NCAA finally coming down on the major cheaters.
I believe the NCAA is walking softly, but carrying a big stick.
Yep, looks like they are going after the big guys. 
Yeah, the cynic in me says they’re going after the guys who won’t hurt the bottom line too much. That’ll teach them.
Welcome. But I’d suggest the other way around.
Thanks…I forgot to put the rolling eyes emoji at the end of my comment
I just figured they were going back and finding additional wrongdoing by Calipari and Marcus Camby. Instead, it looks like the school tried to self-report players getting free concert tickets and ended up uncovering administrative snafus in calculating financial aid amounts. UMass women’s tennis has to really appreciate having their conference championship stripped in the process.
“ However, it’s hard to conjure up sympathy for any recruits who go to schools implicated in the high-profile federal basketball scandal—if they have paid even the slightest attention, they have to know what they’re signing up for.”
I’ve always felt this way too, there should be little to zero sympathy for the players. They know what they are potentially getting themselves into going to those schools.
“Things are getting worse, not better.”
Well yeah, isn’t that just schools/coaches responding rationally to incentives? Unenforced rules are just norms (at best) waiting to be broken or taken advantage of. When you’re caught red-handed by the NCAA, and if no punishment whatsoever comes, why wouldn’t you just double down on the same approach. Maybe you’ll try to be less stupid about it.
A counterpoint, Kansas and Arizona have seen a notable drop off in their recruiting. Generally speaking, I think schools are not better off when the process is long and drawn out. It’s better for the coaches who have long term contracts.
I don’t know the recruiting histories well enough of either program. But a reduction in recruiting could reflect both the threat of future sanctions and (of course, relatedly) a likely temporary reduction in cheating while under heightened scrutiny. My point is that unless punishment is sufficiently harsh, the deterrent effect will be low overall and for other programs. And I think that’s mostly borne out true, and you can even point to individual programs who have been caught as evidence (eg has LSU’s recruiting seen a noticeable dip as well?).
Obviously there isn’t harsh and swift punishment for cheating in the NCAA. At the same time I think a lot of people underplay the negative effects that can arise because of an investigation and charges. Whether that is enough to provide overall deterrence is debatable. I think it clearly is enough to keep schools that care about basketball in check while they are under investigation.
Would LSU trade a couple of years of harsh sanctions for a couple of years of success? Undoubtedly. Would a blueblood? I think that depends.
Eh…I see what you’re getting at but I think there still has to be a payoff at the end. UNC got a bad rap for a while but ultimately did anything really come of their investigation and charges once the school dodged a serious punishment?
LSU has seen no impact on recruiting. Maybe you could argue Memphis has. Kansas has seen a bit of a dip from top-5 to top-25. Hard to say with Arizona because they have a great 2020 class but a non existent 2021 class.
What infuriates me is that Michigan, while not squeaky clean, isn’t using the same tactics. And yet the penalty for the Fisher era was stern and long-lasting. The penalty for Jamal Crawford’s situation was also stern and strict. But these programs keep on trucking when everyone knows what’s going on.
Eh, Arizona took a huge class in 2020. It was pretty good, but their 2019 class had 3 players ranked higher than anyone they got in 2020. Their recruiting isn’t at all the same as it was pre-scandal.
UNC is a special case. The NCAA completely dropped their charges because enough member schools didn’t want their own academics subject to a close look.
Michigan paid their highest price not due to NCAA penalties, but due to the investigation hanging over the program. The Jamal Crawford case was ridiculous. So was McGary’s, but that at least followed the letter of the then current rules.
No one is arguing that the NCAA has been fair or effective in handling infractions. I’m only pointing out that consequences of getting caught cheating do get overlooked sometimes.
LSU football is implementing self-imposed penalties due to the financial scandal (with the silly OBJ thing thrown in as icing on the cake) to attempt to avoid further NCAA punishment. Of all programs, you’d think if the NCAA had any clout left that they’d make a run at LSU for the combination of the football and basketball corruption happening at the same time. What more do you need for a smoking gun about an AD out of control?
Have to believe that the basketball situation prompted LSU’s quick action on football.
Michigan is as squeaky clean as it gets. Or at least that’s what John Beilein’s peers thought about his program. Everyone says Juwan is following the same path as JB, which I would expect.
I totally agree. It is mind boggling given all the facts that LSU basketball wasn’t nuked by the NCAA. You have a coach, not coaching at a blueblood basketball school and without the name clout of many other coaches talked about with cheating, talking about a “strong a** offer.” LSU would seem to be the poster child for being able to make an example out of a program with far fewer complications for the NCAA than going after a blueblood.
And you still see LSU popping up in recruitments for high-profile players, such as Bryce McGowens. Makes you think nothing has changed other than dragging Tugs Bowen’s name through the mud and making him the poster child for what’s wrong with basketball recruitment, when the actual example should have been Will Wade. Typical NCAA.