Syracuse.com cited a number of previous cases of NCAA academic fraud, similar to what Syracuse is being investigated for, and found that losing scholarships is a likely outcome.
Of the 25 cases since 2000 where Division I schools were found to have allowed either excessive tutoring or committed academic fraud, only two did not result in either scholarship losses or a postseason ban.
“If you have specific incidences of academic fraud involving athletes ‚Äî if you look back at Minnesota, Ohio State, Florida State ‚Äî some of those include other violations beyond, but they all include lost scholarships,” said John Infante, a former compliance official and author of 30-Mile radius, a blog focused on compliance issues.
Undoubtedly, the loss of scholarships would be the most likely end game for the NCAA. Depending on how deep the violations go, the loss of just a few would not be an insurmountable mountain for SU football and basketball. For hoops specifically, the type of talent SU has been reeling in would likely be able to cover up for one or two holes in the roster.
Football is obviously more vulnerable to taking a hit on the field since the program is having a hard enough time with a full host of scholarships. The key is obviously how many and for how long. And we won’t know that more than likely until the meeting later this week.
The next question will be if there’s probation or vacated wins on top of the scholarship penalties. Probation will be a difficult hurdle since it will be a deterrent for recruits. But one has to assume there will be a loss of scholarships if SU is found in violation, so today’s report is not all that ground-breaking.
Posted: D.A.
