In the wake of the Yahoo Sports report released Friday morning, numerous Division 1 schools have begun to issue responses.
Already San Diego State (Malik Pope) and Texas (Eric Davis Jr.) have opted to sit players in the wake of the report.
Projected NBA lottery picks Miles Bridges (Michigan State), Wendell Carter (Duke), Collin Sexton (Alabama) and Kevin Knox (Kentucky) were all mentioned in the report, but Bridges, Carter and Knox are expected to keep playing as their schools have said they have investigated and found nothing improper occurred.
“The documents tie some of the biggest names and programs in the sport to activity that appears to violate the NCAA’s amateurism rules,” the story states. “This could end up casting a pall over the NCAA tournament because of eligibility issues. There’s potential impermissible benefits and preferential treatment for players and families of players at Duke, North Carolina, Texas, Kentucky, Michigan State, USC, Alabama and a host of other schools. The documents link some of the sport’s biggest current stars – Michigan State’s Miles Bridges, Alabama’s Collin Sexton and Duke’s Wendell Carter – to specific potential extra benefits for either the athletes or their family members. The amounts tied to players in the case range from basic meals to tens of thousands of dollars.”
Yahoo Sports viewed hundreds of pages of documents from the years-long probe that had federal authorities monitoring multiple targets and intercepting more than 4,000 calls across 330 days, providing a clear-eyed view into the pervasive nature of the game’s underground economy.
Here is a list of the implicated schools and responses from the programs who have released statements. This list will be updated.
DUKE
And here’s the Duke statement… pic.twitter.com/By21tZCMQw
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) February 23, 2018
KENTUCKY
In response to Yahoo, Kentucky says no rules were violated. pic.twitter.com/Qf4zgo6bw1
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) February 24, 2018
Kentucky statements on the Yahoo story. pic.twitter.com/6U4ggAQ6V1
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) February 24, 2018
MARYLAND
(1/2) Statement from Maryland’s Mark Turgeon:
“Late last night we were alerted of a report associating one of our former student-athletes with an agent. We are extremely disappointed, and we will fully cooperate with any investigation. I do not have a relationship with Andy— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) February 23, 2018
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) February 23, 2018
(2/2) Miller or anyone from his agency, and at no time have I ever had a conversation with Andy Miller or his agency regarding any Maryland basketball player. We remain steadfast in upholding a program of integrity that reflects the values of our University community.”
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) February 23, 2018
MICHIGAN STATE
Statement from Tom Izzo and Michigan State interim AD Bill Beekman: pic.twitter.com/xpKxr9th2v
— Brendan F. Quinn (@BFQuinn) February 23, 2018
SETON HALL
Statement from Seton Hall:
“We are aware of the Yahoo! Sports report. We have taken steps proactively to reach out to the NCAA and the BIG EAST Conference, and while we have not been contacted by investigators, we will be conducting our own internal review.” pic.twitter.com/YdtqJUJJLI— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) February 23, 2018
TEXAS
Statement from University of Texas Vice President and Athletics Director Chris Del Conte
“We have initiated an internal review of the recent report that included allegations involving current and former University of Texas men’s basketball players. We are in the process of gathering facts, but I did meet with Eric Davis Jr. this afternoon and let him know we are withholding him from competition for precautionary reasons until further notice, pending the review of this situation. Winning with integrity is paramount to Texas Athletics, and we take these allegations very seriously. We expect all of our programs to comply with NCAA rules, and every year we have all of our student-athletes sign forms attesting they will follow those rules. Beyond that, we put a great deal of effort and resources into educating our coaches and student-athletes on NCAA rules and regulations. Our compliance department is constantly monitoring and communicating with our coaches and student-athletes, as we are in this case. We will continue to work through this recent development and provide further updates when we have the necessary information to do so.”
Statement from Texas Men’s Basketball Head Coach Shaka Smart
“I became aware of the report late last evening. I had no previous knowledge of the alleged extra benefits described in the report. I am working with our athletic department staff and am prepared to cooperate fully with the investigation into this matter. I am, and always have been, fully committed to ensuring that our program operates within NCAA rules. Our staff has always been very direct and thorough in educating our student-athletes about the specific parameters regarding agents.”
