The University of Hawaii is on the clock to provide its final rebuttal to the NCAA in seeking to overturn a postseason ban on its men’s basketball program.
UH this week received the Committee on Infractions’ response to its appeal of the ban for the 2016-17 season and has until April 11 to submit a rebuttal to the Infractions Appeals Committee that will make the final ruling.
UH’s appeal comes as at least one of the starters from its NCAA Tournament team plans to try the NBA Draft. Big West Player of the Year Stefan Jankovic announced on Wednesday he will be leaving and hiring an agent.
UH’S APPEAL, STEP-BY-STEP
1. Dec. 22, 2015. NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions announces sanctions, including postseason ban for the 2016-‘17 season, on the UH men’s basketball program. UH has 15 days in which to submit notice of intent to appeal.
2. Jan. 6, 2016. UH announces its intent to appeal and has 30 days in which to file in support of its appeal.
3. Feb. 8, 2016. UH files 26-page appeal with the Infractions Appeals Committee. Committee on Infractions gets to submit its response to UH’s appeal.
4. March 28, 2016. UH receives COI’s response and has 14 days to offer a rebuttal to COI’s response. The NCAA Enforcement staff may provide a written statement not later than 10 days from the rebuttal deadline.
5. Infractions Appeals Committee reviews the institution’s appeal and the COI’s response. The review is completed either through an appeal oral argument or on the written record. Appeal of oral arguments may include representatives on behalf of the institution, involved individual(s), the COI and enforcement staff.
6. Infractions Appeals Committee’s decision is announced.
Source: NCAA and UH.
Meanwhile, people familiar with the NCAA appeals process say, historically, schools face long odds in getting the postseason bans rescinded.
Christian Dennie, an attorney with Barlow Garsek & Simon who handles college sports and blogs about NCAA infractions cases, said, “in the last four or five years I’m not familiar with anybody getting a postseason ban removed.”
Dennie said schools, Syracuse recently among them, have succeeded in getting scholarship reductions but postseason bans are much more rare.
UH has so far declined to release the contents of the COI’s response.
UH is in the midst of what an NCAA spokeswoman said is generally a “five- to eight-month” process.
The IAC, which is composed of different members than the COI, may reverse or modify a COI ruling. But in order to change a ruling, the NCAA says, “ … the school or individual must prove one of the following: the ruling by the committee on infractions was clearly contrary to the evidence; the individual or school did not actually break NCAA rules; there was a procedural error that caused the committee on infractions to find a violation of NCAA rules; or the penalty was excessive.”
The IAC is a five-member panel the NCAA says is appointed from the general public and NCAA membership and serve three-year terms, up to nine years. The current roster includes:
>> Attorney W. Anthony Jenkins of Detroit, a past president of the State Bar of Michigan
>> Vanderbilt vice chancellor David Williams II
>> Ellen Ferris, Associate Commissioner of the American Athletic Conference
>> University of Texas Vice President Patricia C. Ohlendorf
