California Court of Appeals Denies NCAA Case To Close McNair Documents

In a highly publicized case against the NCAA, the California Court of Appeals has denied a motion to seal the records from Todd McNair's defamation lawsuit. The former USC Trojan running back coach opens Pandora's box into the possible mistreatment dished out by the NCAA against USC and McNair.

BREAKING: California appeals court denies #NCAA motion to seal Todd McNair documents. #USC

— Nathan Fenno (@nathanfenno) February 6, 2015

In the McNair ruling, the California court justices said they were not fully convinced that making the documents public would hamper future NCAA investigations.

Why is this important? Well, this would expedite the court hearing against the NCAA by allowing witnesses to be specific as opposed to relying on gossip while addressing critical points in the examination process. The NCAA now has 15 days to file a petition for rehearing, basically another opportunity to look over the hearing, which can then be taken to California Supreme Court, which means this initial case could be far from over.

"On balance, therefore, the NCAA's interest in ensuring the confidentiality of its investigations is insufficient to overcome presumption of, and the courts' obligation to protect the constitutional interest in, the openness of court records in ordinary court proceedings." --Pages 11-12 of the California Courts Ruling

What does this mean for USC and Todd McNair? While the sanctions levied against USC in the Reggie Bush situation have come and past, unsealing these documents could dive into the entire investigation from the NCAA.