Arkansas Reports Violations By Former Track Assistant

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.cstv.com/sports/c-track/stor ... 07aay.html

Arkansas Reports Violations By Former Track Assistant

Storied program will have matter reviewed in June by NCAA
Jan. 26, 2007


FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) - Arkansas' storied track and field program has submitted a report to the NCAA outlining violations committed by a former assistant coach convicted last year of embezzlement, theft and mail fraud.

Arkansas, which has won 42 national championships in track and field and cross country, released a statement Friday along with copies of its self-report to the NCAA and the NCAA's letter of inquiry. The school said it submitted the report last month. The NCAA's letter to Arkansas Chancellor John White was dated Jan. 16, 2007.

Assistant coach Lance Brauman resigned last year after being convicted in a case that stemmed from his tenure at Barton County Community College in Kansas. The case was part of a scandal that spawned charges against seven Barton County coaches and the athletic director, and led to the firing of the school's president. Brauman was coaching at Arkansas when the verdict was reached.

Brauman was found guilty of one count of embezzlement, one count of theft and three counts of mail fraud for fraudulently using the federal work-study program and campus jobs to get around a Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference ban on giving athletes full-ride scholarships - and for causing false academic credentials to be sent to the University of Arkansas on an athlete's behalf.

The NCAA Committee on Infractions is tentatively scheduled to consider the matter at its June 8, 2007, meeting in Portland, Ore.

[uconnvaulta]

thats crappy for the athletes my buddy logan ( 800 runner ) just transfered there, that is some crappy luck, They have that no tolerance rule set up there

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2007/ ... ations.txt

Track Violations Not Likely To Affect Other UA Sports
This article was published on Tuesday, January 30, 2007 10:06 PM CST in Razorback Central
By Alex Abrams
The Morning News

FAYETTEVILLE -- None of Arkansas' other sports programs are expected to be punished as a result of NCAA violations committed by a former Arkansas track and field assistant coach.

Arkansas acknowledged in a brief statement released Friday that it has self-reported to the NCAA a number of violations that former assistant track coach Lance Brauman committed in 2003 while dealing with a former student-athlete believed to be star sprinter Tyson Gay.

Following its investigation, Arkansas recommended a number of sanctions that included imposing a two-year probationary period and reducing three scholarships from the men's track and field team during the 2006-07 and 2007-08 academic years.

But the punishments are not expected to extend to any other sports teams, even though Arkansas could be considered a repeat offender by the NCAA because of violations the school committed several years ago.

"I don't expect there will be any penalties specifically to any other sport other than track and field because those sports weren't involved," said Scott Varady, Arkansas' associate general counsel.

After conducting its own investigation, Arkansas determined that Brauman -- who has since resigned -- committed several NCAA violations in the summer of 2003, including providing transportation for Gay and arranging lodging for him for three weeks at no cost.

In the NCAA's official Notice of Allegations, released by Arkansas on Tuesday, the university is cited for "a failure to monitor" the situation.

"It is alleged that the scope and nature of the violations ... demonstrate an institutional failure to monitor [Gay], a prospective student-athlete who lived in the institution's locale prior to full-time enrollment," the NCAA notice said.

But the self-imposed penalties, such as the reduction in scholarships, are expected to be enforced strictly against Arkansas' track and field team -- not other programs like men's and women's basketball or football.

"I don't anticipate any impact on the football program as a result of this case," Varady said.

Granted, other schools could use the latest violations committed by Brauman against Arkansas when it comes to recruiting student-athletes in sports other than track and field.

Arkansas was already on probation after it was learned that at least 20 football and basketball players were overpaid a total of approximately $4,300 for work they didn't perform at a trucking company from 1994-2000.

As a result, the NCAA imposed sanctions against Arkansas that included reducing scholarships from the football and men's basketball teams.

But Varady believes this latest incident is a case of one former track assistant coach committing NCAA violations, not the entire athletic program.

"The case relates to the men's track program," Varady said. "It doesn't relate to any other programs."

Brauman was convicted in July on multiple federal fraud, theft and embezzlement charges, including having false academic credentials sent to Arkansas on a student-athlete's behalf.

Arkansas' self-study references an athlete recruited by Brauman to the Razorbacks from the Barton County school. The athlete's name is blacked out in the school's report and the notice of allegations; Brauman's mail-fraud indictment said the criminal charges involved sprinting star Tyson Gay, who transferred from Barton County Community College to Arkansas.

Brauman resigned from his position as an assistant track and field coach at Arkansas only hours after a jury found him guilty. He's currently serving his sentence at a minimum security federal prison in Texarkana, Texas.