[h1]UNC banned from 2012 postseason[/h1]
Updated: March 12, 2012, 3:18 PM ET
ESPN.com news services
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The NCAA has placed
North Carolina's football program on three years' probation and banned it from the 2012 postseason, the governing body announced Monday.
The school already had imposed several penalties, including vacating all 16 wins for 2008 and 2009, reducing nine scholarships over the next three academic years and putting the program on two years of probation.
But the NCAA didn't stop at UNC's self-imposed penalties, finding that the school was responsible for violations including academic fraud, impermissible agent benefits, participation by ineligible players and a failure to monitor the football program.
According to the NCAA, multiple student-athletes received impermissible benefits totaling more than $31,000, six players competed while ineligible and an assistant coach, who was not named in the report, was compensated by a sports agent for the access he provided to student-athletes and failed to disclose the income to the university.
The NCAA said it issued a three-year show-cause penalty and recruiting ban to the former assistant coach, who was also cited for unethical conduct and failing to cooperate with investigators.
In 2010, Yahoo! Sports reported that former North Carolina assistant John Blake had previously been employed by pro football agent Gary Wichard's firm and had been wired money from Wichard's bank. Attorneys for Blake said he received loans from Wichard, a longtime friend, but said there was never an arrangement to direct players to Wichard once they turned pro.
Wichard died a year ago after a year-long battle with pancreatic cancer. Blake resigned at North Carolina in September of 2010.
"This case should serve as a cautionary tale to all institutions to vigilantly monitor the activities of those student-athletes who possess the potential to be top professional prospects," the NCAA Committee on Infractions said in its report. "It should also serve to warn student-athletes that if they choose to accept benefits from agents or their associates, they risk losing their eligibility for collegiate competition."
School officials appeared before the committee in October.
The school fired Butch Davis before last season because of the investigation. Longtime athletic director **** Baddour stepped aside so his successor could hire the next football coach.
