I haven't seen this posted yet, so...
> Maine suspends Walsh for a year
>
> University of Maine hockey coach Shawn Walsh has been suspended without pay
> for one year by the university, it was announced at a press conference
> Thursday in Orono, Me. The suspension, effective Sunday, precedes a report
> by the NCAA committee on infractions that is expected in 1996, according to
> Athletic Director Sue Tyler. The penalties result from a pattern of
> secondary NCAA rules violations. However, other violations were more serious
> and, in some instances, were knowingly committed. Serious infractions
> include:
>
> * Walsh received supplemental income from program boosters during his
> December 1993 suspension, which violated the terms of his suspension.
> * Walsh, his attorney, and a member of Walsh's coaching staff contacted
> individuals who were expected to be interviewed by investigators prior
> to those interviews, in violation of oral and written directives not to
> do so.
> * Two boosters, who were married, gave an ice hockey player and his
> girlfriend a discount on rent and provided them with other
> impermissible benefits during the 1993-94 academic year, in violation
> of NCAA rules. Furthermore, the boosters and the student-athlete
> conspired to hide the arrangement from the university, the
> investigators, and the NCAA.
> * Members of the university's ice hockey team accepted promises of a
> stipend for competing on the 1992 and 1994 U.S. Olympic hockey teams
> after being led to believe by the Olympic teams' administrators that
> the stipends were permissible under NCAA rules. They later proved not
> to be.
>
> The 450-page report draws three primary conclusions:
>
> * Until approximately the middle of 1994, Maine lacked appropriate
> institutional control over its athletic programs.
> * Until the same time, the university did not provide the resources to
> adequately support the institution's athletics compliance
> responsibilities.
> * Until the middle of that year, the university and Walsh failed to
> exercise appropriate control over the ice hockey program.
>
> "My goal throughout the entire investigation was to cooperate in every
> aspect," said Walsh. "My team, my staff and myself have done that well. It's
> not for me to judge what an appropriate penalty is, but I can accept the
> university's decision."
>
> "Some of the individual violations, by themselves, may seem insignificant to
> some readers (of the report)," University of Maine President Frederick E.
> Hutchinson said. "However, when you look at them as a whole, a different,
> more disturbing picture forms. It is a picture of failure, The failure,
> through 1994, of our compliance monitoring system The violations contained
> in the report occurred in the past. Our new system of checks and balances is
> much better able to prevent or catch any situations that might be
> violations.
>
> "Though we sincerely regret the many mistakes that were made, we took
> appropriate action to acknowledge and resolve them. Just as we deserve
> scrutiny for the problems of the past, I hope the university is given credit
> for its response to those flaws," said Hutchinson.
>
> "It's a blemish on college hockey," said Mike Sertich, who is the President
> of the American Hockey Coaches Association and the hockey coach at the
> University of Minnesota-Duluth. "It's not surprising, but the timing of the
> announcement was. It's unfortunate, but it's now out and more or less over.
> All the speculation and talk about it can be put to rest and Maine can go
> forward."
>
> The program will lose three scholarships over the next two years. Assistant
> coach Greg Cronin will take over the program in the interim, Tyler said. The
> University also announced that it will not participate in the 1996 NCAA
> hockey championship. Maine won the NCAA championship in 1993 with a record
> of 42-1-2 and a team led by Paul Kariya, now with the NHL Anaheim Mighty
> Ducks. The Black Bears have participated in the NCAA Final Four five times
> under Walsh since 1988. Walsh was named college hockey's coach of the year
> in 1995.
>
> "It's time for us to move forward, like the team has," said Walsh. "Getting
> to the national championship last year and being ranked fifth in the country
> this year is a good start."
>
> Maine athletic director Suzanne Tyler said she made a verbal commitment to
> Shawn Walsh that he can return as hockey coach when his suspension ends next
> December and she expects him to be back.
>
> ''Assurances were made that he would have his job back,'' Tyler said. ''I
> fully expect him to be back. We wouldn't have gone through all of this if we
> didn't expect him back.''
>
> ''I've said all along that it would have been far easier to terminate him
> and get a new coach. But I really feel Shawn wants another chance and this
> program wants him back. And I don't want to be without a coach,'' she said.
>
> Tyler said she hopes Walsh will let her know as soon as possible if he finds
> a job that would prompt him to leave permanently.
>
> Under NCAA guidelines, Walsh cannot coach or scout for a professional hockey
> team and still be eligible to return to Maine. Walsh has said he intends to
> return to Maine and is looking for a job that will enable him to retain his
> eligibility to coach the Black Bears.
Andy
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