NCAA denies Florida State appeal

INDIANAPOLIS, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- The NCAA has rejected a Florida State appeal of sanctions slapped on the school for academic fraud in 10 sports, including football.

The decision will cost recently retired football Coach Bobby Bowden some of his 389 career victories.

Bowden's teams won 14 games during the 2006 and '07 seasons, the years in question.

The Division I Committee on Infractions handed the school four years probation and reduced scholarships.

"The cooperative efforts of the university clearly did not outweigh the aggravating factors in this case -- the nature, number, scope and seriousness of the violations," the appeals committee said Tuesday in a statement.

The sanctions cited 61 student-athletes for major violations in 2006 and '07 and the case also involved improper benefits, unethical conduct by academic service staff members and the school's failure to monitor the developments.

FSU officials contended the vacation-of-records penalty was excessive and the infractions committee did not appropriately consider the school's cooperation during the investigation.