| | Published March 1st, 2013
| Saint Mary’s Hit Hard With NCAA Sanctions for Recruiting Violations
| | By Michael Sakoda | | |
 “Excessive.” That’s the word Saint Mary’s men’s basketball head coach Randy Bennett used to describe the penalties issued today by the NCAA Committee on Infractions.
The committee announced that it has suspended Bennett for five games of the 2013-14 season and has prohibited him from off-campus recruiting for a one-year period. Saint Mary’s will be on probation for four-years and the school’s scholarships have been reduced (13 to 11) for the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons.
The Gaels are additionally disqualified from foreign tours until the 2017-18 season, from participation in multiple-team events until the 2015-16 season, and from receiving skill instruction during the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons.
Later in the day, Bennett clarified his frustration. “You feel like you got attacked a little bit. You want to tell your side of the story, but like I said, I’m good now,” he explained. “I needed some time to process it, and take a step back.”
Since the NCAA launched its investigation in July 2010, Athletic Director Mark Orr said SMC has hired a second full-time compliance monitor and began reviewing its processes and procedures, implementing a new system of checks and balances. “Compliance is a priority,” he said. “We self imposed our own penalties…they added to those,” Orr said. “Some of those penalties were harsh.”
Bennett echoed Orr’s emphasis on compliance and acknowledged his role.
“One of the reasons I love St. Mary’s, why I love being here, is that I don’t have to deal with stuff like this,” Bennett noted. “So it’s kind of ironic that I’m in this situation. I regret I’m in this situation, but like I said, I accept responsibility.”
Orr stressed that none of the athletes involved in the major violations were Australian, nor did they attend St. Mary’s. Both he and St. Mary’s President, Brother Ronald Gallagher, expressed disappointment that the repercussions could affect any current or future students.
Gallagher also expressed his support of Bennett. “I’ve always trusted him as a good teacher. He really has the best interest of the students in mind, and if there are mistakes made, we’re on the same page about the importance of correcting those.”
St. Mary’s is still considering if it will appeal the penalties. “The report, most of the things I agreed with. There’s just one little area where I don’t, but I don’t want to get into that,” Bennett said, “Whatever the school decides to appeal, I support that.”
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA