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NCAA News Release

NCAA Division I Infractions Appeals Committee Upholds Finding Of Violation And Penalties For A Former Assistant Men�s Basketball Coach At Indiana University, Bloomington

For Immediate Release

Monday, December 21, 2009

Contact(s)

Stacey Osburn
Associate Director of Public
and Media Relations
317/917-6117

Indianapolis � The NCAA Division I Infractions Appeals Committee has affirmed the appealed finding of violation and penalties for a former assistant men�s basketball coach at Indiana University, Bloomington. The former coach appealed the NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions� show cause penalty against him, which included recruiting restrictions and mandatory attendance at NCAA regional rules seminars.

In November 2008, the Committee on Infractions issued a report that included findings of major violations in the Indiana men�s basketball program. The case involved multiple violations of telephone recruiting rules, unethical conduct by two coaches, including the former assistant coach, and a failure to monitor by the former head coach and the university. The violations were committed as the head coach served penalties imposed on him for similar violations in a prior case.

In February 2009, the Committee on Infractions issued a supplemental report on the case, which specifically affected the violations and penalty findings for the appealing assistant coach. This committee issued the supplemental report because of the former assistant coach�s request for reconsideration based on procedural error. In response to this, the Committee on Infractions agreed to revise the report language, reduced the show cause order to 30 months instead of three years, changed the effective dates of the penalties and reduced the number of mandatory NCAA regional rules seminars.

The former assistant coach contended on appeal to the Infractions Appeals Committee that these penalty reductions were inadequate and that the decreased penalties were excessive. The Infractions Appeals Committee, however, upheld the reduced penalties, noting that they were not excessive in light of the nature, number and seriousness of the violations, as well as the unique circumstances under which they occurred.

The members of the Infractions Appeals Committee who heard this case were Christopher L. Griffin, Foley & Lardner LLP, chair; Susan Cross Lipnickey, Miami University (Ohio); Noel M. Ragsdale, University of Southern California; David Williams II, Vanderbilt University; and Terry Don Phillips, Clemson University.

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