New Low/ESPN article on the fight

[CourtJester]

Some new info in here and a pic of the Russell guy: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5378061

Maybe I'm reading between the lines a little too much trying to hear what I want to hear, but it wouldn't be the first time the whole "yeah I threw a punch but I was just defending myself" was used by a guy who threw the first punch and then got the crap kicked out of him. What a mess.

[GhostofJohnnyMajors]

Bet $20 he dropped an N-Bomb and that led to the beatdown. Multiple eyewitness accounts and a spokesperson for our own athletic dept are disputing that Nelson was even involved. Not sure serving up the 6th string DT to fall on the grenade is going to work in this instance.

[FLAVOLS]

Yeah, I just read that and thought - fuck that fat, short bowling ball! He shouldn't have been beaten down the way be was by multiple players but I bet that sum bitch deserved an ass whipin by someone.
As I've said before, this is not going to turn out well.

[RockyTopCam]

My Freshman year at college I was at a Frat a party and standing outside when a hige fight happened across the street at another Frat house. 3 baseball players got into a fight with a Frat brother and next thing you know 30 guys were whipping the shit out of 3. I watched one of the baseball players get yanked out of the pile to safety. He jumped back in for more

Young men do stupid shit and animal instincts take over. There is no reason for it.

[PhilipDoyle]

The quote from the female is particularly damning:

Paige Whaley, a student at a nearby community college, was also at the bar when the fight occurred and said she was within a few feet of where Russell and Hughes bumped into each other.

"I got pushed when it all happened and turned around and there were seven guys on top of [Russell] before you knew it," Whaley said. "They were beating the living crap out of him. I saw one come up and kick him in the head. It was ridiculous."

Asked if there was any way that Russell might have initiated the whole thing, Whaley said, "I'm sure that's what UT is saying, but there's no way. That guy [Hughes] was huge. Why would [Russell] go after him? It was scary to see that many big guys on top of one."

[CourtJester]

The quote from the female is particularly damning:

Paige Whaley, a student at a nearby community college, was also at the bar when the fight occurred and said she was within a few feet of where Russell and Hughes bumped into each other.

"I got pushed when it all happened and turned around and there were seven guys on top of [Russell] before you knew it," Whaley said. "They were beating the living crap out of him. I saw one come up and kick him in the head. It was ridiculous."

Asked if there was any way that Russell might have initiated the whole thing, Whaley said, "I'm sure that's what UT is saying, but there's no way. That guy [Hughes] was huge. Why would [Russell] go after him? It was scary to see that many big guys on top of one."

It doesn't sound good but there is just too much we don't know to figure out what happened at this point. Whaley could be Russell's girlfriend for all we know, and she doesn't say she saw who started it--sounds like maybe she missed that and saw the aftermath.

[LeonVol]

Some new info in here and a pic of the Russell guy: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5378061

Maybe I'm reading between the lines a little too much trying to hear what I want to hear, but it wouldn't be the first time the whole "yeah I threw a punch but I was just defending myself" was used by a guy who threw the first punch and then got the crap kicked out of him. What a mess.

If 7 guys as large as the ones in question really laid in to that kid he would look worse and his injuries would be far worse. The kick to the person outside the bar (note I don't give a fuck what he does for a living....) is what will probably bring a few guys down. This really sucks. As the days drag on I think it bodes poorly for anyone trying for a defense.

[popacapinvtwelvesass]

Too bad it wasn't Chrissy Lowe that got the ass whipping. He's past due for one.

[wagee12]

Robert Capouellez was the off-duty police officer knocked unconscious outside the bar while trying to help break up the brawl, according to police. Capouellez, who was a customer at the bar that night and wearing civilian clothes, suffered a head wound and had been in the hospital since early Friday. He was released Monday night.

Police officer has been released from the hospital. This is very good news indeed as far as the criminal charges are concerned. Will still see at least one or two guys charged with agg assault. As far as Russell is concerned, he needs that ass whipped about once a week for the next year or two.

[Chiutfan]

just saying.. he looks like the type to call someone the n word or boy, then follow up with no offense, ... next time keep your mouth shut.

[Moorehouse]

Too bad it wasn't Chrissy Lowe that got the ass whipping. He's past due for one.

For?

[popacapinvtwelvesass]

For?

Being a Fulmer Felcher de-luxe. 'Course if you had to ask the question my answer won't make sense to you either.

[bluegrassvol]

For?

For printing the ugly truth. Surely you have worked in the press long enough to know how this goes. We have three different sources (the victim, the bar owners, and a girl who was a few feet from the fight) saying that there were several "big men" doing the raindance on this kid's head. The alleged victim and the bar owner have identified these "big men" as football players. Instead of showing displeasure with the idiot's who assaulted this guy, you already have people blaming the media, making death threats to the bar owner, and trying to discredit the alleged victim and female witness. Keep in mind that we still haven't heard any details about who was involved in the assault on the cop outside. Volquest is hilarious right now with all of the people trying to spin this as a conspiracy against these players. I'm just glad that we have a coach now that isn't going to sweep this under the rug like some of our fans want to. For what it's worth, Low actually gave the player's side of the story in the piece that he wrote. Evidently, Hughes is saying that this guy punched him from behind after they had bumped into each other and had words earlier in the night.

[Moorehouse]

Being a Fulmer Felcher de-luxe. 'Course if you had to ask the question my answer won't make sense to you either.

Based on my experience in my six years of dealing with Low on the UT beat, and reading his work nearly every day for the past six seasons, I would say Low was far from a Fulmer defender.

I don't think he thought much of Kiffin. That doesn't make him a felcher. The two don't go hand in hand.

[SoftballVol]

Based on my experience in my six years of dealing with Low on the UT beat, and reading his work nearly every day for the past six seasons, I would say Low was far from a Fulmer defender.

I don't think he thought much of Kiffin. That doesn't make him a felcher. The two don't go hand in hand.
Good point. I thought that Lowe was anything but a Fulmer Felcher when Fulmer was still the coach. It seems highly unlikely that Lowe is on Fulmer's Xmas Card list. In retrospect the Kiffin critics who were NOT Fulmer lovers were doing us a favor by trying to warn us that we had hooked up with a snake in the grass. I think given the fact that Lowe was a straight-shooter when Fulmer was in power and given the fact that Kiffin in fact turned out to be a rotten scoundrel should boost Lowe's credibility, not detract from it.

[popacapinvtwelvesass]

Based on my experience in my six years of dealing with Low on the UT beat, and reading his work nearly every day for the past six seasons, I would say Low was far from a Fulmer defender.

Of course you would because he is a journalist, just like you. You guys must have some kind of unwritten rule to watch each other's back. I don't have a problem with that either, it's admirable to me because it's rare in many other industries. But let's hear what the concensus is among the non-journalists we have... I'd be willing to bet consensus is on my side.

[bluegrassvol]

Good point. I thought that Lowe was anything but a Fulmer Felcher when Fulmer was still the coach. It seems highly unlikely that Lowe is on Fulmer's Xmas Card list. In retrospect the Kiffin critics who were NOT Fulmer lovers were doing us a favor by trying to warn us that we had hooked up with a snake in the grass. I think given the fact that Lowe was a straight-shooter when Fulmer was in power and given the fact that Kiffin in fact turned out to be a rotten scoundrel should boost Lowe's credibility, not detract from it.

Low had a short stint on Hubbs Volquest site before taking his job at ESPN, and he was heavily criticized by several posters over there for being "anti-Fulmer" in some of his articles. After the UF beatdown in 2007, he wrote a piece questioning whether we were seeing the end of Fulmer's time at UT. It was a perfectly reasonable article, but the site was flooded with angry folks demanding that Low be removed, or they were going to cancel their subscriptions. He was painted as a Fulmer hater at that time, and then when he began criticizing Kiffin last year, he was labeled as a Fulmer diehard. Personally, I believe he just tells it like it is. People have misinterpreted his criticisms of Kiffin as some show of support for Fulmer, when in fact, he had Kiffin pegged correctly from the start. As you said, his assessment of Kiffin should actually add to his credibility.

[Moorehouse]

Of course you would because he is a journalist, just like you. You guys must have some kind of unwritten rule to watch each other's back. I don't have a problem with that either, it's admirable to me because it's rare in many other industries. But let's hear what the concensus is among the non-journalists we have... I'd be willing to bet consensus is on my side.

And I'd be willing to bet I know more about Chris, and his work--again, because I've read it every day for years and know his process--than you do.

But that's OK.

If you think I always stick up for my fellow journalists, you would be incorrect. I just don't really voice the criticisms of the guys I don't like, or whose methods I disagree with, because a public message board is not the place for that.

I think the only journalist I've ever ripped on here is Jason Whitlock. And he totally deserves it.

[green hills vol]

As far as Russell is concerned, he needs that ass whipped about once a week for the next year or two.

why is that?

[CourtJester]

The message board consensus on Low when he was with the Tennessean was that he was clearly the best journalist covering UT football and was eating the KNS's lunch on a routine basis. Then after Fulmer got fired and Low started writing about Kiffin from his new perch at ESPN, someone started the thesis that Low's sources left with Fulmer, and Low was bitter about it, and was now shut out of the program and "anti-Kiffin." I never subscribed to this theory, other than the possible loss of sources part (it would seem to make sense that after covering the Fulmer regime for so long Low would have developed some good sources, and that some or all of those left with him, and that Low would now need to develop some new ones). It wouldn't surprise me to find out that he thought more of Fulmer than Kiffin as a person, but I don't think he was basing his articles on his personal feelings for either of them.

[leonsking]

And I'd be willing to bet I know more about Chris, and his work--again, because I've read it every day for years and know his process--than you do.

But that's OK.

If you think I always stick up for my fellow journalists, you would be incorrect. I just don't really voice the criticisms of the guys I don't like, or whose methods I disagree with, because a public message board is not the place for that.

I think the only journalist I've ever ripped on here is Jason Whitlock. And he totally deserves it.

Every now and then you are hit by the realization that society is really fucked up. Every now and then you ask yourself, " how in the hell does some one get a job where they have free reign to be a total douch bag with impunity?" It kind of takes your breath that it could be so. Jason Whitlock being allowed to by his ink by the barrel makes me want to go into the yard and roll around in dog shit!

The guy still thinks Jeff George is the most underrated professional athlete in sports.

[Napervol]

Based on my experience in my six years of dealing with Low on the UT beat, and reading his work nearly every day for the past six seasons, I would say Low was far from a Fulmer defender.

I don't think he thought much of Kiffin. That doesn't make him a felcher. The two don't go hand in hand.

He is a hater since Fultanic is gone. Felcher or not he writes with an agenda

[dd4vols]

The quote from the female is particularly damning:

Paige Whaley, a student at a nearby community college, was also at the bar when the fight occurred and said she was within a few feet of where Russell and Hughes bumped into each other.

"I got pushed when it all happened and turned around and there were seven guys on top of [Russell] before you knew it," Whaley said. "They were beating the living crap out of him. I saw one come up and kick him in the head. It was ridiculous."

Asked if there was any way that Russell might have initiated the whole thing, Whaley said, "I'm sure that's what UT is saying, but there's no way. That guy [Hughes] was huge. Why would [Russell] go after him? It was scary to see that many big guys on top of one."

well..if she had to turn around to see seven guys on one....how did she see how it started???

[PitiFulmer]

well..if she had to turn around to see seven guys on one....how did she see how it started???

Great point. I think the fact that no witness (besides those involved) saw how it started is why it is taking so long for authorities to figure out exactly what occurred.

[gatewayghost]

Almost everyone on this site had their head up Kiffins ass the whole time he was here.Including me. DaytonLawVol and a few others are the only exceptions. During that time we were sickened with Chris Lowe's criticism of Kiffin. Now we are sickened at ourselves for falling for this Snake. Now it's hard for many of us to trust the new coach. So while Kiffin got way more love than he deserved from us,Dooley, undeservingly, probably isn't getting enough for the job he's done so far. I'm as bad as anyone though. When I saw Monte at the airport, while he was here, I walked up just excited as I could be and shook his hand and chatted with him like he was my long time best friend. The last time I was at the airport on an arrival, I was waiting outside for my ride. DD walked right by me and looked me straight in the eye and I didn't say a word and it didn't even hit me who he was until he was halfway toward the Hilton or I would have said hi or something. But I sure didn't have a problem recognizing Monte.I think Low is a good writer, you can't always be up in arms over a writer not thinking like you. You may even find out later, as in this case, that he was right all along.

[Tnphil]

Almost everyone on this site had their head up Kiffins ass the whole time he was here.Including me. DaytonLawVol and a few others are the only exceptions. During that time we were sickened with Chris Lowe's criticism of Kiffin. Now we are sickened at ourselves for falling for this Snake. Now it's hard for many of us to trust the new coach. So while Kiffin got way more love than he deserved from us,Dooley, undeservingly, probably isn't getting enough for the job he's done so far. I'm as bad as anyone though. When I saw Monte at the airport, while he was here, I walked up just excited as I could be and shook his hand and chatted with him like he was my long time best friend. The last time I was at the airport on an arrival, I was waiting outside for my ride. DD walked right by me and looked me straight in the eye and I didn't say a word and it didn't even hit me who he was until he was halfway toward the Hilton or I would have said hi or something. But I sure didn't have a problem recognizing Monte.I think Low is a good writer, you can't always be up in arms over a writer not thinking like you. You may even find out later, as in this case, that he was right all along.

damnit gateway.....quit making so much sense.....It pisses me off!!:brow:

[wagee12]

I believe that Low/down does shoot sometimes before he has properly identified his target, but Moorehouse is right about him hammering The Duke of Doughnuts on several different occasions. The reason that Low doesn't get more credit for being involved in the downfall of the Great Plumpkin is because all the Fuljam Felchers had their slings and arrows aimed directly at John Adams. Yes, the brave man at the KNS who saw wrong and wrote about it is the one who caught the majority of the flack from the Phat Phil Phan Club.
One of Low's problem's right now could very well be his "sources" in Knoxville. If he is relying on muck rakers like Jimma HiYams, or Queerstone or that pussy, Writer 32, then Low is making a mistake and should seek some new, unbiased sources.