Mizzou AD Jim Sterk provides update on Tigers' appeal of NCAA sanctions
Recently, the Missouri Tigers were hit with a 2019 postseason ban over allegations of wrongdoing stemming from a few years ago.
Many felt the punishment from the NCAA was overly harsh, and it’s safe to count Mizzou AD Jim Sterk among those shocked by the result of the investigation.
On Monday, Sterk met with media members and updated the process of the appeal. He added that Mizzou seems to be getting universal support as it battles the NCAA (via Rivals.com):
There’s been a pretty concentrated effort to be public and transparent, there’s a new page on the website. What’s been the thought process behind how you guys have responded to the sanctions and what’s been the response you’ve gotten from others outside the program about how you have handled it?
Sterk: “Just initially, it’s been positive as far as how we’ve handled it. I thank our staff for really helping communicate. I think we’ve been trying to do it in an open way like you said. We were all shocked with it and we wanted to make sure that we sent the right message. We were trying to be strategic, as far as we can’t give everything as far as our appeal, but we can get information out that is public information and we thought it was the best way would be to get it out on a website that everyone can read and try to answer questions that we’ve received in the last week or so and put it out there so we can open it up for everyone to see. I think the reaction from people outside as far as the penalties go, I think it’s pretty unanimous, that people were shocked as we were. It seemed that they abused their discretion. That’s the legal term that’s used. We were open and honest. Only two or three schools in the last decade have received exemplary cooperation and the penalties seemed very excessive for the cooperation that we have.”
There still seems to be a long way to go before the Tigers get any resolution from the NCAA, but they won’t stop fighting any time soon.
Just think about it. Alabama or Clemson or Oklahoma or Ohio State can send a tutor to any of their rival schools. After this tutor gathers some evidence that he/she helped one of the football players pass a test in any way, he/she can say she attended the class and participated. Or he/she provided test questions. Imagine the possibilities. The University will have to self-report even though they had nothing to do with the intrusion. The NCAA will have to one-year post season ban every University these planted agents show up on. What athlete who is going to become academically ineligible anyway is going to turn down the help when they their back is against the wall. Even the faculty of the University can orchestrate such an intrusion. Then they can say “hand over your football money or we will keep the illegal tutor action live. All it would take are a few dirty teachers to say a tutor showed up in their classrooms or revealed some of their test questions.
Nonsense…. The players knew it was wrong and still took the help right? Missouri educates their players on the NCAA rules just like all the other schools correct?…..If not that may be part of the problem…
d.a. the players were all expelled or received other punishment worse than becoming academically ineligible, that’s a center-piece of the screw-up here. There is nobody left who cheated for the NCAA to punish. No matter now many coaches could be assigned to find rouge tutors you could never catch the dirty ones, you can only monitor the ones who come clean with their methods