A former Clark Atlanta men's basketball head coach provided more than $1,000 in impermissible benefits to the fathers of two men's basketball student-athletes, according to a decision released by the NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions. As a result of the head coach's direct involvement in the violations, he failed to promote an atmosphere for compliance and violated head coach responsibility rules.
According to the decision, the enforcement staff, school and head coach agreed that the head coach provided impermissible benefits when he wrote checks to the fathers of two student-athletes. In both cases, the funds were withdrawn from a nonprofit organization founded and directed by the former head coach.
The check provided to one student-athlete's father, amounting to $591, was a reimbursement of the student-athlete's textbooks for one semester, although his partial scholarship did not cover books. The check provided to the second student-athlete's father, amounting to $475, was a reimbursement for that student-athlete's enrollment fees. The head coach incorrectly believed that he could reimburse those enrollment fees through his foundation as long as he reported the reimbursement as a donation to the school. As a result of the violations, both student-athletes competed in a total of 24 contests and continued to receive actual and necessary expenses while ineligible.
Because of the head coach's personal involvement in the violations, he failed to promote an atmosphere for compliance and thus violated head coach responsibility rules.
The case was resolved through a cooperative summary disposition, a process where involved parties collectively submit the case to the committee in written form. All participating parties must agree to the facts of the case for this process to be used instead of a formal hearing. The university and head coach accepted the penalties and cannot appeal.
The committee prescribed the following penalties and corrective measures:
- One year of probation.
- A $3,500 fine.
- A one-year show-cause order for the former head coach. During that period, any NCAA member school employing him must show cause why he should not have restrictions on athletically related activity.
- A vacation of records in which student-athletes competed while ineligible. The university must provide a written report containing the contests impacted to the NCAA media coordination and statistics staff within 14 days of the public decision release.
Members of the Committee on Infractions are drawn from NCAA membership and members of the public. The members who reviewed this case are Jessica Chapin, athletics director at American International; David Hansburg, athletics director at Colorado School of Mines; John David Lackey, Division II Committee on Infractions chair and attorney in private practice; Richard Loosbrock, faculty athletics representative and history professor at Adams State; Melissa Reilly, senior woman administrator and associate commissioner at the East Coast Conference; Leslie Schuemann, senior woman administrator and senior associate commissioner at the Great Midwest Athletic Conference; and Jason Sobolik, assistant athletics director for compliance and student services at Minnesota State University Moorhead.
