When Trinidad Chambliss walked into the courtroom Thursday, he didn't just have a case; he had the unshakable confidence that turned into a total blowout for the NCAA.
The confidence wasn't just hot air—it was backed by a decades-long track record of NCAA fumbles.
The NCAA has made a habit of shooting themselves in the foot by enforcing rules that state courts have been ruling against in multiple occassions. Diego Pavia'sruling and now, Chambliss's verdict.
SEC mouthpiece Paul Finebaum believes that, at this point, a good part of the blame goes to the NCAA's legal team for not handling things better in the courtroom. And that is putting it very mildly. Finebaum, as usual, didn't hold back any punches, calling the NCAA's legal team "the worst legal departments I have ever seen," to start with.
Finebaum goes off on NCAA's legal team
“Well, let me think about it for a second… they’re arrogant, they’re haughty, they’re supercilious, they think they can do no wrong, and they have one of the worst legal departments I have ever seen,” Finebaum pointingly said on First Take.
“They did win a case earlier this week in basketball (Charles Bediako), but they mostly lose in court because they just can’t handle themselves. The NCAA attorneys walked out of the court while the judge was reading the verdict.
“Again, they had another case in Knoxville today involving the Tennessee quarterback (Joey Aguilar). He’s shooting for his seventh, eighth, or ninth year of eligibility. I can’t remember which one it is. But the judge admonished them and by the way, this judge’s verdict went on for 92 minutes."
"It was fascinating. He just ripped the NCAA apart. Before you get too carried away with law here, the judge, of course, is an Ole Miss law graduate and an Ole Miss undergraduate. I’m sure he screamed ‘Hotty Toddy’ at the end of the verdict, but it didn’t matter. It was the right ruling, because the NCAA completely bungled this case.”
Even Judge Whitwell brutally called out the NCAA's lawyers, and even planned to issue a show cause to see whether they "should be held in contempt of court for failing to appear for the ruling."
"That's not how we do things here," Whitwell said.
Joey Aguilar's impending ruling seems like the final chance with the NCAA to redeem its reputation.