An inquiry by the NCAA and an independent investigator has concluded that a Sports Illustrated expose alleging misconduct in the Oklahoma State football program to be "fundamentally unfounded."
The NCAA and the university said Tuesday the joint investigation included nearly 100 interviews and a review of some 50,000 documents and emails. It found three instances that may lead to NCAA infractions:
- A failure to follow institutional drug policies and procedures concerning five then-football student-athletes who tested positive for banned substances and were not disciplined.
- Impermissible hosting duties performed by members of the Orange Pride recruiting program that was contrary to the institution's policy for prospective students.
- A failure to adequately monitor the football program, in regards to the first two allegations.
SI said it interviewed more than 60 former players and found evidence of potential NCAA violations under coaches Les Miles and current coach Mike Gundy dating to 2001. The series of stories included numerous former players making allegations of cash payments to players, academic misconduct, inconsistent enforcement of drug policies and some of the school's recruiting hostesses having sex with prospects from 2001-10.
- Visit OSU's response site
- Read full statement from President Burns Hargis (PDF)
- Read statements from OSU Board of Regents, Athletics Director & Head Coach (PDF)
- Read the Notice of Allegations from the NCAA (PDF)
- Read the full results of the inquiry (PDF)
SI has released the following statement:
Sports Illustrated firmly stands behind its comprehensive series on the Oklahoma State program. The investigation by the NCAA and an outside consultant hired by Oklahoma State was limited in scope but nonetheless revealed multiple NCAA violations including a "failure to monitor." Nowhere does the report say our work is fundamentally unfounded and in fact it points to its own limitations in its ability to corroborate SI's findings.
