In a move that was disappointing but not surprising to UM, the NCAA this week ruled out Miami’s slim hopes of the case being dismissed before UM and former Hurricanes coaches have a full hearing in front of the infractions committee on June 14-16 in Indianapolis, according to multiple sources.
Temple law professor Eleanor Myers, a member of the NCAA’s infractions committee, informed UM and four former Hurricanes coaches that she does not believe she has the authority to dismiss the case pre-hearing. The infractions committee had given Myers the assignment of ruling on UM’s and the coaches’ motions to dismiss.
It always seemed unlikely to everyone involved that Myers would take the step of dismissing the case on her own – even though UM and the coaches presented compelling evidence for why the case has been tainted.
Myers told the parties they still have the option to present the motion to dismiss at the full hearing, and UM and the four coaches (Frank Haith, Jorge Fernandez, Jake Morton and Aubrey Hill) will again try to get the case dismissed then.
But it’s considered unlikely that the infraction committee would dismiss the case several hours into the hearing on June 14. What’s more likely is that the eight infractions committee members who are assigned to the case would hear all of the evidence from UM, the coaches, and the NCAA’s enforcement staff and then make a decision in the aftermath – a decision that could take weeks or a few months.
The hearing, at NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis, is expected to last two or three days.
