- Following a 11-plus week paid suspension, Auburn University reinstated former Penn assistant coach Ira Bowman to his similar position on Saturday afternoon. The 1996 Ivy League Player of the Year was suspended by Auburn just before the SEC Tournament, after former Penn coach Jerome Allen testified that Bowman was involved in a scheme resulting in bribes by Florida businessman Philip Esformes to get his son, Morris Esformes, on the basketball roster for the fall of 2015.
Sam Blum of AL.com wrote that an Auburn athletics spokesman confirmed the news but did not have the results of the school’s investigation or information regarding the reasoning for Bowman’s reinstatement. AL.com has filed an open records request to obtain this information. Bowman returned to his reported $250,000 a year job, just in time to help with one of the biggest recruiting weekends in program history.
Kevin Bonner, Penn’s senior associate athletic director, governance and administration, did not respond to an email from IHO regarding the reinstatement, the Auburn investigation or any Penn investigation of Bowman.
Karl Racine
Former Penn guard assists in suit against former Wharton student
On Monday morning, Attorneys General from Maryland and the District of Columbia filed a federal lawsuit against President Donald J. Trump (Wharton ‘68) alleging he violated the emoluments clause of the Constitution by allowing his businesses to accept payments from foreign governments. While Brian Frosh, the Maryland AG, is known to be a fan of the Grateful Dead (or at least one particular quote from Jerry Garcia), Karl Racine, the District’s AG, is known as a former member of Penn basketball.