You don't usually see stances concerning sports at UCF in the opinions section of the paper.
However, the NCAA's decision last week to place UCF on probation for two years was startling enough to warrant extra attention.
We were not surprised the NCAA reprimanded UCF for its bad behavior. But we were shocked to see how severe the punishment was in comparison to the one bestowed upon the people found guilty of committing the actual violations.
Previous UCF employees Ed Marynowitz and Steve Rubio sent 209 improper phone calls and about 100 improper text messages to prospective football players and their parents prior to the players signing letters of intent.
The reason this is a major violation is because that communication gave UCF an unfair recruiting advantage against other schools.
Many recruiting violations are discovered through a self-reporting system that neither utilized. Marynowitz and Rubio did the damage and left UCF without reporting it to the NCAA.
Their dishonest actions that were then hidden were rewarded with a tiny slap on the wrist.
Marynowitz, now with Alabama, and Rubio, now with Tennessee, received only two-week suspensions.
The NCAA didn't think either of them would commit more recruiting violations.
We aren't sure how it came to that conclusion, because neither party reported themselves.
They just waited for UCF officials to stumble upon the phone records.
UCF officials discovered and investigated both situations and provided more than 100 pages documenting the conduct to the NCAA.
UCF did the right thing and now it is receiving punishment.
The school used the honor system set in place when they could have easily brushed the offenses under the table.
Although UCF will face no on-field restrictions, it will be dealing with more NCAA oversight for two years. UCF's Athletics also has to deal with their reputation being tarnished for actions outside of its direct control.
The NCAA should review its decision on UCF's case to avoid punishing the wrong people in the future.
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2 comments
If UCF gets two years probation, both of these people should also get two years probation despite being at their new job. It's a loophole in the NCAA's rule that lets them do the damage to a university and leave.