Eligibility updates: Jamal Coombs-McDaniel and Renardo Sidney

UConn has the good news rolling in. Over the weekend, both Jerome Dyson and Donnell Beverly received full clearance from the NCAA.

Today, the news broke that freshman Jamal Coombs-McDaniel was cleared by the NCAA. After sitting in the stands during the Huskie's first two scrimmages, Coombs-McDaniel will be in jersey on Nov. 12th against William & Mary.

This is a big break for the Huskies. Coombs-McDaniel could end up being the first guy off the bench for Jim Calhoun. He isn't the defender that a Jamaal Trice is and he isn't a point guard like Darius Smith, but he is the most willing scorer on UConn's bench and should be a dynamic player off of the wing.


The more important development today came down Starkville, MS. Last week, Sidney, his family, and his lawyers met with the NCAA to turn over documents pertaining to their finances and the house they rented in Southern California. It seemed hopeful, as Jackson expected a decision made today.

Well,the NCAA eligibility center did make a decision today.

And the Sidney's are probably not going to be happy about it. From the Clarion Ledger:

Mr. (Sidney attorney Don) Jackson and his client did not provide all of the information requested since April and his client’s status remains non-certified due to non-response."

So, basically, nothing has changed since the summer.

Jackson responded by saying

It is clear that the ultimate goal is to prolong this inquiry. In effect, they have been unable to establish a violation despite months of effort to do so and are unwilling to end this investigation until they find something damaging to this family. Since they are unable to find anything damaging, they have opted to prolong the investigation indefinitely.

So, as he has done throughout this investigation, Jackson is steering the conversation away from Sidney and what he is accused of, instead focusing on how Sidney has been slighted.

One of two conclusions can be drawn from this. The NCAA may actually be throwing the Sidneys for a loop. In these situations, the NCAA has a tendency to simply draw out their decision in order to avoid litigation after the fact. In the end, they clear the player at some point during the season, forcing the player to essentially serve a suspension. I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case here as well.

But the guy throwing out those accusations is Don Jackson. Jackson, if you remember, has already accused the NCAA of being racist and threatened to take the case to Congress. This isn't exactly mother Theresa crying foul.

The only person I feel bad for here is Jarvis Varnado. He's out five grand after givng up his scholarship to Sidney.