Texas Tech Dirtiest Program?
Posted: Fri Jul 27, 2007 11:05 pmJust putting it out there.
Football's Dirtiest Programs: #1, Texas Tech
Pete HolidayPosted Jul 27th 2007 3:00PM by Pete Holiday
Filed under: Big 12, Featured Stories, Texas Tech Football
Using its own calculus, FanHouse ranks the 10 Dirtiest Programs of the last 20 years.
It's ironic, in an Alanis Morissette sort of way, that a school that didn't even have an infractions case before SMU had been given the death penalty could rank #1 on a Ten Dirtiest Programs list. When the Red Raiders decided to start cheating, though, they made a big splash. The infractions case from 1987 was just a warm-up for the wide-ranging infractions case of 1998, the single worst infraction that I encountered.
The Committee on Infractions cited Texas Tech for unethical conduct, academic fraud, failure to monitor, and lack of institutional control. Tech was one of only two teams to get cited for all four during entire period, and they managed it in one infraction. While the cases were different, the penalties were quite similar to Kentucky's 2002 case. The big difference here, and the reason Texas Tech takes the top spot while the Wildcats sit down at #5, is simple: it wasn't Tech's only violation.
In 1987 the Raiders were given a slap on the wrist because they were infractions virgins, but the case was no less serious than many we've seen. Numerous instances of coaches handing out cash, buying meals for recruits, making them promises of trips and gifts, driving them around, and so on. One assistant coach actually took a prospect boot shopping, where a pair of ostrich skin boots were picked out. The coach promised them to the recruit once he signed his letter of intent.
The coaches involved engaged in their free-wheeling recruiting for nearly two years before their activities came to light. Despite all that, the Raiders received only one year probation and lost only 8 scholarships. Apparently those penalties weren't harsh enough, because Texas Tech didn't learn its lesson.
A few years after that case was closed the incidents which lead to the 1998 infraction were set in motion. The '98 case implicated 10 different sports at Texas Tech and while its investigation was participated in relatively well by the university, many of the individuals involved stonewalled and lied to enforcement staff.
The 1998 case is convoluted and even the NCAA, in its report, didn't try particularly hard to isolate the infractions of the different teams. In the infraction summary, the NCAA declares the following to have occurred:
participation by ineligible student-athletes; excessive financial aid awards; tuition assistance, extra benefits and academic fraud; proctoring service to a prospective student-athlete; tuition and enrollment assistance; failure to adhere to sound academic standards; money provided to a student-athlete; free bail bonding and legal services; unethical conduct; failure to monitor student-athlete use of athletics department telephones; failure to monitor and lack of institutional control.
Wow. More specifically, the Red Raiders gave out too many scholarships in four sports, in two different seasons. They allowed 76 athletes to compete while ineligible. Ineligible football players played over a span of seven seasons, with more than 20 of them playing in '93-94. In the summer of 1993, an assistant football coach "committed academic fraud by completing significant portions of [a] student-athlete's course work." Over the course of five years, Texas Tech provided free legal services and bail bonding for their athletes.
In addition to the penalties that we're scoring for this list, the Red Raiders forfeited more than a third of their official paid visits for the '97-98 school year, had two football coaches grounded for an off-campus recruiting period, and earned a basketball post-season ban.
They may not have a national reputation for cheating... but they should.
Scoreboard:
* Unethical conduct: '87 & '98 (10 points)
* Academic fraud: '98 (5 points)
* Failure to monitor: '98 (10 points)
* Lack of institutional control: '98 (10 points)
* Probation: 5 years total (10 points)
* Post-season ban: 1 year (3 points)
* Initial scholarships: 26 (13 points)
* Total: 61.00 points (1987: 11 points; 1998: 50 points)
Football's Dirtiest Programs: #1, Texas Tech
Pete HolidayPosted Jul 27th 2007 3:00PM by Pete Holiday
Filed under: Big 12, Featured Stories, Texas Tech Football
Using its own calculus, FanHouse ranks the 10 Dirtiest Programs of the last 20 years.
It's ironic, in an Alanis Morissette sort of way, that a school that didn't even have an infractions case before SMU had been given the death penalty could rank #1 on a Ten Dirtiest Programs list. When the Red Raiders decided to start cheating, though, they made a big splash. The infractions case from 1987 was just a warm-up for the wide-ranging infractions case of 1998, the single worst infraction that I encountered.
The Committee on Infractions cited Texas Tech for unethical conduct, academic fraud, failure to monitor, and lack of institutional control. Tech was one of only two teams to get cited for all four during entire period, and they managed it in one infraction. While the cases were different, the penalties were quite similar to Kentucky's 2002 case. The big difference here, and the reason Texas Tech takes the top spot while the Wildcats sit down at #5, is simple: it wasn't Tech's only violation.
In 1987 the Raiders were given a slap on the wrist because they were infractions virgins, but the case was no less serious than many we've seen. Numerous instances of coaches handing out cash, buying meals for recruits, making them promises of trips and gifts, driving them around, and so on. One assistant coach actually took a prospect boot shopping, where a pair of ostrich skin boots were picked out. The coach promised them to the recruit once he signed his letter of intent.
The coaches involved engaged in their free-wheeling recruiting for nearly two years before their activities came to light. Despite all that, the Raiders received only one year probation and lost only 8 scholarships. Apparently those penalties weren't harsh enough, because Texas Tech didn't learn its lesson.
A few years after that case was closed the incidents which lead to the 1998 infraction were set in motion. The '98 case implicated 10 different sports at Texas Tech and while its investigation was participated in relatively well by the university, many of the individuals involved stonewalled and lied to enforcement staff.
The 1998 case is convoluted and even the NCAA, in its report, didn't try particularly hard to isolate the infractions of the different teams. In the infraction summary, the NCAA declares the following to have occurred:
participation by ineligible student-athletes; excessive financial aid awards; tuition assistance, extra benefits and academic fraud; proctoring service to a prospective student-athlete; tuition and enrollment assistance; failure to adhere to sound academic standards; money provided to a student-athlete; free bail bonding and legal services; unethical conduct; failure to monitor student-athlete use of athletics department telephones; failure to monitor and lack of institutional control.
Wow. More specifically, the Red Raiders gave out too many scholarships in four sports, in two different seasons. They allowed 76 athletes to compete while ineligible. Ineligible football players played over a span of seven seasons, with more than 20 of them playing in '93-94. In the summer of 1993, an assistant football coach "committed academic fraud by completing significant portions of [a] student-athlete's course work." Over the course of five years, Texas Tech provided free legal services and bail bonding for their athletes.
In addition to the penalties that we're scoring for this list, the Red Raiders forfeited more than a third of their official paid visits for the '97-98 school year, had two football coaches grounded for an off-campus recruiting period, and earned a basketball post-season ban.
They may not have a national reputation for cheating... but they should.
Scoreboard:
* Unethical conduct: '87 & '98 (10 points)
* Academic fraud: '98 (5 points)
* Failure to monitor: '98 (10 points)
* Lack of institutional control: '98 (10 points)
* Probation: 5 years total (10 points)
* Post-season ban: 1 year (3 points)
* Initial scholarships: 26 (13 points)
* Total: 61.00 points (1987: 11 points; 1998: 50 points)