And we’re not referring to the alleged sticker price Cecil Newton slapped on his son, either.
According to Jon Solomon of the Birmingham News, Auburn has spent $170,000 in legal fees since mid-October on the Cam Newton “case”. All of the fees have gone to the Birmingham-based firm of Lightfoot, Franklin, White LLC.
The information came to light as part of an open-records request by the News.
The NCAA has been investigating the recruitment of the one-and-done, Heisman-winning quarterback since early last year. While the NCAA found Newton’s father had committed a violation by soliciting money in exchange for his son’s signature on a Letter of Intent, the NCAA has found no evidence that the player was aware of what his father was doing or that Auburn played a part in the pay-for-play scheme.
The investigation is still ongoing -- SEC commissioner Mike Slive told ESPN.com earlier this week that “nobody has written me a letter that says it’s over” -- meaning the university could still face additional legal fees before the probe comes to an end.
“AU attempts to address compliance matters with internal staff to the extent possible,” AU senior associate athletics director Scott Carr told the paper. “Whether it can do so depends in part on whether the questions asked require more staff time than is available internally.”
While the $170,000 paid is quite a hefty sum, the News notes that Michigan paid over $600,000 to the same law firm during their recent run-in with the NCAA. So, certainly, the financial damage could’ve been a lot worse.
Besides, can you really put a price tag on a national title?