Oklahoma downplays scholarship availability

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A day after Gene Stephenson reneged on a deal to become Oklahoma coach, school officials downplayed the coach's concerns about "unresolvable" scholarship issues with the baseball program.

Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione said Tuesday in a statement that the Sooners baseball team has had no problems complying with NCAA guidelines in the past and expected none in the future.

The NCAA allows schools to offer 11.7 scholarships each year to baseball players, and they can be divided in any way. Exceeding that number is a violation of NCAA rules.

In his statement, Castiglione acknowledged that Oklahoma had 15.7 scholarships spoken for on Monday, but he said the number had dropped to 14.5 by Tuesday. He said the drop illustrates "how quickly and how dramatically the number can move."

On Monday, Stephenson backed out on Oklahoma and decided to remain at Wichita State, just hours after a news conference to introduce him as the Sooners' new coach.

In a statement released by Wichita State, Stephenson claimed he and his staff decided not to take the Oklahoma job because of scholarship issues at the school that were "unresolvable to our satisfaction."

"As we assessed the Oklahoma baseball scholarship situation, we would be too limited in our ability to take the program in the direction that we think it should go," he said in the statement.

Castiglione said financial awards in baseball are evaluated each semester

"A snapshot taken at any point prior to the second semester might show a projection higher than the NCAA limit in those awards, but ... we have never had difficulty adhering to the NCAA maximums prior to the start of the season," Castiglione said.

"And this is not something that is unique to Oklahoma. Our feeling is that the matters related to scholarships are manageable."

Oklahoma spokesman Kenny Mossman said he did not know specifically why the number of baseball scholarships spoken for dropped, but it was not a reaction to Stephenson's comments. Instead, Mossman said, the decline could have been a result of a player signing a pro contract or the university processing a player's request to leave the team.

Mossman said the amount of scholarships available to Stephenson would depend on the level of attrition in the program due to players signing professional contracts, transferring or leaving for personal reasons. Four Oklahoma players and four signees were selected in the Major League Baseball amateur draft.

"Whether it reached the point where he would have been able to bring in additional players or not, that's a tough call," Mossman said.

Castiglione said baseball is one of several sports in which scholarships are offered above NCAA limits.

"It is especially common in sports with a culture of incoming and current student-athletes who do not attend or return to the university for a variety of reasons, including professional draft opportunities, transfers, initial and continuing eligibility concerns and other reasons that might be specific to the individual," Castiglione said.

"In determining how many scholarships are offered, those factors are taken into consideration by baseball coaches, including those at OU, to ensure that there are an adequate number on the roster when the season begins."

Mossman said Oklahoma was in compliance with the NCAA's limit of 11.7 scholarships at the beginning of the semester.

"It's our anticipation that we will be at 11.7 or below when next spring semester starts," Mossman said.

Stephenson is the second-winningest coach in Division I history with a 1,506-489-3 record in 28 seasons at Wichita State.