Rice revamps recruits' rules Behavior forms to be required of Hatfield's football prospects By DAVID BARRON Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle As a television station reported Monday night that Rice football players have accompanied high school prospects to Houston topless nightclubs, Rice coach Ken Hatfield told a panel on education reforms that future visitors will be asked to sign forms promising to avoid improper behavior during recruiting trips. Hatfield, the president of the American Football Coaches Association, detailed the proposed conduct forms in an appearance before the Knight Commission in Washington, D.C. "Before they go out, we want to say, 'Here's where you can go; here's where you can't go,' " Hatfield said, according to the Associated Press. "If he's not willing to sign it, I'm not willing to have him on my campus." As Hatfield returned to Houston on Monday night, however, KHOU (Channel 11) aired a story quoting several former Rice players as saying it was common practice to escort underage high school football prospects to adult entertainment establishments during recruiting trips. "They (the prospects) were pumped up about going to a strip club, because it was their first time going," Kevin Ford, a Rice football letterman in 2002, told the station. "It was something they wanted to do." Hatfield was not available to comment on the Channel 11 report, and Rice athletic department officials referred questions to a university spokesman. Taking precautions Hatfield's comments in Washington came in response to questions by the Knight Commission about the recruiting scandal at the University of Colorado. A grand jury has been convened to hear testimony regarding allegations that Colorado players used sex, alcohol and drugs to lure recruits. Rice athletic director Bobby May said the forms to which Hatfield referred were prompted by an NCAA task force on recruiting that convened in the wake of the Colorado allegations. "One of the recommendations is to have a document that the prospective student-athlete and the student hosts would sign that would be pointed in their agreement to observe appropriate decorum," May said. May said the form would "clearly outline the expectation for the behavior of the student-athlete and the prospect during the visit so there be no uncertainty about our expectations." In their appearance before the Knight Commission, Hatfield and former Texas A&M coach R.C. Slocum defended the practice of having players act as hosts for recruits. "There's no doubt that a satisfied customer is your best salesman," Hatfield said. "You've got to put them with your student-athlete if you want to know anything about them." Slocum, now an adviser to Texas A&M's president, spoke against the idea of national standards for recruiting visits, saying they should be left to individual schools. "I personally don't think this is a major problem," Slocum said. "We can't legislate to do away with all wrongdoing." Old allegations Monday's report by Channel 11 was not the first time that players from Rice and other local schools, including the University of Houston, have been tied to allegations regarding improper conduct during recruiting trips. In February, as the Colorado scandal was unfolding, the president of a Denver company that employs strippers in Houston said his dancers had been hired by students at Rice and UH to perform at parties that might have been attended by student-athletes or prospective student-athletes. Steve Lower of Hardbodies Entertainment Inc. said such parties were commonplace in Colorado and elsewhere around the nation. He said the parties took place off campus and that the dancers were paid by students. Sexposure
All I can say on this is . . . . VERY GOOD TIMING considering Rice wants to shut down thier athletics I'm sure those in favor of it had NOTHING to do with this I'm not condoning this or saying that it did not happen but i don't like people thinking that can manipulate me to a thought process based on some 'leaked' information at the right time Rocket River
Of course, Rice is also famous for its traditional event in which students run from dorm to dorm wearing nothing but shaving cream.
oh pgabs, how we love you so! The Hardbodies allegations have already been debunked. The owner backed down and admitted that athletes were not involved. All the guy was trying to do was to generate business by piggybacking on the Colorado University scandal. His other location other than Boulder was Houston, so naturally, he named UH and Rice to generate publicity in his target markets. The guy backed off, end of story. The latest allegation is just incredibly ridiculous. First, Channel 11 based their story on the account of an ex-athlete who was booted off the team for cheating in class (Honor Code violation). It's interesting that his word is mud at Rice, yet somehow meets the journalistic standard of Channel 11. Well, it's sweeps month, so anything for ratings, right? Coach Hatfield is a good Christian man who did not condone this behavior. He has said that he had no knowledge of this behavior. The fact that young athletes are interested in booze and nude women shouldn't be news to anyone. If it is news to someone, I believe that person should attempt to escape the nunnery they've been living in for the past 30 years. Obviously, this thing goes on at 99% of schools in this country, so attempting to label this as Rice-specific is just sheer lunacy. Young athletes interested in booze and women? Oh my god, what shocking allegation will be next? Dogs interested in Alpo? Plants interested in sunlight? Oh the horror! RocketRiver, where have you been? The Rice Board of Trustees has already decided on the athletics matter. They are keeping their D-1 status and working to *increase* funding to build a new rec center/basketball facility. Wake up. Rice is the beacon for everything that is right in sports. They have high academic standards for athletes. They are not involved in cheating, nor are they on probation. They have some of the highest graduation rates in the country. Rice athletes are truly student-athletes. The same can not be said for other schools of lesser academic rigor and ethical standards.
Well, half of UT's team is waiting for their court dates for breaking down doors to steal back their plasma tv's, rolling weed in their Escalades, and driving drunk and harassing physics majors, and the A&M football players are looking for help masturbating in the parking lot... I'd say that Rice is immaculate by comparison.
Immaculate?!?!?!? You are such a hypocritical Republican. Come on! It has to do with SEX. You Republicans don't get any, so you eat that sh*t up...whether it's in the Oval Office with an intern or in a prison with an "enemy combatant". It's SEX, T_J. The favorite topic of all Republican discussion. Don't "drop the ball" on this one. Make Dubya proud!
I must say that this is a shocking, shocking blow. It just goes to show that any degree of involvement in the sordid world of big time college athletics will leave any university sullied, this time with the corrupting of highly suggestible minors. The worst part of this kind of embarrasment causes men of standing like TJ to descend unto the muck and to perform Yoga-esque moral contortions in order to justify this unbecoming behavior. That is the real tragedy. I think the Trustees would be wise to drop down to non-scholarship level, Division III athletics, or even better, abandon them altogether, and concentrate on their goal of being a regional leader in higher education.
What's the big deal? OH MY...college guys go to strip clubs. Who knew? As long as rape and prostitution is not involved, people need to get off their high horses. This happens everywhere and is not shocking to anyone but the naive.
They couldn't very well only show them the pretty girl on campus. I tend to agree with T_J here. Why is this news? Why would anyone be surprised by this?
I for one am outraged. Thankfully, none of this sort of behavior goes on at Baylor. Those Baylor athletes spend time with their studies and in the Good Book. No hanky panky for them...no siree.
I'm really not surprised and don't care. I just wanted to see T_J's reaction. This is actually pretty tame compared to some stories I've heard about recruiting trips at other campuses.
I agree -- this is really a non-story. Unless Hatfield gave the recruits fake IDs and handfuls of dollar bills, I couldn't care less. People are hard-wired to have interest in sex. That's why the recruits went to nudie bars and that's why Channel 11 is running this story during sweeps.
how typical of T_J. You DO realize that these offenses were committed by the same people, right? Half the team isn't waiting for their court date... Several members of the team are waiting for several court dates. But in any case, they're still playing if they haven't graduated already, so no worries about empty spaces in the roster. The whole reason they did this story was to let everyone know that Rice isn't as spotless and "immaculate" as you like to portray it.
