Morning Six Pack: June 27, 2013 and 65 days until kickass

Thirsty Thursday starts with a another round on that horse you fell off of last night. Soldier, climb back on…

Q&A with Amanda Pflugrad of Total College Sports

Every summer the Capstone Report interviews journalists covering college football. This summer we have the pleasure to present a Q&A with Amanda Pflugrad.

Analysis: After mistake, Oregon followed right protocol

The Oregon football team's NCAA sanctions are long on symbolism but not long on severity.

Even when rebuilding, LSU football is must watch in 2013

LSU football is at its best with a degree of uncertainty. I mean, come on, Les Miles screams uncertainty. You’re never even certain as to what the heck Miles is even talking about when he opens his mouth. It’s awesome.

Five returning players to watch this season for Troy's football team

Quarterbacks Corey Robinson, Deon Anthony lead the list of players expected to play a key role fore the Trojans this season.

Terps lose four-star OL signee to academics

Throughout the offseason, especially as spring bleeds into summer, one of a coach’s biggest worries is a player stepping across the legal line off the field.

Quotable:

Two Oregon staff members, an assistant coach and the director of football operations, were aware that Lyles was helping the Ducks recruit as they became the dominant college football program on the West Coast.

Wait. It gets better.

Lyles' relationship with Oregon began when he contacted Kelly, then the Oregon offensive coordinator, and identified himself as "an employee of a recruiting service." A year later, Lyles was traveling with Kelly on high school visits to evaluate prospects.

That's right. A street agent was walking into high schools with a head coach in waiting, and the growing relationship between Lyles and Oregon was working. Some of the prospects he mentored were signing with the Ducks.

The tailback James, Lyles' prize protege, helped Oregon win three straight Pac-12 championships and reach two Rose Bowls and a BCS Championship Game, where the Ducks came up three points short against Auburn.

So the crimes of improper use of recruiting services and failure to monitor by both the university and the head coach, among other violations, worked. They paid off in victories, conference titles and BCS bowl trips. And yet the Infractions Committee didn't strip Oregon of any victories or issue a bowl ban, allowing the Duck Dynasty under new head coach Mark Helfrich to continue.

Imagine. The committee had a high-profile program and a highly effective third-party recruiter working together and prospering. Oh, and Oregon was considered a repeat violator under NCAA legislation.

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