Oy.
There’s a new accusation against Will Lyles, the owner of the Houston-based scouting company, Complete Scouting Services. According to an ESPN.com report and interview with former Texas A&M cornerbacks coach Van Malone, Lyles contacted Malone while A&M was recruiting current LSU DB Patrick Peterson, and requested $80,000 for Peterson to sign with the Aggies in 2007.
“If you want this kid, there are other schools that want this kid as well. They’re willing to pay a certain amount of money, around the $80,000 mark,’” Malone said. “He said that was something we were going to have to beat as a university to be able to obtain the services of this kid.”
Malone, now an assistant at Tulsa, said A&M didn’t pay for players.
Peterson himself could not be reached for comment, but Peterson’s father, Patrick Peterson Sr., told ESPN that even if money was solicited by Lyles, he was unaware.
“This is my first time hearing this. This is a shocker,” Peterson Sr. said. “It could have happened. It could have come out of [Lyles’] mouth, that’s what happens. These guys try to make money on their own, they are kind of like escort services. That’s what I call them, escort services.”
“It’s like Cam Newton, same thing,” Peterson Sr. said, “These guys -- they are trying to get paid. You have to be careful who you talk to, who you deal with it. I just know him [Lyles] from the camps.”
Apparently, a lot of people “just kinda know” Lyles.
At this point, this is nothing more than an accusation by Malone. The ESPN.com report does not explain why Malone is choosing to reveal the information, or what Texas A&M did after the phone call between Malone and Lyles.
Nevertheless, the accusation adds another layer to the suspicions piling up against Lyles and any school associated with him, including LSU and Oregon. On March 16, LSU associate athletic director Herb Vincent said the university would not reveal the documented business arrangement between LSU and Lyles because, in his professional opinion, there was nothing to report.
LSU admitted to paying $6,000 for Lyles scouting services, and ESPN reported that Oregon paid roughly $25,000 for Lyles services in 2010 after running back recruit Lache Seastrunk signed with the Ducks.