Golden is gone*

[Volznut]

It is probably a safe assumption that it was leaked intentionally. And let's not kid ourselves -- it happens everywhere. Is it fair to Golden? No. But is it fair for Martin to take heat for something he didn't do? No. If the story of Golden cheating doesn't emerge, then everyone assumes that Martin let Golden go of his own free will, which we can pretty much all agree would have been a very dumb move on his part. The only way to stop those rumors from festering is to let the truth be known. It is what it is. Nobody wins but, as Volznut said, it's just the way the world works.

That is kinda what I meant, we may or may not like it or agree with it, but it does work like that. Legal or not. 

[Clockwork Orange]

It is probably a safe assumption that it was leaked intentionally. And let's not kid ourselves -- it happens everywhere. Is it fair to Golden? No. But is it fair for Martin to take heat for something he didn't do? No. If the story of Golden cheating doesn't emerge, then everyone assumes that Martin let Golden go of his own free will, which we can pretty much all agree would have been a very dumb move on his part. The only way to stop those rumors from festering is to let the truth be known. It is what it is. Nobody wins but, as Volznut said, it's just the way the world works.

Golden has a protected right to the privacy of his academic history, even if it involves dishonesty. Martin has no protected right to avoid heat, and our AD and basketball staff should be above sacrificing their student-athletes' rights to protect the temperature of their coaches' seats.

[Creek Walker]

Golden has a protected right to the privacy of his academic history, even if it involves dishonesty. Martin has no protected right to avoid heat, and our AD and basketball staff should be above sacrificing their student-athletes' rights to protect the temperature of their coaches' seats.

In a perfect world, that's true. But I'd be willing to wager a guess that there isn't a D-1 school in the country that would do differently. To be completely honest, I don't have a problem with it. The laws are what they are, but when you sign up to play a major sport at a major school in exchange for a free college degree, it goes without saying that you're going to be subject to more scrutiny than the average student. The reasonable expectation of privacy for a major sport student-athlete isn't as great as for "normal" students. Maybe that's not fair, but it is what it is because of the fans and our demands to know anything and everything that is happening with our team. The question is whether the student-athletes would be willing to accept a fan following and program hype like tennis or swimming or some other lesser sport in exchange for the relative anonymity that other students are privileged to. I'm willing to guess that they wouldn't.

[Clockwork Orange]

The laws are what they are, but when you sign up to play a major sport at a major school in exchange for a free college degree, it goes without saying that you're going to be subject to more scrutiny than the average student.

"[M]ore scrutiny" should not ever include violations of rights. I'm sorry, but I can never get on board with this stance. It's not right to air this no matter the reason, IMO. I take student privacy very seriously and playing a sport-- no matter how much positive publicity or benefit you receive for it-- should not involve sacrificing protected privacy rights. I realize that UT is not the first and will not be the last to do things this way, but it doesn't make it okay.

[Memphisvolunteer]

Health information is also protected but you don't see that stopping every college and pro team from discussing an individual's injury and surgical procedures, drug tests, and alcohol encounters.  Like others have said, it is the way the world works.  Also, like others, if it is true about what is leaked, I could care less about how it makes him look.  He knew going into this that he, as an athlete, is under a microscope and that everything he does is going to be discussed and he still decided to do what he did.

[EmerilVOL]

Health information is also protected but you don't see that stopping every college and pro team from discussing an individual's injury and surgical procedures, drug tests, and alcohol encounters.  Like others have said, it is the way the world works.  Also, like others, if it is true about what is leaked, I could care less about how it makes him look.  He knew going into this that he, as an athlete, is under a microscope and that everything he does is going to be discussed and he still decided to do what he did.

HIPPA (the patient privacy and protection act of which this is only one part of of HIPPA and something I know quite a bit about working in the healthcare industry) provides several methods that would allow a college or university to discuss an athletes medical issues from any perspective.  The university can ask an athlete for a blanket right to release information regarding the atheltes medical conditions and / or testing results.  Many colleges and universities ask for this release due to the blanket terms under which HIPPA is governed and the penalties for violation being so stiff per incident.  Also the college could ask for a release to discuss specific tests or medical procedures.  There are implementations in the rules that cover almost ever which way medical data can be released and I will bet that many colleges and universities request that kind of release from an athelete since they are so visible in the community and area.