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Baylor suspends assistant Jeff Lebby for first half of game against Oklahoma

Graham Watson

Baylor assistant Jeff Lebby will miss the first half of the Nov. 14 contest between Baylor and Oklahoma as a result of his appearance on the Tulsa sideline during last week’s Tulsa-Oklahoma contest.

The suspension was imposed by Baylor athletic director Ian McCaw and accepted by Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby, who publically reprimanded Lebby for his actions.

“The opportunity for Coach Lebby to scout a future opponent by being on the sideline of a conference member’s opponent is inconsistent with the principles and expectations of the Big 12 Sportsmanship and Ethical Conduct Policy,” Bowlsby said in a statement. “I appreciate the action of Baylor athletics director Ian McCaw in addressing this matter and accept the University’s self-imposed penalty.”

Lebby and his wife, who is the daughter of Baylor head coach Art Briles, were on the Tulsa sideline thanks to credentials left for them by Tulsa head coach Philip Montgomery, a former Baylor offensive coordinator. Montgomery issued a statement taking responsibility for Lebby and his wife being on the sideline and said the couple was in town for a wedding. Montgomery said he also apologized to Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops.

However, since Baylor plays Oklahoma later in the year, Lebby’s presence on the sideline violated NCAA bylaw 11.6.1, which prohibits “off-campus, in-person scouting of future opponents.”

The Baylor self-imposed suspension and the conference reprimand does not mean Lebby has escaped punishment for the NCAA, which likely will review the matter.

Briles called the situation “embarrassing,” but noted that there was little scouting advantage to Lebby’s presence.

Lebby is a graduate of Oklahoma and spent four years as a student assistant on the football staff after he suffered a season-ending injury during his freshman year in 2002.

Lebby is the third Baylor coach to suffer some sort of suspension already this season. Offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Kendal Briles (son of head coach Art Briles) and wide receivers coach Tate Wallis were suspended for the game against Lamar for an NCAA violation regarding recruiting.

Also, the Baylor football program is currently in the midst of an internal investigation by the university into the recruitment of Sam Ukwuachu, a former player who was recently convicted of raping a former female Baylor athlete.

Baylor was off last weekend and hosts Rice on Saturday.

For more Baylor news, visit SicEmSports.com.

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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter!

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