The Most Controversial College Football Players Of All-Time Will Surprise You
With over 120 Division I college football programs in the United States, some players are bound to be controversial. Not everyone follows the rules. Some get away with it and go on to have successful NFL careers. Others have their reputations smeared and are left searching for a new path. A few, like Tim Tebow, probably shouldn't be considered controversial at all (but they are!) These are the most controversial college football players of all-time. How many do you remember?
Cam Newton Was Shopped Around By His Dad
After one year at community college, Newton was a top recruit, and his father decided to see how much his services were worth. After accepting a scholarship with Auburn, the NCAA began an investigation to reports that Cecil Newton had asked schools for upwards of $200,000 for his son. No evidence of this was ever found.
Cam Newton went on to win a National Championship as the quarterback for Auburn University and was drafted by the Carolina Panthers. Luckily his dad shopping around his services to colleges didn't interfere with his future and incredible career.
Willie Williams Was Recruited With Women
Willie Williams was on top of the world in 2004. He was the number one overall recruit out of high school and had college programs banging down his door to sign him. It all came crashing down when Williams revealed just how far schools were willing to go to recruit him.
Auburn tried to persuade him with "attractive women." Miami paid for the nicest hotel rooms possible. And Florida State spoiled him with unlimited lobster dinners. As the NCAA began investigating the recruiting, they investigated Williams as well, who was on probation after several arrests. Williams committed to Miami before transferring to Louisville, where he was kicked off the team.
Manti Te'o And His Catfishing Scandal
Manti Te'o was considered a top talent at Notre Dame when he declared for the NFL Draft. He was a perfect student with a clean record. Then a story broke out that his long distance girlfriend he had never met passed away.
Two months later he got a phone call from the supposedly gone girlfriend. She wasn't gone, but she wasn't real either. Te'o was a victim of catfishing, which turned him into the most controversial draft prospect that year. How could someone with such perfect character make such a fatal mistake? Teams believed the incident defined Te'o and he nearly wasn't drafted.
Maurice Clarett Tried To Enter The NFL Early
Maurice Clarett was a special, but troubled talent for Ohio State University. Considered the best player on the team, he was critical of the program, claiming they didn't pay for him to attend a friend's funeral. He later falsely reported that merchandise had been stolen from his car.
Ohio State decided he wasn't worth the trouble and suspended him for the 2003 season. He flew to Los Angeles and sued the NCAA, stating he should be allowed to enter the NFL early instead of wait out his punishment. He lost, and ultimately fizzled when the Broncos drafted him in 2005.
Marcus Vick Ran Out Of Chances
The brother of controversial NFL star Michael Vick, Marcus Vick enrolled at Virginia Tech out of high school. He played quarterback like his brother, and also showed a propensity to get into trouble with the law. In 2004, he was arrested for having a relationship with a 15-year-old.
He was never convicted after the teenager refused to testify in court. He was suspended from playing football for a year, and was dismissed from the team entirely after being pulled over for speeding. Shockingly, the Miami Dolphins signed Vick, who appeared in one game with them in 2006.
Reggie Bush Forfeited His Heisman Trophy
Reggie Bush was never asked to give his Heisman Trophy back after he was caught accepting almost $300,000 worth of gifts while at USC. He chose to forfeit the trophy after embarrassing himself and his school. Bush then entered the NFL draft and became one of the highest paid rookies of all-time.
USC was put on probation for paying Bush for his services as well as giving him a house to use while he attended the school. One year before Bush high-tailed it out of Southern California, the school's head coach, Pete Carroll did the same, leaving for the Seattle Seahawks.
Bryce Brown Had Commitment Issues
Bryce Brown never wanted to play college football. Out of high school he considered joining the Canadian Football League until he was NFL eligible. That didn't happen, and he committed to play for the University of Tennessee. After a year as a back up for the Volunteers, Brown left town.
Amidst recruitment allegations that he and his brother had received benefits from a booster, Brown transferred to Kansas State. Once he figured out how to become NFL eligible early, he left Kansas State and declared for the NFL draft, never having shown his full potential in college.
Harvey McDougle Jr. Threw Games For Money
Harvey McDougle Jr. became one of the biggest names in college football in 2007 when he was suspended by Toledo for taking bribes to throw games. Along with other athletes, McDougle would fake injuries in exchange for money in one of college football's biggest point shaving schemes ever.
In total, six athletes at Toledo, including McDougle Jr., were charged with throwing games. In 2017, McDougle Jr. came clean as the ring leader and pleaded guilty. In defense of himself, the running back said, "I needed the cash and the groceries at the time. It was a bad mistake."
Tim Tebow Embraced Religion
While it shouldn't have been a big deal that Tim Tebow openly embraced his religion, it turned him into one of the most controversial college players of his generation. Tebow regularly wrote Bible verses on his eye black, a practice the NCAA frowned upon and ultimately banned.
His most controversial moment, though, came during two pro-life commercials where he appeared with his mother. The spots aired during the Super Bowl and received harsh criticism. Whether you believe the criticism is fair or not, it's safe to say Tebow rubbed some people the wrong way.
Rhett Bomar Was Paid For A Job He Never Worked
Rhett Bomar was living the American dream when he was hired to work for a car dealership in Oklahoma but never had to show up to work. The dealership was a major donor to the Sooner's football program and was more than happy to pay Bomar for nothing.
Bomar was dismissed from the school for the clear NCAA violation and found his way to Sam Houston State before entering the NFL, where he was drafted by the New York Giants in the fifth round.
LeGarrette Blount Hit Another Player
LeGarrette Blount had anger issues while playing at Oregon. The former Duck made headlines when he punched Boise State player Byron Hout after a game. He needed to be held back from doing further damage. He later lunged at fans who were taunting him.
Blount was suspended indefinitely by head coach Chip Kelly and was not allowed to rejoin the team until he met a "list of demands." In the NFL, Blount has mostly controlled his temper, and even played critical roles in winning back-to-back Super Bowls for two different team!
Jeremiah Masoli Stole From A Frat
Jeremiah Masoli couldn't stay out of trouble in Oregon in 2010. Expected to lead the team to great heights, he instead was dismissed from the team for several offenses. The first issue arose when Masoli pleaded guilty to stealing goods from a fraternity.
A few months later he was arrested for possession of drugs. Oregon said goodbye, and Masoli continued to find himself in trouble. He transferred to Ole Miss but was listed as ineligible to play by the NCAA. The decision was appealed, and Masoli became the school's starter. After college, he played for the 49ers briefly before finding a home in the CFL.
Adam James Videotaped His Harsh Punishment
Adam James got Mike Leach fired as the head coach at Texas Tech when he filmed his punishment for suffering a concussion. He used his phone to film himself in a dark room, which he claimed he was forced to stand in for three hours in the dark.
Leach, of course, denied the allegations, saying James and his father falsified the story to smear his reputation and get him fired. The school didn't buy Leach's story, who found employment a few years later with Washington State University.
Adrian McPherson Had A Gambling Problem
While playing for Florida State, star quarterback Adrian McPherson developed a gambling problem. To cover his tracks he turned to crime, stealing a blank check in an effort to pay off his debts. Some of those bets were even placed on his university, a clear NCAA violation.
McPherson was rightfully kicked off the team. He declared for the NFL Draft, where the Saints picked him in the fifth round. After one season he left the NFL to join the Arena Football League. Since then, he has bounced between the AFL and the CFL.
Jeremy Bloom Lost His Amateur Status
The NCAA brought the hammer down on Colorado athlete Jeremy Bloom when it was determined he was ineligible to play college football. The kick returner was told that, because he accepted endorsements for skiing, he was not considered an "amateur" athlete for NCAA purposes.
The head-scratching decision by the NCAA is one of the reasons athletes have begun fighting back against the organization. The thinking is simple; why should the NCAA control what a college athlete does outside of the college to earn money when it has nothing to do with them?
Ell Roberson Blew His Chance At The Fiesta Bowl
Playing for Kansas State, Ell Roberson had his college career derailed before the Fiesta Bowl in 2004. A woman he had spent New Years Eve with accused him of taking advantage of her. Kansas State later said that Roberson and other teammates violated "unspecified team rules." The school revoked the athlete's scholarship.
Roberson's career never recovered. NFL teams refused to draft him and he went up north to play in Canada. In his first season for the Montreal Alouettes he tore his rotator cuff and was released.
Dez Bryant Lied About Not Breaking The Rules
Dez Bryant didn't help himself out in 2008 when he lied to the NCAA about working out with NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders. The workouts happened between his sophomore and junior year at OSU and were considered completely legal by the NCAA.
Bryant didn't realize he hadn't broken any rules, though, and lied about them to the organization. When the NCAA investigated the situation, they suspended Bryant for most of the 2009 college season for his lack of honesty.
Kellen Winslow Jr. Compared Football To War
Kellen Winslow Jr. didn't earn a lot of fans in the military when he compared football players to soldiers while at the University of Miami. No suspension was handed down by the NCAA for his words, but his controversial comments came to define his personality.
The son of legendary tight end Kellen Winslow, Winslow Jr. had the pedigree to be a generational talent. His knack for running his mouth and overstating the intensity of the game might have cost him the chance. That and his propensity to drop easy catches.
Adam Jones Played College Ball While On Trial
Adam "Pacman" Jones had such a hard time staying out of trouble when he got to the NFL, it's easy to forget his problems started in college. In 2003, Jones was arrested and charged for his involvement in a bar fight.
His sentence was suspended, and Jones was given two years of probation by the judge overseeing the case. Essentially, Jones played college football while he was on trial for a physical altercation. Then, he was drafted into the NFL having been found guilty of the crime!
Mike Williams Gets Caught Without A Home
In 2004, a wide receiver named Mike Williams played at USC. Over his first two college seasons, he amassed over 2,500 receiving yards. Instead of playing his third year at the school, he decided to enter the draft early. He made his decision based on Maurice Clarett's case.
When Clarett's case was overturned, Williams found himself stuck with nowhere to go. Because he had hired an agent, the NCAA ruled he could not play another year of college football, but because he was only two years removed from high school, not three, he could not enter the draft.
