Signings of trouble?

McPherson attorney: FSU players were paid for autographs

What interesting times these continue to be in Tallahassee, Fla. The attorney for ex-Florida State quarterback Adrian McPherson is stirring it up again, suggesting that friends of the football program pay players in exchange for autographs and memorabilia.

The cash source? Grady Irvin says it’s R&R Truck and Auto Accessories, a tire and rim shop down the road from the FSU campus. This is the same shop that McPherson, of course, is accused of stealing a blank check from last season. (He has pleaded innocent and is scheduled to stand trial in July.) It’s also no secret that Brian and Reagan Hobbs, the sons of influential FSU booster Ronald Hobbs, are officers and investors in the same business.

The Hobbs family also owns Collector’s Attic, a shop 20 minutes from downtown Tallahassee that specializes in the sale of FSU memorabilia.

If what Irvin suggests -- that FSU players have been paid to sign items later sold at Collector’s Attic -- is true, then the attorney should ante up the proof. Here’s a challenge to let his client come clean. Let McPherson spill the beans on who got what, including himself. Don’t blabber away like a town crier. Put up some solid evidence or be quiet.

McPherson's word is only slightly more credible than the former Iraq information director, but it seems likely something was going on and you can be sure the NCAA will sniff around. Investigators are certain also to question the school’s flimsy probe last summer of allegations that McPherson was gambling and had stolen credit cards from student managers. Word is they’ll also look into reports that alleged bookie Derek Delach, an FSU grad, opened a local bar to Seminole baseball players after Sunday games.

Two of McPherson’s friends, Melvin Capers and Otis Livingston, told SI.com that the quarterback made money signing footballs, jerseys and other items. One of those McPherson regularly signed for was R&R Truck and Auto Accessories, Capers recalls.

“Adrian used to always go over," said Capers, who grew up with McPherson and Livingston in Bradenton, Fla. “He’d tell me, ‘I got to sign all this stuff.'"

Livingston said McPherson told him that players also sold items online. “I know there used to be some dude at Florida State, if you signed something he’d auction it on the Internet," Livingston said.

Telephone messages for Bob Minnix, FSU’s associate athletic director for compliance, seeking comment on Livingston's allegations were not returned.

Dale Acosta, who runs R&R, says it isn’t uncommon for athletes to come by the shop, but he couldn’t recall McPherson signing anything.

“I’m not gonna say [McPherson] never signed," Acosta said. “Everybody that comes in here signs autographs. Burt Reynolds signs when he comes in here. Derrick Brooks. Peter Warrick. Clinton Portis was in here from Miami."

No one from the Hobbs family could be reached for comment.

Florida State officials have asked Irvin, McPherson's attorney, to pass along any information he has so they can follow up on the allegations. But you get the impression they’d rather he pull a Houdini act and stay out of their hair.

If they haven’t already, FSU officials might check with their players to see who would have profited by signing items. They might also run an inventory check to see how many game and practice jerseys they’ve gone through in recent years. And finally, give a call to folks at Collector’s Attic and see how they get their hands on FSU goods.

In recent weeks, Collector’s Attic generated $2,600 for two 2002 Atlantic Coast Conference football championship rings on the online auction site eBay, according to the Orlando Sentinel. One of the rings belonged to current FSU defensive end Willie Jones Jr.

But a bigger issue may be the sale of game-used jerseys.

Dave Delegal, the FSU equipment manager, told SI.com he wasn’t aware of players selling jerseys. However, he did acknowledge some theft of jerseys, and said postgame locker room procedures are being changed to cut down on the problem.

Back in March, I stopped by Collector’s Attic and found about 50 or so autographed FSU jerseys squeezed onto a display rack in the middle of the store. Not seeing a McPherson in the bunch, I asked a female clerk who told me, “We had one, but it must have sold."

Another store clerk, Billy Wyman, told me in a follow-up phone call that the shop had McPherson memorabilia -- but it might be pricey.

“I think it will be a little bit harder to get since he’s not playing any more for us," Wyman said. “So his stuff is limited. I mean our owner has some, but those are probably gonna be a little bit more."

The clerk assured us that purchasing jerseys signed by Darnell Dockett, Chris Rix and other current players wouldn’t be a problem. “Any FSU player, we can really get game-used jerseys signed, easily," Wyman said.

When asked about cost and specific games the jerseys were worn in, he suggested e-mailing owner Brian Hobbs. Hobbs subsequently responded, saying he didn’t sell jerseys of current FSU players.

(Rix subsequently told SI.com that he had never signed a game jersey that he knew, or had been told, would be offered for sale.)

If that’s the case, word hasn’t filtered down to the sales personnel who continue advising callers that the jerseys, though not currently in the shop, remain available.

There’s at least one ex-player in position to set the record straight. Come clean, A.D.

Mike Fish is a senior writer for SI.com.

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