Oklahoma State assessed 1-year probation by NCAA for multiple violations
Oklahoma State did not follow its drug testing policy from 2008-12 and committed recruiting violations, according to a decision made by a Division I Committee on Infractions panel, the NCAA announced Friday.
The penalties assessed against the program include one year of probation, $8,500 in fines and university-imposed recruiting restrictions.
The case stems from a series of articles published by Sports Illustrated in 2013 regarding alleged NCAA violations committed by Oklahoma State athletics.
The NCAA's investigation saw the committee review more than 50,000 emails and other documents and conduct nearly 90 interviews with current and former student-athletes, coaches, staff and boosters. In the end, it was determined that the university did not follow its own written policies and procedures for student-athletes who tested positive for banned substances, and allowed the Orange Pride student group to engage in impermissible hosting activities.
"The athletics director believed he had latitude in application of the policy and deferred to the head football coach's recommendation on whether to suspend student-athletes who failed a drug test," the NCAA said in its ruling. "As a result, five football student-athletes competed in a total of seven games when they should have been withheld from competition."
The school and football program may no longer use the Orange Pride - an all-female group organized to participate in recruiting events - but it will not lose any scholarships, only losing official visits and off-campus evaluations.
While the penalties assessed against the program amount to a slap on the wrist, the NCAA did note that the committee disagreed with some of the possible infractions noted in its notice of allegations, including "failure to monitor."
"While decisions made by athletics staff in this case resulted in NCAA violations, the panel did not find that the university failed to monitor its football program," the NCAA said.