LSU Football Vacates 37 Total Wins, Basketball Also on Probation

Following a review by the NCAA’s Independent Accountability Resolution Panel (IARP), LSU has made the decision to vacate all its football wins from 2012 to 2015. This action comes as a result of violations discovered, specifically regarding former offensive lineman Vadal Alexander’s ineligibility throughout his college career.

The #LSU Football program has vacated all 37 wins from 2012-2015:https://t.co/wGDjDddxzi pic.twitter.com/FcHCadKlx9

— TigerDroppings (@TigerDroppings) June 22, 2023

LSU Will Vacate 37 Wins in Total

The vacated wins include 37 victories, including two bowl game wins. Due to this penalty, former LSU head coach Les Miles is no longer eligible for the College Football Hall of Fame. Prior to the vacated wins, Miles held a record of 145-73 (.665) as a head coach. His official record now stands at 108-73 (.597). To be considered for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame, candidates must have a minimum career win percentage of .600. Miles, who last coached at Kansas in the 2019-2020 season before his departure following allegations of inappropriate conduct during his time at LSU, falls below the eligibility threshold.

LSU took the initiative to self-impose the penalty in 2022, although the details remained confidential until the recent finalization of the ruling. Additionally, LSU imposed self-sanctions in the form of scholarship reductions, resulting in the loss of eight football scholarships and two men’s basketball scholarships.

Lineman Vadal Alexander is at the Center of the Investigation

The ineligibility of Vadal Alexander stemmed from his father’s involvement in receiving $180,150 in embezzled funds from John Paul Funes, the former head of the Our Lady of the Lake Foundation. Funes pleaded guilty to embezzlement charges in 2019, having been accused of misusing nearly $800,000 from the fundraising system of the Our Lady of the Lake hospital system. In exchange for the funds received, Funes offered Alexander’s mother a job at an OLOL hospital and his father a position at the foundation. This incident was classified as a Level I violation.

LSU Basketball is Also on Probation

It is worth noting that LSU football is currently under probation due to recruiting violations committed by former offensive line coach James Cregg. The program’s probation will extend for three more years starting in September, following the ruling by the IARP. All decisions made by the IARP are considered final. The LSU men’s basketball program will also face three years of probation as a result of the IARP ruling. Former LSU men’s basketball head coach Will Wade, who is now the head coach at McNeese State, received a 10-game suspension and a two-year show-cause order in connection with the ruling.

Will Wade has been given a two-year show-cause order until 2025 and a 10-game suspension, per the IARP. LSU football and men’s basketball have also been placed on probation for three years. Both the football and men’s basketball program previously self-imposed penalties.

— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) June 22, 2023

“We are pleased that our current men’s basketball student-athletes will not be punished for the acts of others and that the Independent Resolution Panel accepted our self-imposed penalties for football,” LSU president William Tate IV and athletic director Scott Woodward said in a statement. “We are grateful to the members of the panel for their time and fairness. LSU is now moving forward along with our passionate fans supporting our current coaches and student-athletes in both men’s basketball and football.”