Big 12 could block freshmen athletes with misconduct history

The Big 12 is considering instituting a policy of banning schools from accepting freshmen athletes with histories of violent misconduct, league commissioner Bob Bowlsby announced.

If this plan is adopted, the Big 12 would become the first FBS league with a conference-wide conduct policy affecting recruits.

“It’s really about doing due diligence,” Bowlsby said at the Big 12 athletic director meetings this week. “It’s really about the right questions being asked. There are some schools that do background checks [on players].”

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The league is set to implement a transfer policy similar to the SEC’s that would block players with records of serious misconduct from transferring to a Big 12 school. The Big 12 is still developing its definition of misconduct, but the SEC defines it as sexual assault, domestic violence or other sexual violence. The transfer rule should officially be in place in a few months, Kansas athletic director Sheahon Zenger told CBS Sports.

The idea for the policy was introduced after former Baylor player Sam Ukwuachu was convicted in August of raping a former Baylor women’s soccer player after he transferred from Boise State, where he also had a record of violence. He is now serving a six-month jail sentence with 10 years of felony probation.

- Erin Flynn

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