Board of Regents calls meeting to discuss coach Sean Miller’s contract

The Arizona Board of Regents will hold a special meeting at 2 p.m. Thursday for a “discussion regarding University of Arizona men’s basketball and the multiple-year employment contract” of head basketball coach Sean Miller.

The Board of Regents is the governing body for public universities in Arizona. Thursday’s meeting will be closed to the public, which is standard when personnel matters are discussed.

It comes after a Friday report from ESPN’s Mark Schlabach revealed Miller was allegedly recorded on an FBI wiretap discussing a payment of $100,000 to ensure a commitment from now-freshman Deandre Ayton.

Miller left the Wildcats before they faced the Oregon Ducks in what ended in an overtime loss Saturday. Lorenzo Romar, the associate head coach, led the team in Miller’s absence.

The head coach has not returned to the team since.

Miller allegedly was heard on the wiretap speaking with Christian Dawkins, a runner linked to a sports agency that has been implicated in the college basketball scandal that began with 10 arrests. Dawkins and former Arizona assistant Emanuel “Book” Richardson were among those arrested late last year on charges of fraud and bribery stemming from the recruitment of high school players.

Per the ESPN report on Miller, it appears the Arizona coach could have violated NCAA recruiting rules. While details were not explicit, the report was enough for an emergency Arizona Board of Regents meeting on Saturday.

Later that evening, Ayton, who was cleared of any wrongdoing by an outside counsel hired by the school, scored 28 points to go with 18 rebounds and four blocks against Oregon.

Miller, his lawyers and school administrators reportedly met on Monday. That meeting was to determine Miller’s future with the program, according to 247 Sports’ Evan Daniels.

University of Arizona president Robert C. Robbins briefly addressed the ongoing discussions between Miller and the school on Wednesday, according to the Arizona Daily Star’s Michael Lev.

Arizona president Robert C. Robbins met with the media after playing in the Cologuard Classic pro-am today. He briefly addressed the Sean Miller situation. Robbins did not provide many concrete answers. Regarding Miller's future, Robbins said "we're still working on things."

— Michael Lev (@MichaelJLev) February 28, 2018

Asked whether we'd see Sean Miller coaching the team tomorrow, Robbins said: "I have no idea. I have to go back and figure out what’s going on."

Asked when he expected a resolution, Robbins said: "It’s a lot of moving parts. We’ll have more to say later." https://t.co/vFtJ6tSjS9

— Michael Lev (@MichaelJLev) February 28, 2018

Arizona president Robert C. Robbins on what the past 5 days have been like: "As you can imagine, we’ve been doing a lot of talking. What I’m trying to do is just gather facts." https://t.co/JCsRRUN1VA

— Michael Lev (@MichaelJLev) February 28, 2018

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