Susquehanna's 2015 record officially will henceforth be seen as 0-5, while the Crusaders will be ineligible for the playoffs or the MAC/Centennial Bowl Series in 2016. Susquehanna athletics photo

Susquehanna has declared itself ineligible for the 2016 postseason, vacated its five victories from 2015 and stripped the name of a prominent alumnus from its football stadium following an internal investigation that showed Nick Lopardo paid the tuition bill for a starting wide receiver for the Crusaders football team.

Such action is not permitted under NCAA Division III bylaws, constituting an improper benefit. The school announced today a list of sanctions it will self-impose:

• The player (unnamed) must serve a three-game suspension for 2016 and perform 50 hours of community service to a charity in order to regain eligibility.
• The school is vacating all five victories from the 2015 season. (Suquehanna will officially be 0-5. None of the records of Susquehanna's opponents will change.)
• The program will be ineligible for the 2016 postseason, including both the NCAA playoffs and the MAC/Centennial Bowl Series.
• The program will be on probation for two seasons.

Lopardo, a 1968 graduate of Susquehanna and a member of the school's athletic hall of fame, had the stadium named for him in 2000. 

On Aug. 14, 2015, during a fundraising phone call with athletic director Pamela Samuelson, vice president for university relations Ron Cohen and football coach Tom Perkovich, an alumnus, who was a member of the board of trustees, inquired about the status of a tuition payment for a football student-athlete, according to a Susquehanna news release. That same day, the University's financial services office received a cashier's check for payment of the football student-athlete's tuition bill, which had been overdue. A member of the financial services staff became suspicious and reported the issue to administrators.

NCAA bylaws 15.01.2 and 15.01.4 regard improper financial aid and contributions by a donor: "Any student-athlete who receives financial aid other than that permitted by the (NCAA) shall not be eligible for intercollegiate athletics," and "it is not permissible for a donor to contributed funds to finance scholarship or gift aid for student-athletes."

Susquehanna begins its 2016 season with a Sept. 3 game at Lycoming.