30 for 30 running thread

I think Simmons has said they're going to continue making the documentaries. The Bartman one, which they had an ad for tonight, is now separate from the 30-for-30, and the rest will sort of be under the umbrella, although not part of the series.

I do agree with some of the editing critique. Many of them did have very similar techniques that got a bit much. Still enjoyed the majority of them. Still have to see the Dupree one.

 

I think it was pretty clear all the other SWC teams were doing it. That was a big part of the first segment when talking about the recruitment of Dickerson and his gold Trans Am that was partially paid for by Texas A&M. The story around Dallas when I lived there was that Dickerson also had a maroon Mustang bought for him by Oklahoma.

And the only person advancing the players-as-victim angle was Stanley's mother, and she was obviously trying to protect her kid. The players were equally complicit in the situation. Eighteen year olds are dumb and might think they will never get caught, but they also know the NCAA rules.

ETA: Whoops, hadn't seen the end yet. Yeah, not sure I buy the players as victims angle, but I am not surprised the players are the ones spouting it. At the very end, there was some talk about how it wasn't fair that the players receiving payments were allowed to transfer, consequence free, to other universities.

SMU was stuck in a perfect storm of major media market and relatively small school that did not have friends in high places in the NCAA. Combine that with the fact it was a private school (so you don't get state legislatures or state university governing boards involved) and the undeniably stupid way they went about cheating and you've got what happened.

There have been equally egregious violations by repeat offenders (hello Michigan basketball), but they will never give that penalty to a major program again. And because of that, you're right that the biggest lesson learned was give yourself plausible deniability as a university and athletic department.

 

Speaking of ESPN Classic, yesterday I came home and it was gone from Time Warner. It's part of the Sports Tier Package now. Four bucks a month. I ordered it, because it comes with a bunch of Big Ten Network channels (which aren't coming in, of course, so a tech has to come), a bunch of Fox Sports channels, Tennis Channel, and some CBS Sports college ones. Still thought it was dumb that ESPN Classic was on there. Paying extra to watch the 2002 World Series of poker for seven hours each day?

 

Sounds like our sports tier on Comcast. Same set of channels. The saving grace? For four bucks a month (or, in my case, five), the sports tier includes the NFL Red Zone Channel. Worth every fucking penny, and then some.

 

Mentioned this over on another board, but the "cheating montage" during the end credits was interesting. Would've been awesome if it had included a mention of Cam Newton, but I guess that story broke after the documentary was put to bed.

 

One doc subject I wish was done for the 30 for 30 was a look at the athletes that missed out on the 1980 Olympics.

 

Didn't watch last night's yet, but my favorite was "Muhammad and Larry". The Marion Jones one was easily the worst.

 

They did that with SportsCentury.

Who knows? They may have already moved on to Who's Now 2011.

 

I'd place this one third in the 30 for 30 college football category, behind "The U" and "The Best That Never Was" (Marcus Dupree).

Last night's 30 for 30 didn't really speed up until the second half, when it detailed the media frenzy in Dallas and the corruption that was ensuing, not just in the school but in the state government.

One of the interviewees said that the NCAA would never issue the death penalty to a school again, because it was so devastating. Of course not. The NCAA had to make an example of someone, and had enough dirt on SMU.

The next 30 for 30 I'd like to see? The Patrick Dennehy/Baylor basketball murder case.

 

Sorry, how were Michigan's basketball violations "equally egregious" to this? This involved a group of at least nine boosters making systematic planned payments for around a decade from a slush fund with the full knowledge (and participation) of university officials and a Texas governor. Michigan's scandal involved payments from just one booster without the knowledge of the administration.

And, more importantly, with Michigan the shit stopped after they got busted. With SMU, the shit NEVER stopped no matter what the NCAA did. SMU had been sanctioned by the NCAA more than any other D1 program in history, on probation FIVE times just between 74 and 85. Conversely, Michigan had a squeaky clean reputation until the Ed Martin scandal hit. SMU got the death penalty after every alternative punishment had been exhausted--sanctions didn't work, probation didn't work, taking away TV games and bowls didn't work--it appeared there was no way to stop SMU from paying players short of the death penalty. Nobody had ever ignored more warnings to stop. That was never the case with Michigan. Not even remotely comparable on the egregiousness scale.

 

The SMU Pony Excess didn't have any death, disease, social issues, societal landmarks. None of that stuff.

Pure cheesecake.

And I LOVED every frame of it. Just watched it on the TiVo.

"Pony Excess" didn't take itself too seriously and I set the best tone - especially with Patrick Duffy, of all people.

For all of us, I'd highly recommend the SMU 30/30 because it hit so hard on the Dallas newspaper war. Norm Hitzges was hilarious: "To bring down SMU, you could do that with a bicycle!".

I don't know the last time I laughed SO hard over a documentary. It captured the essence of the old SWC as it was becoming a national joke.

All of the media kings (Hansen, Galloway, Bayless, Hitzges) and the boosters added SO much depth to the storytelling.

Marcus Dupree could have been told in an hour. Pony Excess could have gone on for a third hour.