One figure central to the timeline that Nevin Shapiro laid out in his alleged NCAA violation free-for-all with the Miami Hurricanes is a figure that is rarely ever mentioned by name and yet was right in the middle of it all. Former head football coach Randy Shannon.
Shannon has so far escaped much negative attention, which is something of a miracle. He'll probably come out of this looking somewhat better now that it's come out that, according to CaneSport.com, Shannon threatened assistant coaches and players with their jobs and spots on the team if they had anything to do with Shapiro.
"When asked by CaneSport to confirm the details provided by another source in attendance for Shannon’s talks at the team meetings, a former Miami football staffer no longer employed by the school responded "Absolutely" when asked if he remembered Shannon specifically telling Miami players to stay away from Shapiro."
Of course, that didn't stop tons of players and three assistant coaches from getting involved with Shapiro, which should tell you just how big the booster's pull was at the time.
For more on Shapiro's claims and the NCAA investigation into Miami football, stay with this StoryStream. To check in with Miami fans, head over to The 7th Floor.