An ex-EA Sports employee says games were designed to replicate existing athletes. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

By Zac Ellis

A former EA Sports producer says the company’s college sports video games were designed to replicate existing athletes without using their names, according to testimony obtained by AL.com.

Jeremy Strauser, an employee of EA Sports from 1995-2011, testified that video game players were created to correlate with existing players numbers and biographical information. Strauser’s testimony took place last December but was filed by EA Sports last week.

EA Sports, the NCAA and the College Licensing Company are the defendants in a high-profile case brought forth by former student-athletes and headed by former UCLA basketball player Ed O’Bannon. The suit alleges the three defendants violated antitrust laws surrounding student-athletes’ names, likenesses and images in the companies’ products.

According to the testimony, EA Sports was aware of the similarities between athletes and their video game counterparts:

“We generally tried to make the players perform as their real life counterparts, short of their name and likeness,” Strauser testified.

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Ex-Idaho head coach Robb Akey filed a lawsuit against the university on April 16. (Scott W. Grau/Icon SMI)

By Zac Ellis

A former Idaho football coach has filed a lawsuit against the school. Robb Akey, who was fired from his position as head coach last October, filed the suit on April 16 against the University of Idaho, the Board of Regents and the State Board of Education.

Akey was fired eight games into the 2012 season following a 1-7 start. The ex-Vandals coach says he is seeking proper compensation with the lawsuit. “All I’m looking for is getting the money I earned. I’m not looking for anything more than that. I just want a fair resolution,” Akey told KREM 2 News.

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SEC football coaching salaries are increasing at a rate 128.9 percent faster than those of instructors in the league. (AP)

By Zac Ellis

Salaries of college football coaches increase at a much higher rate than those of instructors at the same universities, a new study shows.

Even as many institutions of higher education fight through far-reaching budget cuts, a study by Inside Higher Ed shows that universities with the largest athletic programs are the driving force behind the lopsided trend.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the SEC leads the way in salary discrepancy. The league boasts about a quarter of the country’s 23 athletic programs where revenues actually outpace expenses. Its instructional salaries rose 15.5 percent between 2006-11 ($70,886 to $81,758); SEC football coaching salaries increased 128.9 percent over that same span ($3,147,149 to $6,928,989).

The smallest salary gap belonged to the WAC, “where football salaries rose 46.4 percent, from $1,370,332 to $1,819,845, and instructional paychecks rose 15.2 percent (a faster increase than several other conferences), from $65,038 to $76,533,” according to the report.

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Pitt dismissed tight end Drew Carswell (6) and defensive back Eric Williams on Tuesday. (Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)

By Zac Ellis

Pitt has dismissed junior tight end Drew Carswell and junior defensive back Eric Williams, the school announced on Tuesday. Carswell and Williams, along with junior defensive tackle Khaynin Mosley-Smith, were indefinitely suspended last week by coach Paul Chryst for their involvement in a drug-related incident.

All three players were detained on April 25 after being found in a house invaded by SWAT personnel. Per a CBS Pittsburgh report, “Detectives say they seized 20 bags of heroin, a marijuana bong and a copper grinder,” at the scene.

Mosley-Smith remains on indefinite suspension.

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LSU running back Jeremy Hill rushed for 755 yards and 12 touchdowns last season. (Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

By Zac Ellis

Some unfortunate news came out of Baton Rouge over the weekend, as LSU running back Jeremy Hill was arrested early Saturday morning after being involved in an altercation outside a bar near the school’s campus.

The school announced on Monday that Hill has been suspended indefinitely.

LSU RB Jeremy Hill has been indefinitely suspended from team for his involvement in off-campus incident over the weekend.—
Michael Bonnette (@LSUBonnette) April 29, 2013

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Ed O’Bannon (above) and the plaintiffs are seeking class-action status in their case against the NCAA. (AP)

By Zac Ellis

Administrators noted “real concern” within the NCAA that use of athletes’ likenesses in video games “adds to the argument that student-athletes should be unionized and receive a cut of the profits, etc.” according to lawyers representing the plaintiffs in Ed O’Bannon v. the NCAA.

Steve Berkowitz of USA Today reports documents filed Thursday by the plaintiffs cited an email written in 2005 by former NCAA membership services staffer Bo Kerin in their allegations. The documents also allege that Peter Davis, a former NCAA director of corporate alliances, “admitted that there are ‘likenesses of student-athletes’” in video games developed by EA Sports. Along with the NCAA, EA Sports and collegiate trademark licensing and marketing firm Collegiate Licensing Co. make up the defendants in the O’Bannon case, in which several former student-athletes are seeking damages for the illegal use of their likenesses by the NCAA.

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In an official statement, Commissioner John Swofford highlighted the ACC’s solidarity and leadership. (Chuck Burton/AP)

By Zac Ellis

The ACC’s member schools have signed a 15-school Grant of Rights agreement through 2027, the league announced Monday. ACCSports.com’s David Glenn first reported the news.

“This announcement further highlights the continued solidarity and commitment by our member institutions,” said ACC commissioner John Swofford in a statement. “The Council of Presidents has shown tremendous leadership in insuring the ACC is extremely well positioned with unlimited potential.”

The move will likely halt conference realignment for the immediate future by drastically decreasing the odds of current ACC teams leaving for another conference. A Grant of Rights agreement involves teams surrendering control of TV rights to the league, meaning the ACC would retain rights to certain media revenue until the deal’s conclusion, even if a team left the conference. The ACC already has a $50 million exit fee in place — which Florida State voted against and which Maryland is currently fighting — but this would be a more definitive move toward enhancing the league’s stability. The Big 12 was the last major football conference to agree to a Grant of Rights.

MANDEL: Rejoice! ACC deal should halt conference realignment

Jeremy Fowler of CBSSports.com reports that the ACC is in talks with ESPN about establishing its own network, following the model of the Big Ten, Pac-12 and the soon-to-be-announced SEC network.

George O’Leary’s UCF Knights will be bowl eligible this season after winning their NCAA appeal. (Landov)

By Zac Ellis

The NCAA granted Central Florida’s appeal of a one-year postseason ban, the school officially announced Monday.

Reports surfaced on Friday that UCF’s appeal had indeed been granted, but the school released a statement on Monday confirming the decision by the NCAA.

“We are pleased with this ruling and applaud the NCAA for handling our appeal with care, competency and professionalism,” UCF President John C. Hitt said in a statement. “Our football program looks forward to competing for an American Athletic Conference championship and a bowl berth.”

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The final rolling of Auburn’s Toomer’s Oaks will take place on Saturday. (Columbus Ledger-Enquirer/MCT/Getty Images)

By Zac Ellis

One of the final chapters of the sad, curious saga of the oaks at Auburn’s Toomer’s Corner will be written on Saturday. Shortly after Tigers’ A-Day spring game, fans can gather for what will be the final rolling of the trees on campus.

The rolling is scheduled to begin at 5:00 p.m. and will include remarks from Auburn mayor Bill Ham Jr., university president Jay Gogue, head football coach Gus Malzahn, former AD David Housel, Auburn alumni association president Bill Stone and student government association president Harrison Mills. The university will unveil new development plans for Toomer’s Corner, the location of the trees, during the event.

Auburn will hand out toilet paper to fans in attendance while some merchants will sell rolls, giving away a free roll for every purchase. A pep rally will accompany the rolling of the trees and will include appearances by the Auburn pep band and cheerleaders.

The trees, which were poisoned two years ago by Alabama fan Harvey Updyke, have been iconic campus landmarks for decades. They’ve traditionally been “rolled” by fans after each home football victory.

Washington State wide receiver Mansel Simmons was reportedly hospitalized over the weekend following an alleged assault by an Idaho football player, according to the Cougars’ Scout site:

Tennant said Mansel Simmons was taken to Pullman Regional Hospital, then transported to a Spokane hospital after reportedly receiving a skull fracture and concussion. [...] Tennant said WSU and Idaho football players were kicked out of a party after they began arguing. “About 20” players gathered across the street in a church parking lot, where the alleged assault took place.

For those of you not up on your Pac-12/WAC geography, Pullman and Moscow are just a short drive apart across the Washington-Idaho border, which makes for frequent interactions between the schools’ respective student bodies. Our best wishes to Simmons for a rapid and complete recovery.