Too Obvious to be Oblivious?

To be honest, I don't really know what to make of the Cam Newton situation. It's been pretty well determined that his father shopped him around, but the only school that's been proven guilty is one he never went to. He left Florida to basically avoid expulsion after getting caught cheating academically. Then, he attended Blinn Junior College and was extremely successful on the football field. It was there that Cam's father, Cecil, negotiated with people with ties to Mississippi State about paying him for his son to go there. It was ultimately decided however, for reasons unknown, that his son would go to Auburn.

It's hard to imagine that Auburn got him for free. But, nothing's been proven. Even if something is proven, the NCAA seems to have inexplicably set the precedent that as long Cam doesn't know about it, he is eligible. However, I would think that if he didn't know at the time, but does know now, then that would make him culpable. And how could he not know? I can imagine him not knowing before his father's actions became public, but I can't imagine him not remembering things or tying events together after he found out. If he didn't downright ask. The only way he would not know is if he didn't want to know. It would be the Ken Lay defense and it's not a very good one.

It seems like his father is the bad guy in this situation. And he is. But, he's not the only bad guy. He exploited a corrupt system. He knew what he was doing was wrong and everyone involved knew the same. It may have been a common occurrence that just got brought to daylight, but that doesn't excuse it or make it less wrong. A corrupt system can never be blamed for individuals making bad decisions. Corrupt systems exist because of many people making many bad decisions and using it as an excuse only serves to perpetuate it. So, Cecil Newton has to be painted as a bad character in this situation, but so do many other people. But, I guess the only real question is whether or not Cam Newton is one of them.

To answer that, there are only two possibilities. One is that he knows absolutely nothing. He did what his father told him and never asked questions. His father did an exquisite job of keeping it quiet and never slipped up or let on to anything. That is the only solution in which Cam could be cleared. But, unless Cecil is a former CIA agent and Cam just isn't that bright, it seems pretty unlikely.

The only other possibility is that he knew. Either he knew something was going on but just never asked, or he knew all along. Even if he didn't want to be part of it and avoided knowing anything, or if his father protected him from it and ensured that he knew nothing, he still must've known there was something going on. To think that his father could be found guilty of offering him up for sale to one school and then let him go to another for free is pretty hard to imagine. And it seems like Cam must realize that too.

Well, I did leave out one solution. It's the one in which Cecil asked for money from one school and then sent his son to another school for free. But that's not really a possibility, is it?

I also can't figure out how I feel about Cam Newton. If he's simply a pawn, as he claims to be, then I feel sorry for him because his father treated him like a commodity and tried to sell him to the highest bidder. To know nothing and simply be told what to do doesn't seem very pleasant. He seems to appreciate his father, though, so maybe it's not so bad. I just wouldn't want to live like that.

However, I can't imagine him not knowing so I'm a little perturbed. It seems like he's smiling in our faces and knows he's pulling a fast one on us. He just doesn't care. Cam Newton and his father exploited a corrupt system, profited, and now he's about to play in the BCS Championship game, Heisman in hand, and then make millions in the NFL. He beat the system and he knows there's nothing anyone can do about it. But, maybe that's because no one is willing to. The fans want to watch him play and the schools and sponsors want to line their pockets. Everybody wins. Nobody wins.