In a letter to fans posted on kstatesports.com, K-State athletic director John Currie says the athletic administration pursued the reinstatement of Jamar Samuels past the tipoff of the Cats’ NCAA tournament game against Syracuse. Currie says they identified an NCAA violation involving Samuels on Friday night, making him ineligible to compete against the Orange. K-State appealed, and they learned during the first half he would be unable to play. Currie says K-State would’ve continued the effort to reinstate Samuels had the Cats advanced to the Sweet 16.
Currie also says one of their goals is to run a model intercollegiate athletics program, and didn’t want to face the repercussions of knowingly playing an ineligible athlete. He says when they receive information on a potential vioation, they have the obligation to investigate.
