College Football’s 5th Quarter: Lawsuits, scandals and new assistants

4. Weird lawsuits of the week

Mullen and Rebel Rags

Per an SB Nation report, the owner of Rebel Rags, an off-campus independent Ole Miss Rebels merchandise store, is suing Dan Mullen for allegedly colluding with Jeremy Tunsil’s step father Lindsey Miller. They allegedly colluded to report illegal merchandise benefits given to recruits by the Ole Miss based store before the two recruits signed with Mississippi State instead.

The alleged collusion is that Coach Mullen put the two former Ole Miss recruits up to this once they signed with the MSU Bulldogs instead. It was mentioned in the NCAA probation findings against Ole Miss that ultimately lead to Hugh Freeze being fired and the Rebels going on probation.

Arkansas State sues Miami

Arkansas State has sued the University of Miami for $650,000  over the cancellation of their football game in September due to Hurricane Irma. Per Football Scoop, Arkansas State general counsel Brad Phelps said, “It is unfortunate that we have reached this point, but Miami’s actions left us with no choice. We look forward to proceeding to trial.”

Miami canceled that game because the administration felt it was best for players to be home with their families as a hurricane ripped through South Florida causing school cancellations, power outages, and even loss of life. 

There wasn’t a huge reason for the Hurricanes to play Arkansas State anyway, and now they probably won’t ever play again after this lawsuit. Arkansas isn’t exactly a talent hotbed like Louisiana, Texas, Ohio, or California for Miami to lure in recruits. A situation like this shows how petty people are after what is labeled the worst storm in U.S. history and how much this is all about money, not people.