Bluegrassrivals

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Memphis must vacate its record 38-win men's basketball season from 2007-08 after the NCAA rejected its appeal.


The NCAA announced Monday that its Infractions Appeal Committee ruled against Memphis, which was found to use an ineligible player, believed to be Derrick Rose. The Tigers lost in overtime to Kansas in the national title game that season.


The NCAA originally ordered Memphis to vacate the season and forfeit money on Aug. 20. Memphis had appealed, arguing the penalties were unprecedented and that the school was held to a strict liability when Rose was ruled retroactively ineligible for an SAT score that was invalidated by the Educational Testing Service in May 2008.


"The Infractions Appeals Committee found no basis to conclude that the penalty was excessive such that the Committee on Infractions had abused its discretion in imposing the penalty," the NCAA said in a release posted on its Web site.


The decision was based on a letter from the testing agency to the athlete that "not only made the student-athlete aware that his eligibility was in serious jeopardy, but that he would be declared ineligible if he did not respond to the letter," according to the committee's report to the NCAA.


That means an asterisk beside Memphis' 38-2 season that had set the NCAA record for wins in a season and approximately $615,000 in lost tournament revenue. The infractions committee originally said it struck hard because the ineligible player was used the entire season. Rose played in all 40 games, starting 39.


The university issued a statement Monday, saying it was "extremely disappointed" and "strongly disagrees" with the decision.


Memphis also asked the NCAA to take several steps to avoid this kind of problem in the future.


The university wants the NCAA to require the Educational Testing Service to notify universities of any investigations of student-athletes, something officials want the NCAA to start immediately to work out a plan to do just that. And Memphis wants the NCAA Eligibility Center to provide guidance and keep both schools and student-athletes informed on test score questions.


Memphis also endorsed the appeal committee's decision requiring the Committee on Infractions to explicitly state evidence supporting each penalty imposed on programs in the future.


"Without an open dialogue about ongoing issues, the University of Memphis and other NCAA members have less confidence in the abilities of the NCAA and ETS to work productively on behalf of student-athletes and the universities they represent," Memphis President Shirley Raines said in a statement.


"This issue requires immediate attention by both organizations."




[ame="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=5018281"]NCAA rejects Memphis' final appeal of vacated wins - ESPN[/ame]

How long is this going to go on!

theVILLE Wrote:How long is this going to go on!

Which brings us to the curious case of Corey Maggette, Myron Piggie and Duke, most certainly one of the NCAA's golden programs.

And for good reason.

Under the impressive command of Mike Krzyzewski, Duke has fielded not only a team with a winning record in 21 of the past 24 seasons but also a team comprised of likable, high-quality student-athletes. When people cite programs that "do it the right way," Duke usually is the first example. These are the good guys.

But what happens when a bad thing happens to a good program? What if Duke fielded a team with an ineligible player? What if the precedent for such an offense called for the embarrassing forfeiture of games and the stripping of a Final Four appearance?

Would the NCAA ever risk tarnishing the image of a public relations cornerstone? Would the association ever treat Duke and its Hall of Fame coach like everyone else?

We are waiting (and waiting and waiting) to find out. Each passing day answers the question more definitively.

Here is a timeline of the case in question:

April 1997 to August 1997: Kansas City summer basketball coach Myron Piggie makes cash payments to high school player Corey Maggette totaling $2,000. The money comes from a revenue pool that includes donations to Piggie from professional sports agents Kevin Poston and Jerome Stanley.

Nov. 12, 1997: Maggette signs a national letter of intent with Duke.

October 1998 to March 1999: Maggette averages 10.6 points per game to help Duke (37-2) reach the national championship game, which Duke loses to Connecticut.

June 30, 1999: Maggette is selected 13th in the NBA draft.

April 13, 2000: A federal grand jury in Missouri hands down an 11-count indictment of Piggie, which details the payments to Maggette (along with players at three other schools). By NCAA statutes the payments compromise Maggette's amateur status. Maggette initially denies receiving any money.

April 18, 2000: The NCAA's Jane Jankowski says: "We will have to determine if Duke, in fact, had an ineligible player in the NCAA tournament. And, if so, what monies would have to be returned for use of an ineligible player."

May 23, 2000: Piggie works a plea bargain and admits making the payments.

July 12, 2000: Maggette comes clean and admits he received the cash from Piggie.

Spring 2001: Duke hands over all its information to the NCAA, according to John Burness, Duke's senior vice president for public affairs.

May 30, 2001: Piggie is sentenced to 37 months in federal prison for fraud.

January 2003: Piggie is paroled from federal prison in Arkansas.

As for the NCAA ruling, it's been nearly four years since all pertinent information was admitted under oath, four years after the NCAA vowed to "determine" if Duke violated eligibility standards and three years after the school presented its defense.

"We don't have any information on that," NCAA spokesperson Monica Lunderman said Tuesday. The NCAA does not provide comment concerning "ongoing investigations."


Looks like the NCAA Committee playing favorites.

YOu fins somewhere to throw duke into everything dont ya...i jk