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McCants claims he took bogus classes at UNC
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
University of North Carolina’s academic fraud scandal has turned toward the basketball program with claims made by former star Rashad McCants telling ESPN that he took bogus courses, rarely went to classes and tutors wrote his term papers.
McCants said the extra help kept him eligible during the 2004-05 season when the Tar Heels won the NCAA championship.
McCants discussed the “paper-class” system at North Carolina, which allowed students to write a term paper instead of actually attending courses. Also, McCants was on the Dean’s List in the spring of 2005 even though he did not go to class.
McCants claimed that coach Roy Williams and the athletic department knew about the fraud, including the “paper-class” system.
“I remained eligible to finish out and win the championship, his first championship, and everything was peaches and cream,” McCants said.
The school’s academic fraud scandal has been in the news since 2011, though it mainly involved the football team until McCants’ accusations. The scandal has centered on its African-American Studies program. McCants took 18 AFAM classes, according to McCants’ academic transcript that was obtained by ESPN.
North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham responded to McCants’ claims via a statement.
“It is disappointing any time a student is dissatisfied with his or her experience,” Cunningham said. “I welcome the opportunity to speak with Rashad McCants about returning to UNC to continue his academic career — just as we have welcomed many former student-athletes interested in completing their degrees.
“The university hired former federal prosecutor Kenneth Wainstein in January to conduct an independent investigation into past academic and athletic irregularities. While these are the first allegations we have heard from Mr. McCants, I encourage him to speak with Mr. Wainstein. …
“I have gotten to know some of Mr. McCants’ teammates, and I know that claims about their academic experience have affected them deeply. They are adamant that they had a different experience at UNC-Chapel Hill than has been portrayed by Mr. McCants and others.”
McCants left the Tar Heels after three seasons and was drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves. He averaged 17.6 points per game during his collegiate career. After four seasons with the Timberwolves, he was traded to the Sacramento Kings. He has spent the last five years playing in the NBA D-League and overseas in France, Philippines, China and Brazil.
