The Big 12 has publicly reprimanded and fined Iowa State athletic director Jamie Pollard $25,000 for his rant against league officiating following last weekend’s loss to Oklahoma State.
Commissioner Bob Bowlsby says Pollard’s implication that games had been called unfairly against the Cyclones was “irresponsible and completely baseless.”
The Big 12 warned Pollard that similar behavior will result in a more serious penalty.
Pollard says he’s sorry for implying that Iowa State’s vote against adding an eighth official in 2013 — a measure the other nine Big 12 schools voted for — impacted officiating. Pollard says that while he felt a need to defend Iowa State after an overturned review gave the Cowboys a crucial touchdown, he also realizes that he broke the Big 12’s sportsmanship guidelines.
