University of Iowa volleyball coach Bond Shymansky has been fired for a major NCAA violation: providing an impermissible benefit to a student-athlete to get them to come to the school.
The Gazette reports that a student-athlete came forward in May to report the allegation. Shymansky was placed on a 30-day suspension a few weeks later, while the school worked with an outside law firm to investigate the claim. Shymansky was fired Wednesday following the conclusion of that investigation.
“We take NCAA violations very seriously, and have acted in a fair and decisive manner,” AD Gary Barta said in a prepared statement. “We will continue to work with the NCAA in regard to our self-report to reach a conclusion in this matter as swiftly as possible.”
What exactly Shymansky provided to the player wasn’t reported, but the provision of the benefit is believed to be a major violation of NCAA regulations — one for which the university and Shymansky could face penalties.
The school has self-reported the violation to the NCAA, which will now begin its own investigation to determine appropriate penalties. Barta said that the school also handed over the results from its internal investigation.
Vicki Brown, who was named interim head coach on May 20 when Shymansky was first put on leave, will reportedly remain in that role through the 2019 season. The school will wait until the end of the season to decide whether to hire Brown to the position permanently, or to look for a new coach.
