Two of Sean Miller's former assistants will serve lengthy show-cause penalties for their part in the Arizona case, but he won't be facing any sanctions.
The panel said that the university received lesser sanctions because of its decision to self-impose a postseason ban. All wins in which two athletes were identified as student-athletes must be erased. The games impacted by "student-athletes No. 1 and 2" took place in the last two years.
The state of Arizona was accused of five Level I violations from incidents that took place during Miller's time there. Miller was accused of not demonstrating that he promoted an atmosphere for compliance and monitored his staff within the basketball program.
There were NCAA violations at Arizona that resulted in 10-year and two-year show-cause penalties for former assistants Book Richardson and Mark Phelps. The men's basketball and swimming and diving programs were found to have committed NCAA violations.
The hearing panel found no violation for the former head men's basketball coach because they found that he promoted an atmosphere of compliance and monitored two of his assistant coaches.
The IARP ruling allows Miller to move forward.
He said in a statement that he was happy that everything was finished. I'm looking forward to moving forward. I would like to thank my wife Amy and my entire family for their support through this process.
The sanctions against the program were influenced by Arizona's self-imposed ban for the 2020-21 season. The school will pay a fine and lose a scholarship because of it.
The panel didn't prescribe penalties that would have a negative impact on student-athletes.
The 10-year show cause for Richardson, who pleaded guilty in federal court to accepting bribes to steer prospects to what the FBI called "corrupt financial managers" and served time in prison as a result, essentially eliminates him from the sport for the next 10 years. Richardson paid $40,000 for a fraudulent transcript in order to keep an athlete eligible. The coach was the only one charged with a Level I violation.
Richardson did not cooperate with the investigators.
The former assistant men's basketball coach at Arizona failed to cooperate with the NCAA during the investigation of possible violations by knowingly providing false information and refusing to reveal information relevant to the investigation.
The head coach at Prolific Prep was hit with a two-year show cause after committing Level II and Level III violations for asking a player to lie about an impermissible $500 loan.
The Independent Accountability Resolution Process was chosen by the state of Arizona. It is not possible to appeal the IARP's decision.
Four years have passed since a federal wiretap captured runner Christian Dawkins telling financial adviser Munish Sood that Miller was behind a series of five-figure payments to Deandre Ayton. Miller has always denied paying players.
Miller denied in a statement that he had ever violated NCAA rules while he was the head coach.
Miller made an effort to emphasize the importance of compliance to his staff and players according to an IARP panelist. She said that the two people were deceptive.
The record shows the actions the former coach took to make sure his staff and players understood the importance of compliance. Most of the actions taken by the two assistant coaches were not public. They were criminals. The head coach wouldn't have been able to detect these types of actions.
The information did not support Miller's coach responsibility.
Richardson said in a statement that he deserves another chance and that a documentary will show the changes he has made in his life since he was arrested in the federal investigation.
"With today's release of the findings tied to the NCAA's investigation of the University of Arizona, I finally haveclosure on a long and tough chapter of my life," he said. I made a mistake five and a half years ago. Basketball is an extremely important part of my life and something that has haunted me.
There have been a lot of events in the last five years. I've been in a federal prison. Two years have passed since I was released from federal supervision. I have been wiped out by the game that I love. I have used this time to become a better teacher, mentor, person, friend, uncle, brother, son and father. I can't allow myself to be dictated by who I am. I am a person who helps others. A coach who made a mistake paid his debts to society.
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