Editor’s note: This is the second part in a series about the NCAA investigation.The National Collegiate Athletic Association’s investigation into Nicholls State athletics has affected the University and its athletic program in terms of image, finances, athlete recruiting and hiring procedures.

Rob Bernardi, athletic director, said the support of the faculty and the leadership University president Stephen Hulbert has provided in this difficult situation has brought positives to the surface.

“Our actions in response to the allegations have helped reinforce the fact that we are a department that takes integrity very seriously,” Bernardi said.

Bernardi proudly displays a letter from the business department on his office wall commending the athletic department for its corrective actions taken after academic fraud was uncovered in August.

“In a lot of ways, our image has been enhanced as a result of this investigation,” he explained. “People respect the fact that we’ve been up front and honest.”

However, the athletic program likely to face NCAA penalties and the loss of players, members of the Nicholls community have questioned whether the University may eliminate Nicholls football.

Future of the football program
“Ridiculous.” That’s the one word response Hulbert uses to respond to the rumors about the football program. He said the elimination of the football program has never been discussed among the central University administrators.

“The only conversations I’ve had about eliminating football have been to respond to the periodic rumor brought to me by media or periodic questions when I bump into a student on campus,” he said. “There is no substance to that rumor whatsoever.”

He said the University has spent hundreds of hours trying to investigate the problems that occurred within the athletic program

University costs
The investigation has also cost the University monetarily. To date, the investigation’s costs amount to $27,400. Lionel Naquin Jr., vice president for business affairs, said the money comes from a restricted fund containing revenue generated by the University.

“It has been an extraordinary commitment of staff resources and University dollars to complete this investigation, including the hiring of a private consultant/lawyer who has significant experience working with NCAA matters,” Hulbert said.

The University could also face a monetary fine from the NCAA, but Naquin said it is premature to discuss where these funds would come from.

“We haven’t spent any time really discussing it because we don’t know if we will have a fine imposed on us or what the amount will be if we are fined,” Naquin said.

Budget discussions
The NCAA investigation into Nicholls’ athletic program has also distracted University officials from spending time discussing the program’s budget difficulties, Hulbert said.

South Louisiana Economic Council, an economic development agency located on campus, released a study in June indicating that Nicholls’ spending on athletics ranked last in the Southland Conference. Nicholls ranked 117th of 120 NCAA Division I-AA schools in terms of 2003 athletic expenditures.

Hulbert said Louisiana universities are restricted by the Board of Regents as to the amount institutions can put into athletics; Nicholls is also restricted by the size of its budget.

“In some cases, Nicholls has a budget half the size of its sister institutions,” Hulbert said. “It’s very difficult to find the resources to put into intercollegiate athletics or anything else.”

Hulbert said the budget issue will be ahead of Nicholls for several years.

“Had we not had this academic fraud case this fall, we would have used the resources of the athletic administration, senior administration, alumni and friends to talk about athletics as a follow-up to the study by SLEC,” he said.

Recruiting
In contrast, the recruiting of student-athletes seems to have been affected very little or not at all according to the feedback Bernardi received from J.P. Piper, head men’s basketball coach, and Jay Thomas, head football coach. Both are currently recruiting. He said recruiting centers more on the program’s available facilities than the investigation of athletics.

The SLEC athletic study suggested improvements for all athletic facilities. Some improvements suggested upgrades to the seating and floor of Stopher Gymnasium, the construction of a soccer facility, the installation of a synthetic turf field for John L. Guidry stadium and an academic center. The study said that expansion of Nicholls State’s facilities has remained inactive since 1981.

“The NCAA investigation has a beginning, middle and end,” Bernardi said. “Some of the problems we have with our facilities don’t necessarily have an end date.”

Bernardi said although loss of scholarships could be a penalty from the NCAA in future years, it has not hindered the current offering of scholarships.

Loss of players
With respect to current players, Hulbert said the University is appealing NCAA penalties for individual student-athletes involved in academic fraud, as officials deem appropriate.

Football and men’s basketball players who took the Brigham Young University correspondence course for eligibility purposes lost their playing status last season since the credits didn’t count toward NCAA eligibility. With the amount of credit they received from taking classes in the fall, many regained eligibility. However, players involved in academic fraud may face the loss of eligibility for one or more additional years from the NCAA, Hulbert said.

“To me, that’s more punitive than is warranted,” Hulbert said. “Throughout my entire career, I’ve always believed that corrective discipline in the university community should be developmental. It should help the student learn.”

It’s unlikely for student-athletes who lose eligibility for a number of years to come back to NCAA sports, he said. The University has yet to receive an overall accounting of how many student-athletes will face specific punishments.

Hiring procedures
The investigation has also led to a heightened awareness of ethics during the hiring and evaluation process of athletic personnel. Bernardi said a high standard of ethics is a characteristic that has always been important but is even more important now.

“When hiring we need to find people who are good at what they do, but also people of integrity who take their ethical responsibilities very seriously,” he said.

Bernardi said ethical responsibility is one of the areas taken into consideration during the performance evaluation of a coach.

“As a coach you have to manage your team and abide by the NCAA and Conference rules,” he said. “That is no less important than wins and losses.