Ann Arbor, MI -- Mere months after University of Michigan booster Eddie Martin plead guilty to federal conspiracy charges stemming from payments of $616,000 he made to former Michigan basketball players Chris Webber, Robert "Tractor" Traylor, Maurice Taylor and Louis Bullock, current Wolverine star Ivan Cropper spoke to reporters Monday to distance himself from the scandal.

The press conference took place on the plush, sprawling back lawn of Cropper's twelve-bedroom, five-bath home.

"In light of recent events here at U of M, I want to state for the record that I have never accepted illegal booster payments of any kind, in any amount, from any supporter of Michigan Wolverine basketball past or present," Cropper read from a statement prepared by his team of attorneys led by Johnny Cochran, Barry Scheck, and Peter Neufeld. "I'm just an average college student-athlete who studies hard, plays a little ball, and tries to scrape by on my meager $100/month scholarship stipend."

He added: "I'm not involved in conspiracy, money laundering, or the hiding of illegal gambling profits -- I'm just a poor college kid from the projects of Gary [Indiana] who doesn't take any booster money whatsoever. None. No money at all. I'm poor. Really."

Cropper, a 6'10" forward who averaged 22.1 ppg/7.2 rpg as a freshman earning him All-Big 10 honors, then lifted the sleeve of his black pinstriped Armani suit jacket, pointed at his Tag Heuer Monaco watch, shrugged, and added, "I'm very sorry, I have to go eat dinner at Mickey D's now, like I do every night, because I can't afford much more than that, you know, because, like I said, I'm just a poor college student. Thank you."

As reporters attempted to get more detail from Cropper, the 19-year-old was suddenly whisked away by a private security detail who guided him under the waterfall cascading into the kidney-shaped pool, past the 5-bedroom guest bungalow, through the paintball arena, through the 54-track digital recording studio, through the vintage car storage facility, into his waiting 2003 Hummer H2 stretch limousine (left), and, finally, out the back entrance through a remote-controlled section of the 20-foot, ivy-covered brick walls that surround his private compound.

Cropper was later seen at the West Huron Street McDonald's, sharing a Filet-o-Fish Extra Value Meal with Mary J. Blige and Ashanti, and talking to his financial advisor on a Nextel b370 digital worldwide video phone.