Todd Gurley Suspended Until The Auburn Game; UGA appealing

As we'd begun to suspect, there was more to the NCAA's review than a simple accepting of Georgia's 2-game suspension for Todd Gurley.  They have released a statement this morning stating that Todd Gurley will, instead, receive a 4-game suspension, which would keep him out of action until the Auburn game on November 15.  This is based on the fact that they have concluded that Gurley accepted not $400 for autographs, as was previously reported, but $3,000.  Where did they get that number?  Well, your guess is as good as mine.

The UGA athletic department is appealing the ruling, and that appeal will be reviewed and rejected this week.

The full text of the NCAA's statement is as follows:

Todd Gurley, University of Georgia football student-athlete, must sit a total of four games, or 30 percent of the season, for accepting more than $3,000 in cash from multiple individuals for autographed memorabilia and other items over two years. Gurley, who acknowledged violating NCAA rules, must repay a portion of the money received to a charity of his choice and complete 40 hours of community service as additional conditions for his reinstatement. Gurley will be eligible to play on Nov. 15.

In determining the appropriate reinstatement conditions, a 30 percent withholding condition is consistent with precedent in similar cases. Additional withholding was strongly considered because the violations occurred over multiple years with multiple individuals and the student received extensive rules education about the prohibition of receiving payment for autographs. However, the university's due diligence in its investigation and the student's full disclosure of his involvement in the violations were factors in not imposing a more severe withholding condition.

The University submitted its original reinstatement request on Wednesday, Oct. 22. The NCAA requested additional information on Friday, Oct. 24, which it received from the university on Saturday, Oct. 25, and Sunday, Oct. 26. The NCAA issued its decision to the university on Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 28.

The university indicated it will appeal the decision. A membership committee which oversees the reinstatement process will review the appeal this week. The committee can reduce or remove the conditions the staff has imposed, but cannot increase them.

We'll provide additional updates as they're available. Feel free to provide your reactions below, but please keep it PG-13.

UPDATE:  UGA just released an official statement. That text in full:

Tuesday afternoon the University received the decision from the NCAA Student-Athlete Reinstatement staff regarding the Unviersity's request for the reinstatement of Todd Gurley. The University plans to appeal the decision immediately.