Guest marlins02 Posted September 25, 2003 Share Posted September 25, 2003 Thursday, September 25, 2003 Associated Press ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The Michigan basketball team won its appeal and will be eligible to play in the 2004 NCAA tournament after winning its appeal of a ban that resulted from a booster's payments to players. The decision to overturn the ban handed down in May was made by the NCAA's infractions appeals committee, the organization announced Thursday. "This is a tremendously positive day for the University of Michigan and our basketball program," Michigan coach Tommy Amaker said in a statement. "We are so appreciative of the news we received. I am thrilled for the young men on our team, and I believe they truly deserve this opportunity." Michigan's successful appeal concludes all NCAA procedures regarding the Ed Martin scandal. Martin, who died earlier this year, had been accused of making illicit cash payments totaling $616,000 to former players Chris Webber, Maurice Taylor, Louis Bullock and Robert Traylor. Of the NCAA sanctions handed down in May, the ban on participation in the NCAA tournament and National Invitation Tournament was the only one that Michigan appealed. Other sanctions, including 3? years of probation and the loss of one scholarship in each of four seasons beginning in 2004-05, remain in effect. A message left with Terry Don Phillips, chairman of the appeals committee and Clemson's athletic director, was not immediately returned. "We accepted full responsibility for the wrongdoing that occurred, and we felt that the loss of scholarships, extended probation, and other penalties imposed by the NCAA were an appropriately severe response to the violations," school president Mary Sue Coleman said in a statement. The school's appeal was focused on the additional postseason ban, because it fell "disproportionately" on the current players and coaches, Coleman said. As grounds for the appeal, administrators cited an NCAA bylaw that states, "An important consideration in imposing penalties is to provide fairness to uninvolved student-athletes, coaches ... " Expectations for last season's Michigan team were low because of an apparent lack of talent and motivation. The Wolverines lost their first six games but staged a remarkable turnaround under second-year coach Amaker, winning 13 straight games for the first time since 1987-88. Michigan finished with its best season in five years, going 17-13 overall and 10-6 in the Big Ten and earning a first-round bye in the conference tournament. The 2003-04 Wolverines are expected to contend for an NCAA tournament berth. Michigan officials hoped the penalties they imposed on their program in November 2002 would appease the NCAA. Those penalties included a postseason ban for 2003; forfeiture of 112 regular-season and tournament victories from five seasons, plus the victory in the 1992 NCAA semifinal; returning $450,000 to the NCAA for money earned from the NCAA tournament during those years; and placing itself on two years' probation. Michigan also removed four banners from Crisler Arena: for the 1992 and 1993 Final Fours, 1997 NIT title and 1998 Big Ten tournament title. Martin, a self-described Wolverines basketball booster, pleaded guilty in 2002 to conspiracy to launder money and told federal prosecutors he took gambling money, combined it with other funds and lent $616,000 to Webber and the other players. He was awaiting sentencing when he died in February at age 69 of a pulmonary embolism. "This long and unpleasant chapter in the university history has ended once and for all," athletic director Bill Martin said in a statement. "We have learned some hard lessons from this experience, but we emerged from it with a stronger program and a renewed commitment to the highest standards of integrity." http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=1623493 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramp Posted September 26, 2003 Share Posted September 26, 2003 good for Tommy A and Co Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamrock Posted September 26, 2003 Share Posted September 26, 2003 How bout' them Gators ranked #4 in the pre-season! Cant wait for March Madness because our football team is wallowed in mediocrity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiamiSpartan Posted October 8, 2003 Share Posted October 8, 2003 Piece of CRAP! Huge double standard going on. If this had been the Hurricanes paying players to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars, everyone would be calling for the death penalty. It is always the innocent people that get penalized in the NCAA. The SMU players who were penalized with the death penalty were not the ones that had gotten payoffs....stupid weasals..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Das Texan Posted October 8, 2003 Share Posted October 8, 2003 They need to bring back the damn death penalty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MVPosey Posted October 22, 2003 Share Posted October 22, 2003 Piece of CRAP! Huge double standard going on. If this had been the Hurricanes paying players to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars, everyone would be calling for the death penalty. It is always the innocent people that get penalized in the NCAA. The SMU players who were penalized with the death penalty were not the ones that had gotten payoffs....stupid weasals..... Michigan got way too overpunished as it was. They didn't pay the players. They didn't know anything about Ed Martin paying the players. They didn't know anything about it. If they punish Michigan they have to punish MSU as well and take away their title because Ed Martin gave Mateen Cleaves money as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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