McRobbie: IU should not have risked hiring Sampson

Documents released by the University on Monday showed that IU President Michael McRobbie told the NCAA Committee on Infractions that the hiring of former basketball coach Kelvin Sampson was “a risk that should not have been taken.”\nThe four-page document was McRobbie’s closing statement via teleconference during the two-day hearing. McRobbie’s teleconference defended the University against the allegations the NCAA levied, which were transferred to IU from Oklahoma when Sampson became coach in April 2006. \nThe decision to hire Sampson, who at the time was under investigation by the NCAA, was controversial to many Hoosier fans and members of the media. IU Director of Athletics Rick Greenspan, who announced his resignation June 26, said at the time of Sampson’s hiring that he had no doubts the coach would adhere to the terms of any possible sanctions.\nLast October, the University self-reported five NCAA violations by Sampson and his staff. Sampson resigned in February and is currently an assistant coach for the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks.\n“It is now clear that this was a risk that should not have been taken, and the University regrets doing so,” McRobbie said in the statement.\nAdam Herbert, not McRobbie, was University president at the time of the Sampson hiring.\nIn his closing remarks, McRobbie asked the NCAA to be fair to the men’s basketball program, which he boasted as being one of the best in the nation. The president said he was disappointed that these violations put a taint on the accomplishments of the program and vowed to restore the standards the team has upheld in the past.\n“But a record of athletic success is not a point of pride for a university if it is tainted by a failure to follow the rules set forth by the NCAA,” McRobbie said in the statement.\nSince the conclusion of the hearing, the University has been issued a sixth allegation – a “failure to monitor” claim, which came as a surprise to the IU administration.\nDuring his closing remarks, McRobbie credited the compliance program for catching the mistake; but in the eyes of the NCAA, the standards in place at IU were insufficient.\n“As president of this university, I will say to you today that the NCAA’s investigation – indeed our own investigation has led me to conclude that our compliance program was comprehensive and it worked,” McRobbie said in the statement.\nThe University also released the severance agreement between IU and Greenspan, who will end his four-year tenure in December as IU’s director of athletics. According to the agreement, Greenspan will be paid a lump-sum payment of $396,000 in January. Additionally, Greenspan will receive $4,600 a month next year as well as $1,400 in health insurance and other benefits if he does not have equivalent employment.\nGreenspan was also given the rights to write a book regarding his time at IU. For these considerations, Greenspan has agreed not to sue the University.