We've known since July that Noah Shannon was part of the ongoing investigation into sports wagering at Iowa and Iowa State, when Shannon decided not to attend Big Ten Media Days due to his involvement in the investigation. Now we finally know the outcome of that investigation, at least from an NCAA eligibility standpoint.
Shannon has been suspended for the entire 2023 season by the NCAA and the Student-Athlete Reassessment (SAR) staff. "We definitely are going to appeal that," confirmed Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz."The department will appeal that. I'm confident Beth (Goetz) and the department will do a great job of re-approaching this with the NCAA."
Ferentz expanded on the ongoing sports wagering investigation: "My personal feelings again -- you can't negotiate game integrity. If someone bets on our sports, tough to say much beyond that. But after that, I think it really needs to be rethought a little bit. I strongly believe that. I'm hoping the appeal will reflect people rethinking things a little bit.
"We live in a totally different world than we did 2-3 years ago."
Ferentz also expressed firm support for Shannon in his comments. "I can't say enough about Noah... in [his] case he has not committed a crime at all. Nothing criminal. I feel like [the suspension is] a little harsh, I think it's punitive."
"I'm hopeful that they'll reconsider his case and at some point they'll reshape what they announced in late April/early May in terms of the policy moving forward," Ferentz said.
Ferentz also discussed Shannon's presence with the team during the suspension and appeal. "He's allowed to be with us, but he can't play. I'm fully on board with that. I expect it to be multiple games if they do re-think [the suspension]."
Per statements from head coach Kirk Ferentz during his media availability on Thursday, the investigation determined that Shannon placed wagers on Iowa athletic teams. The specific teams (or games) were not identified, although it was noted that Shannon did not place any wagers on Iowa football games, and had bet in favor of the unspecified Iowa team.
Ferentz also discussed the broader impact of the gambling investigation on the football team. "As I've been saying, we had a handful of guys involved," he noted. "There are really three different levels. A couple of guys looking at serious consequences potentially. A couple guys looking at suspensions. And another guy who's in an appeal state."
Aside from Shannon, no other names were formally disclosed for any other Iowa football players who may be among the 11 players indicated in the Iowa athletic department's release yesterday concerning the gambling investigation and the NCAA eligibility sanctions that had been communicated to Iowa student-athletes. A representative from the Iowa athletic department indicated that no other players had yet provided permission to release their names in connection with the gambling investigation and NCAA sanctions.
This is obviously a devastating blow for Shannon, who opted to return to Iowa for one more season back in January and was named a team captain earlier this summer. Shannon was coming off a career-best performance in 2022, in which he had 44 tackles (24 solo), 8.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, and a pass deflection.
Shannon was expected to be one of the leaders for another strong Iowa defensive front in 2023; in his absence, the Hawkeyes will likely rely more on the likes of Logan Lee, Yahya Black and Aaron Graves at DT, with Deontae Craig, Ethan Hurkett, Max Llewelyn among several DE contributors.
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