Gene Chizik wanted the Cam Newton investigation to go ahead and pick it up a notch -- he may have gotten his wish. According to USA Today's Danny Sheridan during an appearance on the Paul Finebaum show, the NCAA thinks something in the neighborhood of $200,000 went to Cecil Newton for the services of his son, with about 10 percent -- $20,000 to $30,000 -- of that going to Cecil's church, all "handled by a third party."
The NCAA suspects a specific person of having handled Auburn's money, not Mississippi State's money, and providing "bag man" services, but isn't yet able to pin anything on him, according to Sheridan. He also said the NCAA is looking at "about 15 other schools." If the investigation can't find anything, it will wrap up "in about six months." He forecasted sanctions and vacations if Auburn is found guilty of having used the third-party figure of delivering money for Newton.
Here's part one of the audio, and here's part two.
Sheridan didn't say he has any evidence that Newton was paid for by Auburn. He stressed that his reporting only covers what the NCAA is looking for evidence of. Take it with a grain of salt, since it's on Finebaum's show, but that's another national columnist Auburn fans are going to have to add to their lengthy list of disreputable journalists.
Clay Travis' new website has also reported the NCAA's investigation took the governing body to Montgomery, Alabama at the end of June.
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