In the wake of the recent FBI investigation that resulted in four assistant coaches and six others associated with college basketball being arrested, NCAA president Mark Emmert has formed a Commission on College Basketball, which will be chaired by Dr. Condoleezza Rice.
"The recent news of a federal investigation into fraud in college basketball made it very clear the NCAA needs to make substantive changes to the way we operate, and do so quickly," Emmert said in a statement. "Individuals who break the trust on which college sports is based have no place here. While I believe the vast majority of coaches follow the rules, the culture of silence in college basketball enables bad actors, and we need them out of the game. We must take decisive action. This is not a time for half-measures or incremental change."
Rice served as Secretary of State and National Security Advisor, and was also a professor at Stanford and served on the college football selection committee. The commission, according to Emmert, will focus on three areas: 1) The relationship of the NCAA national office, member institutions, student-athletes and coaches with outside entities -- which includes apparel companies, agents and advisors, and also non-scholastic basketball. 2) The NCAA's relationship with the NBA and 3) Creating the right relationship between the universities and its national office to promote transparency and accountability.
The committee also includes Emmert, USA Basketball chairman General Martin E. Dempsey, former Duke star and Atlanta Hawks owner Grant Hill, ex-Navy and Spurs standout David Robinson, ex-Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley, longtime college coach Mike Montgomery, ex-Georgetown head coach John Thompson III, Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith, Hofstra athletic director Jeff Hathaway, president of Notre Dame Rev. John I. Jenkins, president of Georgia Tech G.P. "Bud" Peterson, former White House counsel Kathryn Ruemmler, and president of the Association of American Universities Mary Sue Coleman.
The commission will start in November and present its recommendations on legislative, policy and structural changes to the boards for action in April.
"We need to do right by student-athletes," Emmert added. "I believe we can -- and we must -- find a way to protect the integrity of college sports by addressing both sides of the coin: fairness and opportunity for college athletes, coupled with the enforcement capability to hold accountable those who undermine the standards of our community."