After further review by the chancellor, there is still no coverup in the University of Maine athletic department.

University of Maine System Chancellor J. Michael Orenduff on Thursday released a summation of his review of allegations by two UM officials that athletic director Mike Ploszek planned to conceal recent NCAA eligibility violations.

Among Orenduff’s conclusions:

No cover-up was attempted.

No one was lying. Everyone simply misunderstood each other.

Ploszek “said something” to associate athletic director Anne McCoy that led her to conclude he was not going to report the violations to the NCAA, but he did not intend to say it.

There is a serious lack of teamwork in the UM athletic department.

“You could spend months talking to people, but you reach a point of diminishing returns. I’m satisfied for now,” said Orenduff, who since last Friday has interviewed 11 of the principals involved in the scandal that began Feb. 14 when the university discovered that five graduate-student athletes were ineligible under NCAA rules.

Orenduff took no action regarding personnel, saying he plans to leave such decisions to the campus administration. He announced he is recommending to the UMS trustees that a major policy review be made of the role of athletics at the Orono campus.

The first-year chancellor issued votes of confidence in Ploszek and UM President Fred Hutchinson, saying he believed both could effectively do their jobs despite questions about their handling of the violations.

The chancellor said he would not get involved in the situation of former compliance officer Linwood Carville, who was targeted for firing by Hutchinson in the wake of the scandal. It was Carville’s error that led to the five graduate student-athletes being ruled ineligible.

Carville, who delayed reporting the violations, was the first official to claim Ploszek planned to conceal the problem from the NCAA.

Orenduff attributed Carville’s allegation to being left out of the decision-making process by the UM administration once the part-time compliance officer reported his error.

“The human reaction to being excluded is to think something is going on,” Orenduff said.

Carville could not be reached for comment. Rolf Tallberg, a Maine Education Association representative who is handling Carville’s appeal of his firing, said Carville was disappointed the chancellor “still hasn’t gotten to the bottom of this thing.”

Hutchinson did not speak with reporters. The university public affairs office released a statement welcoming Orenduff’s conclusions.

Orenduff said he has no plans to continue his review.

“The prudent thing is to stop where I am and wait for the NCAA,” Orenduff said.

Orenduff said he will not ask Attorney General Michael Carpenter to investigate charges dealing with the eligibility matter. He feels the NCAA investigation will be sufficient.

An NCAA enforcement official is due to arrive on the Orono campus to conduct an examination into UM athletics beginning April 11.

If Orenduff’s conclusions sound a lot like conclusions reached in an independent investigation conducted by former U.S. Congressman Stanley Tupper of Boothbay Harbor, it’s because the chancellor said he believes Tupper’s report is accurate.

“I found nothing to contradict the report submitted by Congressman Tupper,” Orenduff stated. “As he noted, there were serious lapses of judgment.”

Orenduff was questioned repeatedly by reporters about his support of Tupper’s investigation despite claims by McCoy that the 72-year-old lawyer switched off a tape recorder during their interview when she began recounting Ploszek’s alleged plan to not report the violations. Tupper has denied McCoy’s allegation.

“All we can conclude, in the absence of a third party or a transcript of these conversations, is that we do not know excactly what was said,” said Orenduff.

McCoy, reached at her office, said she did not wish to comment on Orenduff’s review.

Ploszek did not return messages. He released a statement expressing satisfaction with the chancellor’s findings.

“Once again, this matter has been reviewed in full and there is no new information. I hope we can now move forward and get on with our work,” stated Ploszek, who is back on the job after a one-week suspension without pay from his annual salary of $75,038 and from two weeks of paid investigatory leave.

Orenduff acknowledged the scandal has had a negative impact on the public’s confidence in the UM athletic officials involved.

“Whether or not the damage is serious enough to cause future problems is a question only time can answer,” he said.