If the hotel gave the preferential rate to anyone at the university? Jerry
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Rob Alexander Sent: Saturday, February 18, 2012 4:07 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [gatortalk] Re: [gatornews] GatorNews From The Gainesville SUN For 2/17, AM Edition I suspect that their position would be, if you and any other member of the public can pay that rate for that room, then student athletes are also welcome to. But if student athletes are paying less than you or I could, then it's an improper benefit. It seems conceptually straightforward to me, even if the journalists writing about it can't get the numbers straight. The hotel getting advertising benefits from the arrangement probably makes it worse to the NCAA, not better. Rob Sent from my iPad On Feb 18, 2012, at 11:26 AM, "Jerry D. Belloit" <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: I find the NCAA's position here a little strange. I stayed for two months at a local Holiday Inn for $500 per month per room. (Daily rate not much higher than what was charged to the students.) The rate was a special rate given to University employees. It is not uncommon for hotels to negotiate lower rates for extended stays, especially when the hotel expects to get future business from the transaction. Apparently this hotel was charging $450 per month. That does not seem unreasonably low. I am surprised that this particular count was not challenged. In addition, I suspect that the hotel got some additional business by having some popular athletes living there. Jerry From: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> [mailto:[email protected]]<mailto:[mailto:[email protected]]> On Behalf Of Rob Alexander Sent: Friday, February 17, 2012 6:18 PM To: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Subject: Re: [gatortalk] Re: [gatornews] GatorNews From The Gainesville SUN For 2/17, AM Edition I think there are several specific cases and that the journalist who wrote the story has mixed the numbers from different cases together, so they don't make sense. That said, I think it's the $14.95 and the $57 numbers that matter. As far as I can tell, it seems the article is saying the student athletes actually did pay $14.95 per night and the NCAA is saying that no regular person could possibly have stayed there at that rate. The NCAA is saying that $57 per night is the cheapest rate that they would believe was not a special deal for the student athletes. While I have no idea what hotel we're talking about or what they charge, or how true any of this is, the basic concept of the allegation seems reasonable to me. If you had never, ever charged any other non-athlete customer less than $57 per night, but you regularly let athletes stay for $14.95 per night, that would sure look like you were giving an improper benefit. Rob Sent from my iPad On Feb 17, 2012, at 4:29 PM, John Vega <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: On Feb 17, 2012, at 8:17 AM, Shane Ford wrote: The bulk of improper benefits come from 12 athletes staying at the Whitney Hotel at $450 each for a two-bedroom suite. The NCAA found the hotel a few miles off campus charged a rate of $14.95 per athlete for two-bedroom suites. The NCAA said the rate should've been more than $57 per night for each athlete. One football player who spent more than year at the hotel, the NCAA said, received an extra benefit worth $19,280. The NCAA said the school received $47,000 worth of improper benefits from the rate reduction. Color me confused. Is the NCAA saying that the Whitney rate was too low; too high, or that student-athletes shouldn't be allowed to stay in hotels? I'd be stunned to find a hotel that offered a rate of $14.95 per person for a two-bedroom suite. Not even on Priceline. If the rate should have been $57, the University got overcharged. How is that a benefit to the players (unless the football players happen to own the hotel)? -Zeb -- GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us<http://www.gatornet.us> -- GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us<http://www.gatornet.us> -- GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us<http://www.gatornet.us> -- GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us<http://www.gatornet.us> -- GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us
