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Penny Hardaway, Memphis faces multiple Level I and Level II charges by the NCAA
Memphis is accused of obstructing an investigation and showing a lack of institutional control.
dailymemphian.com
The Daily Memphian acquired a copy of the notice of allegations (NOA) and the amended notice of allegations that Memphis received from the Independent Accountability Resolution Process (IARP) investigation.
According to the NOA, Hardaway was involved in at least one Level I infraction and two Level II violations. These are the two most severe violations and are considered a significant breach of conduct.
Hardaway was the only person specifically named in the NOA, though that does not preclude the mention of other individuals because there were a number of redacted portions in the document.
In total, the University of Memphis received seven allegations. Allegations 1, 2, 3 and 7 were deemed Level I violations. Allegations 4 and 6 were deemed Level II. The level of Allegation No. 5 was redacted.
The Daily Memphian reached out to the university for comment. The Daily Memphian also learned that the school has filed an extensive counterclaim to the charges.
The Complex Case Unit (CCU) alleged that Memphis violated “NCAA responsibility to cooperate legislation.” Under the legislation, institutions have an “affirmative obligation to cooperate with and assist” enforcement staffs like the CCU.
Allegation No. 1 outlines how Memphis failed to cooperate with the investigation, including failing to report acts of noncompliance in a timely manner. On June 4, 2020, the CCU alleges Memphis failed to disclose or provide access to all electronic devices.
The CCU was seeking devices assigned to a former Memphis assistant coach, whose name was redacted. The unit’s forensic examination on June 5 showed that the computer hard drive associated with the assistant had its data deleted.
The CCU said Memphis did not conduct an adequate investigation into why the data wasn’t preserved.
In late August 2020, the CCU requested documents that included communications and text messages among the Memphis coaching staff. Memphis is alleged to have not responded in a timely manner (within 30 days).
Memphis submitted the information near the end of the CCU’s investigation, but failed to produce all records and in a proper format as requested, including the emails produced by Memphis had metadata stripped from them, which prevented the CCU from being able to review or search the records.
The CCU outright accuses Memphis of obstructing the investigation. One example used was that the school delayed interviews and even scheduled a prep interview with at least one school administrator before a CCU interview was conducted.
This was deemed a lack of commitment to cooperate and was a disregard for NCAA directives to avoid communicating with individuals about the subject matter of an investigation prior to being interviewed by the CCU.
Allegations 2 through 5 were heavily redacted, though it says Hardaway is presumed responsible for allegations 3 through 5.
Allegation No. 7 says that from 2011 through the 2020-21 academic school year, violations in Allegations 1 through 5 showed a lack on institutional control and failure to monitor by Memphis.
Hardaway is said to have failed to establish a culture of compliance in the program.
The school’s compliance department also lacked significant resources to identify, investigate and monitor compliance risks. A member of Memphis’ compliance staff stated that procedures in the department were inadequate and violations may not have happened with an adequate structure.
The CCU also identified numerous aggravating factors, including a history of Level I and Level II violations by Memphis.
The CCU cited violations in 2009, 2005, 1989 and 1986. Other mitigating factors that will be considered in any penalties include Hardaway not having any major violations before the current investigation.
Also, Memphis’ established history of self-reporting Level III violations will be considered. The school has reported 32 violations in the past three years.
