Report: Oklahoma State's football program is under NCAA investigation
Remember that five-part Sports Illustrated series from last year that was supposed to expose alleged improper conduct throughout the Oklahoma State football program? That story seemed to disappear from the college football conversation rather quickly, but ten months after it was published, ESPN’s Brett McMurphy is reporting that the school’s program is under NCAA investigation.
Additionally, the school launched an internal investigation soon after the Sports Illustrated reports emerged, and McMurphy is reporting that the school’s investigation “is nearing an end.”
“The inquiry continues and it is hoped that it will conclude within the next few months,” an Oklahoma State spokesman told ESPN. “The university anticipates releasing a report after the NCAA concludes its process. Since it is an ongoing inquiry conducted in cooperation with the NCAA, the university is unable to comment further at this time.”
The Sports Illustrated series documented alleged incidents involving payments by coaches to players, academic violations, drug use, and a hostess program. In the days following, several reports – including one by McMurphy – showed evidence that some of the claims in the story were false.
Additionally, former Cowboys coach Les Miles and several former players denied many of the claims from the reports.
John Talley, an OSU booster who was said to have “made systematic improper financial contributions to OSU’s football players” in the series, filed a lawsuit against Sports Illustrated last week.
For more Oklahoma State news, visit OStateIllustrated.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!
