Well I guess my link wasn't to successful, so here
it is from the AP.
Spurrier
Complained on Ala. Recruiting
By JOHN ZENOR AP Sports Writer MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP)
Florida coach Steve Spurrier wrote an angry letter two years ago threatening to
report former Alabama coach Mike DuBose to the NCAA for illegal recruiting.
Spurrier's handwritten note to DuBose was included in Alabama's 755-page
response Thursday to an array of NCAA charges against the football program.
Spurrier accused Alabama of violating NCAA rules by helping offensive
lineman Justin Smiley and linebacker Travis Carroll obtain cars. ``You
need to tell (Smiley) that you're full of (offensive line) scholarships or I'm
going to turn you and your coaches in,'' Spurrier wrote in a letter dated Feb.
14, 2000. ``You are not going to buy players from me without an investigation of
some kind.'' Smiley is currently a starter for the Crimson Tide,
while Carroll transferred to Florida in 1999. Spurrier punctuated his
letter with two postcripts: ``I've been hearing this ... for the last
couple of years now.'' ``If this is not true what I've been hearing,
then you've got nothing to worry about.'' Alabama's response
said DuBose turned the letter over to compliance director Marie Robbins, who
investigated the accusations and submitted her findings to the SEC and Florida.
Spurrier was not immediately available for comment. Alabama
contested the allegations involving Carroll. Smiley's case was not mentioned in
the response. Robbins has said the vehicle was bought by Smiley's mother.
The NCAA has accused Alabama of providing Carroll with a 1994 car in the
summer of 1999, with the help of then-assistant coach Neil Callaway and without
making a down payment or trade-in. The dealer didn't repossess
the vehicle until after Carroll transferred to Florida, according to the NCAA.
Alabama officials countered that the car, bought for $3,600, had 132,637
miles on it and the method of purchase was not extraordinary under the
circumstances. On Thursday, the university offered self-imposed
sanctions for 11 major violations and five minor infractions, including the loss
of 15 scholarships over three years and cutting ties to three boosters for
periods ranging from 5 to 10 years. The NCAA is expected to impose
sanctions in January or February. It can accept or add to Alabama's penalties.
