The Oklahoma State Cowboys football team is in some hot water. According to reports on Friday morning, drug testing policies were not followed and recruiting violations occurred. Fortunately, the NCAA only fined the program and put it on probation for a year.
#OklahomaSt didn't follow drug testing policy & committed recruiting violations, gets one year probation: http://t.co/kIj5Avhg4b
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) April 24, 2015
In a report by the NCAA’s Emily James, the more gory details were provided.
From 2008 through 2012, the university did not follow its own written policies and procedures for students who tested positive for banned substances. NCAA rules require that if schools have a drug testing policy in place, it must include substances on the banned list and the school must follow its policy. The athletics director believed he had latitude in the application of the policy and deferred to the head football coach’s recommendation on whether to suspend student-athletes who failed a drug test. As a result, five football student-athletes competed in a total of seven games when they should have been withheld from competition.
James’ report also discussed an on-campus program called Orange Pride, an all-female group that was found to have engaged in “impermissible hosting activities.”
Despite these findings, an NCAA panel ultimately cleared Oklahoma State of failing to monitor its football program.
The Cowboys went 7-6 last season in their tenth season under head coach Mike Gundy, defeating the Washington Huskies in the Cactus Bowl. Since Gundy took over, the team has gone 84-44 with one Big 12 Championship and a bowl record of 6-3.
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*Featured Photo (above) credit to Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
