Oklahoma Claims It Did All It Could to Prevent Extra Benefits

The University of Oklahoma has responded to NCAA allegations related to former quarterback Rhett Bomar and former offensive lineman J.D. Quinn. While the school does not deny that the players broke the rules - by accepting payment for hours not worked - OU officials believe there was little more they could have done to prevent the missteps.

"We strongly disagree with this charge and assert that the University met, if not exceeded, industry standards regarding our student-athlete monitoring," OU president David Boren wrote in a letter dated March 7 to the NCAA Committee on Infractions.

"There were no other reasonable additional steps we could have taken that would have prevented these violations or detected them any sooner. "The employment standard the allegation attempts to establish goes beyond current industry expectations and would add an impractical component to an already involved monitoring process for all Division I schools."

Oklahoma self-reported the violations and dismissed Bomar and Quinn from the team last August. The Sooners have not reallocated the scholarships of the two dismissed players and they will also utilize one less coach for off-campus recruiting during the fall evaluation period. The school hopes that the NCAA will accept these self-imposed scholarship and recruiting restrictions, rather than dishing out more severe punishments. Oklahoma is expected to appear before the NCAA's Committee on Infractions on April 14.