NCAA Basketball Investigation/Lawsuit Thread (merged)

[BuckeyeNation27]

This case with OB takes yet another twist and turn.



Did OB Actually Violate NCAA Rules

this needs to be sent over to our good friends at wake.

 

[BB73]

tOSU issued a response to the NCAA today, according to the Ozone.

August 25 ,2005 5:30 PM

OSU Athletics : The Ohio State University today issued a response to the NCAA concerning the the nine alleged violations, cited in May.

A hearing before the NCAA Committee on Infractions will take place on Dec. 9 or Dec. 10.

​

 

[sandgk]

this needs to be sent over to our good friends at wake.

I'd say don't poke the bear, but that would confer on the denizens there alevel of hirsute masculinity heretofore not on display.

So hows about don't poke the bare-ass naked jackasses.

 

[Ahiacitian]

According to ozone, the university volunteered a reduction of two basketball scholarships for this upcoming year for 2005-2006. I think this is a great move on the university because it not only shows the ncaa that Ohio State is being proactive in nipping this thing in the bud, but also because the basketball team wasn't going to use the full amount of scholarships this year anyways, so it is the best of both worlds. Hopefully the ncaa will see this reduction as enough of a punishment in terms of going forward for the program...

 

[sandgk]

According to ozone, the university volunteered a reduction of two basketball scholarships for this upcoming year for 2005-2006. I think this is a great move on the university because it not only shows the ncaa that Ohio State is being proactive in nipping this thing in the bud, but also because the basketball team wasn't going to use the full amount of scholarships this year anyways, so it is the best of both worlds. Hopefully the ncaa will see this reduction as enough of a punishment in terms of going forward for the program...

Shhh - don't give away the game plan

Hope you are right and the NCAA views this in a positive light.

 

[Golferdow01]

I also heard that OSU was able to prove that Obie was the one who gave Salyers tickets to the basketball game and WAS knowledgable about what was going on. This removes Biancardi from taking total blame. The university is saying that since Obie was knowledgable and a participant in the action, that there was really no way for the university to know what was going on. Pretty much they are asking the NCAA to be lenient with the punishments.. No link just heard this from my pops.

 

[LightningRod]

DDN article:

OSU: Biancardi key player in violations

By Kyle Nagel

Dayton Daily News

COLUMBUS | Paul Biancardi, head men's basketball coach at Wright State University, had "knowledge and involvement" in improper housing and payments for a player and "acted contrary to the principles of ethical conduct" while working at Ohio State University, according to a report released Thursday.

In addition, Ohio State said in its response to NCAA allegations that Biancardi and former OSU head coach Jim O'Brien provided a cash payment of $6,700 to a recruit and that "Biancardi knowingly facilitated delivery of the funds as directed by O'Brien."

"The University is deeply troubled to have found that serious violations occurred in the men's basketball program under former head coach O'Brien," OSU wrote in its 225-page response, which was sent to the NCAA on Wednesday night.

O'Brien's attorney, Joseph Murray, disputed the OSU's claims.

"Unlike Ohio State, Jim O'Brien doesn't need 2,000 pages to explain why he didn't do anything wrong," Murray said.

On Thursday, Wright State said it stands behind Biancardi.

"The NCAA has filed allegations. Right now, they're still allegations," said Dan Abrahamowicz, Wright State vice president for student affairs. "As far as we're concerned, we stand by what Paul has said all along. At the same time, we'll be fully cooperative with the NCAA."

Biancardi has continually denied any of the allegations through his attorney, Jim Zeszutek. Zeszutek did not return a phone message.

The report OSU sent to the NCAA was in response to allegations of impropriety in the men's and women's basketball and football programs. OSU agreed with most of the allegations — seven of the nine claims focused on men's basketball — and told the association it has reduced men's basketball scholarships for the coming season as self-punishment.

The allegations against the men's basketball program came to light in a civil lawsuit filed in 2003. Two of the players mentioned in the deposition were Aleksandar Radojevic, a recruit who never played for the Buckeyes, and Slobodan "Boban" Savocic, an OSU guard from 1998-2002. In the OSU report, per federal law that prohibits identifying students' personal information, some names were blacked out.

OSU disputed only that it failed to monitor a player's relationship and improper living arrangements with Kathleen Salyers. Salyers, a Columbus nanny and housekeeper, has said she housed and cared for Savovic during his OSU career as part of a deal with a now-divorced Columbus couple.

"Ohio State firmly believes that it monitored its men's basketball program in a manner where it was reasonable to expect rules compliance," the response says.

The school did agree that Biancardi handled cash from O'Brien meant as a gift for Radojevic.

In the report, OSU told the NCAA that it imposed a "limit of no more than 11 scholarships" for the coming season, two less than the maximum.

OSU Athletics Director Gene Smith has said he expects more penalties from the NCAA. Possibilities include a greater loss of scholarships and forfeiting wins during Savovic's tenure, including a Final Four appearance in 1999.

Biancardi could also be punished at Wright State, most likely through recruiting restrictions.

The OSU response also agreed with accusations that a Columbus man provided free or heavily discounted orthodontic work for five current or former women's basketball players and that a football player (known to be quarterback Troy Smith) accepted money from a booster.

Smith will sit out OSU's Sept. 3 opener against Miami University as part of a university-imposed two-game suspension.

Contact Kyle Nagel at 225-7389. Doug Harris and Marc Katz contributed to this report.

OSU's Response

* What happened: Ohio State agreed with a majority of the allegations made against it by the NCAA in May involving its men's and women's basketball and football programs. Many of those allegations involved former OSU assistant and current Wright State men's basketball coach Paul Biancardi. OSU also took away two scholarships from its men's basketball program for next season.
* What's next: In December, Ohio State officials, Biancardi and former Buckeyes coach Jim O'Brien will appear before the NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions, which will determine any penalties.

 

[LightningRod]

OB's lawyer responds to the report.

Violations fall outside NCAA review, O’Brien’s lawyer says
Friday, August 26, 2005
Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

The attorney for former OSU men’s basketball coach Jim O’Brien defended him in a sharply worded letter to the NCAA on Wednesday.

In the 42-page letter, Columbus lawyer Joe Murray rebuts the seven alleged violations involving O’Brien and his former assistant Paul Biancardi.

Ohio State, which has been accused of a total of nine violations, wrote the NCAA yesterday, acknowledging all but one and portraying O’Brien and Biancardi as willful rule-breakers who worked to conceal their violations.

O’Brien was fired in June 2004 after Ohio State learned he had given $6,700 to then-recruit Aleksandar Radojevic. O’Brien has since filed a breach-ofcontract lawsuit against Ohio State in the Ohio Court of Claims. A hearing is scheduled to start Oct. 11.

His main assertion is that all of the allegations occurred more than four years ago — beyond the NCAA’s statute of limitations.

"It was seven years ago that coach O’Brien provided (Radojevic’s) mother with a loan," Murray wrote.

OSU says, however, that a "pattern of willful violations" existed, a condition under which the NCAA will waive the statute.

Also in Murray’s response, O’Brien contends:

• The payment to Radojevic could not be considered a violation, because O’Brien was certain Radojevic was a pro, having signed a pro contract in Yugoslavia. The NCAA concurred, and Radojevic never played a game at OSU.

• Kathleen Salyers could not be deemed a booster because there is no proof she had a contract with Dan and Kim Roslovic to care for Slobodan "Boban" Savovic. Salyers’ lawsuit against the Roslovics was thrown out of Franklin County Common Pleas Court. She has appealed that ruling.

• O’Brien should not be held responsible for academic fraud. "Jim O’Brien is a basketball coach," Murray wrote.

• O’Brien’s gift of tickets to Salyers was deemed inconsequential by Heather Lyke Catalano, OSU’s director of compliance, during a meeting in April 2004.

• O’Brien refused to turn over financial records because OSU didn’t explain why it needed them.

• O’Brien didn’t turn over phone records because he overlooked the original request and OSU didn’t follow up with a request until it was too late to respond.

Murray referred to Salyers, who sued the Roslovics for $359,910, as a "disgruntled shakedown artist."

"It’s unfair of him to say that," Salyers said last night, "because we’ve only talked a couple of times. I told the truth."

Biancardi’s attorney, Jim Zeszutek, sent a similar response to the NCAA, a source said. Zeszutek did not return a phone call.

Neither OSU Athletics Director Gene Smith nor Lyke returned phone calls last night.

Murray ended his letter with a parting shot.

"If O’Brien made a mistake, it was relying on the compliance department to provide him with support and guidance," Murray wrote. "Certainly, he cannot be faulted for expecting competent advice from the compliance department."

[email protected]

OB's response

 

[LightningRod]

Biancardi's response:

Ex-OSU coach denies allegations
NCAA’s charges based on fabrications, Biancardi says
Saturday, August 27, 2005
Kathy Lynn Gray
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

NCAA allegations involving former Ohio State University assistant coach Paul Biancardi are based on lies and should be dismissed, he says in a document his attorney has sent to the oversight body.

Biancardi’s response deals with charges that he helped former OSU basketball player Slobodan "Boban" Savovic and former coach Jim O’Brien break NCAA rules. The NCAA alleged, and Ohio State agreed, that Savovic received improper benefits and O’Brien violated rules by giving a recruit $6,700 in 1998.

Biancardi, now the head coach at Wright State University, is named in some of the nine NCAA allegations against OSU’s athletic program. Seven deal with men’s basketball, and one each involve women’s basketball and football.

"The investigation has been flawed and unfair to Coach Biancardi from its inception," Biancardi’s 108-page response reads. The document, filed Wednesday, chastises the NCAA for relying in its investigation on information provided by Kathleen Salyers, a Gahanna woman who is suing a divorced couple for money she says they promised her if she would house and otherwise help Savovic.

"Salyers’ statements, as the basisfor the NCAA’s allegations against Coach Biancardi, are lies and fabrications," Biancardi’s response states. "The (NCAA) Infractions Committee should not permit Salyers to continue to use the NCAA as a vehicle to achieve her goal."

The committee will review the allegations and responses at a hearing Dec. 9-10. That committee will decide whether Ohio State, which gave up postseason play this past school year and two scholarships this year, receives any other punishment.

Salyers said yesterday that the probe has hurt, not helped, her.

"I don’t think this NCAA investigation was a plus in any way whatsoever to me," she said. "It’s been a very frightening experience. Now, I have an entire community that rejects me."

Many Ohio State fans blame Salyers for bringing attention to violations in the men’s basketball program. O’Brien was fired after Salyers revealed in statements related to her lawsuit that O’Brien had given potential recruit Aleksandar Radojevic $6,700 to help his family in Yugoslavia. O’Brien is suing OSU for breach of contract.

Biancardi also says in his response that:

• He had no hand in moving Savovic to live in Salyers’ home in the summer of 1998, which Ohio State has acknowledged was an NCAA violation.

• He never asked Salyers to pay Savovic’s international taxes.

• He had no involvement with O’Brien’s payment to Radojevic, except as acting as a courier.

• He knew when O’Brien made the payment that Radojevic had been a professional athlete in Yugoslavia and thus probably would not be eligible to play at OSU.

Salyers has said throughout the NCAA investigation that Biancardi kept close tabs on Savovic, asking her to pay his taxes and buy him clothes.

Biancardi’s response also attacks OSU’s chief compliance officer, Heather Lyke Catalano.

Ohio State said in its response to the NCAA allegations that the compliance office is not at fault. Instead, the school blames Biancardi, O’Brien and Salyers for the violations.

Biancardi, however, said that Lyke knew about Savovic’s relationship with Salyers and should have monitored it.

"The conduct of, or the lack of action by, Ms. Lyke during the relevant time frame caused or substantially contributed to Savovic’s relationship with Salyers and the host of alleged violations of NCAA Bylaws."

Lyke did not return a phone call yesterday for comment.

Wright State officials did not return a phone call seeking comment about Biancardi’s future there.

[email protected]

No middle ground

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Biancardi says money to recruit didn't break rule

LINK

8/31/05

Wright State basketball coach Paul Biancardi has admitted his role in giving money to a former Ohio State recruit while he was an assistant coach at the school, but contends that the "loan" for $6,700 was not improper or a violation of NCAA rules.

Biancardi's statement is included in his 134-page response to the NCAA's notice of allegations to Ohio State, to which the university responded last week.

Biancardi's lawyer contends all violations alleged against Biancardi while he was an OSU assistant coach should be dropped.

Ohio State, in its response to the NCAA, contends that its former head coach, Jim O'Brien, and Biancardi were guilty of breaking NCAA rules.

O'Brien and Biancardi will be able to address the NCAA at an Infractions Committee meeting scheduled for Dec. 9-11 in Indianapolis. After the NCAA rules on the case, they will have the option of appealing the ruling.

Biancardi's response to the allegations brought by the NCAA is comprised of three parts.

The first part is intended to discredit both Kathleen Salyers — the Columbus nanny who first leveled the allegations — and the OSU compliance office, as well as the way the NCAA conducted its investigation.

The second part addresses each of the allegations attributed to Biancardi, while the third part is reserved for exhibits to back Biancardi's claims.

"The Enforcement Staff has used Kathleen Salyers as their primary source to prove these allegations," the response says. "In considering the accuracy of the Enforcement Staff's allegations against Coach Biancardi, it is important that the Committee on Infractions have information as to why Salyers' accusations are unreliable."

Salyers made the allegations against Biancardi during a deposition for a lawsuit she filed against OSU boosters that led to Ohio State self-reporting violations and prompted an NCAA investigation.

"When I talked with the NCAA and Ohio State, I told them not to take my word for anything, but use it as a guide," Salyers said Tuesday. "I believe they've done that."

Biancardi alleges that Salyers was obsessed not only with Slobodan "Boban" Savovic, who played for OSU from 1998-2002, but also Aleksandar Radojevic, the recruit to whom O'Brien provided $6,700, through Biancardi.

In an interview included in OSU's response to the NCAA allegations, Biancardi admitted to giving a sealed envelope to a friend of Radojevic's family.

O'Brien later admitted to then-OSU Athletic Director Andy Geiger that he gave Radojevic the money. That led to O'Brien's firing at OSU in June 2004.

The NCAA contends — and OSU concurs — that Savovic received improper benefits with the knowledge of the coaches while at OSU from 1998-2002, and that Radojevic was given improper benefits during his recruitment in 1998 despite the fact it was determined he was ineligible to play college basketball, and, in fact, never did for Ohio State.

It is O'Brien's and Biancardi's contention that the loan was made after Radojevic was declared ineligible to enter OSU due to his status as a professional player in Europe. However, the coaches continued to recruit the player, even petitioning the NCAA to reinstate Radojevic's amateurism.

The NCAA did not reinstate Radojevic. The unresolved question is when the loan was made — prior to or after the NCAA's ruling.

According to the NCAA, O'Brien agreed to lend Radojevic money prior to Sept. 9, 1998, and actually passed the money on — through Biancardi — between that date and February 1999.

The NCAA also alleges — and OSU agrees — that the school and coaches already had knowledge of Radojevic's professional status in Europe and that in the eyes of the NCAA was ineligible for collegiate play. Ohio State insists, at the urging of the two coaches, that an appeal was made, and on May 24, 1999, the appeal was denied.

The NCAA and OSU say the coaches knew Radojevic was a professional but continued to recruit him, at the same time giving him a loan. O'Brien and Biancardi say they were confident Radojevic would not be reinstated and therefore were giving the loan to a non-student athlete.

Biancardi also alleges that the OSU compliance staff and the NCAA stacked evidence against him when conducting interviews.

"The nature and structure of these posed questions, as well as all too many others, in the interviews were intended to manufacture information to bootstrap the Enforcement Staff's case against Coach Biancardi," states the response.

It continues, "Such conduct by the Enforcement Staff taints this investigation to such a degree that the allegations against Coach Biancardi should be dismissed. It is inconceivable that an organization of institutions of higher learning would tolerate and permit its representatives to engage in such conduct.

"The Enforcement Staff allegations against Coach Biancardi are not supported by the facts of record and must be dismissed."

Other highlights of Biancardi's response:

• Regarding the moving of Savovic from the home of OSU boosters Kim and Dan Roslovic to Salyers' home, the response states that the only person making these allegations is Salyers. "When the attempts to extort settlements failed, Salyers raised the same claims as to Coach Biancardi's involvement with the Roslovics' alleged contract with her lawsuit, which was dismissed by the Court. Salyers has continued to make the claims of Coach Biancardi's involvement and other uncorroborated claims in the media in an effort to have someone or anyone give her money."

• Among the exhibits is a statement by Savovic dated Aug. 14 stating that he believes O'Brien and Biancardi broke no rules and that Salyers made up most of what she said.

• Another exhibit is a letter from David Swank, a University of Oklahoma law professor and former head of the NCAA Committee on Infractions, who reached the conclusion that no NCAA violations occurred when Radojevic was lent money by O'Brien despite the fact the coaches continued to recruit Radojevic after he was declared ineligible by NCAA standards.

"There is a provision in Bylaw 124 for the restoration of amateur status but no application for restoration of amateur status had been made at the time that the loan was made to Alex Radojevic's mother," Swank writes. "Eventually there was an application for restoration of amateur status which was denied by the NCAA. As a result Alex Radojevic was a professional athlete and never was restored to amateur status. The payment of funds to a professional athlete by a coach at an NCAA institution is not prohibited under any rules of the Association."

However, Swank also writes there is a "disagreement" about the dates on which the loan was made, and until those dates are substantiated, no final opinion can be made.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

O'Brien's suit against OSU delayed two months

The start of former men's basketball coach Jim O'Brien's lawsuit against Ohio State was set back two months until Dec. 12-16 this week by the Ohio Court of Claims, the Dayton Daily News reported.

O'Brien is suing for $9.6 million he says he lost in the wake of his June 2004, firing for giving a recruit a $6,700 loan. That transaction led to an NCAA investigation that resulted in the discovery of nine violations which the university, for the most part, has not disputed, the newspaper said.
Ohio State has a hearing with the NCAA early in December on those alleged violations.

In court filings concerning his lawsuit, O'Brien says he was improperly fired "for cause" under the terms of his contract. He is expected to call Ohio State President Karen Holbrook, former athletic director Andy Geiger, current AD Gene Smith and current men's basketball coach Thad Matta to testify.

Citing testimony of an embarrassing sexual nature in the case, the NCAA requested that the O'Brien case be decided privately but the NCAA lost in court and then lost an appeal.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

December 9-10 will be when OSU goes before the NCAA......looks like in January we will know what the NCAA will do regarding further penalties.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

link

11/25/05

This is nothing new, just a tad bit of info on how the NCAA is looking at this situation...

NCAA critical of Ohio State

Report: University didn't monitor hoops program properly

By Doug Harris and Kyle Nagel
Dayton Daily News

COLUMBUS | Ohio State University failed to adequately monitor its men's basketball program under former coach Jim O'Brien, who allegedly committed rules violations at the school, according to an NCAA report released Wednesday.

The report, the latest in a series of responses following the NCAA's Notice of Allegations against the school, also questions the credibility of former OSU assistant and current Wright State coach Paul Biancardi. Using two examples, which deal with recruiting calls from his home and taped conversations with a member of a Columbus Serbian church, the NCAA says that some of Biancardi's statements "seem in clear contradiction with the facts."

Ohio State, Biancardi and O'Brien are scheduled to appear early next month in front of the NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions, which will hear all sides and decide any punishments. Ohio State, anticipating punishment, last year banned itself from the 2005 postseason and decreased by two its scholarship count for the current basketball season.

Biancardi has continually denied any wrongdoing. O'Brien has since sued the university for wrongful termination.

The NCAA's report comes three months after Ohio State responded to seven allegations made by the NCAA's enforcement staff against the Buckeyes' men's basketball program. Among the allegations, the NCAA claimed that Biancardi had handled money meant for a recruit, had "knowledge and involvement" in thousands of dollars of improper benefits to another player and that Biancardi and O'Brien, who was fired in June 2004, acted contrary to ethical standards.

In its Notice of Allegations, which the NCAA delivered to Ohio State in May after a nearly year-long investigation, the association also said the school failed to monitor the program, which is one step below the most damning "lack of institutional control."

Ohio State, in its August response, agreed with the NCAA on most counts, aside from the failure to monitor claim. In the response, the school attempted to place most of the blame for violations on O'Brien and Biancardi.

In its latest report, the NCAA's enforcement staff says that, while it agrees the school was misled by O'Brien and Biancardi, it had greater responsibility in ensuring no violations occurred.

"Specifically, the enforcement staff believes that the institution's duty to monitor extended beyond educating and advising the coaching staff," the report says.

Most of the allegations involve former Buckeye Slobodan "Boban" Savovic, who played guard at Ohio State from 1998-2002. A Columbus nanny and housekeeper has claimed she improperly gave cash, gifts and other benefits — at Biancardi's direction — to Savovic while the player stayed with her family during his OSU career.

In the spring of 2004, O'Brien admitted to former OSU Athletics Director Andy Geiger that he gave $6,800 to former Ohio State recruit Aleksandar Radojevic, who was ruled ineligible before he ever played for the Buckeyes.

That admission led to O'Brien's firing and the NCAA investigation.

The NCAA enforcement staff, in the latest report, is clear that it finds fault with the school for the infractions.

"The enforcement staff believes that the institution failed to monitor," the report says.

Contact Doug Harris at [email protected]
Contact Kyle Nagel at [email protected]

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

more from the ozone...

Men's Basketball
Committee Report Sheds No New Light on Allegations, but Underscores Disagreement Between OSU, O'Brien and Biancardi

By John Porentas

The case summary by the NCAA enforcement staff for NCAA Division I Committee on infractions was made available today. The case involving OSU football, men's basketball and women's basketball will be heard on December 9-10.
The report has little in the way of new information on the allegations, but does shed considerable light on the difference of opinion on the basketball situation between the NCAA, Ohio State, and the former coaching staff headed up by Jim O'Brien.
According to the overview in the case summary, "The enforcement staff and the institution are in substantial agreement on the facts of the allegations and that those facts constitute violations of NCAA legislation that meet the an exception to NCAA Bylaw 32.6.3, the statute of limitations."
According to the document, O'Brien is not in agreement, alleging that the agreement to lend money to Alexander Radojevic does not constitute a violation of NCAA legislation due to Radojevic's previous involvement with a professional team. In other words, O'Brien argues that since Radojevic was a professional, he did not come under NCAA purview, and no violation occurred as a result of his loan.
O'Brien and his former assistant, Paul Biancardi, also dispute the timeline of the allegations, and that if there was a violation, it does not meet the exception of Bylaw 32.6.3, the statute of limitation.
The NCAA enforcement committee's report agrees that the following issues remain to be resolved (and therefore remain in dispute):
1. Did the loan to constitute a violation due to Radojevic's professionalism?
2. When did the actual agreement to provide and provision the loan to Radojevic occur?
3. If the loan constitutes a violation, does it meet an exception to the statute of limitations?
On those three issues, the enforcement committee took the following positions.
1. The loan did constitute a violation despite Radojevic's professionalism issues. They reached that conclusion based on the premise that, based on the timeline provided by the OSU support staff, O'Brien was not aware of Radojevic's alleged professionalism at the time the loan was made.
Interestingly, the report subsequently states that it agreed that "he (Radojevic) lost his amateur status and was therefore ineligible to compete in intercollegiate athletics. However, this does not mean that Radojevic could not regain all or part of his collegiate eligibility, or that he ceased being a prospective student-athlete while O'Brien and Biancardi recruited him. Consequently, the enforcement staff believes that O'Brien and Biancardi were still bound by NCAA bylaws during the recruitment of Radojevic."
Later in the summary, however, the committee indicates that O'Brien testified that he told then-OSU Director of Athletics "I was not disappointed that Alex did not come to Ohio State. I made that statement because Alex's application for reinstatement of his amateur status was denied."
When O'Brien was asked by the committee why he didn't appeal that denial, he responded "I fully understood that if the appeal was granted and Alex was reinstated, then the effect of the loan on his eligibility would have to be addressed."
Geiger had a different recollection of the reaction to Radojevic's loss in his appeal for reinstatement as an amateur
Geiger told the committee "Everybody here was unhappy when the appeal was not granted. Coach O'Brien was passionate about it, but we lost, and that was it."
Geiger later went on to say "I will never forget the appeal because I was fighting pretty hard on behalf of my basketball staff, based on what they told me about this case."
2 and 3. According to the infractions committee, Bylaw 32.6.3-(c) provides that the following shall not be subject to the four-year statute of limitations. "Allegations that indicate a blatant disregard for the Association's fundamental recruiting, extra-benefit, academic or ethical conduct regulations or that involve an effort to conceal the occurrence of the violation."
It is the opinion of the infractions committee that "O'Brien's and Biancardi's actions constitute a blatant disregard of fundamental recruiting legislation..."
The report further states that "Bylaw 32.6.3-(b) provides that the following shall not be subject to the four-year statute of limitation: 'Allegations in case in which information is developed to indicate a pattern of willful violations on the part of the institution or individual involved, which began before the four-year period..."
The committee found that the violations allegedly made by O'Brien and Biancardi "constitute a pattern of willful violations...which began before but continued into the four-year period.
The enforcement committee report states that "The enforcement staff agrees with the institution, that the violations described...indicate a pattern of willful violations on the part of the individuals involved..."​

 

[DaveyBoy]

this situation is ugly

1. OB looks like he was completely guilty on the Radojevic deal......and Geiger's clear recollection of the event worsens it for OB

2. the Boban Savovic situation is much trickier.......it certainly appears that OSU was as close as you can get to the loss of institutional control...possibly even over that threshold

that being said.....I really think OSU is going to come out of this as well as possible........win its case vs OB and owe him ZERO.....Biancardi's current team will be nailed with sanctions because of what he did at OSU - resulting in his dismissal......and the NCAA will simply accept OSU's self-imposed penalties and tack on 2 schollie losses...that's it.