As part of former USC assistant coach Todd McNair’s defamation lawsuit against the NCAA, hundreds of pages of NCAA documents were unsealed last month. The documents detailed the NCAA infractions committee’s approach toward sanctioning USC for extra benefits given to star athletes Reggie Bush and O.J. Mayo.
Among the nearly 500 pages of documents that the NCAA fought to seal included infractions committee director Shep Cooper calling McNair a “lying, morally bankrupt criminal.” Another NCAA official said that there was more evidence against USC than there was against a man convicted of being an accomplice in the Oklahoma City bombings. Another official said he wanted to make an example of USC.
A California appeals court ruled the documents should be unsealed in February.
Scott says the USC case is an example of a flawed enforcement system.
“As we’ve maintained from the beginning, the USC case is a good example of how the current enforcement system is not fair and consistent across the board,” Scott said to the Los Angeles Times.
“The punishments on USC were too harsh and after an initial review of the documents released recently, we share USC’s serious concern regarding the process undergone by the NCAA and its Committee on Infractions, as well as the substance of their actions in the case.”
McNair, who coached running backs at USC and was given a show-cause penalty for his role in the sanctions against the football program (which ended in 2014), filed his suit against the NCAA in June 2011. He hasn’t coached in college football since.
USC said in a statement that the unsealed documents confirmed “bias against McNair and USC by and on behalf of the NCAA and its Committee on Infractions.”
"We are extremely disappointed and dismayed at the way the NCAA investigated, judged and penalized our university throughout this process,” the statement said. “USC hopes that the transparency in this case will ultimately lead to review and changes so that all member institutions receive the fair and impartial treatment they deserve.”
The NCAA said the unsealed documents showed “how the Committee on Infractions underwent thorough deliberations consistent with the policies and procedures governing the infractions process.”
For more USC news, visit TrojanSports.com.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
From Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo Sports - Pac-12 commish Larry Scott says NCAA 'enforcement system is not fair'
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