Timeline of investigation

From information compiled by the Southeast Missourian and the NCAA public infractions report for Southeast Missouri State:

• Jan. 20, 2006 — Southeast Missouri State University president Dr. Ken Dobbins asks the Ohio Valley Conference to conduct a review of the women's basketball program based on unspecified allegations of NCAA violations made by a former assistant women's basketball coach, according to a letter from Dobbins to OVC commissioner Dr. Jon Steinbrecher.
• Feb. 8, 2006 — Dobbins makes a formal request of the OVC to investigate alleged violations. Shortly after, the NCAA is contacted per standard policy of the OVC.
• Feb. 10, 2006 — Following a request from the Southeast Missourian for comment, Southeast Missouri State and the Ohio Valley Conference issue statements acknowledging that an investigation of the women's basketball program is taking place.
• March 4, 2006 — The Southeast women's team, co-champions of the OVC during the regular season, beat Tennessee Tech 71-50 in the championship game of the conference tournament to earn the program's first title and first NCAA tournament appearance.
• March 18, 2006 — Southeast falls to Stanford 72-45 in an NCAA tournament game in Denver.
• April 10, 2006 — The NCAA enforcement staff, which had received information detailing violations from a confidential source in December 2005, issues a notice of inquiry to Southeast Missouri State.
• April 12, 2006 — Women's basketball coach B.J. Smith receives a three-year contract extension with a raise from $62,000 to $75,000 after a four-year period in which the program was 79-41 with its first conference title and two tourney runner-up finishes.
• May 2006 — According to the the public infractions report, Southeast self-reported a secondary violation of improper benefits for a high school coach who was allowed to serve as scorekeeper for the team and gained free admission the OVC tournament.
• June 30, 2006 — Southeast releases the findings of a preliminary report conducted by The Compliance Group on behalf of the OVC. The report finds several prospective and enrolled student-athletes received transportation arranged by a member of the basketball staff to airports, prospects were transported to campus by a student-athlete for official visits, the university provided a per diem during a holiday break when it was not appropriate, a prospect not yet enrolled received the use of a staff member's computer and transportation to move a used bed, prospects stayed in a house during the summer without paying the appropriate rent or not paying any rent and the coaching staff had inappropriate contact by observing summer workouts of prospective and enrolled students. The university imposed sanctions recommended in the report, including reducing the number of scholarships for 2006-07 from 15 to 12, reducing the number of recruiting days for 2006-07 from 85 to 80 and restricting Smith from off-campus recruiting activities during the July 2006 evaluation period to improve monitoring of summer activities. According to the news release, Southeast expected the NCAA enforcement staff to complete its investigation by August.
• Aug. 26, 2006 — Dobbins, impressed by the thoroughness and expediency of the NCAA review, tells the Southeast Missourian he is optimistic the university may hear something on its fate in September.
• September 2006 — The NCAA enforcement group provided the university and Smith with a notice of allegations for review. The parties agreed to resolve the case using the summary disposition process.
• Oct. 11, 2006 — Southeast was picked for fifth in the OVC preseason women's basketball poll.
• Nov. 9, 2006 — Two days before Southeast was to open its season at Tulsa, Smith is placed on paid personal leave by the university for undisclosed reasons. The terms of his leave say Smith may not have contact with the team in games or practices. John Ishee is named the acting head coach.
• Dec. 6, 2006 — Smith's resignation, retroactive to Dec. 1, was announced in a joint statement by Smith and the university. The agreement pays Smith his base salary through May 31, 2007. According to a Southeast Missourian story, the disciplinary action against Smith taken the previous month centers around a "Coaching of Basketball" class that Smith instructed which met infrequently in the first few weeks of the semester.
• Jan. 20, 2007 — Smith returns to campus for the ceremony to raise the program's 2005-06 OVC championship banners.
• Feb. 13, 2007 — In response to a request from the Southeast Missourian, the university releases documents including a July 2004 memo from then-assistant AD for compliance Alicia Scott that said the women's basketball program was operating with disregard to university, NCAA, ethical and moral policies. The memo alleged a 2003 internal investigation of the program was undermined by a concerted effort.
• March 3, 2007 — Two days after Ishee was named the OVC coach of the year, the Redhawks capture a second straight OVC tournament title and NCAA berth.
• March 5, 2007 — Ishee is named head coach with a three-year deal.
• March 17, 2007 — Southeast falls 74-60 to Oklahoma in an NCAA tournament game in Austin, Texas.
• July 19, 2007 — The summary disposition report was provided to the NCAA Committee on Infractions.
• Aug. 10-12, 2007 — The NCAA Committee on Infractions reviews the report and accepts the findings, but decides a review of penalties is necessary, according to a letter sent by a member of the committee to the university in September.
• Oct. 5-7, 2007 — The NCAA Committee on Infractions decides that further penalties against Southeast should include vacating the university's records from 2002-03 through 2005-06 and that the university's 2006 NCAA tournament appearance should be stricken. The committee informed the university in a letter dated Oct. 9 that the violations merited this action because they were serious and intentional, included direct involvement by a coach, were large in number and involved ineligible competition with a finding of a lack of institutional control.
• Nov. 8, 2007 — The university announces Dobbins, athletic director Don Kaverman, OVC commissioner Steinbrecher and Chuck Smrt from The Compliance Group intend to appear before the NCAA Committee on Infractions in December in an expedited hearing to appeal the penalties.
• Dec. 3, 2007 — Smith requests a full hearing in front of the committee.
• Dec. 5, 2007 — Dobbins, after finding out the expedited appeal has been canceled, sends a letter to the NCAA expressing his disappointment that the appeal has been pushed off until April or June of 2008. The university releases this correspondence as well as the October letter from the NCAA Committee on Infractions disclosing the further penalties.
• April 19, 2008 — University officials and Smith appear before the NCAA Committee on Infractions.
• June 18, 2008 — The Southeast Missouri State Public Infractions Report is released by the NCAA, penalizing the university with two years' probation and a vacation of records for women's basketball in 2004-05 and the 2005-06 OVC championship season. Smith is cited for failure to monitor summer activities in his program, though he is not penalized personally, and the university is cited for lack of institutional control. Dobbins said the university will examine the case before deciding whether to appeal.