In carefully worded statements crafted in times of peril, it’s easy to feign surprise and disgust.
When the FBI revealed this week what many inside college basketball had long talked about — that shoe company employees, financial advisers and a cast of other characters bribed coaches and players’ families in an attempt to gain influence — high-profile figures across the sport did just as much.
NCAA president Mark Emmert said the nature of the charges was “deeply disturbing.” Conference commissioners like John Swofford (ACC), Larry Scott (Pac-12) and Greg Sankey (SEC) turned to words such as “alarming,” “reprehensible,” and “troubling.