When allegations surfaced this year that USC basketball star O.J. Mayo had received improper benefits from a sports agency funneled through close advisors, the university pointed to its own scrutiny of Mayo and said an NCAA "investigation" had deemed him eligible.
Now, with two sources confirming that an NCAA representative met with Mayo and advisor Rodney Guillory for several hours before certifying the player's eligibility for the 2007-08 school year, there is national focus on how that NCAA pre-screening process could affect USC's possible culpability in the Mayo scandal.
USC Athletic Director Mike Garrett and men's basketball Coach Tim Floyd declined to comment, but university officials have privately expressed frustrations about the severity of any looming discipline the NCAA or Pacific 10 Conference may deliver the Trojans in light of the NCAA screening of Mayo.
And several college basketball coaches say they are closely watching to see how the case turns out.
"We're all interested in seeing what happens to USC," said Kansas State Coach Frank Martin, "not to see them meet their fate, but to see if there are issues that happened that have nothing to do with USC's knowledge."
Added Martin, who last year fielded a team with high-profile freshman players Michael Beasley (selected No. 2 in this year's NBA draft) and Bill Walker (second-round pick of Washington Wizards): "As institutions, we can't control anything these athletes do before they step on our campus."
In Mayo's case, the allegations cover the period before and after he arrived at USC, where he broke the freshman scoring record in leading the team to the NCAA tournament.
Former Guillory associate Louis Johnson told ESPN's "Outside the Lines" that Bill Duffy and Associates gave Guillory $250,000, and Mayo was given $30,000 in gifts, clothing and hotel accommodations during his time in high school as well as his freshman year at USC -- or after the NCAA screened him.
Mayo, the third pick in the NBA draft, has denied any wrongdoing. Guillory, an events promoter from Inglewood, has not returned numerous messages left by The Times.
Some coaches argue that by stamping a figurative seal of approval on a top recruit, the NCAA effectively reduces a college's accountability if the athlete is later found to have received extra benefits before enrolling in school.
Memphis Coach John Calipari said he has "empathy" for USC, "if it happened around them."
