The Most Dubious Programs in College Football

The word dubious can have a number of different meanings, and in the case of college football, it refers to programs that have come under suspicion by the NCAA—and in some cases have been penalized for it.

While many of the teams have been caught, there are others who have not had to officially face the wrath of the NCAA.

When it comes to college athletics, very few programs have been successful without at least taking a few shortcuts. After all, it is very hard to win and follow a completely straight path.

With that being said, some programs indulge in a few more questionable activities than others.

Here are the eight most dubious programs in college football. Let the debate begin.

8. Alabama Crimson Tide

When it comes to recruiting, nobody in the country does it better than Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Whether or not Saban is getting all the recruits legally remains to be seen, but he has been involved in many alleged recruiting violations according to Sporting News, particularly in the recruitment of Barry Sanders Jr.

Saban has notoriously been in the middle of many different allegations and has also been involved with giving out more scholarships than he has to offer.

Combine all of this and Nick Saban is running one of the more dubious programs in college football. 

7. Oregon Ducks

Perhaps the most recent recruiting violations of any school on the list are that of the Oregon Ducks and head coach Chip Kelly.

While many coaches would have ducked it for the NFL—like Pete Carroll—Kelly chose to stick it out in Eugene instead of taking the Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coaching job.

According to USA Today, Oregon has recently been accused of illegally using recruiting services over the past four seasons.

One had to wonder how the Ducks were convincing all of that top notch talent to join the program and it looks like they were getting a little help along the way.

Looks like they got caught red handed, making them one of the most dubious programs in the country. 

6. LSU Tigers

Like many other teams in the SEC, LSU is another that has been hit with recruiting violations in recent years.

According to ESPN.com, LSU was hung with probation for a year in 2011 amid a recruiting violation.

LSU imposed a scholarship reduction for 2010-2011 and a 10 percent reduction in official visits, as well as reductions in recruiting calls.

While this is just a minor violation, it is worthy of making the list for one of the most dubious programs in the NCAA.

5. TCU Horned Frogs

Many people may not think of TCU as cheaters or a program that recruits questionable players, until recently.

The TCU Horned Frogs have been very good for the past few years and have come across a scandal in recent weeks as 15 students were arrested, including four players from the football team for selling drugs. 

This does not bode well for the program, as it is heading to the Big 12, and this does nothing but make people wonder what else has been going on at TCU over the past few seasons.

The six-month investigation is over and while head coach Gary Patterson is not completely to blame for this, there are certainly question marks surrounding this program.

Who knows what else the NCAA may dig up.

4. Auburn Tigers

The Auburn Tigers are the third SEC team on the list, and while the Cam Newton saga ended up turning out in the Tigers favor, one can not help but wonder what exactly went on with that recruitment.

It seems likely that more will come from this story in the coming years, similar to Reggie Bush at USC.

The recruitment of Newton is certainly still questionable in the eyes of many. Stay tuned for more on this.

More recently, the Tigers were accused of recruiting violations according to the Sporting News in the recruitment of Greg Robinson and Trovon Reed.

One thing is certain, Auburn has been in the middle of some recruiting violations in recent years.

3. USC Trojans

While the violations at USC were before the Lane Kiffin era, he was not exactly clean in his recruiting tactics during his season in Tennessee.

USC has suffered major recruiting violations, and Kiffin, who has seemingly been great at getting recruits over the past few seasons, still seems to be a little shady.

According to Rivals.com, the USC recruiting class was one of the best in the country and they did that with major scholarship reductions.

This program could be one of the most successful over the next few seasons, but they will always look a little shady doing it, at least in the eyes of some.

2. Ohio State Buckeyes

Even though the ever-so-dubious Jim Tressel is no longer at The Ohio State University, that does not mean the program is completely free of all violations.

Ohio State and new head coach Urban Meyer will be undergoing a bowl ban in 2012 and even though Meyer is not Tressel, he has been known to recruit a few suspect players during his tenure in Gainesville.

Everybody knows about the tattoo scandal that brought down the Ohio State football program just over a year ago. and while that is seemingly over, this program has a lot to do to rebuild its reputation. 

1. Miami Hurricanes

The Miami Hurricanes top the list and it really isn't even close.

In recent years, no program has participated in more dubious acts than the Miami Hurricanes.

Like many other programs, the violations deal directly with the boosters, who according to the New York Times, were accused of giving hundreds of thousands of dollars to various Miami football players.

This scandal is going to be a lot to overcome, as the Hurricanes await to hear their penalty.

While it likely will not be the death penalty, the Hurricanes could have a long road to hoe in the coming years.