RALPH D. RUSSO
FILE - In this July 18, 2018, file photo, Atlantic Coast Conference commissioner John Swofford speaks during a news conference at the ACC NCAA college football media day in Charlotte, N.C. Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford is retiring after the 2020-21 academic year, ending his tenure after 24 years. Swofford, 71, has been commissioner of the ACC since 1997, the longest run in that position in the history of the 67-year-old conference. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton, File)
ACC Commissioner John Swofford stepping down after 24 years

By Ralph D. Russo Jun. 25, 2020 02:14 PM EDT
When John Swofford became commissioner of the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1997

In this April 25, 2020 photograph, a small Mississippi state flag is held by a participant during a drive-by "re-open Mississippi" protest past the Governor's Mansion, in the background, in Jackson, Miss. This current flag has in the canton portion of the banner the design of the Civil War-era Confederate battle flag, that has been the center of a long-simmering debate about its removal or replacement. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
NCAA expands ban, joins SEC in targeting Confederate flag

By Ralph D. Russo Jun. 19, 2020 11:30 AM EDT
The NCAA on Friday expanded its policy banning states with prominent

FILE - In this Sept. 30, 2019, file photo, Baylor women's coach Kim Mulkey, center, talks with players during the NCAA college basketball team's practice in Waco, Texas. The NCAA Division I Council on Wednesday, June 17, 2020, approved a plan to allow college basketball players to start working with their coaches for the first time since the pandemic wiped out March Madness. The summer access period for men's and women's players will begin July 20. (Jerry Larson/Waco Tribune-Herald via AP, File)
NCAA approves plan for basketball players to access coaches

By Ralph D. Russo Jun. 17, 2020 08:34 PM EDT
The NCAA Division I Council on Wednesday approved a plan to allow college

FILE - In this Nov. 10, 2018, file photo, Texas players sing "The Eyes of Texas" after an NCAA college football game against Texas Tech in Lubbock, Texas. A group of University of Texas football players and athletes across several sports on Friday, June 12, 2020, urged the school to rename several campus buildings, change the traditional school song and donate a percentage of athletic department revenue to organizations supporting the Black Lives Matter movement. (AP Photo/Brad Tollefson, File)
NCAA encourages day off from college sports on election day

By Ralph D. Russo Jun. 12, 2020 05:11 PM EDT
The NCAA on Friday encouraged its 1,100 member colleges and universities to

Temple's Patrick Kraft hired as Boston College AD

By Ralph D. Russo Jun. 03, 2020 12:03 PM EDT
Boston College hired Patrick Kraft as its new athletic director on Wednesday,

FILE - In this March 15, 2019, file photo, Buffalo's Dontay Caruthers (22) looks to pass as Central Michigan's Dallas Morgan (23) defends during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in the semifinals of the Mid-American Conference men's tournament in Cleveland. The Mid-American Conference is eliminating postseason tournaments in eight sports, including baseball and softball, and men's and women's basketball are among nine sports that will have postseasons scaled back. The MAC's announced the cost-cutting move Tuesday in response to the financial crisis being brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak, File)
MAC eliminating and scaling back postseason tournaments

By Ralph D. Russo May. 12, 2020 07:58 PM EDT
The Mid-American Conference is eliminating postseason tournaments in eight

FILE - From left are American Athletic Conference Commissioner Mike Aresco, in a 2017 file photo and Vice President Mike Pence in a 2020 file photo. The commissioners of the major college football conferences held a 30-minute conference call Wednesday, April 15, 2020, with Vice President Mike Pence and stressed to him that college sports could not return from the coronavirus shutdown until college campuses have re-opened. “We were able to talk about the differences between us and professional sports,” American Athletic Conference Commissioner Mike Aresco said. (AP Photo/File)
Commissioners tell VP no football before campuses open

By Ralph D. Russo Apr. 15, 2020 04:55 PM EDT
The commissioners of the nation's major college football conferences held a 30

In this June 13, 2018 file photo, grounds crew prepare TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb., for the NCAA baseball College World Series. The Division I baseball championship, decided in this city of just under a half-million for the past 70 years, is among the many sporting events canceled or postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik, file)
Preparing for budget crunch, conferences ask NCAA for relief

By Ralph D. Russo Apr. 14, 2020 09:59 PM EDT
Five major football conference commissioners have asked the NCAA to relax some

FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, file photo, Tennessee coach Rick Barnes talks with guard Santiago Vescovi, of Uruguay, during the second half of the team's NCAA college basketball game against Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tenn. With competition canceled across all NCAA divisions due to the coronavirus, many foreign athletes face a dilemma, return home or stay. Tennessee's men’s basketball team has players from France, Serbia, Uruguay and Finland, which meant Mary-Carter Eggert, the director of basketball operations, became a travel agent, looking for the best flights. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)
Pandemic fallout: NCAA slashes distribution by $375 million

By Ralph D. Russo Mar. 27, 2020 01:22 AM EDT
Canceling March Madness because of the coronavirus pandemic will cost the NCAA

FILE - This March 12, 2020, file photo, shows the national office of the NCAA in Indianapolis. The NCAA will distribute $225 million to its Division I members in June, $375 million less than had been budgeted this year because the coronavirus outbreak forced the cancellation of the men's basketball tournament. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)
Pandemic fallout: NCAA slashes distribution by $375 million

By Ralph D. Russo Mar. 26, 2020 02:45 PM EDT
Canceling March Madness because of the coronavirus pandemic will cost the NCAA

Official March Madness 2020 tournament basketballs are seen in a store room at the CHI Health Center Arena, in Omaha, Neb., Monday, March 16, 2020. Omaha was to host a first and second round in the NCAA college basketball Division I tournament, which was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
How will NCAA recoup millions from lost tournament?

By Ralph D. Russo Mar. 17, 2020 05:25 AM EDT
The NCAA made more than $1 billion last year, almost $867 million from the men

Clemson players leave the floor after the NCAA college basketball games at the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament were canceled due to concerns over the coronavirus in Greensboro, N.C., Thursday, March 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
AP Exclusive: Inside NCAA's attempt to save March Madness

By Ralph D. Russo Mar. 13, 2020 03:12 PM EDT
As it became apparent the NCAA basketball tournaments could not be held during

Mike Lemcke, from Richmond, Va., sits in an empty Greensboro Coliseum after the NCAA college basketball games were cancelled at the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Thursday, March 12, 2020. The biggest conferences in college sports all canceled their basketball tournaments because of the new coronavirus, seemingly putting the NCAA Tournament in doubt. (AP Photo/Ben McKeown)
March Madness: NCAA Tournaments canceled due to coronavirus

By Ralph D. Russo Mar. 12, 2020 12:35 PM EDT
March Madness came to a screeching halt before a bracket could even be filled

FILE - In this March 19, 2019, file photo, Fairleigh Dickinson's Kaleb Bishop (12) and Prairie View A&M's Iwin Ellis (13) leap for the opening tip-off in the first half of a First Four game of the NCAA college basketball tournament in Dayton, Ohio. NCAA President Mark Emmert says NCAA Division I basketball tournament games will be played without fans in the arenas because of concerns about the spread of coronavirus. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)
NCAA tournaments are on _ for now _ but mostly without fans

By Ralph D. Russo Mar. 11, 2020 04:18 PM EDT
The NCAA basketball tournaments are on — for now — though the buzzer-beaters,

FILE - In this March 17, 2019, file photo, Yale players pose for a photograph with the championship trophy after defeating Harvard in an NCAA college basketball game for the Ivy League championship at Yale University in New Haven, Conn. The Ivy League on Tuesday, March 10, 2020, canceled its men's and women's basketball tournaments because of concerns about the spread of coronavirus. The four-team tournaments were scheduled to be played Friday through Sunday at Lavietes Pavilion in Cambridge. The Ivy League instead will award its automatic NCAA Tournament bids to the regular-season champions, the Princeton women and Yale men. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill, File)
Ivy League cancels tournaments; 2 other conferences bar fans

By Ralph D. Russo Mar. 10, 2020 11:46 AM EDT
The Ivy League on Tuesday canceled its men's and women's basketball tournaments

Yeshiva University players, foreground, warm up in a mostly empty Goldfarb Gymnasium at Johns Hopkins University before playing against Worcester Polytechnic Institute in a first-round game at the men's Division III NCAA college basketball tournament, Friday, March 6, 2020, in Baltimore, The university held the tournament without spectators after cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Maryland. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)
AP Q&A with NCAA chief medical officer on COVID-19

By Ralph D. Russo Mar. 06, 2020 09:47 PM EST
Less than two weeks away from the start of the NCAA Division I men's and women

Kentucky coach John Calipari directs his team against Michigan State during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Maxey leads No. 2 Kentucky past No. 1 Michigan State 69-62

By Ralph D. Russo Nov. 06, 2019 12:23 AM EST
NEW YORK (AP) — Kentucky's latest freshman star is a guard from Texas who likes

No. 25 VCU picked to win the Atlantic 10 championship

By Ralph D. Russo Oct. 24, 2019 11:01 AM EDT
NEW YORK (AP) — No. 25 VCU is favored to win the Atlantic 10 men's basketball

FILE - In this July 2, 2013, file photo, former FBI Director Louis Freeh leaves Federal Court in New Orleans. The NCAA unveiled a new arm of rules enforcement made up of independent investigators, advocates and decision-makers to handle what it calls complex cases involving serious infractions. The Independent Accountability Resolution Process will be comprised of four groups, including the Complex Case Unit, which will conduct investigations and provide representation for schools and individuals accused of violations. Among those chosen for the CCU were former FBI Director Louis Freeh. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)
NCAA unveils new enforcement arm with outside investigators

By Ralph D. Russo Aug. 01, 2019 02:19 PM EDT
The NCAA introduced Thursday a new arm of rules enforcement made up of independent

Pac-12 revenue drops $12 million, but school payouts rise

By Ralph D. Russo May. 20, 2019 05:29 PM EDT
Pac-12 revenue fell by $12 million in 2018 to $497 million because the conference