Fresno State wrestling under investigation after reports of stripper at team party

Fresno State is investigating potential athletics department and NCAA rules violations in its wrestling program after receiving internal reports that a stripper danced at a party last year that included recruits on official visits to the university.

That allegation is part of an overall independent review of the four-year-old program and could lead to disciplinary action through the university for coaches and student-athletes and NCAA sanctions for the program.

“Fresno State athletics is aware of allegations about the wrestling program and is following all (California State University) and campus policies in conjunction with university administration, the Big 12 Conference, and the NCAA,” athletics director Terry Tumey said, in a statement provided to The Bee.

“Fresno State takes all allegations of misconduct seriously and, as such, a thorough investigation into all aspects of the wrestling program was initiated immediately upon learning of these allegations. At this time, the investigation is on-going and, therefore, we are not able to make any additional comments at this time.”

Wrestling coach Troy Steiner was not made available to comment, according to an athletics department spokesperson.

Prohibited activities on an official visit are outlined in the athletics department’s student-athlete handbook. These include:

• Use of alcohol of any kind by the host or prospect, regardless of age.
• Drug use of any kind.
• Sexual misconduct.
• Use of ‘adult entertainment’ services or facilities of any kind.
• Any activity that violates state or federal law.
• Abusive conduct which threatens or endangers the physical or psychological health, safety or welfare of any individual.
• Any other behavior that is illegal, inappropriate or results in embarrassment to Fresno State, its athletic programs, its student-athletes or its prospective student-athletes.

In addition, student-athletes who serve as hosts on a recruiting visit sign a form that lists department rules and prohibited activities, and agree to abide by all NCAA, conference and university rules and regulations.

Fresno State’s contracts with its coaches also include language requiring them to have knowledge of and adhere to NCAA, Mountain West Conference and university rules, policies and bylaws, and to report any violations to the athletics director and director of compliance.

A failure to report could result in termination or suspension with or without pay for a period to be determined by the university president or designee.

The NCAA holds its member institutions responsible for written departmental policies related to official recruiting visits, and schools may be held accountable by the Committee on Infractions for any activities that demonstrate a clear disregard for stated policies.

Wrestling at Fresno State

Fresno State had discontinued its wrestling program in 2006 as a cost-cutting measure for a cash-strapped athletics department. The move, coinciding with the return of men’s cross country, was expected to save the athletics department around $350,000 to $400,000 a year.

But there were other factors in that wrestling was not sponsored by the Western Athletic Conference, the Bulldogs’ home at that time. The program also lacked a dedicated practice facility on campus, a cost-effective venue for competition and its student-athletes struggled in the classroom.

When the program was shut down, it had an Academic Progress Rate score of 871, among the bottom 10% of wrestling programs in the nation.

University President Joseph I. Castro in 2015 announced that Fresno State would reinstate the sport, adding wrestling and women’s water polo programs to a department that already was struggling to keep pace with the escalating costs of college athletics.

Steiner was hired a year later and the Bulldogs joined the Big 12 Conference as an affiliate member and competed in their first dual meet in more than a decade in 2017.

The Bulldogs’ coach is under contract through June 30, 2023 at $127,632 a year. Assistant coaches Izzy Silva and Jason Chamberlain are on one-year deals that run through June 30.

Fresno State has had success on the mat under Steiner, who had five wrestlers qualify for the national championship meet last season. The program is also in much better standing academically – it posted an Academic Progress Rate score of 967 for 2018-19 and a multi-year score (four years) of 963; a multi-year score of 930 is required for a team to compete in NCAA championship events.

Cost

The Bulldogs’ wrestling program is supported by a combination of donor contributions and university and athletics department funding — at Fresno State, football and wrestling are the only men’s sports programs that receive direct institutional support.

It received $160,000 from the university in 2019, according to the annual financial report Fresno State submits to the NCAA, with $243,576 coming from donors. It had a total of $588,827 in operating revenue last year. Of that only $79,645 came from ticket revenue, a decline of more than $38,000 from 2018 when ticket sales generated $118,252.

Total expenses for the program in 2019 were listed at $1,129,826, considerably more than projected when the Bulldogs’ athletics department was in a three-phase plan to reinstate the sport.

Department officials then had estimated the cost to operate the program to be around $689,000 a year.

This story was originally published June 17, 2020 at 8:07 AM.