After former Northern Arizona head coach Mike Adras resigned his position in December, there was rampant speculation that it may have been more of a forced resignation. On my post about the resignation, there were some negative comments about him, but it was hard to separate what was true from what was not true.
However, that part may have gotten a little easier, depending on how much you believe of this AZ Daily Sun article that was posted on Sunday.
Former Northern Arizona men's basketball coach Mike Adras violated multiple NCAA and university regulations before he resigned in December, according to documents received by the Daily Sun.There is much more in the article, and I encourage you to give it a read. It is a bit disturbing, especially the parts about the culture of fear, and forcing players and assistant coaches to lie, as they feared there would be repurcussions if they did not.
An internal investigation also described a climate of "extreme fear" among players and assistant coaches if Adras were to learn they were cooperating with the probe.
Public records released by NAU documented the internal investigaton of Adras conducted last summer by athletic director Jim Fallis. Fallis concluded that Adras was responsible for multiple violations regarding basketball practice by the Lumberjacks, as players signed inaccurate time sheets to keep the permitted practice time within NCAA limits, according to the documents.
Even though Adras is now gone, it seems very possible that the NCAA will come down on the Lumberjacks program, possibly by taking away scholarships or practice time. I would be surprised if that did not happen.
Another thing is that this helps to explain why none of the assistant coaches were chosen to be the interim head coach, as they were probably all sorting through who did what in the NAU basketball program. It would not surprise me if there is a completely new staff next season, as the Lumberjacks try to move on.
It is clear that NAU will need an energetic coach to get past this, as it is a program in need of rebuilding. Though there is some young talent in place, they have looked very far away from contending this year. Combined with potential NCAA sanctions, and rebuilding will take some time and energy.
Hopefully NAU can make a good hire and work on rebuilding the program. They have traditionally been a strong Big Sky team, and hopefully they will get back to that level sooner rather than later.
Follow me on Twitter @bigskybball
I'm wondering why no is asking why NAU's AD is heading out the door to a lower level AD post after this fiasco. This looks like nothing more than a paper trail to justify earlier actions. These flimsy violations along with the accusations from one disgruntled, massively underachieving player and his unhappy parents should not be enough to remove a longtime coach mid-season.
ReplyDeleteHey (fellow) Anon, that would be the second "moving on" by Fallis after torching things. His actions in the final days at Northern Colorado have still have the football program recovering.
ReplyDeleteReally? Can't you just admit that Mr. Adras wasn't a very good coach nor a very good man? He got burned out. It happens. It's not about one disgruntled player, but rather a "Coach" that no longer coached but dictated. He no longer made the players better players, better students, or better young men.
ReplyDeleteLet's hope NAU can recover and we get back to a program we can be proud of.
you mention one disgruntled player and his unhappy parents...how about 11-12 players and parents that have left the program under Adras and 4-5 players just this season..It's quite obvious Adras had you and others fooled...you both need to be locked away
ReplyDeleteif only you people really knew the garbage the majority of the players went through. I'm thinking, unless you were one of his crooked boosters (that were getting benefits that should have gone to the student athletes) you wouldn't have stuck up for the person that held the position of "Coach" yet didn't coach at all. However, the young men involved are to smart to go public because this kind of garbage gets twisted in the media and will live forever while they have to move forward and find jobs. Let's see if the replacement coach can cut the ties with the crooked boosters that owned the previous one.
ReplyDeleteComing from a player who actually played at nau under Coach Adras. It is truely nice to see the man go!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteFirst off..sorry to hear about all the drama that Coach Adras has left NAU with. Now Mike has moved on and is now the acting AD at our local high school. After reading the many news stories of his NCAA violations and abusive behavior toward staff and players it really makes me scratch my head on the wisdom of his AD appointment here. In the brief time Mr. Adras has been here he's done a great job of making a BAD first impression to staff as well longtime supporters of Pittburg Senior High. Question..Did we let the fox into the hen house here ??
ReplyDeleteAs a former NAU men's basketball player, I'll be very straightforward in saying Mike Adras was one of the more destructive coach's I've encountered. Our team lost two consecutive Big Sky tournament championships. We didn't lose because we weren't the better team (taking nothing away from the two schools that beat us), we simply lacked self-confidence. Mike Adras was persistent in breaking young players down while wringing out their last drops of confidence. I wouldn't go as far as to call Adras a sadist, but you knew he didn't mind running guys until they collapse. Once on the ground you'd expect expletives and explanation to the rest of the team as to why that guy was letting us all down, and then the whole team would run. As an athlete we all understood the idea of "breaking" guys through mental and physical conditioning. Once a player is conditioned however, the coach gradually begins the arduous process of rebuilding that player's confidence in himself, his teammates, and his love for the game of basketball. Mike Adras unfortunately never seemed to understand this about 19-22 year old basketball players. Instead he seemed to reveal in breaking young guys down, and if they took too long getting up, it was as if he was saying "I told you you're worthless." Adras' idea of discipline on and off the court centered exclusively on the fear. I played basketball for Mike Adras for 4 years. After my final season I never spoke to the man again. I'm one of many who've never bothered to make contact. I hold no grudge against Adras, I just hope he learns to better deal with people. Good luck with your new A.D.
ReplyDeleteHE IS HATED BY COACHING STAFF PARENTS, STUDENTS.
ReplyDeleteI not sure what board voted for him . they must not have kids of their own attending pittsburg schools.
we are goig to lose all of talent to other area school because No wnats to be here with this FOOL.
HE IS NTO A PEOPLE PERSON HE TALKS DOWN TO EVERYONE. WE LOST OUR BEST CHEER COACH THIS YEAR BECAUSE OF HIM sTACY YOUR MISSED. OK DISTRICT GET ON YOUR JOB FIRE HIM BEFORE YOU LOSE ALL YOUR COACHES & PROGRAMS . BELIVE ME THE BVAL ARE WAITING FOR ALL OUR KIDS TO TRANSFER,
I am a parent at Pittsburg High School. I don't know who Adras knows on the school board but it is unbelievable that anybody in their right mind would place someone with his background in charge of coaches. Everyone you ask about Adras says the same thing, 'He's an a**hole". The first day the administrator introduced him they were defending him saying that they had done a thorough investigation on him and they had the right man for the job. Yeah right. Adras does not hire qualified coaches. He hires guys that kiss his a**. As a coach if you ask questions you get ran off, fired or just quit. He lies and bullies players and parents. To top it off he is making around $130,00 a year. Talk about a bad investment for the School. Not only that Adras lives in Las Vegas. Pittsburg is in the Bay Area in California. I bet our school district could get someone 10 times better for half the price. And then you have the grant money scam on study hall and dinner for athletes because they are starving (not many people know about that one). Sad times for Pittsburg High School.
ReplyDelete