It seems like a weekly occurrence for a report to come out exploiting a collegiate football program for cheating–this week the Oregon Ducks are in the hot seat. The Ducks have already had a tumultuous offseason, but ex-head coach Chip Kelly and his staff are under scrutiny from the NCAA for illegal recruiting.
Oregon is under fire for paying a recruiting system upwards of $35,000 over a duration of just four years. These allegations came from 2008-2011 when Kelly was the head coach of the football team, but thanks to an NFL job offer from the Philadelphia Eagles this summer, Kelly is no longer coaching in Eugene.
Unfortunately, this is not the first time that the Ducks football program has gotten flack. In 2004 the program received violations for similar actions which makes Oregon a “repeat offender” considering they have violated protocol twice in a matter of five years or less.
College football is slowing becoming a mockery as awards and wins are being taken away left and right, so the news of the Ducks illegal actions should not be a surprise. The run-and-gun offense that Kelly implemented is an absolute spectacle to watch, however if they aren’t going about things the right way then they do not deserve any accolades whatsoever. Similar to what Pete Carroll did with the USC Trojans, it appears that Kelly got out of dodge at the perfect time–one thing is for sure, Kelly will never coach at the college level again.
As the rumors begin to swirl and the facts slowly trickle in, the Ducks must await what could be a huge detriment to a program on the rise.
