NCAA Stands Firm on Florida State Appeal, Seeks to Vacate 14 Wins

The NCAA has not moved from its position that Florida State must vacate victories in multiple sports, a ruling that would cost Seminoles football coach Bobby Bowden 14 victories and essentially end his bid to become college football's all-time winningest coach.

FSU officials on Thursday morning released previously withheld public documents in the university's appeal of NCAA sanctions. The NCAA allowed FSU to release the information sought in a lawsuit with Florida news organizations. FSU transcribed the information from a secure NCAA Web site that does not permit printing or downloading.

Read the Documents (PDF Documents)
Florida State's Appeal | NCAA's Response to Appeal

While the NCAA Committee of Infractions again commended FSU for its cooperative efforts and corrective actions, the committee "did not believe they were so extraordinary as to warrant relief from the vacation penalty in a case in which there are so many relevant aggravating factors," according to the 23-page report.

The committee's response, signed by Jerry R. Parkinson who is the dean of the University of Wyoming's College of Law, said that FSU fell short of showing that the order to vacate wins was excessive. The committee pointed to six factors "as relevant to the imposition of a vacation penalty."

--There were a large number of violations committed by three institutional staff members and at least 61 student-athletes in 10 different sports

--The violations were serious and intentional

--Student-athletes competed while academically ineligible.

--There was an uncontested finding of institutional failure to monitor various aspects of the AASS program.

-- There was widespread academic fraud; and

--Three institutional staff members in the AASS program engaged in unethical conduct by encouraging and/or participating in the academic fraud. Their involvement was especially egregious because of their positions as individuals charged specifically with maintaining academic integrity within the athletics program.
The academic fraud involving FSU student athletes in an online music course took place during the fall semesters of 2006 and 2007 and spring of 2007.

Bowden, who turns 80 in November, has 382 wins, one fewer than the 82-year-old Joe Paterno of Penn State. Paterno earlier this spring voiced his displeasure with the NCAA possibly vacating Bowden's victories. The ruling could also cost FSU's track program a national championship.

"In this case the vacation penalty is not even particularly severe - it is a penalty that flows naturally from the university's use of ineligible student-athletes in competition, and it is a penalty often imposed in cases that have far fewer aggravating factors than that exists here," the report stated.

"The current standard of review under Bylaw 32.10.4.1 places the burden squarely on Florida State University to make a showing of abuse of discretion and it falls well short in this case. For the reasons set forth in this response, the Committee on Infractions submits that the vacation of records penalty should be upheld."

On Monday, more than a dozen news organizations filed suit against FSU and the NCAA to force release of the documents under the state's open-records law. The NCAA initially rejected the request. On Tuesday, however, the NCAA changed course and gave FSU permission to release the information, but continued to stress it's not subject to the state's public-records laws.

The suit between more than a dozen Florida media outlets against FSU and the NCAA is expected to move forward in Leon County Circuit Court.

The NCAA Infractions Appeals Committee recently granted FSU's request for a 14-day extension to submit a rebuttal to the NCAA Committee on Infractions. FSU has until July 1 to appeal the sanctions.

FSU's appeal is another step of a process that will likely go into the fall, according to school officials.