NFL.com Retracts Veldheer Hack Job

Hey, hey looky there! NFL.com has changed its tune after its original mis-quoting article that essentially threw Raider rookie Jared Veldheer under the bus for stating that contact had been allowed at OTAs. Veldheer made a statement about rookie camp on May 2, but the League website made it sound like Veldheer said that about OTAs this past week. Read my call for an apology here.

Nonetheless, an editors' note was added today stating:

Editor's Note: When this story was originally published, a quote from Jared Veldheer to the Oakland Tribune in this story was incorrectly listed as being made on June 9. Veldheer made those statements on May 2 when referring to mandatory rookie minicamp.

Now NFL, have you told Jared you are sorry?

New NFL.com article regarding Raider OTAs.

NFL.com owes Jared Veldheer an apology...for real

NFL.com had done a really nice job covering Jared Veldheer's ascent from Division II football player to NFL third-round selection by the Oakland Raiders. The keys words are HAD DONE.

This week, reports of the Oakland Raiders being punished for too much contact in Optional Team Activities (OTAs) turned into a spin-fest of half-truths and quote plucking with former Hillsdale All-American Jared Veldheer somehow shouldering all of the blame...absolutely undeserved blame that can be easily tracked back to NFL.com.

Here is a brief rundown of how this whole mess got started. On Wednesday, the NFL in a joint statement with the players' union informed the Raider organization that it had to forfeit its two final OTAs because of too much contact in practice. By rule, OTAs are performed without full pads and are not to include live contact.

One of the first news sources to report on the story was the Oakland Tribune. NFL Writer Jerry McDonald led the article "Raiders not on the same page after all" with a quote Veldheer made on May 2nd at his first Raiders' press conference. (Watch full press conference to see comment)

Following the first day of practice the Raiders’ mandatory minicamp following the draft, I asked rookie third-round pick Jared Veldheer about the intensity of the “no contact” practices.

He laughed out loud.

“Well, it’s a lot of contact right now,” said Veldheer, who went on to talk about technique, pad level and how you don’t quite finish a block even if you fire out to start one.

He said, “Besides that, the run stuff is pretty full go.”

The article used Jared's remarks as an example of reported contact but clearly stated it was made 5 weeks before any such decision by the League. All of this clarification was missed by NFL.com when it posted "Raiders forfeit two OTAs, rookie says contact was allowed":

Rookie offensive tackle Jared Veldheer told the Oakland Tribune on Wednesday (June 9) that there was "a lot of contact" in the voluntary practices and "the run stuff is pretty full go." That would violate the OTA guidelines, which prohibit hitting.

No NFL, Jared Veldheer did not tell the Oakland Tribune anything on Wednesday....maybe 5 weeks ago Wednesday...but not 3 days ago. Also, it is important to note Veldheer was discussing mandatory rookie mini camp and not the OTAs, as the two are completely separate sessions. A source close to Veldheer confirmed today that the only mention he ever made about contact was at his first press conference and that he had not talked to any media in a long time. The original question was indeed asked by McDonald from the Tribune, but he was speaking to a large collection of media assembled. The Raiders obviously didn't seem too scared by the comment as the club posted it on the front of Raiders.com.

In all fairness, reporters do make mistakes. Unfortunately when you are NFL.com, the website for arguably the king of all professional sports leagues, you wield...however unwillingly...an amazing amount of influence.

Blogs, message boards, and Twitter-ers seized the story and as it captivated the imagination, the spin began. Although NFL.com hyperlinked to the original Tribune story, most readers and future reporters failed to click it and rolled with the idea that Veldheer was speaking out in the wake of the NFL ruling not nearly 40 days prior. Even outlets as respected as NBC Sports and Sports Illustrated perpetuated the misinformation. Fans took this and on their own Twitter pages or on message board posts like the one at RaiderFans.net, somehow Veldheer became the snitch.

Jared Veldheer is no snitch. He has spent the last 5 years living by Hillsdale College's honor code and was the considering by his Hillsdale teammates as the consummate team captain.

Go back and watch when and how the original question was posed. Veldheer laughed out loud just as McDonald stated. The original question about non-contact is laughable (but still a very legitimate question) because any practice lacking pads at any level from elementary school to the Oakland Raiders is going to involve "a lot of contact". Excuse Jared for liking the intensity at his first practices.

The only thing more laughable than the original question is the hack job NFL.com did on this story. Unfortunately there is nothing laughable about a promising NFL rookie ending up the whipping boy for a fan base because the NFL treated the story in a total amateur hour fashion.

C'mon NFL, you're better than that but you owe Jared Veldheer an apology.

Riderville.com: Aaron Waldie Update from CFL Riders Camp

Riderville.com Staff

The following is the Day 3 report from the 2010 Roughrider Training Camp.

ROSTER MOVES
DELETE QB Todd Reesing

INJURIES
WR Rob Bagg (hamstring) day to day
DB Willie Byrd (foot) day to day
DB Lance Frazier (foot) day to day
DL Brent Hawkins (knee) day to day
DB LaDarius Key (calf) day to day
DB Sean Lucas (hamstring) day to day
DL Josh Miller (shoulder) day to day
DL Luc Mullinder (foot) day to day
DB Brandon Register (groin) day to day
WR Prechae Rodriguez (groin) day to day
LB Kye Stewart (knee) day to day
WR Aaron Waldie (hamstring) day to day

PLAYS OF THE DAY
While under heavy pressure, veteran quarterback Darian Durant connected with running back Wes Cates down the middle for a touchdown pass. Defensive back Chris McKenzie and linebacker Tad Kornegay each grabbed an interception on the defensive side.

TONIGHT
Players will meet with coaches and continue learning the playbook at Luther College.

TOMORROW
Players and coaches will once again hit the practice field at Mosaic Stadium for Day 4 of training camp with two practice sessions beginning at 8:15 am.

Hillsdale.edu: Weatherhead, Holmes earn preseason honorable mention All-American accolades

Hillsdale College Press Release

June 8, 2010 - Hillsdale College senior football players Troy Weatherhead and Andre Holmes have already seen some of their success from 2009 carry over into 2010.

The two players were tabbed as 2010 preseason honorable mention All-Americans by the Consensus Draft Services late Monday night.

Weatherhead and Holmes are two key returning players on offense that will help lead the Chargers into the upcoming season, where they hope to follow up on the smashing success of 2009. Last year, Hillsdale had its finest season since entering Division II play in 1992, finishing with a 10-3 record and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs.

Both Weatherhead and Holmes are entering their third season as starters for Hillsdale at their respective positions. Weatherhead, a quarterback, set several single-game and single-season records last year, and stands just 732 yards away from becoming the school's all-time leading passing yards leader. He is a co-captain of the 2010 team, along with senior Phil Doerfler and junior Nick Hixson.

Holmes is an explosive and speedy wide receiver, who had 77 catches for 1,076 yards in 2009. He led the GLIAC in receiving yards and ranked second in total receptions last year.

Before the 2009 season, Jared Veldheer and Drew Berube were also named preseason All-Americans by CDS, and each went on to earn All-American status following that season.

Around the GLIAC: Ferris State AD Tom Kirinovic retires

Check out WZZM 13's coverage of Ferris State athletic director Tom Kirinovic's recent retirement announcement: Story

Aaron Waldie Sighting in Saskatchewan Roughrider Camp

Hillsdale College 2009 grad Aaron Waldie is on the plains of Saskatchewan trying to earn a spot on the Roughriders' roster this week. It sounds like he has some pretty stiff competition.

Riders’ rookie receivers hope to measure up

By Ian Hamilton, Canwest News Service June 3, 2010

REGINA — The Saskatchewan Roughriders improved the depth of their import receiving corps during the CFL off-season.

Judging by Thursday’s rookie-camp workout at Mosaic Stadium, they didn’t improve the height. The receivers on the field were Aaron Love (five-foot-eight), Aaron Waldie (five-foot-nine), Dwayne Eley Jr. (five-foot-10), Jeremy Gilchrist (five-foot-10) and Cary Koch (six-feet).

Head coach Ken Miller said one thing the Roughriders wanted to do in the off-season was increase the size of their import receivers — and six-foot-five veteran Prechae Rodriguez (acquired from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats) and six-foot-six rookie Aaron Fairooz (who watched Thursday due to a hamstring injury) fit the bill.

The other rookies will have to do a lot to make sure they measure up. But even then . . .

“Really, they’re at a disadvantage because of the number of quality receivers we have as veterans, not so much their size,” Miller said.

The Roughriders are loaded with non-import receivers like Rob Bagg, Jason Clermont, Andy Fantuz, Chris Getzlaf and David McKoy. But due to roster moves made through the off-season, Saskatchewan has just one import receiver — slotback Weston Dressler — who played a game with the team in 2009.

That prompted the off-season search for import pass-catchers. Now that the recruits are re in town, they all know they’re up against it.

“I look at it as an excellent opportunity,” Waldie said when asked if he felt like a longshot. “This is probably the top receiving corps in the CFL and coming in here and learning from coach (Bob) Dyce first and then when those veterans get in here, it’s going to be just an excellent learning experience for all of us.

“It may be a little tougher to make this team than some of the other teams with maybe not as good a receiving corps, but I’m up to the challenge. It’s only going to bring out the best in me.”

Full article

Goodbye Don Mossey

It would be hard to argue that anyone wore the blue and white of Hillsdale College with more pride than Don Mossey. At the age of 84, Don passed away on May 22nd and took with him an enduring zeal for Hillsdale College and its mission in our world.

As a Hillsdale College football alum, I have always taken special pride in the number of former Chargers and Dales like Aaron Petersen, John Cervini and Jeff Lantis who have gone on to administrative roles within the College's leadership. I did not know until an email from former Charger Andrew Nickle '71 that Don Mossey was also a former football player. How could I have missed that connection for all of these years?

Mossey arrived on Hillsdale's campus from Elkhart, Indiana in 1946 as a running guard on the Dales' football squad. During his tenure as a student he would become president of the Delt Sig house and an active member of the Omicron Delta Kappa honorary. Upon graduation, Mossey would lead a tremendously successful business career back in Elkhart that saw him rise to Executive VP of Skyline Corporation and a member of several other corporate boards including Phillips Industries.

In 1966, two major events in the life of the Mossey family would change the direction of Hillsdale College. As a memorial to the tragic loss of the Mossey's son Alex, Don and his wife Jane gave Hillsdale its current library. That same year, Mossey would join the Hillsdale board of trustees. In 1975 he became chairman and served in that capacity until his recent passing. His 28 years of leadership is the longest chairmanship in college history.

As chairman, Mossey stood at the tip of the spear as Hillsdale fought against federal government intrusion and established its current financial security completely independent from any direct or indirect state or federal funding.

Despite all of the time and focus Mossey gave the running of the College, there were few bigger Hillsdale College Football fans.

Nickle recently shared this story with me. "Don regularly attended the football games. I remember two incidents in particular. Once I was with him on a fall Friday and he would not miss joining the staff meeting in Jack McAvoy's office where he paid close attention as Jack went through the name of evey player as he updated the depth chart on his office wall. The second is when he asked me to join him in chartering a plane to go to the National Championship game in Conway, Arkansas. Don told me we could not miss that game."

Hillsdale College has definitely lost one of people who have placed it where it is today and today we say goodbye to Donald Mossey. Let his passing inspire all who love the College to step up and fill the huge void left by his leadership.

Thoughts, prayers, and gratitude go to Jane Mossey and the family for sharing Don with all of us.