Kiffin accuses Meyer of cheating

[cincrazy]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200....ap/index.html

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin accused Florida coach Urban Meyer of violating recruiting rules in pursuing wide receiver prospect Nu'Keese Richardson.

WVLT-TV reported that Kiffin told a group of fans at a signing day breakfast celebration Thursday morning that Meyer phoned Richardson while the recruit was making his official visit to Tennessee recently.
Click here to watch video of Kiffin's speech.

Richardson, a Pahokee, Fla, native, signed with the Volunteers on Tuesday, despite having indicated he would sign with the Gators.

Kiffin told the crowd, "I love the fact that Urban had to cheat and still didn't get him."

Tennessee spokeswoman Tiffany Carpenter told The Associated Press the school would not file an official complaint to the NCAA.

In response to the allegations, Florida AD Jeremy Foley said:

"There was no rule violation and we have confirmed this with Southeastern Conference. It is obvious that Coach Kiffin doesn't know that there is not a rule precluding phone contact with a prospect during an official visit on another campus during a contact period. His allegations are inappropriate, out of line and, most importantly, totally false. It is completely unfair to Urban Meyer, our coaching staff, our football program and our institution. The appropriate action at this time in my opinion is for Coach Kiffin to make a public apology.

"His comments not only slandered our coach, but he violated SEC rules by publicly criticizing another coach and institution."

Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

If you ask me, Lane Kiffin better be careful. I see the final score of the first Tennessee-Florida game being around 100-0, in favor of the Gators.

[WVRed]

Nothing like giving a rival extra motivation heading into the first meeting.

It's going to take a couple of years to get Tennessee going again, and Vol fans in football are the equivalent to Kentucky in basketball. That being said, I read that Tennessee had invested 5.3 million into their coaches this offseason.

That is going to be a tough pill to swallow if and when Tennessee doesn't produce out of the gate.

[durl]

Note to UT's athletic director: set up PR etiquette lessons for Kiffin.

Dude went WAY over the line. I hope the NCAA will kick him back over.

[cincrazy]

I actually hope Kiffin keeps running his mouth. Meyer and Saban aren't one's to let off the pedal if they don't feel the need. Kiffin could come out of this looking extremely stupid and extremely bloodied, which I'm all for. The guy is what, 32 years old? You should actually accomplish something before running your mouth so much.

[Sea Ray]

Florida's going to try to run up the score 100-0 no matter what Kiffin says. People asked Steve Spurrier during his heyday at UF why he riled up UT with comments like you can't spell Citrus Bowl without a U and a T and Spurrier just said "they already hate us. There's nothing I can say to make 'em hate us more."

It looks to me like Kiffin is trying to become the Bruce Pearl of SEC football. That's fine but he'd better be able to back it up. If he talks trash and gets blownup on gameday then it's on him.

[Puffy]

I am NOT an Urban Meyer supporter at all. At all. But Kiffen is way in the wrong here, especially since Richardson was a verbal commit to Florida and he stated he would not be making that trip to Tennessee, so Meyer might not have even known he was on an official visit.

[KronoRed]

Lane Kiffin makes me laugh.

[Dom Heffner]

Born on third base, thinks he hit a triple.

I'd truthfully be embarrassed if my daddy had to be defensive coordinator or I wouldn't be hired.

[Sea Ray]

Originally Posted by Puffy

I am NOT an Urban Meyer supporter at all. At all. But Kiffen is way in the wrong here, especially since Richardson was a verbal commit to Florida and he stated he would not be making that trip to Tennessee, so Meyer might not have even known he was on an official visit.

I don't think anybody disagrees with you. Even Kiffin admits he just did it to fire up the base. Shows his inexperience, which is why he was not on my short list after Fulmer left.

[Chip R]

The SEC just got fun again with the addition of Kiffin. He's not only managed to tick off Spurrier but now he's made the Urbanmeyer mad too.

[WVRed]

Originally Posted by Chip R

The SEC just got fun again with the addition of Kiffin. He's not only managed to tick off Spurrier but now he's made the Urbanmeyer mad too.

Add in Georgia and Nick Saban as well, and its only February.

[Chip R]

Originally Posted by WVRed

Add in Georgia and Nick Saban as well, and its only February.

When did he piss them off? I don't remember hearing anything about it.

[cincrazy]

Originally Posted by Chip R

When did he piss them off? I don't remember hearing anything about it.

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20...44/1002/SPORTS

If you're the football coach at the University of Tennessee and have yet to play a game, there are two things you can do to endear yourself to Vols fans:

>> Fire a warning shot in the direction of Florida.


>> Get under the skin of Alabama's coach.

Less than two months into his UT tenure, Lane Kiffin is batting 2-for-2.

On the day he was introduced as Vols coach, Kiffin said one of the things he is most looking forward to in '09 is "singing Rocky Top all night long" after beating Florida.

That kind of preaching-to-the-choir comment fit perfectly into the rhetoric of his first press conference. I doubt it got much of a rise in Gainesville, since the Gators have owned the Vols in recent seasons.

What really irked Florida Coach Urban Meyer was that Kiffin continued to attempt to hire — unsuccessfully, as it turned out — receivers coach Billy Gonzales while the Gators were preparing for the national championship game.

More recently, Kiffin has gotten on the nerves of Alabama Coach Nick Saban to the extent that Saban is asking players who already have committed to the Crimson Tide not to take official visits to UT.

This is in response to Kiffin's hiring of Lance Thompson off Saban's staff. Thompson, considered Alabama's best recruiter, got a big raise to jump to the Vols just two weeks before signing day.

Considering that UT is a combined 1-6 since Meyer and Saban arrived at Florida and Alabama, you have to take your victories wherever you can find them.

And don't forget that Kiffin also has tugged on Steve Spurrier's visor. First Kiffin hired his brother-in-law, David Reaves, off the South Carolina staff. Then Kiffin and Spurrier exchanged comments in the press about recruiting.

While we're at it, Kiffin also threw a $400,000 offer at super recruiter Rodney Garner in an attempt to lure him off Mark Richt's staff at Georgia. Garner chose to stay at Georgia.

For those keeping score, Kiffin has kicked sand at Meyer, Saban, Spurrier and Richt. It's no coincidence that those are the coaches of the four most important opponents on UT's schedule every year. Those are also four programs that the Vols must match in recruiting if they are to regain relevance in the SEC.

You have to admire Kiffin's spunk. But you also wonder if he knows exactly what he's gotten himself into. One of the most revealing comments in recent days concerns Kiffin's surprise at the amount of negative recruiting that goes on in the SEC.

That's a little bit naive, isn't it? Compared to the shark tank he's swimming in now, working for Oakland Raiders owner/psycho Al Davis was a walk in the park. It makes you wonder how Kiffin will respond to his first game at The Swamp.

For the time being, though, we are getting glimpses of a 33-year-old coach who is driven, competitive and relentless. He might not have beaten anybody on the football field yet, but he's proved he doesn't back down from a good fight.

And when you consider how the Vols went belly-up last season, it's nice to have a coach who not only can take a punch but also throw one.

[WMR]

He better win big quickly.

[Jack Burton]

Was the call actually made?