Baylor Punished by NCAA for Rules Violations

[MrMustang1965]

Baylor University will spend five years on probation and the men’s basketball team will be barred from non-conference competition for one year following widespread rules violations, the NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions announced Thursday.

Baylor began self-imposing penalties against its men's basketball program in August 2003 as part of the episode that included the death of one player, a murder charge against another and the related resignation of coach Dave Bliss.

The committee's findings include violations committed by the basketball coaching staff and attempts to cover up the infractions.

"The coaches' disregard for NCAA rules has tarnished them, the university and intercollegiate athletics as a whole," said Gene Marsh, chairman of the infractions committee and a professor of law at the University of Alabama.

The full list of penalties against the institution includes:

•The institution will be publicly reprimanded and censured.

•The university will remain on probation from June 23, 2005, through June 22, 2010. Baylor had self-imposed a three-year probation.

•During either the 2005-06 or 2006-07 academic years, Baylor must limit its basketball schedule to regular season Big XII games and the Big XII tournament. The institution was given flexibility on the timing of this penalty so that it could comply with existing contractual obligations.

•The committee adopted Baylor's self-imposed penalty of a ban on 2003-04 postseason basketball. It lost $212,500 in revenues by not participating in the Big XII tournament.

•The committee adopted Baylor's self-imposed financial aid reductions of four men's basketball scholarships in 2004-05 and one in 2005-06.

•The committee reduced the number of paid recruiting visits allowed from 12 to nine for the 2006-07 academic year. That is in addition to Baylor's self-imposed limits of eight in 2004-05 and nine in 2005-06.

•The number of contact days shall be reduced by five beginning in September 2004 through April 2007, which is one year more than what Baylor had self-imposed. Baylor also had 10 fewer evaluation days during the winter evaluation in 2004 and will have the same in 2005 and 2006.

•The number of coaches permitted to recruit off-campus was reduced from three to two during the 2004-05 academic year. The same limits will remain in 2005-06 and 2006-07, one year more than what Baylor self-imposed.

•Baylor self-imposed a one-game reduction in the number of permissible exhibition games during the 2004-05 season.

•The committee also noted as a self-imposed penalty Baylor's successful petition of the Big XII Conference and the NCAA to waive transfer rules for current basketball student-athletes. Three highly regarded student-athletes transferred from the institution and one prospect who had signed a National Letter of Intent decided not to enroll.

•The committee also noted that the former head coach resigned and his coaching staff was replaced.

[Hoop Fan]

wow, a partial death penalty if you will. Why do they get to play conference games though?

[jtstang]

According to this article, Baylor is "on probation" until 2010, but I only see specific sanctions lasting until the 2007 season. What the f-?

[Danny Noonan]

They probably don't want to just destro the program for forever. Also, I imagine that would mess up the Big XII schedule and in a way punish everyone in the conference.

That is the most brutal penalty handed down since.....

[PlanoStang]

According to this article, Baylor is "on probation" until 2010, but I only see specific sanctions lasting until the 2007 season. What the f-?

I think that includes the 5 year period during which if you have another violation in any sport, that sport is elgible for the death penalty.

[EastStang]

As I recall, we would have been allowed to play conference games in year two of the death penalty, but they all had to be on the road (I suspect UT came up with that gem). We opted to just not play the second year. But this is by far the worst penalty handed down since we got the DP. The five year probation does mean that if Baylor gets any violations during that five years (or six years after that I believe) in any sport, that sport is eligible for the death penalty. If they opt for no OOC games for 2005 do you think recruits will walk? How about 2006? As I recall they landed some studs that we were after.

[WorldStang]

Here comes the trasfer wagon. I don't care how good a coach Scott Drew is.. this will kill alot of the recruits that had signed there. As was said in previous posts.. he had landed some nice recruits too.

[jtstang]

Not at all sure everybody's gonna jump ship. They're still eligible for the Dance in the event these high-tone recruits pay off in a couple of years with a conference tourney win and an automatic bid. Sure it would suck to miss Nov/Dec while everybody else got to hoop, but its not even close to the death penalty.

[Danny Noonan]

Not at all sure everybody's gonna jump ship. They're still eligible for the Dance in the event these high-tone recruits pay off in a couple of years with a conference tourney win and an automatic bid. Sure it would suck to miss Nov/Dec while everybody else got to hoop, but its not even close to the death penalty.

Also, its not like is much of suprise to anyone. Maybe a little harsher than expected, but anyone who committed to them had to know some sort of probabtion was coming.

[DickerJames]

That is the most brutal penalty handed down since.....

I suppose it is our fate to forever share the headlines with every school that gets penalized.

[BUTitan]

Yeah, no one left (thank god). Just puts our touney plans back a year I think .