The NCAA has found a former coach at Alfred State guilty of allowing student-athletes to compete while they were ineligible.
According to the NCAA Division III Committee on Infractions, the former Alfred State track and field head coach “did not promote an atmosphere of compliance when he allowed two student-athletes to compete while ineligible.”
This case was resolved through the summary disposition process, a cooperative effort in which the involved parties collectively submit the case to the Committee on Infractions in written form. The NCAA enforcement staff, school and the former head coach must agree to the facts and level of the case for this process to be used instead of having a formal hearing.
The parties agreed that in December 2019, the former head coach knowingly permitted an ineligible women’s indoor track and field student-athlete to receive travel expenses and compete under an eligible student-athlete’s name. The former head coach also involved the student-athlete and an assistant coach in the violation when he told the student-athlete she could compete under her teammate’s name and instructed the assistant coach to check the student-athlete in under that teammate’s name.
An additional violation occurred when the head coach permitted a men’s indoor track and field student-athlete to practice and compete for approximately three months (from October through December 2019) despite being notified that the student-athlete had not completed a mandatory medical exam. The committee accepted the enforcement staff’s and school’s agreement that the violation was inadvertent.
Penalties, including those imposed by the college, are as follows:
- Public reprimand and censure.
- One year of probation.
- A vacation of wins in which the student-athletes competed while ineligible during the 2019-20 indoor track and field season (imposed by the college).
- A $1,250 fine.
- A two-year show-cause order for the former head coach. During this period, the committee restricts athletically related duties of the former head coach should he be employed by an NCAA school. The public report details the restrictions further.
