A review of the NCAA saga UMaine’s problems surfaced in late’ 93

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The University of Maine’s saga with the NCAA and resulting problems first starting surfacing in September 1993. The following summarizes past pivotal stories involving Maine and the NCAA, concluding with Wednesday’s ruling by the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions.

April, 1993

University of Maine hockey team defeats Lake Superior State 5-4 to win the 1992-93 NCAA national championship.

September, 1993

The university discovers that in 1991, it had incorrectly certified hockey player Cal Ingraham as eligible. He had competed on the NCAA championship team.

October, 1993

The NCAA declares Ingraham, the leading scorer in the Division I hockey ranks in 1992-93, ineligible. UMaine forfeits the first 14 games of the 1991-92 season at the NCAA’s request.

Hockey East Commissioner Bob DiGregorio informs UMaine that he has received inquiries concerning the eligibility of freshman hockey player Jeff Tory.

The university determines that coach Shawn Walsh made his own interpretation of the NCAA’s academic rules and allowed the defenseman to play in four games. Tory is declared ineligible by the NCAA and Walsh is suspended without pay for five games by UMaine President Fred Hutchinson.

December, 1993

It is discovered that Walsh had knowledge that Jeff Tory did not meet Division I academic requirements and played in one exhibition game and three regular-season games in October and November. Walsh is suspended for five games without pay and Maine forfeits the three games in which Tory played.

February, 1994

The North Atlantic Conference announces the women’s basketball team is ineligible to compete in the 1994 NAC Tournament because Maine included one too many games on its schedule, taking away the team’s chance to earn an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament as a possible NAC champion.

UMaine compliance director Woody Carville discovers he had incorrectly interpreted academic guildelines for graduate student-athletes, leaving five UMaine graduate students ineligible.

UMaine athletic director Mike Ploszek fails to notify teams affected and two student-athletes compete despite being ineligible.

Carville is relieved of his duties and Ploszek is suspended for one week by Hutchinson.

Carville publicly accuses Ploszek of planning to conceal the graduate student situation. Ploszek denies the charge. Hutchinson appoints former U.S. congressman Stanley Tupper to conduct an independent review of the matter. Ploszek is cleared of any intentional wrongdoing, but is criticized for poor judgment.

April, 1994

Ploszek resigns, saying the university needs to put its troubles behind it.

Hutchinson contacts the consulting group Bond, Schoeneck & King to review UMaine’s compliance operations. After the initial review, Hutchinson retains the firm to conduct a thorough, independent probe. More pre-existing violations surface.

NCAA enforcement representative Bill Saum visits the university to begin looking into allegations and interviewing university personnel.

May, 1994

The NCAA notifies the university that the association will conduct preliminary inquiries into possible violations of NCAA regulations.

September, 1994

University reveals that for the last several years it had misinterpreted an NCAA rule that governs the kind of credits a student-athlete may use to be eligible for athletics. UMaine announces that some students planning to compete in 1994-95 may be ineligible based on the finding, and reveals other athletes who were declared eligible in past years could have been ineligible.

December, 1995

UMaine releases a self-report of its violations and the upgrading of its compliance to meet NCAA legislation. UMaine athletic director Sue Tyler suspends Walsh without pay for one year and prohibits the Black Bears from competing in the 1996 NCAA Tournament. Assistant coaches Greg Cronin and Grant Standbrook have their recruiting activities restricted because of recruiting violations they committed.

The report outlines more than 40 violations of NCAA rules that occurred from the early 1980s through 1995, with the majority taking place between 1990 and 1993.

Cronin is named acting head coach in Walsh’s absence.

Tyler later said in a meeting with the Bangor Daily News that the university is in danger of losing its 1993 national hcokey championship because two ineligible players, Ingraham and Mike Dunham, participated on that team.

January, 1996

Tyler makes a verbal commitment to suspended hockey coach Shawn Walsh that guarantees him his job on Dec. 25, 1996, when his suspension ends.

March, 1996

UMaine recieves the NCAA letter of official inquiry concering alleged rules violations in the athletic department. The letter also indicates the information obtained by the NCAA in UMaine’s self-report is sufficient and reliable enough to warrant an inquiry of the university’s athletic program for violations of a “major” nature.

Tyler says the letter, which presented a list of questions to which the university has to respond, was positive because the NCAA accepted the investigation conducted by the Kansas law firm of Bond, Schoeneck & King.

May, 1996

UMaine releases details of its response to NCAA’s formal allegations of rules violations.

UMaine disagrees with NCAA assertion that Walsh “intentionally attempted to mislead investigators” and with the NCAA’s application of a rule that said the Maine’s 1992 NCAA Championship should be revoked because the team was found to have won the title using two players who proved ineligible.

June, 1996

Fred Hutchinson leads nine UMaine representatives before the NCAA Committee on Infractions to answer questions about numerous NCAA rules violations and to try to preserve its 1993 NCAA national hockey title.

July, 1996

The NCAA Committee on Infractions places UMaine on probation for four years for NCAA rules violations primarily in its men’s ice hockey program but also in 10 other sports. The committee also bars the hockey team from television and postseason competition for one year and reduces in scholarships in ice hockey, football, men’s basketball, men’s and women’s track and cross country.

The Infractions Committee found violations of NCAA rules concerning extra benefits, recruiting, eligibility for competition, financial aid, personnel, cooperative principles and institutional control.

Suspended hockey coach Shawn Walsh, was was alleged to have engaged in unethical conduct under NCAA bylaws, was vindicated of those charges and will not be subjected to further scrutiny by the NCAA.

Still at issue is whether the Black Bears will retain their 1993 hockey national championship.