Two Florida A&M Players Dismissed Amidst False JUCO Transcripts Probe

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Former Radford head coach Byron Samuels is having to build from the ground up at Florida A&M. Seven Rattlers transferred out this summer and the whole roster was basically rebuilt. FAMU is also suffering from a postseason ban due to APR violations handed down by the NCAA. It was already expected to be a tough season in Tallahassee but now it may even be tougher for Samuels.

NCAA scholarships yanked, WCC coach fired in transcript probe  

Two JUCO transfers, Jamell Walker and Damien Davis, are off the Rattlers roster and have had their scholarships pulled after it was discovered they had false transcripts. The Journal News of Westchester, New York explains the situation:

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AL LAWSON CENTER
FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY

NCAA scholarships yanked, WCC coach fired in transcript probe

VALHALLA, New York -- Florida A&M University has yanked full athletic scholarships from two men's basketball players who used to play at Westchester Community College and a WCC assistant men's basketball coach has been fired amid a criminal investigation into transcript fraud, an investigation by The Journal News has found.

FAMU, already banned from postseason play by the NCAA because of academic performance issues, pulled the scholarships of Jamell Walker, a former standout at Mount Vernon High School, and Damien Davis, a sought-after player from Wings Academy in the Bronx, said Alvin Hollins, the university's assistant sports information director.

WCC assistant basketball coach Richard Fields was fired Oct. 16 after admitting he provided a phony transcript for Walker and forged the signature of an administrator on an eligibility form for Walker, said WCC spokesman Pat Hennessey. Walker and Davis were juniors at FAMU, an NCAA Division I program in Tallahassee, Florida.

"He manufactured a fake transcript," Hennessey said of Fields. "Jamell took one course here. The transcript said he earned a full degree and graduated."

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