- A 2017 FBI investigation into college basketball corruption led to the arrests and firings of several coaches.
- Many of the coaches implicated in the scandal have since returned to coaching, with several participating in this year’s NCAA Tournament.
- Former Arizona assistant coach Emanuel “Book” Richardson received a harsher penalty than others and is still effectively barred from college basketball.
On Sept. 26, 2017, the FBI and federal law enforcement authorities set off a massive explosion in college basketball that led to the arrests of several coaches and the eventual suspension or firing of several others.
The list included then-USC assistant coach Tony Bland, who was arrested that day on bribery-related charges. The fallout from it also ensnared Louisville head coach Rick Pitino (fired in 2017), Arizona head coach Sen Miller (fired in 2021) Kansas head coach Bill Self (suspended in 2022), and LSU head coach Will Wade (fired in 2022).
But those coaches and several others since have been forgiven and even had a comeback party of sorts this month as active coaches in the NCAA Tournament. Wade also just got rehired as head coach at LSU, as if nothing ever happened, serving as a reminder about what really matters in college sports once all the FBI dust settles.
“Some had short exiles and punishments, but when you win, there’s always a spot,” said David Ridpath, a sports business professor at Ohio University.
These March Madness comeback stories (see list below) also raise other big concerns on the eve of the Final Four in Indianapolis, according to observers.
One is whether this crackdown had any lasting purpose or should have happened in the first place. Another relates to former Arizona assistant coach Emanuel “Book” Richardson, who’s still paying a price for it even after serving 90 days in federal prison.
“It is a continuing, profound injustice,” one of his advocates said recently.
What was illegal then is now generally legal
The FBI investigation and the NCAA rules enforcement cases that followed aimed to crack down on alleged bribes and illegal payments to recruits or their families, which now seems quaint. NCAA rules have since changed to legalize certain payments to players for their names, images, and likenesses (NIL), starting in 2021.
A sports apparel company such as Adidas now can legally pay players directly for their NIL, unlike back then, when an Adidas consultant testified at trial in 2018 that he provided illicit payments to the families of recruits, including recruits for Kansas and Louisville, two Adidas-sponsored schools. Both Louisville and Kansas got punished for it, even though they said they didn’t have knowledge of it.
Kansas spent $10 million over six years fighting the case, which alleged Kansas was using Adidas to entice recruits with money. An Adidas employee and consultant even went to prison for it.
This likely never would have happened under the current rule structure.
“Everything that’s happening (legally now with NIL) is just a microcosm of what’s always been happening,” Richardson told USA TODAY Sports on March 25. “Now we can put a name to it (NIL).”
Meanwhile, not everyone has been allowed to resume their careers like Bland, Pitino and others who took part in March Madness this month. Richardson is still effectively barred from college basketball under a 10-year show-cause penalty from the NCAA, even after serving prison time and taking responsibility for the $20,000 bribe prosecutors said he took to steer players toward a certain agent and financial adviser once the players made it to the NBA.
That lingering punishment strikes some as just plain wrong
The Book Richardson case
Richardson, 53, is seeking a federal pardon even though he already served his prison sentence. A federal pardon would not erase the 10-year NCAA penalty that extends to 2030. But it would be a meaningful sign of forgiveness. The application for it was spearheaded by a group at New York University, including clinical professor David Hollander.
“It is a continuing, profound injustice Book Richardson remains under the professional restraint of a 10-year show-cause, given whatever other results you would like to observe have come from that FBI investigation,” Hollander told USA TODAY Sports on March 25. “Excessive isn’t strong enough of a word, because words don’t amount to a human being’s life. That’s what this is about. One person’s entire life has been lopsidedly hammered.”
Four coaches pleaded guilty in 2019 to similar bribery charges: Richardson, Bland, former Auburn assistant Chuck Person and former Oklahoma State assistant Lamont Evans. Richardson, Person and Evans are out of college basketball with 10-year show-cause penalties. Richardson and Evans both did prison time, not Person or Bland. Bland only got a three-year show-cause penalty from the NCAA and is back in college basketball on the staff at Kansas.
Under-the-table bribes like those back then since have been disincentivized and replaced by over-the-table business transactions. In addition to allowing players to earn money for their NIL, the NCAA also now allows them to hire agents to manage their NIL earnings while still in college.
The timing isn’t lost on Richardson, who regrets taking the money and now works in Virginia at The St. James Performance Academy.
“I did 90 days in jail, and I got out in October of 2020,” Richardson said. “(Legalized) NIL happened in 2021.”
More recently, Richardson noticed all those familiar names involved in March Madness this month.
List of March Madness coaches who got punished in scandal
These coaches coached in NCAA Tournament this month after previously being caught in the quagmire stemming from the FBI investigation of 2017:
∎ Tony Bland, now at Kansas, made his first NCAA Tournament appearance since his arrest.
∎ Rick Pitino, now the head coach at St. John’s, recently made his first Sweet 16 appearance since his firing from Louisville.
∎ Will Wade of LSU was caught on an FBI wiretap talking about an “offer” and a “deal” for Javonte Smart, a top recruit who later signed with LSU before NIL was legalized. LSU fired Wade for cause in 2022 after the NCAA accused him of serious recruiting violations. The NCAA’s enforcement arm also hit him with a 10-game suspension and two-year show-cause penalty. He bounced back as coach at McNeese State, then NC State, which he led to the NCAA Tournament this month. He’s now back at LSU, where all has been forgiven. He recently told reporters he’s “trying to follow more rules this time.” He also received a hero’s welcome in Baton Rouge at his re-introductory news conference March 30.
“You never get second chances in life, but we get one here,” Wade said March 30.
∎ Kansas coach Bill Self was suspended four games in 2022 after fighting the Adidas-related allegations for years. He lost in the second round to Pitino and St. John’s on March 22.
∎ Head coach Sean Miller brought Texas to the NCAA Tournament this month after getting fired from Arizona in 2021 and then bouncing back at Xavier. Shortly before his firing, the NCAA charged Arizona with serious recruiting allegations stemming from the FBI case. An FBI wiretap caught Book Richardson telling an aspiring agent that Miller “bought” star player Deandre Ayton. Miller denied it.
∎ Kansas assistant coach Kurtis Townsend was suspended four games along with Self in 2022 and was sitting right next to him in the game vs. St. John’s.
∎ Former Creighton assistant coach Preston Murphy was back in the NCAA Tournament this month with Alabama after previously being punished with a two-year show-cause penalty stemming from the FBI investigation. He wasn’t charged with a crime but allegedly accepted payment from a business manager seeking to entice college athletes to sign with that person’s management company.
Richardson said he’s happy for these coaches.
“If they have the opportunity to get back and flourish, I’d love that same opportunity,” Richardson said. “I think I have a lot to give.”
Rick Pitino, Bill Self and the Adidas March Madness game
Amid the backdrop of the FBI case of 2017, a second-round game on March 22 in San Diego stands out in particular.
This was a matchup between two Hall of Fame coaches, nationally televised on CBS — Self and Kansas vs. Pitino at St. John’s. Before the game, Self took a seat next to assistant coach Townsend on his right and Bland down the row to his left.
All wore the Adidas “three stripes” logo on their sleeves. Their star freshman guard, Darryn Peterson, has been paid by Adidas, too, and is now allowed to do so openly, unlike players before 2021.
On the other side of the court, Pitino’s team also was outfitted in Adidas uniforms after reaching a sponsorship deal with the company last year.
Adidas-sponsored Peterson scored 21 points, but Adidas-sponsored St. John’s won the game with a buzzer-beating layup, 67-65.
In light of all of this, what impact did this FBI case really have?
This game came just a handful of years after Adidas representatives went to prison and some of those coaches were punished in a case involving alleged Adidas inducements to recruits.
‘It’s really time to free this man’
Richardson is still feeling the impact of it at least.
“I’ve been to hell and back,” he said. And he never snitched on anybody, which could have helped him get a lighter sentence.
“It all could have been avoided if I just told what everyone thought I knew,” Richardson said.
The NCAA and U.S. Justice Department didn’t return messages seeking comment. Meanwhile, the contrast between Richardson and other active coaches hasn’t gone unnoticed in college basketball.
“I am very happy for my friends, Will Wade and Sean Miller,” ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla said on social media recently. “Not being sarcastic. But I’ve had discussions with the NCAA about Book Richardson & it’s really time to free this man. His penalty is very, very, very unfair”
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com