Syracuse Gets Whacked

The NCAA finally coming down hard on Syracuse after a lengthy investigation into alleged infractions dating back more than 10 years.

Jim Boeheim will be suspended for the first 9 conference games of next season
The team will lose 12 scholarships over several years
SU must return money earned for participating in the 2011, 2012 and 2013 NCAA tournaments
SU has to vacate 108 wins for using ineligible players

That last one is the biggie. That really hurts Boeheim and adds and extra 4 years (at least) to his quest for 1,000 wins.

The violations included academic misconduct, extra benefits, failure to follow the drug-testing policy, and impermissible booster activity.

Other violations included impermissible academic assistance and services, Boeheim's failure to promote an atmosphere of compliance and monitor his staff, and the school's lack of control over its athletics program.

Do I believe that? Absolutely I do. It is not hard to imagine Boeheim sitting in his office and being above it all instead of monitoring what's going on. It's the same thing Joe Paterno did and Penn State and Pete Carroll did at USC. It's better not to know, and frankly they don't care. They just hope they don't get caught.

I hate Jim Boeheim because I don't think he is a good coach, and more importantly because I think he acts like an arrogant asshole. It sucks that school, the current players and the fans will be punished because a few individuals didn't do their jobs.

Hopefully this will hasten Boeheim's retirement instead of lengthen his career in pursuit of a milestone accomplishment.