FBI: Young, Lang kept in contact

Cathy Williams, an FBI intelligence research specialist, testified that she cross-checked the primary numbers of Young and Lang and found the calls. She said Lang called Young 49 times from June 2000 to Feb. 13, 2001, and that Young called Lang 10 times in that span.

One point of interest is that Williams said the first call from Young to Lang was on Jan. 10, 2001, the day the story of how Young allegedly paid Lang $150,000 to get his star recruit, Albert Means, to enroll at Alabama was published in The Commercial Appeal.

"Were the calls between Mr. Young and Mr. Lang many in number?" asked prosecutor Fred Godwin.

"Yes," answered Williams.

Williams' testimony wrapped the third day of this trial, which was the slowest and shortest yet.

Still, there were plenty of interesting developments, including the testimony of not the least of which came from Duke Clement, a real estate investor who told of two dinners he had with Young in 1998 and 1999.

According to Clement, Young bragged about buying Kindal Moorehead and David Paine from former Memphis Melrose coach Tim Thompson.

"He knew I was friends with Steve Caldwell, an assistant coach at Tennessee, and he would just tell me there was no need for coach Caldwell to waste his time team recruiting (Moorehead or Paine)," Clement said. "He would say (Caldwell) could concentrate on other players because (Moorehead and Paine) were going to Alabama."

Clement testified that Young initially told him he bought Thompson a Lexus as compensation for Moorehead. He added Young later said he gave Thompson $25,000 for Moorehead, and $500 for Paine.

Moorehead and Paine each signed with Alabama out of high school, but Paine never attended because he failed to qualify academically.

In defense attorney Robert Hutton's cross examination, Clement acknowledged a friendship with Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer, and that he and Young were drinking heavily during each dinner. But during re-direct, prosecutor Jerry Kitchen questioned whether the two were drunk.

"Was Mr. Young slurring his speech?" Kitchen asked.

"No," answered Clement.

"Was he staggering?"

"No."

"Could he control himself?"

"Yes sir," answered Clement, and then he was dismissed.

Though it was never directly said, the implication with Clement was clear. Prosecutors wanted to show jurors that if Young had allegedly bought previous players for his school, he would've had no problem buying Means.

Another key witness for the prosecution was Margaret Everett, an elementary school teacher from Jackson, Miss. She testified Lang paid her $15,000 in a cashiers check and money orders for a car in early 2000, just a few months after he'd put a down payment of $5,000 on a 1999 Ford Expedition that he never sold.

The day started with defense attorney Jim Neal concluding his cross examination of Lang. And though it lacked significant revelations, it was clear the defense was laying the groundwork for its case, which will be to impeach Lang's statements by the testimony of other witnesses.

For instance, Lang said Fitz Hill, then an assistant at Arkansas, offered either a job on the Hogs' staff or $150,000 for Means and teammate Leonard Burress, and that former Georgia coach Jim Donnan gave him $700 "out of his pocket."

The defense has indicated it will call Hill and Donnan to deny these allegations. In the process, they plan to paint Lang as a liar in an attempt to convince jurors that if he'd be dishonest about those things, his testimony as a whole cannot be trusted.

When court adjourned Wednesday, prosecutors indicated they planned to rest by this afternoon. Then the defense will begin its case, though it remains unclear whether Young will testify in his own defense.