by Bill DiFilippo / @bflip33
Missouri coach Frank Haith will be suspended for the first five games of this season for his role in the Miami/Nevin Shapiro scandal.
Haith coached at Miami for seven seasons, leading the Hurricanes to one NCAA Tournament appearance and four NITs. He compiled a record of 129-101 at Miami, and joined Missouri in 2011. Haith has gone 53-16 in his two seasons in Columbia, including a 23-11 mark last season.
But, according to the NCAA, Haith and three assistants paid Shapiro, a former Miami football booster, $10,000 after Shapiro threatened to expose the program for improper contact with high school players and amateur coaches.
From ESPN:
“While I strongly disagree with today’s report, and the inference on how the program was run at the University of Miami, as head basketball coach during that period, I accept responsibility for all actions in and around that program,” Haith said in a statement. “This has been an excruciating ordeal for my family. An appeal, which would likely drag further into the season, would only prolong what has already been a lengthy and trying period of time for our student-athletes, the University of Missouri and our fans, and it’s time for closure.”
Haith will miss the Tigers’ games against Southeastern Louisiana, Southern Illinois, Hawaii, Gardner-Webb and IUPUI. As for Miami, the program will lose one scholarship per year over the next three years.
