Prairie View A&M head basketball coach Byron Smith will be suspended for one game, and the program will face other sanctions as part of a recent NCAA ruling. The investigation began back in January 2017 when Prairie View A&M self reported violations to the NCAA. The issues revolve around a former assistant coach paying for a players online class. A PDF of the official NCAA ruling can be found here: Prairie View A&M Public Infractions Decision.

An official statement from the NCAA, along with the penalties is below:

Prairie View A&M and members of its men’s basketball staff violated extra benefit, financial aid, head coach responsibility and ethical conduct rules, according to a Division I Committee on Infractions panel.

This case was resolved through the summary disposition process, a cooperative effort in which the involved parties collectively submit the case to the Committee on Infractions in written form. The NCAA enforcement staff, university and participating parties must agree to the facts and overall level of the case to use this process instead of a formal hearing.

Penalties include two years of probation, a financial penalty, recruiting restrictions and a vacation of records. The panel also prescribed a show-cause order for the head coach, which includes a one-game suspension and a two-year show-cause order for the former assistant coach. Should the former assistant coach be employed by another NCAA school during this time, his athletics duties may be restricted.

The violations centered on an arrangement made by a former assistant coach for a friend to pay the cost of a course a student-athlete needed to take at a two-year college to maintain his eligibility. The former assistant coach engaged in unethical conduct due to involvement in this arrangement.

Additionally, even though the head coach knew the former assistant coach was locating and arranging a course for the student-athlete, he did not properly oversee these efforts. Further, the head coach later learned that a third party had paid for the course, yet he did not report this information, even though the university was investigating the matter. Because of this, the head coach did not promote an atmosphere of compliance and monitor his staff, thus failing to meet his responsibility as a head coach.

The violations occurred after the implementation of the current penalty structure, so the panel used the current Division I infractions penalty guidelines approved by the membership in 2013 and adjusted by the membership in 2017.

Penalties include the following:

• Public reprimand and censure for the university.
• Two years of probation from Nov. 21, 2017, through Nov. 20, 2019.
• A $5,000 fine.
• Suspension of the head coach from all coaching duties for one contest during the 2017-18 season. As part of the show-cause order, the coach must also attend NCAA Regional Rules Seminars in 2018 and 2019.
• A two-year show-cause order for the former assistant coach from Nov. 21, 2017 to Nov. 20, 2019.
• A vacation of records for the seven games the student-athlete participated in while ineligible between Dec. 20, 2016 and Jan. 16, 2017.
• The university will limit official visits in men’ basketball to 10 over the next two years (self-imposed by the university).
• A three-day delay in the start of practice for the men’s basketball team from the official start date for the 2017-18 season (self-imposed by the university).