INDIANAPOLIS---The NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions has penalized St. Augustine College for major violations in its athletics program. The infractions, which included a lack of institutional control, began in the 2003-04 academic year and continued through 2007-08. St. Augustine was found to have allowed 29 student-athletes to practice or compete while ineligible to do so. Of the 29 ineligible student-athletes, 15 participated in football.
Penalties for the violations include three years of probation; a vacation of wins; a $2,500 financial penalty; and a reduction in scholarships for football, men’s basketball, softball, volleyball, men’s tennis, men’s track and women’s track.
This case was resolved through the summary disposition process rather than a formal hearing before the Committee on Infractions. Summary disposition is used when there is an agreement among the university, the NCAA enforcement staff and involved individuals regarding the facts of the case. The committee adopted the findings agreed upon by the institution and the enforcement staff as well as penalties recommended by the institution. The institution agreed to the imposition of further penalties by the committee.
Some of the ineligible student-athletes in this case received impermissible benefits in the form of athletic scholarships and travel expenses. The student-athletes were ineligible for a variety of reasons, including participation in their 11th semester of full-time enrollment (a maximum of 10 semesters is allowed in Division II); participation in a fifth season; deficient grade-point averages; mistakes by the college staff in certification of transfers; and a failure to obtain financial initial eligibility certification for academics and amateurism. One track student-athlete participated while ineligible in the NCAA Division II 2007 Indoor Track Championship while another track student-athlete participated while ineligible in the NCAA Division II 2007 Indoor and Outdoor Track Championship.
The eligibility problems and subsequent lack of institutional control resulted from a deficient certification system, particularly for football, according to the committee. The system was in place when football, which had been discontinued in 1967, was reinstated and resumed competing in 2002. Due to errors in completing various forms used to track eligibility, and because the individuals charged with tracking eligibility were not adequately educated regarding NCAA eligibility rules, mistakes were made and the ineligible student-athletes were allowed to compete. The lack of institutional control violation was also based on the college’s failure to report a violation involving the ineligible participation of a football student-athlete in three dates of competition.
The penalties adopted and imposed by the committee are outlined below.
· Public reprimand and censure.
· Three years of probation beginning October 3, 2008, and concluding on October 2, 2011.
· Vacation of all wins in which ineligible student-athletes participated, both in the regular season and all postseason completion, including conference and NCAA championships. The individual records of these student-athletes shall be vacated as well. Further, the college shall reconfigure the records of the head coaches in the affected sports to reflect the vacated wins. The vacated records shall be recorded in all publications in which athletic records are referenced, including, but not limited to, media guides, recruiting material, web sites and institution and NCAA archives. The institution must notify all opponents in writing of the competition results that have been vacated. Finally, any public reference to these vacated contests won during this time shall be removed, including but not limited to athletics department stationary, banners displayed in public areas and any other forum in which they may appear.
· Reduction in scholarships for the sports of football, men’s basketball, softball, volleyball, men’s tennis, men’s track and women’s track for the academic years 2009-10 and 2010-11. The total athletically-related financial aid in these sports cannot total more than 90 percent of the amounts awarded in these sports during the 2007-07 and 2007-08 academic years.
· The institution must initiate an external review of its campus compliance system by a competent reviewer as soon as one can be scheduled. The background and qualifications of the reviewer must be provided to the committee and the institution must comply in a timely fashion with all recommendations made by the reviewer.
· The college shall pay a financial penalty of $2,500 to the NCAA.
The Division II Committee on Infractions consists of conference and institutional athletics administrators, faculty and one member from the public. The committee independently rules on cases investigated by the NCAA enforcement staff and determines appropriate penalties.
The members of the NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions who reviewed this case are Wendy Taylor May, chair, assistant athletic director, University of California, San Diego; Bruce Kirsh, athletic director and vice president, Franklin Pierce University; Larry Blumberg, faculty athletics representative and chair of math department, Washburn University of Topeka; Jean Paul Bradshaw II, attorney, Lathrop & Gage L.C; and Bridget Lyons, senior associate director of athletics, Barry University.
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