After months of waiting, IU basketball fans will finally know all the allegations Kelvin Sampson and the men's basketball program have against them. Indiana University released an official press release this morning detailing all of those NCAA allegations, which could mean major problems for the Hoosier basketball program in the future.
Today's press release reveals that Kelvin Sampson misled Indiana University. Will it eventually cost him his job?
Here is the official press release:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FEB. 13, 2008
NCAA serves notice on IU of potential “major violations” in basketball recruiting
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana University today (Feb. 13) disclosed that it has received formal notice from the National Collegiate Athletic Association that allegations of potentially “major” recruiting violations have been raised against men’s basketball coach Kelvin Sampson and two assistants.
The five allegations were outlined in a letter to IU President Michael A. McRobbie from David Price, the NCAA’s vice president for enforcement. Also cited in the letter for alleged violations were assistant coach Jeff Meyer and former assistant coach Rob Senderoff.
Many of the allegations are based on two self-reports of impermissible telephone calls the university filed with the NCAA in October.
The university and three individuals cited were all given until May 8 to file formal written responses. The NCAA’s Committee on Infractions will consider the responses during its June 14 meeting in Seattle, Wash., and then decide if the allegations are substantiated and if penalties should be imposed beyond those that the university imposed on itself in October.
Those penalties included a second year of restrictions on recruit contacts tighter than is permitted by the NCAA, loss of a basketball scholarship for 2008-09, and Sampson voluntarily agreed to forego a $500,000 salary increase.
Responding for Indiana University, Athletics Director Rick Greenspan said IU is taking these new allegations by the NCAA very seriously.
“We are extremely disappointed in these new allegations regarding Coach Sampson,” Greenspan said. “To say the least, we view these allegations with grave concern and will cooperate fully with the NCAA as they adjudicate these charges.”
NCAA staff initiated a “preliminary inquiry” after IU notified it that the university’s own investigation had documented more than 100 impermissible telephone calls that were made to prospective student athletes during the 2006-07 season, some of which violated NCAA rules.
At the recommendation of attorneys from Ice Miller’s Collegiate Sports Practice in Indianapolis, the university reported some of the telephone calls as being secondary, or minor, violations in part because there was no evidence of “a purposeful plan to circumvent the sanctions.”
After reviewing IU’s self-report and conducting additional interviews with people not associated with Indiana University, the NCAA has categorized the allegations as potential “major violations” of its rules.
The NCAA staff interviewed several potential recruits and their family members who for a variety of reasons had been unavailable to talk to IU’s investigating staff or who could not be reached at the time.
IUHoosiers.com
The specific allegations cited in the NCAA letter are:
1. That Sampson, Meyer and Senderoff failed to comply with sanctions imposed on Sampson for impermissible recruiting calls he made while he was a coach at Oklahoma. Those sanctions followed Sampson to IU when he came here in May of 2006. Sampson and Senderoff are alleged to have jointly participated in telephone calls at a time when Sampson was prohibited from being present or taking part when staff members made recruiting calls. Senderoff and Meyer are alleged to have made about 100 calls that exceeded the sanction limits. Senderoff resigned his position Oct. 30.
2. That Senderoff and Meyer placed “at least 25 telephone calls” to nine potential recruits that exceeded NCAA limits even if no sanctions had been in place.
3. That Sampson “acted contrary to the NCAA principles of ethical conduct when he knowingly violated recruiting restrictions imposed by the NCAA Committee on Infractions,” and that he “failed to deport himself in accordance with the generally recognized high standard of honesty normally associated with the conduct and administration of intercollegiate athletics by providing the institution and the NCAA enforcement staff false or misleading information,” and that he “failed to promote an atmosphere for compliance within the men’s basketball program and failed to monitor the activities regarding compliance of one or more of his assistant coaches.”
4. That Senderoff “acted contrary to the NCAA principles of ethical conduct when he knowingly violated recruiting restrictions imposed by the NCAA Committee on Infractions,” and that he “failed to deport himself in accordance with the generally recognized high standard of honesty normally associated with the conduct and administration of intercollegiate athletics by providing the institution false or misleading information.”
5. That Sampson and Meyer engaged in an impermissible recruiting contact during a two-day sports camp held at Assembly Hall on June 30 and July 1, 2007, and that Meyer provided the potential recruit with an impermissible benefit – at least one T-shirt and drawstring backpack.
IUplanet will be covering the story more in depth as it unfolds. For now, what are your thoughts? Sampson misled Indiana University--should it cost him his job? How will this change the course of this season?
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here to view the entire 14-page report sent from the NCAA to Indiana University.