Zone read: UNC wanted to contest NCAA penalties, but decided against it

The Zone Read is your college football primer to make you seem like the smartest person at the water cooler even if you're not.

North Carolina thought about appealing the sanctions that were handed down by the NCAA Committee on Infractions, but after careful consideration decided against it.

"We considered an appeal," North Carolina chancellor Holden Thorpe said in a statement. "But given the timing and the record that other schools have had with appeals, as well as the fact that penalties are suspended during an appeal, we've decided it's best to accept our sanctions and move forward."

The Tar Heels were hit with a postseason ban for the 2012 season and will lose 15 scholarships during the course of next three seasons. Former assistant John Blake was given a three-year "show-cause" no recruiting ban.

The university also self-imposed penalties that included the team vacating the 16 games the team won during the 2008 and 2009 season and a $50,000 fine.

North Carolina was found guilty of failing to monitor its football program after Yahoo! Sports revealed an ongoing relationship between Blake and the sports agency Pro Tect Management. This relationship also extended to several players, who received benefits from Pro Tect. In June 2011, UNC was found guilty of nine major NCAA violations, including academic misconduct and impermissible benefits to players. This after as many as 13 players missed at least one game in 2010 because of the violations.

Unfortunately, the brunt of these sanctions now falls on new head coach Larry Fedora as he attempts to turn North Carolina into a player in the ACC. After the news was released, TarHeelIllustrated.com spoke to several of the Heels' 2012 recruits and the response was mostly positive. Most played off the sanctions saying that it didn't really affect them and felt bad for the team's senior class.

"I knew they were coming," linebacker Dan Mastromatteo said. "But I think everything is gonna be fine. We got a great new coach in Coach (Larry) Fedora and a great new staff, so I think it's going to be fine. We have a fresh start and can put everything behind us now so things will be great."

In the face!: Missouri backup quarterback Ashton Glaser had a tough Sunday.

Early in the morning, he knocked on the door of a female neighbor's home for some unknown reason and was greeted by a male, who wasn't exactly happy to see Glaser. The male punched Glaser in the face and witnesses called the police.

When the police arrived, they arrested Glaser, not the male who punched him, around 3:18 a.m. Yep, Glaser had warrants out for his arrest for a speeding ticket, not having a valid drivers license and a missed court date.

Talk about a bad morning.

Glaser, Missouri's third-string quarterback who spent last year working with the scout team, was released on two $300 bail amounts. Missouri said any further punishment for the incident — as if the embarrassment wasn't punishment enough — would be handled internally.

Mutiny in the WAC:

As the Conference USA/Mountain West Conference begins to recruit new schools to fill out what could be a 24-team league, each school from the WAC is trying to get on board. According to CBSSports.com, Idaho, Louisiana Tech, New Mexico State, San Jose State, Texas State, Texas-San Antonio and Utah State have all been in contact with Conference USA or the Mountain West about their interest in the new league. Florida Atlantic, Florida International and North Texas from the Sun Belt; and Charlotte from the Atlantic-10 also have expressed interest.

Those teams shouldn't be kept in the dark too much longer since the new league is scheduled to start during the 2013-14 season. If the WAC does lose teams to the new league, it would almost certainly doom it as a conference, which isn't great news for new interim WAC commissioner Jeff Hurd.

The WAC has been a sinking ship ever since Boise State, Fresno State, Nevada and Hawaii all left for the Mountain West. The conference had tried its best to plug the holes, but it had to know that the poaching wasn't over, which is probably why former commissioner Karl Benson left for the comfy confines of the Sun Belt.

Sticky notes: Maryland's softball team is apparently receiving fashion advice from the football program… After being on the hot seat a year ago, Georgia rewards coach Mark Richt with a five-year contract extension on the same day the team learns cornerback Branden Smith was charged with possession of marijuana… And West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen wants his team to pick up the pace.

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