Thursday afternoon, James Madison University athletes received a text notification: mandatory all-sports meeting at 7:30 p.m., in the basketball arena. For many, curiosity turned quickly to dread.
“That had never happened in my time here,” says senior golfer Carly Lyvers. “With the rumors that had been going around, I had a feeling that it probably wasn’t going to be great.”
As teams filed in and sat down together, the JMU coaches watched with what one described as “a pit in your stomach.” They’d had their own meeting earlier in the day and knew what was coming. Soon, athletic director Jeff Bourne stood up and informed the athletes that the rumors Lyvers mentioned were true: The majority of them will not be allowed to compete for a Colonial Athletic Association championship.