Before making enemies with the Federal Trade Commission, Rob DeBoer tried to make as many friends as he could.
The ex-USC running back now living in Irmo claimed in training videos to have a hand in recruiting 30,000 people to BurnLounge, an online music retailer sued by the FTC this month accused of being a pyramid scheme.
DeBoer, who was sued for allegedly misrepresenting earnings from BurnLounge, promoted the New York-based company with ex-USC quarterback and Gamecock football announcer Todd Ellis ? helping turn Columbia into ground zero for BurnLounge.
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Ex-Clemson football coach Danny Ford and former USC running back and Heisman Trophy winner George Rogers both said they lent their names in exchange for franchises that ended making little or no money.
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Those invested in BurnLounge sites included USC football head coach Steve Spurrier?s sons ? one a Gamecocks assistant coach, the other a player on the team.
Other former athletes associated with BurnLounge:
? Former USC baseball player D.T. Cromer, who played in the Oakland Athletics organization with DeBoer and sells real estate in Lexington County
? Will Merritt, a former Clemson lineman who is a member of the Tigers? broadcast team
? Kip Bouknight, a former national baseball college player of the year from USC now in the Pittsburgh Pirates? farm system.
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Besides ex-athletes, several coaches tried to make extra money in BurnLounge.
Gamecocks receivers coach Steve Spurrier Jr. invested in BurnLounge a year ago after Oklahoma coach Stoops introduced him to the concept.
"When Bob Stoops got me, he said, 'I've spoken to a lawyer about this. I've spoken to my agent. I've spoken to some people to find out if this is a legitimate thing. And everything they told me, this is a legitimate (business). Put your name on it and go do it," said Spurrier Jr., a member of Stoops' Sooners staff from 1999 to 2001.
An Oklahoma spokesman said last week that Stoops was on vacation and unavailable for comment.
