The Verdict Is In
Frank Vitovitch
December 17, 1999

Notre Dame, Ind - It's official - Notre Dame is on probation for the first time in school history as a result of the Dunbar fiasco.  If you are a Notre Dame fan and you don't know about the whole situation you must have been living in a shell.  To make a long story short, Dunbar embezzled over $1 million from her job and spent some money to take Notre Dame players on trips and to buy them gifts (it was a fraction of what she embezzled however).  Since she paid $25 to join the since disbanded Quarterback Club, the NCAA ruled she was a booster of the school.

After a long, drawn out investigation, the NCAA Infractions Committee finally made their rule made public today.  The punishment is called major, but in name only.  Notre Dame will be on probation for two years and lose two scholarships, one a year for the next two seasons.  Notre Dame can still go to a bowl game and can still be on TV every week.  All in all, it could have been a lot worse.

Dunbar was romantically involved with a few of the players such as Jarvis Edison with whom she had a child and Derrick Mayes who now plays in the NFL. Dunbar took Derrick Mayes to Las Vegas with her in 1994.  The coaching staff discovered this, but once they found out she was romantically involved with Mayes, they dropped it. 

The NCAA has said that its not the fact that Dunbar gave gifts to the players she was involved with that brought the sanctions, its the lack of a throughout investigation by Notre Dame in the matters as well as her interaction with other players and their parents.

Basically, this will be labeled as major infractions, but it could have been a lot worse.  Notre Dame could have lost more scholarships, could have not been allowed to go to bowl games, or could have had it's contract with NBC affected, but Notre Dame only lost two scholarships and was placed on probation.

This can only help recruiting for this year the way I see it.  This thing was hanging over Notre Dame throughout the recruiting season, and now its over and the penalty is not too harsh.  Recruits who were concerned about the possible major sanctions can now be told it's not that bas, and coaches from other schools can't say Notre Dame is going to get hammered anymore.

This is clearly, however, an black eye for the university and Notre Dame will have to be extra careful over the next two years to make sure nothing even remotely major happens since they will be on probation.

Notre Dame haters will be flooding the NCAA with letters and the message boards saying this was too easy, but in reality it fir the crime.   Yes, Notre Dame could have done a better job investigating, but the fact remains that this woman's only tie to the university was a $25 membership to a now disbanded Quarterback club.