NCAA Investigating Auburn’s Football Program

The Auburn Tigers are 3-8 and winless in the Southeastern Conference, which already has head coach Gene Chizik’s job in jeopardy. Now, things are looking even bleaker as reports have emerged that Auburn is being investigated by the NCAA for alleged recruiting violations.

ESPN reports that the NCAA investigation focuses on recruiting violations, including the situation surrounding the recruitment of running back Jovon Robinson, who was ruled ineligible by the NCAA this season and is not currently enrolled at Auburn. The investigation, however, is not limited to Robinson.

Yahoo’s Pat Forde reports that Auburn assistant coaches Trooper Taylor and Curtis Luper are facing NCAA scrutiny and have been taken off the recruiting trail. Taylor is the assistant head coach and wide receivers coach and Luper coaches running backs and is the recruiting coordinator. When Chizik was asked to comment on which coaches were still involved in active recruiting, he declined.

Auburn is just two years removed from a national championship, winning the BCS title game against Oregon in 2011 22-19 with Chizik as head coach. Things haven’t gone as well since then. Auburn went 8-5 in Chizk’s first season with the Tigers before their 14-0 national title run in 2010. In 2011, it was right back to 8-5 and this season includes only three wins and an 0-7 record in the SEC.

Auburn’s wins this season haven’t exactly come against top notch competition either, defeating only Louisiana-Monroe, New Mexico State, and Alabama A&M.

Reports that the NCAA has interviewed several people in connection with the investigation into Auburn recruiting violations this week provide an unneeded distraction as the Tigers prepare to take on No. 2-ranked Alabama on Saturday.

(Photo by Carol Highsmith)