Former Michigan assistant basketball coach Perry Watson said he was concerned when he came to the University in 1991 because of his tense relationship with Detroit booster Ed Martin, according to documents released by the University under the Freedom of Information Act.
In March, the University admitted to committing two NCAA violations through involvement with Martin. Announcement of the violations set off a chain reaction leading to numerous allegations against the basketball program.
"I told (Martin) to stay away from the program, I said (to Michigan basketball coach Steve Fisher), 'I want you to know that I don't deal with that guy,'" Watson said. "I said, 'Now, you can choose to deal with him,' I said, 'because you've been dealing with him' ... So I didn't deal
"And Fish didn't have any problem with me not dealing with him. So at Michigan in my two years if we spoke 15 words, that's the most we ever spoke," Watson said.
Watson had previously disassociated himself with Martin during his time as basketball coach of Detroit Southwestern High School after Watson began to get uncomfortably close to his players.
"He'd always be around. He'd be at our games," Watson said in an interview with associate Athletic Director Jeff Long and Big Ten representative Robert Vowels. "I didn't know what his motive was, but it seemed like it was just, like I said, more of a groupie.
"I told him in a roundabout way, hey, I'd rather you not be around the program. And he said I don't understand why and whatever, and I said well, you know, I'm entrusted with these kids and most of them don't have a father, and I said you flash money, you got the Mercedes, you got this, so I just kind of disassociated with him. I told him I really don't want you around my program," Watson said.
Martin often lurked around high school gyms across the state after practices and games. He followed the star players, becoming close to their families and giving players cakes, pies and free meals.
"He called himself the godfather, like I'm the godfather to these players," Watson said of Martin. "So I just didn't have a good feeling for him because I had ghetto kids and kids that they didn't have nothing. So I didn't want nobody buying nothing for my kids."
In an interview between former University of Iowa basketball coach George Raveling and Vowels, also released by the University Friday, Raveling said that when recruiting in the Detroit area he was advised to become friendly with Martin.
Martin's name is concealed in the documents. However, by piecing together information from transcripts of interviews with Fisher and other Athletic Department officials, Martin is speculated to be the person in question.
In the interview, Raveling said that on occasion Martin would request tickets to Iowa games so he would make sure Martin received them.
Raveling, in a Los Angeles Times report, admitted to being acquainted with Martin, but denied having ever giving him tickets.
"First of all, I know who he is," Raveling told the newspaper. "The guy hangs around the basketball scene in Detroit. I knew who he was. But the fact that he had some sort of involvement with me is ludicrous. He was never involved in any way, shape or form with my program at Iowa."