Trouble seems to follow L.C. Cole as surely as winning football games.

The new Stillman head coach left some wreckage at Alabama State, which is in major hot water with the NCAA infractions posse over his time there. Before that, it was Tennessee State.

On Wednesday, the Division I Committee on Infractions slapped ASU on probation for five years due to major and secondary violations in its athletics programs, especially in football. The panel found a lack of institutional control, no monitoring by Cole and violations in academic fraud, recruiting, benefits, ineligible participation and financial aid. In other words, the committee found Cole and ASU turned a blind eye to violations in the athletics department before he was fired in 2003. "A revolving door of administrators at the institution, including within the department of athletics, was a prime factor in the institution's inability to establish a viable compliance program, which ultimately resulted in the institution's failure to exercise institutional control," the committee reported. In addition to probation, ASU is banned from postseason football competition next year, recruiting activities and athletic scholarships will be reduced. It also must vacate its records and submit a compliance program review.

Cole, who was hired as Division II Stillman's (Ala.) head coach last week, also must serve a two-year show-cause order. The show-cause penalty calls for increased monitoring of Cole and beefing up his rules education through NCAA-sanctioned seminars. According to the NCAA, from 1999 to 2005, ASU staff arranged for fraudulent academic credits for eight football players when their original letter grades were changed without approval from appropriate university administrators. Six athletes avoided ineligibility because of the grade changes. From 1999 to 2003, ineligible football, men's and women's basketball and baseball players received athletic scholarships, practiced, and played for the Hornets. The committee also found ineligible athletes and prospects participated in out of season workouts, which is prohibited. The school also provided meals, lodging and transportation to prospects and players, also a no-no.

At Tennessee State, Cole served a school-imposed suspension in 1998 for violations before the school sanctioned itself a year later after reporting its finding to the NCAA. Stillman, however, is sticking with Cole, who has an overall record of 48-31 at ASU and TSU.

"We did our due diligence," Stillman Athletics Director Curtis Campbell said in a statement. "We contacted the NCAA several weeks ago and were told there was no show-cause penalty on coach Cole at that time."

In addition, I contacted professionals knowledgeable of his work at prior institutions and discovered nothing that would have disqualified him from consideration. "While what happened in the past is regrettable, it doesn't change our feelings about coach Cole today," he said. "We expect him to do great things, the Stillman way." At least the Stillman folks know what they're getting.