When the ACC men's basketball media day kicks off this week, one notable coach will not be in attendance. Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino, on the advice of his legal counsel, has decided he will not participate.
“I do not want the allegations we are facing to negatively impact the other 14 institutions on what should be a great event to talk about the approaching basketball season,” Pitino stated . “I realize that while many would like to question me on the allegations, the NCAA does not permit me to speak on the subject.”
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Pitino's program is currently being investigated by the NCAA based on claims made by Katina Powell in her book, "Breaking Cardinal Rules." Powell claims she was paid by former Louisville director of basketball operations Andre McGee to provide women to strip and have sex with recruits and student-athletes.
While Pitino has denied having knowledge regarding the claims, he will remain a key figure in the NCAA's investigation moving forward. NCAA Division I Bylaw 11.1.2.1 places the responsibility on the head coach of a program to promote an atmosphere of NCAA rules-compliance within his or her program, as well as to monitor the activities of his or her staff to ensure compliance with NCAA legislation.
Further, Bylaw 11.1.2.1 presumes a head coach has knowledge of what is occurring in his or her program and, therefore, a head coach can be held responsibly for the actions of staff members or other individuals associated with the head coach's program. Syracuse basketball coach Jim Boeheim and SMU basketball coach Larry Brown recently received suspensions for having been found to have violated this legislation by the NCAA Committee on Infractions.
Preparing evidence for an NCAA Bylaw 11.1.2.1 allegation
While Pitino isn't going to directly speak to the allegations made by Powell, there is no doubt he and his legal counsel are already beginning preparations should the NCAA enforcement staff allege a Bylaw 11.1.2.1 violation. The key element in Pitino's defense will be putting together the appropriate evidence to demonstrate he promoted an atmosphere of rules-compliance, and that he took reasonable steps to monitor the men's basketball program.
In doing so, Pitino will focus on three key areas; communication, monitoring and documentation. First, Pitino will compile relevant communications between himself and senior institutional and athletics administrators, the athletics compliance staff and men's basketball staff members and student-athletes. These communications will include any discussions relating to the institution's expectations for Pitino maintaining rules-compliance within his program, discussions with the athletics compliance office relating to how they will work together and share compliance responsibilities and instances where Pitino communicated his rules-compliance philosophy and expectations and disseminated rules-compliance resources to his staff and student-athletes.
The monitoring efforts Pitino and his staff implemented in consultation with the athletics compliance office will also be critical to his defense. Pitino will present evidence on how compliance responsibilities relating to the men's basketball program were assigned, enforced and evaluated. Examples of relevant evidence may include the development of written policies and procedures regarding these responsibilities and reporting lines and the specific efforts Pitino made to monitor any areas he was responsible for and for ensuring his staff was also fulfulling their responsibilities.
Finally, Pitino will need to present documentation relating to his commitment to rules-compliance and monitoring activities. Examples of acceptable documentation will include meeting notes, agendas and attendance logs, written policies and procedures regarding responsibilities and reporting lines, any reports of investigations into alleged rules-violations and any rules-education materials that were utilized.
Additionally, it will be vital the evidence presented is specific and detailed. The Committee on Infractions has made it clear in other recent cases involving high-profile head coaches they will not accept generalized statements and information and that any assumptions held without direct inquiry are not sufficient to effectively rebut a presumption of guilt (i.e., a head coach must do more than ask whether responsibilities are being fulfilled).
Preparing for an NCAA enforcement staff interview and a Committee on Infractions hearing
When Pitino is interviewed by the NCAA enforcement staff, his legal counsel will need to ensure he is fully prepared to respond to all questions presented in a detailed and consistent manner. Because it can be difficult to effectively recall information regarding past events, Pitino's legal counsel will help organize and streamline this process by creating a timeline of events containing all relevant information regarding the events leading up to and following the alleged incident. They will review potential interview questions with Pitino and working through potential topics where details may be lacking. Pitino's preparation will culminate with practice interviews to help relieve any stress associated with the upcoming interview and to ensure all responses are detailed, accurate and without contradictions.
Should the case go to hearing, Pitino's legal counsel may also consider utilizing a mock hearing. Here, they would bring in industry experts and professionals to provide insight into the questions that may be asked by the Committee on Infractions relating to the alleged violations. This will also allow Pitino's counsel to effectively gauge the strength of their arguments and evidence.
With the investigation just beginning and the men's basketball team opening up play this weekend against Bellarmine, this will be an issue Pitino deals with throughout the course of the 2015-16 season and probably beyond.
Justin P. Sievert, Esq. is the founder/principal of Sievert Collegiate Consulting, a professor of sports, business and labor and employment law at Davenport University and is a contributing writer on sports law and sports business issues for Sporting News. He is an attorney licensed to practice in Tennessee, North Carolina and Florida and has focused his practice on higher education and sports law. Justin has a Bachelors of Arts (B.A.) from Union College (NY), a Master's Degree in Education (M.ED) from St. Lawrence University and a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from the University of Miami (FL).