Louisville issues official response to alleged violations against basketball program

The University of Louisville has responded to the NCAA on allegations of seven violations, challenging the severity of what level the infractions should be ruled at.

Louisville has asked that its Independent Accountability Resolution Process (IARP) case be classified as “Level II-mitigated” instead a Level I infraction that is called for in the NCAA’s notice of allegations. The NCAA is giving Louisville seven specific allegations (one Level I and six Level II), and Louisville is saying that it only one deserves Level II status, three of them should be considered Level III and the other three “do not meet the criteria to qualify as infractions.”

These infractions stem from last September when the NCAA uncovered bribery behind the scenes with Adidas employees and consultants in 2017 in the recruitment of Brian Bowen. Louisville said the consultants should not be considered representatives of the school’s athletic interests and that their actions occurred without the knowledge of those inside the Cardinal program.

Other allegations of potential infractions have been called against former Cardinals head coach Chris Mack, which Louisville is deeming “unsupported,” and unworthy of Level II infraction status, including an incident involving graduate managers.

Louisville argues that because the participation of graduate managers in practices and the use of personalized recruiting videos should Level III infraction and that Mack should not be charged with “head coach responsibility,” for the infraction to be issued.

Louisville budged, saying, “graduate assistants and/or managers of the institution’s men’s basketball staff actively participated on a consistent basis in impermissible on-court activities with current men’s basketball student-athletes, including but not limited to on-court competitive situations.”

According to the NCAA, they have 60 days to respond to Louisville (May 20), and then a hearing panel will be issued involving the enforcement staff and Louisville to summarize each others positions of each of the seven allegations and disagreements. There is no deadline for the IARP to come to a decision, so Louisville will likely have to wait for their fate to be determined.