Iowa State working to resolve NCAA violations

UPDATE: The Iowa State University Athletics Department said Tuesday it has entered into a summary disposition process with the NCAA stemming from inadvertent and impermissible telephone and text messages made by coaches from 2008 through 2011.

The department, a news release stated, discovered and self-reported the violations to the NCAA in November 2011.

“Our institution is fully committed to strict compliance with all rules and regulations of the NCAA,” Athletics Director Jamie Pollard said in the news release. “That is why we immediately reported these inadvertent violations to the NCAA in the fall of 2011.”

The department reviewed three years of telephone and text message activity by coaches and staff in all 18 sports. The review included examination of more than 2,500 individual monthly telephone bills. In about 750,000 calls in the three-year period, 55 impermissible phone calls were placed by non-coaching staff members and 24 phone calls were made by coaching staff members at impermissible times.

The school learned that coaches didn't properly document 1,405 calls in which a coach didn't connect with a prospect (dropped calls, no answer or voice mail). Failure to properly log all calls resulted in further NCAA violations, the news release stated.

The department's self-imposed sanctions were served by coaches during the 2011-12 academic year, including reductions in coaches traveling to recruit and times coaches could place calls during a four-month period. All coaches attended a compliance education session on telephone and text messaging.

The department, the news release said, recommended to the NCAA that it be placed on two years probation.

“We are hopeful the NCAA will recognize our sincere effort to adhere to NCAA rules and will accept our self-imposed sanctions,” Pollard said.

The news release said the department won't comment further until the case is resolved with the NCAA.

Here's the news release from ISU:

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