Former South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia opened up during an interview with WFNZ in Charlotte, talking about alleged illicit benefits obtained by SEC players during his time with the Gamecocks. Autographs are in the news due to so-called scandals involving Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston and suspended Georgia running back Todd Gurley.
Former South Carolina QB claims SEC player made $160,000 off autographs
Stephen Garcia says he saw money exchanging hands “all day, every day.”
Garcia, now a media member, said it was “absolutely ridiculous” that players could not profit off their own likenesses, via CBS Sports. The former South Carolina star also said he saw violations of NCAA rules frequently, including one anonymous player who allegedly made $160,000 on autographs. (That would be a ton of autographs.)
“I saw it all day, every day to be honest with you. I wish they came to me, but they thought of me as some rich white kid so I didn’t really get benefits from that. I’m just being honest with you. I saw it firsthand with a lot of players and talking with other guys. You know I’m friends with a lot of players from around the SEC, and talking with them, it makes the Todd Gurley thing seem insignificant by a long shot.”
During the course of his career at South Carolina, Garcia was suspended five separate times and was dismissed from the program during his senior year.
In April, our own Steven Godfrey went behind the scenes with real SEC bag men.
Update: South Carolina’s response:
South Carolina officials are aware of Garcia’s comments and “will be looking into it further,” sports information director Steve Fink told The State on Thursday evening.
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