/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/35650240/20140419_mjm_sq8_106.JPG.0.jpg)
[Update]: According to Orangebloods, the players in question are linebackers Jordan Hicks and Steve Edmond, though Cedric Reed and Desmond Jackson also had dinner with the agent. Right now, it appears that they are not involved with the ongoing NCAA investigation, most likely because they paid for their meals. -- Wescott
Penalties could be forthcoming for two Texas Longhorns football players who accepted a free meal from an agent, according to documents obtained by the Austin American-Statesman.
Right now, the NCAA doesn't want to talk about it as the investigation continues:
No surprise, but NCAA will not comment on the two Texas football players who received meal paid for by agent.
— Ryan Autullo (@AutulloAAS) July 15, 2014
In all likelihood, the players are about to be draft eligible and good enough to have an NFL team select them -- otherwise the agent would just be wasting their money. Unfortunately for Texas, if there are suspensions involved eventually, that means that the players are likely important contributors.
So it could be some combination of defensive end Cedric Reed, cornerback Quandre Diggs, defensive tackle Malcom Brown, wide receiver Jaxon Shipley, running back Malcolm Brown, and running back Johnathan Gray.
Those are just the most likely candidates based on the circumstances and all of those names are purely speculative based on the available information, which hasn't gone so far in any forum as to legitimately connect any players to the incident in question.
The good news is that the university self-reported the violations in early June, which typically results in more leniency from the NCAA than if investigators turn up the violations on their own.
According to the NCAA rule book, accepting benefits from an agent or runner could endanger an athlete's amateur status. At a minimum, the players will have to repay the cost of the meals and may also suffer further penalties based on case precedent.
If there is a further penalty beyond repayment, it's hard to imagine that it would be for more than a game and may not even amount to that much, as long as there aren't any other violations that the NCAA might uncover.