudlow]

The part that most burned my britches was the mention of tickets for parking in handicapped spots. It's certainly not an NCAA violation, but the idea of a college athlete, the picture of health, pulling his vehicle into a handicapped spot ticks me off. Healthy people using those spots is one of my pet peeves.

Thank-you.

[CameronBlue]

The part that most burned my britches was the mention of tickets for parking in handicapped spots. It's certainly not an NCAA violation, but the idea of a college athlete, the picture of health, pulling his vehicle into a handicapped spot ticks me off. Healthy people using those spots is one of my pet peeves.

While attending grad school at UNC I encountered one classmate who hung a crucifix and a clerical collar from his rearview mirror, attached a fish emblem to the back of his car and parked in a space reserved for clergy behind UNC hospitals.

[Biscuit King]

More on this "non-story," from that most anti-UNC of sources, The Daily Tar Heel:

http://www.dailytarheel.com/index.ph...s#comment15174

Key points:

- One player (believed to be Greg Little, who also played basketball, remember?) racked up 93 tickets on FIVE different cars, with NINE different license plates, in a 3-year span.

- Over $1,700 of tickets from the 11 players in question -- remember this not even the entire team -- showed up as "unpaid" in the UNC database.

There is a lot more going on here than just a couple football players taking liberty with their parking spaces. There are about 28 cars (and even more license tags) associated with 5-6 players. There is systematic flouting of rules by student-athletes, and if these tickets were paid by credit cards, let's see whose name shows up on the credit cards, because that could point to improper benefits.

And even bigger than this issue are the phone records which basically paint a clear picture of Blake's involvement with Wichard and Davis' contact with Blake at the same time. I can't believe Davis has lasted this long, but if he survives through the entire mess, I think UNC fans should be embarrassed for their school.

[CameronBornAndBred]

I'm still inclined to think it's not a big story..but this article does a good job of pointing out why it matters.
http://www.wralsportsfan.com/voices/blogpost/9739188/

The best part is the last line. (spoiler alert!)

And that's what is so bothersome about UNC's stall tactic. They are wasting taxpayer money and an insane amount of time over misguided principle. At worst, North Carolina looks like they have something to hide. At best, UNC is pulling the jerk move just because they can.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

I don't think the real issue is the parking violations as much as it is the matter of so many cars for a few individuals and how those cars were paid for and by whom. In many investigations of wrongdoing, the seemingly innocent enough patterns may lead to important trends. The multiple cars with multiple plates in a relatively short amount of time may provide the path to follow the money.

[OldPhiKap]

Lack of institutional integrity.
Lack of institutional control.

It's sad when State's program looks better -- by a long shot -- than "the flagship institution" of North Carolina.

[DevilWearsPrada]

While attending grad school at UNC I encountered one classmate who hung a crucifix and a clerical collar from his rearview mirror, attached a fish emblem to the back of his car and parked in a space reserved for clergy behind UNC hospitals.

I am sure that classmate did not get a parking ticket, or towed, or the boot on his tire.

I heard yesterday on 99 the fan sports radio, that most of the parking tickets had been paid. Also, these are Campus tickets, not the Town of Chapel Hill parking tickets issued by Police Dept. As the Sports Radio station mentioned; the only thing a university can do is either Not register you for classes, or not allow you to graduate, until the parking fines are satisfied.

And if the cars are titled in many different names or Car dealer tags; wouldnt the fine follow the name associated with whom the car is registered?

The story seems to be over the top anyway. I am sure, we have all parked illegally, at one time or another. However, I have NEVER parked in the handicap spot, or claimed to be clergy!

[blueduke59]

More on this "non-story," from that most anti-UNC of sources, The Daily Tar Heel:

http://www.dailytarheel.com/index.ph...s#comment15174

Key points:

- One player (believed to be Greg Little, who also played basketball, remember?) racked up 93 tickets on FIVE different cars, with NINE different license plates, in a 3-year span.

- Over $1,700 of tickets from the 11 players in question -- remember this not even the entire team -- showed up as "unpaid" in the UNC database.

There is a lot more going on here than just a couple football players taking liberty with their parking spaces. There are about 28 cars (and even more license tags) associated with 5-6 players. There is systematic flouting of rules by student-athletes, and if these tickets were paid by credit cards, let's see whose name shows up on the credit cards, because that could point to improper benefits.

And even bigger than this issue are the phone records which basically paint a clear picture of Blake's involvement with Wichard and Davis' contact with Blake at the same time. I can't believe Davis has lasted this long, but if he survives through the entire mess, I think UNC fans should be embarrassed for their school.

^This

[Acymetric]

I am sure that classmate did not get a parking ticket, or towed, or the boot on his tire.

I heard yesterday on 99 the fan sports radio, that most of the parking tickets had been paid. Also, these are Campus tickets, not the Town of Chapel Hill parking tickets issued by Police Dept. As the Sports Radio station mentioned; the only thing a university can do is either Not register you for classes, or not allow you to graduate, until the parking fines are satisfied.

And if the cars are titled in many different names or Car dealer tags; wouldnt the fine follow the name associated with whom the car is registered?

The story seems to be over the top anyway. I am sure, we have all parked illegally, at one time or another. However, I have NEVER parked in the handicap spot, or claimed to be clergy!

They're paid now. But who paid them (that's a lot of money)? Also, were they paid when the players registered? This dates back for years, if everything got paid 3 months ago there would still be unanswered questions about how players were allowed to register.

Plus, although I agree that its weird that somehow the cars are tied to the players for ticket purposes if they were "borrowed," but that doesn't mean it isn't worth looking into. Plus, that stuff isn't just message board chatter...WRAL addressed the question themselves. Although I wouldn't put it past them not to thoroughly fact check, they did report it and if there was something incorrect about the report I would expect someone would have refuted it and WRAL would have made a retraction of some sort by now.

Also, as part of the releases were phone records as well (not just parking ticket info). Apparently Davis hasn't used his University issued phone in the past couple years, but he has another personal phone with a 216 area code that he apparently used for "business" as well. The media may have no right to request those records, but the NCAA can ask for them; if he refuses he's failing to cooperate and making himself look like he has something to hide.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

I am sure that classmate did not get a parking ticket, or towed, or the boot on his tire.

I heard yesterday on 99 the fan sports radio, that most of the parking tickets had been paid. Also, these are Campus tickets, not the Town of Chapel Hill parking tickets issued by Police Dept. As the Sports Radio station mentioned; the only thing a university can do is either Not register you for classes, or not allow you to graduate, until the parking fines are satisfied.

And if the cars are titled in many different names or Car dealer tags; wouldnt the fine follow the name associated with whom the car is registered?

The story seems to be over the top anyway. I am sure, we have all parked illegally, at one time or another. However, I have NEVER parked in the handicap spot, or claimed to be clergy!

I think the serious issues here are not really the parking tickets, but rather the money trail and who's involved with the money. The parking ticket information may lead to a clearer understanding of what really went on and whether it was illegal and/or against NCAA rules. Sometimes the smallest things lead to important connections.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

Didn't see this posted yet. Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrMz3k1r2vg

For those who like the background music in the video, The Embers will be performing in Lewisville, outside Winston-Salem, at 6P tomorrow (June 18). Maybe this number will be on their playlist for the evening.