Ole Miss' appeal of NCAA sanctions fell short of lifting the football team's postseason ban this season, but it was successful in vacating a penalty that hindered the Rebels' ability to host recruits on unofficial visits.
No longer will Ole Miss be limited to one unofficial visit per student-athlete per academic year. The NCAA Division I Infractions Appeals Committee found that the Committee on Infractions had "abused its discretion" by leveling the penalty as part of its punishment last December, following an investigation that spanned five years and included 21 alleged violations.
Ole Miss, during its appeal, brought up what it argued was contradicting information and procedural errors.
The university appealed several other violations -- including the postseason ban, vacated records and the charge of lack of institutional control -- but was unsuccessful in having those overturned.
In an open letter posted on Ole Miss' website, Chancellor Jeffrey Vitter and athletic director Ross Bjork accused the Committee on Infractions of overreaching and abusing its discretion.
"While we are pleased by the IAC's finding that the COI abused its discretion with respect to the unofficial visit penalty, we remain disappointed by the remainder of the ruling, which upheld a 2018 postseason ban and findings of lack of institutional control and recruiting inducements," the letter signed by Vitter and Bjork read.
"As the recent Commission on College Basketball [Rice Commission] report outlined, the NCAA enforcement model is 'broken' and ill-equipped to handle complex cases, and we believe our case was adversely impacted because of it."
Due to scholarship reductions, the Rebels under coach Matt Luke have struggled to field a team capable of competing with the likes of Alabama and LSU in the SEC West. Ole Miss went 6-6 last season, but wasn't able to go to a bowl game as part of a previous self-imposed postseason ban.
Ole Miss is 5-3 entering Saturday's home game against South Carolina.
"For us, we've got 24 days left in our season," Luke told the Clarion-Ledger earlier this week. "That's the way that we're preparing. Our motivation is just playing for each other and just building this program.
"And taking pride in that, through all this stuff, we were supposed to be not very good last year and we won six games. And the same thing this year, 5-3 after eight games. Just taking pride. We're still here. We're not going anywhere."