Chris Baker Moves To The Middle East: News at 11.

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It appears Chris Baker is going down the same route as his “suspended partner in crime” Phil Taylor and getting the hell out of Dodge (err, State College). The Daily Collegian has announced that Baker will be transferring to Hampton University, a Division I-AA member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

Of course, such a blog story wouldn’t be complete without excerpts from said news article:

While Baker said he “doesn’t really have a relationship” with Joe Paterno, the Windsor, Conn., native said he still keeps in touch with friends from Penn State. Baker’s relationship with his former position coach, Larry Johnson, Sr., is still good.

Baker said Johnson told him this would be “an opportunity to start over … and get to the next level.”

“[Johnson] was like a father figure,” Baker said. “He always expected the best of us. He coached very intensely, he wanted the best out of every player so that’s how he coached and that’s how he treats you. If you ever needed something, he’ll be the one that will sit down and talk with you. If you’re ever wrong, he’ll be the one to tell you that you’re wrong.”

Two things you can possibly conclude from this:
1. LJ Sr. disagrees with JoePa’s decision but has absolutely no influence or input on who stays and who goes and is simply trying to make sure Baker finds another school where he can land on his feet.
2. LJ Sr. sides with JoePa on his decision to boot Baker but still wants to make sure Baker is successful elsewhere and simply giving him some guidance.

Baker also took the opportunity to let us know just how much other schools still revel in his superiority

The commotion surrounding Baker’s split with Penn State didn’t make it hard for him to catch on with another team, he said. When teams found out he was not going to play at Penn State, Baker said the “phones started ringing.”

So according to Baker, once word got out amongst the college football coaching community, he was suddenly bigger than a 90’s boy band. So big in fact, he ended up at a prestigious college football powerhouse like Hampton.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying it’s a bad thing for Baker to play D1-AA football (especially since he won’t have to sit out a year) but it sounds like Baker’s exaggerating himself ohh..JUST A LITTLE BIT as a hot commodity and I refuse to believe he would spurn even a half-decent BCS program for Hampton.

Also of note, is echoes from Phil Taylor:

But Baker said he still doesn’t know why he was removed from the team.

“It was difficult leaving and not knowing why I’m not playing for Penn State any more,” Baker said.

For the life of me, I can’t figure it out either. However, I’m sure it has absolutely nothing to do with THIS…or THIS…or THIS.

In other irrelevant legal news: Stanley Pringle was sentenced to ARD (A fancy PA legal acronym for ‘slap on the wrist’) which means his ‘disorderly conduct’ and ‘open lewdness’ charges will be dropped if he stays out of trouble for a year and performs other requirements such as attending “Chronic Public Masturbators Anonymous” meetings.