In a face-to-face meeting with Tech's assistant athletic director for compliance Tim Parker on Thursday, Tyrod Taylor and Kam Chancellor discussed the use of their name and/or likeness in a series of advertisements promoting Virginia Beach area parties.
Updated as of Thursday, 5:24 p.m.
According to Parker, both Taylor and Chancellor claim that neither gave permission for anyone to use their name or image to promote any event. "Based on what I've heard to this point, I'm confident that there have been no violations," Parker said.
In addition, neither was compensated - including the March 1, 2008, event they were said to have hosted, according to the event's flier. Taylor and Chancellor believe an individual at So Serious Corporate Club, who helped sponsor most of the events in question, is behind the use of their name and image. Parker hopes to speak with the person in the near future.
Chancellor said he would help, through some of his contacts in the Tidewater region, to get Parker in contact with him.
Out of the five fliers for parties in the Virginia Beach area presented to Parker by the Collegiate Times, Taylor attended three events: the "Freakum Dress and Ralph Lauren Cabaret" on March 1, 2008, the June 27, 2008 event, called the "V-Tech and NSU's Baller's Summer Jam," presented by So Serious Corporate Club as well as the "Virginia Tech ACC Champions Party" on Dec. 26, 2007, also sponsored by So Serious. Chancellor attended the March 1, 2008 event.
"They paid the same admission that everyone else paid and bought their own food," Parker said. "When they did go, they were just one of the attendees. They never received any personal invitation. They never got a phone call."
Parker said Taylor placed the pictures on his Facebook page after the parties took place. Although Parker did not directly ask Taylor if he placed the fliers on his Facebook after the events took place, Parker said that, based on the information provided in Thursday's meeting, he concludes that Taylor didn't give his permission for his name/likeness to be used.
Parker also said that Taylor should have known the ramifications, just or not, that could come from doing this.
"It wasn't a good decision (to put the fliers up)," Parker said. "If I'm 20 and I see myself on a poster, I would think, 'Hey, that's pretty cool. I'm going to put that on my Facebook.' I can see why he would do that. Clearly he wasn't thinking about the types of things that we hope they think about. All it looks like right now is that it was a harmless situation and our guys were not involved in the planning or on the front end of this promotion."
According to Parker, Taylor and Chancellor said that there are dozens of these type events in the Virginia Beach area. Parker also said he will touch base with Greg Boone, whose name was used in one flier. Also, Parker said he is attempting to contact other schools that had players placed in the advertisements.
Below is the original Collegiate Times story published Wednesday May 6, 2009.
Virginia Tech is looking into promotional materials featuring several football players, including Tyrod Taylor and Kam Chancellor.
Pictures obtained by the Collegiate Times were found to have the name and/or likeness of the team's starting quarterback and safety - as well as tight end Greg Boone, former linebacker Purnell Sturdivant and former tailback Branden Ore - in a variety of posters publicizing different events in the Virginia Beach area.
Some of the fliers were found on Taylor's Facebook page, where he had posted them as his main "profile" photo.
According to Tim Parker, Tech's senior assistant director of athletics for compliance, the compliance department asked for their removal on Monday. As of Monday at 3:56 p.m., the pictures were no longer on the page.
"I don't think that's something that the football program would want up there because anything that any of our student-athletes put up there indirectly reflects on the whole team," Parker said.
It's unclear whether Taylor or Chancellor received any compensation for the events. Parker said he is hoping to meet with the two in person on Thursday to discuss the matter.
Representatives of the football team authorized to speak to the media could not be reached for comment.
NCAA Bylaw 12.5.1.1, under Institutional, Charitable, Education or Nonprofit Promotions, states that a student-athlete can participate in a non-profit promotional activity as long as it meets nine criteria, including:
"The name or picture of a student-athlete with remaining eligibility may not appear on an institution's printed promotional item (e.g., poster, calendar) that includes a reproduction of a product with which a commercial entity is associated if the commercial entity's officially registered regular trademark or logo also appears on the item;"
"All moneys derived from the activity or project go directly to the member institution, member conference or the charitable, educational or nonprofit agency;"
"The student-athlete's name, picture or appearance is not used to promote the commercial ventures of any nonprofit agency;"
In addition, NCAA bylaw 12.5.2.1 speaks to non-permissible promotions. According to the rule, after one becomes a student-athlete, he or she is not eligible for participation in intercollegiate athletics if:
"Accepts any remuneration for or permits the use of his or her nameor picture to advertise, recommend or promote directly the sale or useof a commercial product or service of any kind; or
"Receives remuneration for endorsing a commercial product or servicethrough the individual's use of such product or service."
One advertisement was for a party called the "Freakum Dress and Ralph Lauren Cabaret," located at the Lake Wright Golf Course Resort at Comfort Suites. The March 1, 2008 event was hosted by both Chancellor and Taylor, according to the flier. In addition, the two are photographed together at the party.
Deloach is a rising senior guard on the Norfolk State basketball team and said neither Taylor nor Chancellor was paid and did not recall either being present. Payton is a former football player for Hampton University.
Another flier, for a party on Jan. 4, 2009 at the Peppermint Beach Club, displayed action shots of Taylor, Chancellor and linebacker Purnell Sturdivant in their football uniforms with the Tech emblem visibly present.
A June 27, 2008 event, called the "V-Tech and NSU's Baller's Summer Jam," featured both Taylor and Chancellor along with Shawn and Sherron Childress - two Norfolk State football players. In regards to NSU's involvement in the fliers, Alisha Tucker, assistant athletic director for compliance, said the university is currently looking into the situation.
The party was located at Club Mystique and presented by So Serious Corporate Club.
So Serious Corporate "is a non-profit organization," said Michael Jackson, a member of Splendid Media Group - an organization that creates fliers for events run by So Serious. "(It's made up) of everyone from the '757' area who go to college and stay out of trouble."
So Serious Corporate also sponsored the "Virginia Tech ACC Champions Party" on Dec. 26, 2007. The Hokies mentioned on the poster were Ore, Sturdivant, Taylor, Chancellor and Boone.
Previous instances that involved student-athlete promotion and action from the NCAA include an infraction against Kentucky Wesleyan in Owensboro, Ky.
One finding of violations of NCAA legislation against the school included a "lack of institutional control and failure to monitor."
According to the July 14, 2006, infractions report, the Kentucky Wesleyan men's basketball team was involved in impermissible promotional activities when team members appeared publicly at a booster's business.
The report said the university did not "educate boosters and student-athletes regarding promotional activities and to monitor student-athlete participation in such activities."
Another example is an incident involving the University of Miami (Fla.).
In a report released on Feb. 27, 2003, the assistant coach of the baseball team "permitted his sports club to use the names of student-athletes for promotional and advertisement purposes for his club."
Infractions are often dealt with on a case-by-case basis by the NCAA.