ORLANDO, Fla.,None — University of Central Florida President John Hitt announced during a news conference on Wednesday that Keith Tribble has resigned as athletic director amid allegations of recruiting violations in the school's football and basketball programs.
Assistant football coach and the football program's top recruiter, David Kelly, also has resigned.
The news conference was held to discuss a notice of allegations the school received this week from the NCAA.
The notice detailed the infractions the NCAA said Tribble and other athletic department employees participated in between March 2009 and July 2011 that involved reputed agent runners and several players.
UCF received an inquiry letter in August for violations that occurred in its football program between 2007 and 2009.
- News Conference: John Hitt discusses resignations, investigation
- NCAA Report: Notice of allegations to UCF
"The strengthening of UCF’s commitment to compliance with the NCAA starts today," Hitt said. "These are serious charges that are as unacceptable to me as I am sure they are to all of our fans. I expect our Athletics leadership to set the standard for compliance, and that is not what took place. I thank former AD Tribble and former assistant coach Kelly for their many positive contributions to UCF and wish them well in the future."
The school has suspended basketball coach Donnie Jones for three games and will issue him an official letter of reprimand.
"As the program’s head coach, I accept responsibility for mistakes when they occur," Jones said. "I respect Dr. Hitt and the University of Central Florida and believe the decision in this case is fair. I look forward to representing UCF in a positive manner on and off the court."
The NCAA provided the institution 90 days to respond to the allegations. During that time, UCF said it will further review the report to determine how to move forward. As part of that review, the university said it will consider possible institutional penalties that could be self-imposed.
Further punishment by the NCAA may include bans from post season play and a reduction in the number of scholarships they can offer.
"To our fans, I pledge this: UCF will address these problems in a clear, consistent, and just manner," Hitt said.
UCF said it will immediately begin a national search for its new director of athletics.
Tribble and Kelly had been with UCF since 2006.
Previous Story: NCAA sends letter of inquiry to UCF concerning recruiting violations
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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