RALEIGH, N.C. — The N.C. State-NCAA web has come to an end.
The Independent Accountability Resolution Process (IARP) ruled on Monday that the Wolfpack would have to vacate the wins from its 2016-17 season. The 15-member independent review panel was charged with analyzing the allegations and the school’s response to them, then deciding on penalties. Decisions by the panel are final and not subject to appeal.
N.C. State’s case revolves around former guard Dennis Smith Jr., former head coach Mark Gottfried and former assistant Orlando Early. The investigation involves former Adidas consultant Thomas Gassnola working with Early, an assistant under Gottfried from 2011 to ‘17, and Smith’s trainer Shawn Farmer to funnel $40,000 to Smith’s family in exchange for Smith’s commitment in October 2015.
For his involvement Gottfried received a one-year show-cause order. Early received a six-year show-cause order. So what does that mean for the two coaches?
According to the NCAA, a show-cause penalty is an administrative punishment ordering that any NCAA penalties imposed on a coach found to have committed major rules violations will stay in effect against that coach for a specified period of time — and could also be transferred to any other NCAA-member school that hires the coach while the sanctions are still in effect.
Gottfried, who was fired from N.C. State after the 2016-17 season, is currently on administrative leave at Cal State Northridge. The school is currently conducting an internal investigation into alleged rules violations.
For fans of Nathaniel Hawthorne, a show-cause hanging over a coach’s head is like a scarlet letter.
Cal State Northridge can decide to keep Gottfried as its head coach, or Early can get another job coaching, but the show-cause will hang over their heads. Not only that, the current, or future employer (school) can be penalized by the NCAA for hiring a coach with an active show-cause. That might make Early untouchable for the next six years, or Gottfried for a year.
If another school hires Early, for example, that school must appear before the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions and prove why the school shouldn’t be penalized for the hire.
If hired, a school could be punished if the coach commits another violation while the show-cause is in effect. While a show-cause makes it nearly impossible for coaches to get hired, there are exceptions for popular names once the clause is lifted. Bruce Pearl (Auburn) and Kelvin Sampson (Houston) both survived show-cause penalties attached to their names in recent years. Pearl received a three-year show-cause (expired in 2014) while at Tennessee. Sampson was slapped with a five-year show-cause (expired in 2013) when he was the coach at Oklahoma.
