By Mike Kuhns,
Pocono Record Sports Editor
East Stroudsburg University wrestling coach Angelo Borzio has been benched by the NCAA.
And he’s not happy about it.
An imposed three-week suspension follows an investigation in September in which the university found Borzio altered a weight certification form.
“I tried to do what was right for the student-athlete, “said Borzio, who will be forced to miss today’s Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Tournament at Slippery Rock as part of a three-week suspension. “I’ve been involved with weight certification for the last 10 years.
“There’s a new system this year where everything is done electronically and that was the main problem. If it wasn’t sent electronically we would have had a chance to do it the right way. ”
On Sept. 7, ESU wrestlers were weighed for an initial weight certification, which
indicates how much weight a wrestler can lose during the course of a season, and the lowest possible weight which they can compete. If that initial weight is doctored to a lower number, an athlete can arguably lose more weight than what the NCAA would consider safe.
Borzio said the training staff at ESU submitted a first certification when they should not have. He tried to change those documents, which he says, should not have been submitted to the NCAA at that time.
“I expected another assessment after September 7th. There was a misunderstanding which I
tried to fix for the students and it came out as if I am the bad guy in this, “said Borzio, who will return following the suspension.
The infraction also comes after Borzio announced in December his resignation after the season.
Borzio has been the head coach for the last seven years and served as an assistant four seasons
prior.
Borzio admits that there was some confusion with a new weight certification form which was filed
electronically. Borzio admitted that he doctored four weights of wrestlers on the initial certification forms, but only because those weights were submitted at the wrong time by the athletic training staff at ESU.
Tom Gioglio, ESU’s athletic director, will coach the team during Borzio’s suspension. Gioglio was
reached via cell phone, but could not comment because he was traveling with the team and could not speak in private.
A second attempt to reach Gioglio was unsuccessful.
The university was fined $200 and given a public reprimand by the NCAA for the infraction by
Borzio.
Doug Smith, the director of media relations at ESU, said the university supports the NCAA’s
decision.
“They made a determination in the matter and we support it, “said Smith.
The NCAA issued a statement Friday which read in part: the institution’s head coach admitted to
altering initial certification forms after the deadline for online certification, which put eight student-athletes at risk for improper weight loss.
“I felt like I could fudge the numbers a bit and get away with it and everything would be OK, “said
Borzio.
The error was discovered by someone at ESU ” Smith declined answering details of how the
infraction was discovered ” and eventually notified the NCAA of a violation.
Smith would not answer if Borzio’s resignation was directly related to the violation because it is
the university’s position not to comment on personnel matters.
Borzio said the timing of his suspension could not have come at a worse time.
“It came out at a bad time for a head coach and his program heading into the PSAC weekend, ”
Borzio
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