NCAA accepts WVU’s self-imposed penalties on football program

The investigation the NCAA opened almost a year ago looking into the West Virginia football program is officially over.

WVU Athletic Director Oliver Luck issued a statement on Friday in regards to the penalties leveled against the program.

"WVU is in receipt of the NCAA's final report of an investigation into violations committed from 2005-2009 related to participation and monitoring of noncoaching staff members in drill and meeting activities reserved for countable coaches within our football program," Luck said.

The NCAA found that "failure to monitor" major violations took place under former West Virginia head coaches Rich Rodriguez and Bill Stewart. No major violations were leveled onto the program, and the NCAA accepted WVU's self-imposed penalties. These penalties included being on probation for two years – ending on July 7, 2013; the loss of two scholarships from 2010-11 and one for 2011-12; as well as the elimination of two noncoaching graduate assistant positions.

The committee did not feel the need to level any more additional penalties on top of what the school requested.

"We appreciate the hard work the Committee and the NCAA staff put into this process, particularly moving cooperatively to the summary disposition process," Luck said. "I am pleased that the Committee accepted the self-imposed penalties the University proposed, without imposing any additional ones.

"The University has already taken corrective action and put new systems in place to address all the issues raised."

One important thing Luck also said in his statement was that the penalties did not include anything that would affect the Mountaineers' eligibility to play in bowl games or to compete for Big East Conference or national championships.

If WVU would have been deemed ineligible for bowl games for two or more years, head coach Dana Holgorsen would be allowed to quit without giving anything back to the school, according to the term sheet he signed on December 14, 2010.

Luck said the program is ready to continue moving forward now that the investigations against the team are complete.

"We have taken this case very seriously from the beginning and, as we've said, will move forward with a complete commitment to compliance in all that we do," he said. "We now look forward to an exciting football season and putting this process behind us."