The NCAA has charged the University of Memphis with academic integrity violations – committed by its men’s basketball and softball programs – the organization announced July 16.
Memphis worked in concert with the committee on infractions to arrive at a negotiated resolution for the violations committed during the 2024-25 season.
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As a result, Memphis − already on probation due to a pair of previous infractions cases − will have its probation extended by another two years. The men’s basketball program must also vacate three wins − Wichita State, Temple and Tulane − from the period between Jan. 25 and Feb. 18. The softball program does not have to vacate any wins because the Tigers did not win any games during that span.
The school must also pay a $30,000 fine plus 1% of the combined men’s basketball and softball budgets.
The ruling stems from a series of improprieties – involving former men’s basketball player Malcolm Dandridge, two former softball players and former academic advisor Leslie Brooks – that stretches back to January and February 2024. Neither Dandridge nor the softball players are identified in the NCAA’s report.
Multiple sources told The Commercial Appeal that Ally Callahan and Aaliyah Dixon were the softball players involved. The sources requested anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
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Memphis fired Brooks, who was also the school’s academic advisor for men’s and women’s golf, on Feb. 23, 2024. The following day, it was announced Dandridge was being withheld from competition pending a review of a potential issue related to his eligibility status, which effectively ended his Tigers career.
Brooks has received a 10-year show-cause penalty for her role in the scandal.
“I would like to thank our staff who worked swiftly and collaboratively with the NCAA to take appropriate action and implement corrective measures,” Memphis president Bill Hardgrave said in a prepared statement. “The University of Memphis is committed to a culture of compliance with all NCAA rules and will move our program forward accordingly.”
What NCAA says took place at Memphis in 2024
According to the NCAA, Brooks arranged for and paid Callahan and Dixon to complete assignments and take tests for Dandridge, who then submitted them as his own. The NCAA found that Brooks paid either Callahan or Dixon − it is unclear which − $150 for an assignment for Dandridge’s Intro to Theatre course. It also found that Brooks paid either Callahan or Dixon − it is unclear which − $400 to take three tests for Dandridge as part of a Health/Sport Terminology course.
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The NCAA’s full report on the investigation (released July 16) indicates Callahan and Dixon were “hesitant” but agreed to participate since Brooks told them they would be paid. Records show Brooks paid Callahan and Dixon via her personal Apple Pay account.
Callahan, a catcher from Hernando, Mississippi, appeared in four games before the athletic department began taking steps to address the situation. Callahan, who had two seasons of eligibility remaining, did not play another game for the Tigers.
Dixon, an outfielder from Jackson, Mississippi, appeared in nine of the Tigers’ first 10 games. The outfielder then missed the next 29 games, beginning Feb. 24 – the day after Brooks was fired for her role in the academic fraud. Dixon returned to the field April 19 and played in the team’s final 11 games of the season.
According to the NCAA’s report, either Callahan or Dixon (it is unclear which) completed just three assignments for Dandridge in January 2024, before ending her involvement, “because she believed Brooks did not adequately compensate her.”
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Dandridge remained a member of the basketball team, sitting on the bench during the final five games of the season. The Tigers went 3-2 during that stretch but missed the NCAA tournament. It’s the only time in the last four seasons Memphis has not been part of March Madness.
In an interview with university officials, who conducted an internal investigation of their own, Brooks admitted Dandridge needed academic help and “she felt sorry for him,” according to the NCAA’s report.
Upon turning the matter over to the NCAA, Brooks responded to calls and emails from the enforcement staff, but “she did not agree to requests for an interview … making her a non-participating party,” according to the report.
Dandridge’s only public comment on the matter came on March 14, 2024, shortly after the Tigers’ season-ending loss to Wichita State at the AAC tournament in Fort Worth, Texas.
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“I hope them punks that wasn’t letting me play satisfied,” he posted on Instagram. “The truth will come out! Be careful who you allow yourself to be around, them snakes will smile and say they love you, and stab the (expletive) out of you.”
This is not Memphis’ first brush with NCAA investigators since Penny Hardaway became coach.
In 2022, following a years-long infractions investigation (adjudicated via the now-defunct Independent Accountability Resolution Process), the program was charged with committing four Level II violations and five Level III violations during a saga that began with its handling of James Wiseman’s eligibility status in 2019. While the NCAA’s initial notice of allegations identified at least four Level I violations (the most serious), Memphis and Hardaway avoided significant sanctions − although, the program was placed on three years’ probation.
In 2023, Hardaway was slapped with a three-game suspension, which he served during the 2023-24 season, stemming from two impermissible in-home visits in 2021 with a recruit from Dallas during his junior year of high school. The NCAA also added an extra year of probation.
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Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or follow him @munzly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis charged with NCAA violations related to Malcolm Dandridge
