The Golden Football: How Greed and Athletics Changed a College Town

By David L. Hayward

The Golden Football
How Greed and Athletics Changed a College Town
After a hard day at work, Dr. James Conway, president of Western Montana College (WMC), settled into his favorite arm chair and opened the morning edition of the Missoulian. As he stared at the headlines, a shock wave of anger flowed through his body. It read: “WESTERN MONTANA TO JOIN THE SOUTH ALABAMA CONFERENCE.” His athletic department, primarily the football program, had unilaterally accepted a massive television deal worth millions to bolt from the Western Conference and join one two time zones away. He was the last to know. The writing was on the wall—he had lost control of his beloved college to big money interests and booster organizations. In a war of good versus evil (i.e., spiritual warfare), meet the main characters in this fast-pace saga:
Bo Jensen: fantastic running back for the Western Montana College Bears with a promising future in the NFL. Changes in NCAA regulations allowed him to prosper from the sale of a variety of items including ladies thongs.
Milton (Milty) Douglas, Esq.: senior partner at The Douglas Law Firm and former Bears football star. His practice was limited to defending “student-athletes” and fraternity/sorority members in their encounters with the law. Almost all the students on campus were familiar with the expression: “If you’re guilty, call Milty.”
Bob (“Rooster”) Jones: ill-mannered, corrupt, and abrasive billionaire; and financial supporter of Bears football and former player.
Queen Esther: Sigma Phi Beta sorority president, Madam of the sorority’s prostitution ring, and occasional student at WMC after her daily beauty treatments.
Jimbo (“The Bear”) Collins: unscrupulous head football coach for the Bears.
Mark and Hannah Anderson: pastors at Calvary Chapel, Missoula. They served as counter-weights to an immoral culture that was quickly sliding Missoula and the country into the sewer.
Jill Hansen: 20 year-old sophomore at WMC. Raised in a small farming community of Darby, Montana, she was the woman nearly every parent hoped their son would someday marry.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Mar 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9781663250841

Book preview

AUTHOR’S NOTE

The genesis for the book came in 2015 when I was a consultant and expert witness in a lawsuit involving a water utility in Missoula, Montana. During the summer and fall of that year I had the opportunity to travel several times from my home in Leucadia, California to Missoula. I fell in love with the place. It reminded me of what Salt Lake City, my hometown, must have looked like in the 1940s and 1950s. There are numerous similarities including the block U on a mountain north of the University of Utah and the M on Mount Sentinel at the University of Montana. Let me be very clear, I created a fictious college Western Montana College (WMC) to avoid any reference to the University of Montana. Similarly, the existence and locations of various fraternities, sororities, law firms, resorts, businesses, and booster organizations are also fictious.

Also during 2015, I read Jon Krakauer’s book, Missoula. I found the book to be extremely interesting and well written. The book focused almost exclusively on the issue of rape involving members of the University of Montana football team and was well documented. However, I found the true stories in the book to be unbelievably sad. Like a puzzle, I took actual events of rape and fraudulent college football activities from around the U.S. and pieced them together to form this story.

I made frequent trips from the Doubletree Hotel to various law offices and the Missoula County Courthouse. As such, I became quite familiar with the town and used restaurants, bars, places of business in the novel to make my story more realistic and believable. In the years following my assignment, I returned to Missoula once or twice each year to fly fish. In July 2021, I caught a 26 inch Bull Trout in the Big Blackfoot River. It was categorized as an endangered species and I quickly released it into the water.

The overarching theme of this book involves the battle of good versus evil. I think of it as spiritual warfare. The book is written as a novel yet has many factual elements. I also love college football and find it fascinating particularly from a business and economics perspective. The book marries the contemporary problems of rape and drunkenness on college campuses together with the greed associated with college football. To make the story understandable, one should be familiar with some of the current issues involving college athletics. The Appendix, dispels the myth of amateurism of college football and describes how the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is organized and contemporary issues facing college football. A college and the media labels students involved in college athletics as student-athletes when in reality, the label athlete-students is more applicable. When a college football coach could earn $95.6 million in a buy-out provision of his contract, college football is light years away from amateurism.

For more background from an academic perspective I recommend the books by Zimbalist and Thomason. For more of an entertainment slant, I recommend the ESPN 30 for 30 films, particularly Pony Express.

Finally, normally a senior pastor at a Calvary Chapel church wouldn’t be a woman nor would she be in a teaching role.

CAST OF CHARACTERS

Coaches and Players

•Bo Jensen: star halfback for the Western Montana College Bears

•Jimbo The Bear Collins: head football coach for the Bears

College Officials and Instructors

•Dr. James Conway: president of Western Montana College

•Carlos Sanchez: psychology professor

•Terry Thompson: Carlos’ teaching assistant

•Susan Owens: coach Collins secretary and Bo’s academic advisor

•Mary Schmidt: legal counsel for Western Montana College

•Willie Smith: Western Montana College athletic director

Football Boosters

•Milton (Milty) Douglas, Esq.: senior partner of The Douglas Law Firm

•Bob Rooster Jones: president and CEO of Imagination Corp.

•Dave Daws: owner of Paws Down Resort

Students

•Jill Hansen: sophomore at Western Montana College

•Lisa: sophomore, member of the Bears’ cheer squad, member of Sigma Phi Beta sorority

•Ginger: sophomore, member of the Bears’ cheer squad, member of Sigma Phi Beta sorority

•Jennifer Swift: Phi Alpha fraternity dream girl

•Julie Queen Esther Daws: daughter of Dave Daws, senior at Western Montana College and president of the Sigma Phi Beta sorority

•Tom Sixpack Davis: president of the Phi Alpha fraternity

•Emily Williams: student in Professor Sanchez’s class

•Kathy: freshman, dance major at Western Montana College

•Barb: freshman, dance major at Western Montana College

•Karen Lauder: Jill’s friend at her dormitory

Others

•Captain John Rhodes: pilot of the Gulfstream private jet

•Jim Jenkins: private investigator and head scout for the Bears

•Mrs. Jensen: Bo Jensen’s grandmother

•Ann Cummings: Rooster’s personal assistant

•Mark and Hannah Anderson: pastors at Calvary Chapel, Missoula

•Terry Southerland: reporter for the Missoulian

•Tina: prostitute in Philadelphia, Mississippi

•Tim Rawlings: doctor from Memphis, Tennessee

•Rusty Williams: owner of Downtown Pawn & Guns

•Justin Peppers, head football coach, Mississippi A&T Commanders

•Dr. Ashton, neighbor of the Phi Alpha fraternity

City and County Officials

•Jamie Johnson: prosecutor, Missoula County Attorney’s Office

•Jerry Dennison: detective, Missoula Police Department

•Karen Tillman: judge for Montana’s Fourth District Court

ACRONYMS

For most college football fans, the football is 11 inches long, seven inches

wide, and has a diameter of 21 inches. It weighs approximately 14-15

ounces, is oblong in shape, covered with leather, and filled with air.

For the coaches, talented players, sponsors, and player-agents,

the football represents gold bullion. At the recent price of $1,642

per Troy ounce, a 25 pound gold bar is worth $656,800.

The problem is: They can’t get enough of it.

Greed, for lack of a better word, is good.

- Gordon Gekko as played by Michael Douglas

in the 1987 movie, Wall Street

PART ONE

A college racing stable makes as much sense as college football. The jockey could carry the college colors; the students could cheer; the alumni could bet; and the horse wouldn’t have to pass a history test.

-Robert Hutchins, former president of the University of Chicago.¹

---

¹  Andrew Zimbalist, Unpaid Professionals, (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2001), p. 3.

CHAPTER 1

September 19, 2022

See Bo. See Bo Run

On Monday, September 19, 2022, a beautiful clear fall day in Missoula, Montana, Bo Jensen I, (B J one) as he is called by his fans raced into the parking lot at Orson Hall at Western Montana College (WMC) and parked his new $335,000 2023 gold Porsche 911 sports car in a parking space reserved for WMC’s president, Dr. James Conway. (The Porsche was a huge upgrade to Bo’s standard of living because a year earlier he was living in an 800 square foot trailer in Mississippi.) Bo was from Philadelphia, Mississippi—the home town of Marcus DuPree at one time a running back for the Oklahoma Sooners and considered by many football coaches to be the best there ever was.

Bo played quarterback in high school and was a big, strong, and gifted athlete and could have played any position. He was a freakish athlete and was seen in one continuous motion jumping over a Volkswagen Beetle, dunking a basketball, and landing on his feet. He was a four-sport athlete in high school—football, basketball, baseball, and track. In basketball, Bo played small forward (although he could have played any position) and was virtually unstoppable. He almost never played in the second half because his team was so far ahead of the opponent. In baseball, he played center field where his speed and strong arm were clear advantages for his team. His senior year he hit .500 with 30 home runs (almost never struck out), and had an on-base-plus- slugging (OPS) of 1.100. In football, quarterback was the most logical position since he could make plays with both his arm and his legs. (Often the best athlete on the team plays quarterback.) He had a rocket for an arm and with just a casual flip of his wrist, Bo could send a perfect spiral 40 yards. When it came to using his legs to scramble, he ran a 4.3 second 40-yard dash. This was very impressive for a big man. He was a modern-day Derrick Henry—tailback for the Tennessee Titans and winner of the Heisman Trophy while in college—only faster.

He was already 15 minutes late for his mid-term exam but he didn’t care. There were only two people he listed to: Mrs. Jensen (his grandmother back in Mississippi) and his head football coach, Jimbo the Bear Collins. He totally ignored parking restrictions as was also true for almost all of society’s rules and regulations. The freshman star halfback for the Western Montana Collage Bears, entered the classroom for his psychology 101 exam and took a seat at the back of the room and in the far left corner. As he entered the room he waved and cracked jokes with his classmates. Immediately, there were gasps and whispers from the crowd. They thought, what’s wrong with Bo?

Bo, are you alright? What’s with the cast on your left forearm?

It’s nothing—just precautionary, answered Bo.

The season was four weeks old and the Bears’ were undefeated. As Bo walked into the room, everyone in the room began chanting a familiar slogan heard numerous times at Bears’ home football games:

See Bo. See Bo run; run, run, run.

Just then, professor Carlos Sanchez interjected, settle down guys as he handed Bo the exam. Sanchez had his standard 25 question multiple choice test that he used for years for this introductory course. At age 28, he considered himself severely underpaid and over qualified to read papers or grade exams. Using a template, Terry Thompson, his teaching assistant (TA), could grade each exam in just a couple of minutes. She was a beautiful brunette, about five feet seven inches tall with long athletic legs and very physically fit—often times too fit for the prof to keep up with her. She was from La Jolla, California and her favorite sports were surfing and beach volleyball. At the end of each academic quarter, the professor and Terry celebrated by enjoying dinner and drinks before they moved on to other activities. Terry was willing to sleep with the professor in order to get into graduate school. With just a B.S. degree in psychology, she probably couldn’t find a job practicing in that discipline.

After Bo took his seat, his demeaner reflected a range of emotions. Irritation was the most obvious since he resented having to waste his time as he called it by taking a test. He was a busy man with a full schedule—watching hours of game film in preparation for the Bears’ upcoming game; staring in a commercial at the local Porsche dealership; signing autographs for his clients (the football fans and classmates); playing video games with his brothers on the O-line; and of course, daily football practice.

His main emotion was concern bordering on fear. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) requires all athletes maintain a minimum cumulative 2.0 grade point average (GPA) out of 4.0 to be eligible to participates in sports. His GPA was currently under the minimum and doing poorly on this exam could result in him being ineligible to play in the upcoming game. Bo realized that his future options other than football were severely limited and included jobs such as flipping burgers at McDonalds, being a bouncer at a bar, driving a truck (assuming he got his suspended driver’s license renewed), and various landscaping jobs. His textbook for the class (still unopened) was sitting on the kitchen counter at his luxury condo—located just off campus. The book was picked up at the college bookstore and delivered to his condo by a volunteer for the football team.

For the football players, their academic curriculum was structured such that the more difficult courses would be taken during the off-season and the easier classes were scheduled during the fall quarter—football season. For Bo, Psych 101 (taken primarily by freshmen and sophomores) was an extremely difficult class. When he listened to the professor’s lecture (which wasn’t often) the information went in one ear and out the other. Long ago he discovered that reading textbooks was not helpful since he had a form of dyslexia and he was also taking remedial English. Bo was functionally illiterate and needed a lot of help. Thus, during normal classes, he spent his time doodling in his notebook remembering football plays and dreaming of the new girls that he would be meeting that evening. Bo didn’t have a steady girlfriend and for him, the words steady and girlfriend had wide interpretations.

As professor Sanchez gave Bo the exam, he smiled in appreciation for his new pen. Among Bo’s wide assortment of clothing apparel, house décor, and miscellaneous items was a maroon pen with the words Go Bo Go in cursive silver ink—the colors for the Bears. Bo and other college athletes were now able to profit from their standing as a result of changes in the NCAA’s regulations related to name, image, and likeness (NIL). (See the Appendix for more details.)

A few examples of how student-athletes could profit from NIL include: their autograph, developing and/or modeling athletic and non-athletic clothing apparel, promoting products and services, and making personal appearances. The potential money for college athletes (for all sports and not just football) through NIL deals is massive. Of course, Bo was aware of this trend and wanted a piece of the pie. With the NIL, the calculus pertaining to the choice between staying in college or going pro was more difficult.

As a result of NIL, Bo could now profit from the sale of pens and other merchandise. For instance, he could receive royalties resulting for the sale of a maroon and silver football jersey with the number 1 on the front and Jensen I on the back. The number 1 on the jersey was selected because he was the best player on the team and any other number could be viewed as a slap in the face. His name Jensen I was used to indicate that he was the first is a series of star football players in his lineage. His sons would utilize the names Jensen II, Jensen III, and so forth. The jersey was the most popular item in Bo’s catalog. In many cases, the girls that desired more attention from Bo wore jerseys a size smaller than normal.

In a strange way, this exam was the only time in Bo’s life when he would leave with a smile on his face. Given the new NIL rules, by signing his name on the exam, Bo would earn $100. Cha-ching, he could hear the cash register opening and closing. It was Bo’s lucky day since he had to take two more exams. Cha-ching, cha-ching.

Bo Sells Thongs

About five minutes before the end of class, Sanchez interrupted the students for a short announcement. He said, Bo wanted me to announce a new item of clothing from his catalog. I promise to give you an extra five minutes for the exam to compensate for the lost time. Turning to Bo he asked, Bo, what do you have for us today? Bo with his six feet, four inch and 250 pound frame slowly got up from the desk. Relative to his size, the desk appeared to be used by a 1st grader. He reached into his catalog case where numerous items were stored.

Bo had a somewhat unique style of speaking. Like Ricky Henderson, the hall of fame professional baseball player, Bo spoke in third person. To the astonishment of several of his classmates, Bo pulled out a lady’s strap lace thong in the school’s colors—maroon and silver. Of course, the phrase Go Bo Go was sewed into the fabric. About half the girls turned away giggling, blushing, and shaking their heads. They couldn’t believe what they just saw. Moreover, they couldn’t believe professor Sanchez would allow such a thing. They thought that Orsen Hall was not some sleezy adult book store found on the seedy side of town. Little did they realize that the professor earned a healthy commission on each sale. Bo used the cash method of accounting where literally, he only accepted cash payments and paid his sales force in cash. A paper trail of transactions didn’t exist.

Bo announced, Bo is proud to offer these sexy strap lace thongs from a well-known retailer of women’s intimate clothing. Bo just loves these. They are made with the finest fabrics and are very durable. Bo has a lot of these as souvenirs. They normally sell for $30 but for my fans and classmates Bo will give you a 10 percent discount making the final price…

Bo couldn’t make the mental calculation and finally his classmates yelled:

Twenty-seven dollars, Bo. Thanking the class, he continued talking, Don’t wait, they’re selling like hot cakes. When they’re gone, we don’t expect a new shipment for quite a while.

Bo then pulled one out from his catalog and began stretching it to demonstrate its durability. After hearing this special offer, five girls jumped up and yelled. One said, I’ll take three, size small. Another shouted, I’ll take five, size extra small.

The professor thought, Before they’re all gone, I should get a few for Terry. I’m sure she would love them. The problem is, what size should I get? They came in seven different sizes! What would happen if a got a size too large? In effect, I’d be calling her fat. Our relationship would be over and irreparable. Women’s clothing was always a mystery to him. Why don’t they use a numbering system similar to men? Focusing on the problem at hand, he concluded that Terry is quite petite with a waist size about 22 inches and hips about 34 inches. He believed that it would be better to error on the conservative side and order extra small.

Just as the professor was talking, he made eye contact with one of his favorite students, Emily Williams. Wearing maroon colored leggings and a silver tank top, she would be going to her yoga class after the exam. She wasn’t the most