The number of men's basketball programs under NCAA scrutiny related to the federal investigation of corruption within the sport has risen to five after TCU acknowledged to Sports Illustrated on Wednesday that it has received a Notice of Allegations (NOA) from the NCAA. The other four programs publicly known to have received an NOA related to the investigation are Oklahoma State, NC State, USC and Kansas.
TCU did not release the contents of the NCAA-issued NOA, so nitty gritty details of its alleged misdeeds remain a mystery. TCU did, however, acknowledge that it is related to former assistant coach Corey Barker, sho was fired last spring after being linked to the scandal.
Barker allegedly accepted money in exchange for steering players under his influence to specific financial advisors and agents including Christian Dawkins, one of the key figures in the scandal. Dawkins was found guilty in two separate -- but related -- cases against him related to the scandal.
Barker served as an assistant coach at Arkansas State, Bowling Green and Louisiana Tech prior to his stint at TCU. Prior to those Division I gigs, he worked as an assistant coach at a junior college in Texas. He graduated from Prairie View A&M in 2003.
He is not the first assistant coach to become ensnared in the bribery scandal. Four other assistant coaches were identified in an investigation from federal authorities over the course of several years, many of whom accepted plea deals or went to trial and were convicted.
TCU is just the latest school to officially enter the NCAA's crosshairs, but it won't be the last. Arizona, LSU, Louisville and Auburn are also under investigation, according to SI, though as of now none of the quartet has received a Notice of Allegations.
