Several members of USC’s athletic department are in Indianapolis this weekend, preparing to make their case for reduced sanctions before the NCAA’s Infractions Appeals Committee.
In June, the NCAA hit the Southern Cal football program with heavy sanctions for a “lack of institutional control,” mainly stemming from former Trojan Reggie Bush’s improper dealings with an agent, considered a major infraction. The penalties included 14 vacated wins, a two-year ban on postseason bowls, four years of probation, and a reduction of 30 scholarships over three years.
USC Athletics Director Pat Haden, Associate Athletic Director for Football J.K. McKay, and University President Max Nikias – all of whom were hired after the NCAA investigation – will seek to have the postseason ban reduced by one year, with a loss of only 15 scholarships over three years.
(The University has accepted the four years of probation and the vacated wins from those games in which Bush was ruled retroactively ineligible.)
Haden has admitted that the prospect of USC winning its appeal is slim. In 10 of the past 11 instances, the Appeals Committee has upheld the sanctions. Alabama State was the only school to win its appeal; the other 10 appeals, all from Division-I schools, were denied.
USC will attempt to show that the penalty was too harsh for the crime – or sufficiently “excessive” to constitute an “abuse of discretion.” The NCAA committee is expected to take 4-6 weeks to come to a decision (recent cases involving Alabama and Florida State took 39 and 51 days, respectively), likely sometime in March.
If USC wins its appeal in full (the committee could accept some, all, or none of USC’s proposal), the Trojans would be eligible to play in a bowl game following this season – the Trojans stayed home voluntarily this postseason though the sanctions had not yet gone into effect, so that the two-year ban would be finished a year sooner – and would only lose five scholarships in each of the next three seasons.
If the Appeals Committee were to reduce the sanctions on USC, it seems likely that the bowl ban would stay the same but some scholarships would be restored. That decision, however, will not be announced until well after National Signing Day on February 2nd.
Under the current penalties, USC can only offer 15 scholarships in the next three seasons, ten under the usual limit. If USC is granted its appeal regarding scholarships, it would be allowed to offer to 20 students over the next three years. Head coach Lane Kiffin, who will not attend this weekend’s proceedings, already has 17 verbal commitments for the 2011 recruiting class with several offers still on the table (the nine mid-year enrollees count against the 2010 recruiting class).
If the Trojans win the appeal, they should be right on track with 20 new scholarship players (the roster is currently at 60; the normal cap is 85 but would be 80 per season if the sanctions are reduced). If USC signs 20 players this season but the original penalty is upheld, the additional scholarships will be deducted from the 2014 recruiting class.
While the final verdict (or “final frontier,” as Haden called it) and its impact on the 2011-2013 rosters won’t be known for some time, it doesn’t seem like there’s any significant negative effect on recruiting. USC’s 2011 class is currently ranked #4 on ESPN and #5 by Rivals, and the Trojans are scheduled to host some exciting recruits on official visits this weekend.
