Wofford Basketball on NCAA Probation
- Wofford Basketball placed on NCAA probation for a year.
- Former coach Jay McAuley receives a 2-year penalty for overworking players.
- Probation due to failure to monitor program by making players engage in team activities on days off.
SPARTANBURG, S.C. (AP) — The NCAA has imposed a one-year probation on Wofford College’s men’s basketball program following findings that former coach Jay McAuley failed to adhere to NCAA regulations. The investigation revealed that McAuley routinely required players to engage in team activities on designated days off, violating the NCAA's 20-hour weekly limit on practice time. The settlement, announced on Friday, includes a $5,000 fine for Wofford and a two-year show-cause order for McAuley, who resigned during the 2022-23 season. The issues came to light after a December 2022 letter from players expressing their refusal to continue playing under McAuley, citing excessive demands for film study and workouts. Wofford's internal investigation corroborated these claims, indicating that McAuley often mandated additional work on days that were officially recognized as off days by the compliance office. The NCAA determined that these violations occurred frequently during the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. In response to the violations, the NCAA has also reduced Wofford's preseason practice days from 30 to 25 and limited weekly team-related activities from 20 to 18 hours. The NCAA criticized Wofford for lacking adequate compliance monitoring systems to prevent such infractions. Dwight Perry, a former assistant under McAuley, is set to lead the team into his second full season this fall, as the program works to recover from the sanctions.