Kansas coach Bill Self and assistant coach Kurtis Townsend were held off the road for the live recruiting period in June and July, sources told CBS Sports. Self and Townsend missed the biggest period in college basketball recruiting, which came and went Sunday afternoon without the reigning national champions leading key events around the country.
The Jayhawks weren’t without representation across the country, however, as assistants Norm Roberts and Jeremy Case were on the road throughout the spring and summer.
Kansas officials could not comment on the matter, as the NCAA threatens additional penalties if schools publicly discuss ongoing cases.
Self and Townsend were subject to self-imposed sanctions by Kansas that signal the first cooperative effort by the program as it continues a years-long battle with the NCAA stemming from the FBI investigation into bribery and corruption in college basketball recruiting. KU received its Notice of Allegations from the NCAA in September 2019 before issuing a strongly worded response in May 2020. Since then, Kansas and the NCAA have been quiet about the case publicly.
Privately, Kansas has fought fiercely against nearly every allegation that the NCAA is pinning Self and the program. Kansas faces five Level I allegations, including a lack of institutional control, in addition to the individual Level I violations against Self and Townsend. Kansas is one of several schools involved in the Independent Accountability Resolution Process (IARP), which was created after the fallout of the FBI investigation. That case went public in September 2017. Almost five years later, programs like Kansas, Arizona and LSU are still waiting for resolution in their cases.
Kansas is still awaiting its critical and long-awaited hearing with IARP decision-makers, sources said. The NCAA is also in the process of reviewing its enforcement process as part of the larger restructuring of Division I with the transformation committee.
An absent Self sparked conversation in coaching circles, particularly as he and Townsend were not on hand for the crowning event of the recruiting calendar, Nike EYBL’s Peach Jam in North Augusta, South Carolina. As the weekend wore on and Self was nowhere to be seen, the speculation grew.
Kansas enters the 2022-23 season coming off a national championship in early April, Self’s second with the Jayhawks. KU is ranked eighth in the CBS Sports offseason Top 25 and No. 1.
Coaches won’t be able to visit recruits in person again until mid-September. It remains to be seen if Self and/or Townsend will be allowed to resume full recruiting activities. In terms of damage control, this move will help in Kansas’ bid to avoid significant punishment from the IARP, industry sources believe a significant suspension for Self and a potential postseason ban for the Jayhawks are penalties which remain on the table.
