Auburn assistant coach Ira Bowman at practice March 12, 2019 inside Auburn Arena. NASHVILLE — Auburn assistant coach Ira Bowman has been suspended indefinitely in the fallout of federal testimony the coach was a participant in a scheme that led to bribes to get a player on the basketball roster at the University of Penn in 2015. Bowman will not coach in the SEC Tournament and perhaps beyond. The Tigers open SEC Tournament play Thursday in Nashville. “As we continue to gather information regarding a situation that recently arose, it is important that we be thorough and proactive, yet prudent and cautious," Auburn athletics released in a statement Wednesday. "Therefore, Ira Bowman will not coach or participate in any responsibilities with the men’s basketball program until we fully assess all the issues.” The news of Bowman's alleged involvement in a bribery scheme came to Auburn's attention Monday after federal testimony by former Penn head coach Jerome Allen was released. The testimony was made last week in a federal bribery trial of a Florida healthcare executive, according to Philly.com. "We are aware fo the reports that are out there and currently were and our administration are gathering facts, and until we know more it would be premature for me to comment further, so therefore I will not be answering questions regarding this," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said Tuesday. Pearl maintained his stance Wednesday, deferring all questions about Bowman to the statement released Wednesday by Auburn. UPDATE (2:44 p.m.): Bowman will be paid by Auburn during his leave, a source tells Auburn247. Allen admitted Friday he accepted about $300,000 in bribes from Philip Esformes to get his son, Morris, on the Quakers' basketball team. Allen testified Bowman, then an assistant at Penn, knew of the scheme and was later involved after Allen was fired as head coach in 2015. The payments allegedly stopped after Morris left the team when it became clear he would be cut from the roster under the new head coach, Steve Donahue. Bowman was hired away from Penn by Auburn in July 2018 to replace Chuck Person, who was fired from the staff following an arrest in the fall of 2017 on six federal bribery and fraud charges tied to alleged payments made to the families of Auburn players Austin Wiley and Danjel Purifoy. Person is scheduled to face trial in June. Allen testified Bowman suggested a separate bank account be set up for the bribes from Esformes. Allen said he gave Bowman a debit card for the account receiving the bribery money. “We were extremely disappointed to learn that Jerome Allen, former head men’s basketball coach at Penn, accepted payments to recruit a potential student-athlete to Penn and concealed that conduct from the Athletic Department and University administration," Penn's athletics department said in a statement released Monday to Philly.com “Until Jerome’s testimony last week, we also were unaware that former assistant men’s basketball coach Ira Bowman had any relevant knowledge of the matter. The University has been cooperating fully with the government and the NCAA so that the matter is appropriately redressed.” Allen pleaded guilty to bribery charges in October and he said in the trial Friday he is facing up to 10 years in prison, according to Philly.com. The government is seeking a lighter sentence, Allen testified. The government was investigating Philip Esformes, who was ultimately charged for filing $450 million worth of false claims to Medicare and Medicaid for services related to bribes for doctors. Details of Esformes allegedly bribing Penn's head coach was a subplot to the initial investigation, which now has caught the attention of Penn and Auburn. The alleged bribes were captured on wiretaps during the much larger investigation into Medicare and Medicaid fraud. *** Try us FOR FREE for 7 days and get the latest Auburn recruiting and team scoops *** *** Get FREE Auburn breaking news in your inbox ***<doc-sep>Mitchell Layton/Getty Images Auburn has suspended assistant basketball coach Ira Bowman indefinitely due to his alleged involvement with a bribery scandal during his time at Penn, according to Brandon Marcello of 247Sports. "As we continue to gather information regarding a situation that recently arose, it is important that we be thorough and proactive, yet prudent and cautious," Auburn athletics said in a statement Wednesday. "Therefore, Ira Bowman will not coach or participate in any responsibilities with the men’s basketball program until we fully assess all the issues." Auburn is set to begin its run in the SEC tournament Thursday, but Bowman will not be on the bench. The decision follows the testimony of former Penn head coach Jerome Allen, who admitted that he took about $300,000 in bribes to help a Florida businessman get his son into the school using a priority basketball slot, according to Mike Jensen of Philly.com. The former coach also said that Bowman had been made aware of the scheme and became more involved after Allen was let go. Bowman remained with the Quakers until he was hired by the Tigers last summer. Video Play Button Videos you might like "We are aware of the reports that are out there and currently were and our administration are gathering facts, and until we know more it would be premature for me to comment further, so therefore I will not be answering questions regarding this," head coach Bruce Pearl said of the situation Tuesday. Although Auburn has not been implicated in this scandal, it is more negative news for its coaching staff after former assistant Chuck Person was arrested for allegedly taking bribes from a financial adviser.<doc-sep>Auburn assistant Ira Bowman will not coach the team during this week’s SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tenn., as the program continues to investigate his involvement in a federal bribery scheme during his time coaching at Penn. Auburn Athletics released a statement Wednesday afternoon regarding the status of Bowman, who was at practice Tuesday before the team left for Nashville. “As we continue to gather information regarding a situation that recently arose, it is important that we be thorough and proactive, yet prudent and cautious," the statement read. "Therefore, Ira Bowman will not coach or participate in any responsibilities with the men’s basketball program until we fully assess all the issues.” Bowman’s suspension comes less than two days after reports surfaced that he was implicated by former Penn coach Jerome Allen in a federal bribery scheme. Allen testified Friday in federal court in Miami that he received around $300,000 from Philip Esformes to give his son, Morris Esformes, a priority spot on the Penn men’s basketball team, which would guarantee his son’s acceptance into the Wharton School of Business. Allen testified that Bowman was aware of the bribery scheme and had taken over the scheme once Allen was fired in 2015. According to Allen’s testimony, he set Bowman up with a separate bank account and gave him a debit card to access the account. The allegations against Bowman were just a minor revelation in a much larger, $450 million Medicare fraud case against Esformes. "We are aware of the reports that are out there,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said Tuesday. "Currently, we and our administration are gathering facts. Until we know more, it would be premature for me to comment on anything further. Therefore, I won’t be answering any questions regarding this other than to say we’re aware of the reports. We are gathering information and facts.” Bowman coached at Penn, his alma mater, from 2012-18 before joining Pearl’s staff as an assistant at Auburn back in July. That was the same month that the bribery scheme involving Allen came to the public light. Allen has since pleaded guilty to bribery and will be sentenced in April. No. 22 Auburn, the fifth seed in the SEC Tournament, will play its opening game of the conference tournament Thursday afternoon against either Missouri or Georgia. Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.<doc-sep>
Auburn placed assistant basketball coach Ira Bowman on administrative leave Wednesday as it investigates his alleged role in a $300,000 bribery scheme when he coached at Penn. Auburn officials said Bowman wouldn't coach in this week's SEC tournament in Nashville. The No. 22 Tigers, who finished the regular season 22-9 and 11-7 in SEC play, have a first-round bye in the tournament and will face the winner of Wednesday's game between Missouri and Georgia during Thursday's second round. "As we continue to gather information regarding a situation that recently arose, it is important that we be thorough and proactive, yet prudent and cautious," the athletics department said in a statement. "Therefore, Ira Bowman will not coach or participate in any responsibilities with the men's basketball program until we fully assess all the issues." Former Quakers basketball coach Jerome Allen testified during a federal criminal trial on Friday that he accepted roughly $300,000 in bribes from a Florida businessman to help get the man's son into the Ivy League school using a basketball priority slot. Allen, now an assistant coach with the Boston Celtics, pleaded guilty in October to accepting an $18,000 bribe from the man in 2014. The $300,000 total wasn't disclosed until Allen testified during the $450 million Medicare and Medicaid fraud case involving Philip Esformes, a Miami nursing home mogul. According to Allen's testimony, which was reported on by Law360.com, Allen also testified that Bowman had knowledge of the scheme and became involved after Allen was forced to resign as the Quakers' coach in March 2015. Allen told the jury he set up a separate bank account for Esformes to wire him money and gave Bowman a debit card to access the funds. Bowman, a former Providence and Penn player and the 1995-96 Ivy League Player of the Year, was hired as an Auburn assistant in July. He is the second Auburn assistant under head coach Bruce Pearl to have been linked to a federal bribery case. Pearl hired Bowman to replace former Tigers assistant Chuck Person, who was arrested in September 2017 in a federal bribery case involving college basketball corruption. Person is scheduled for trial in New York in June. "We are aware of the reports that are out there," Pearl told reporters on Tuesday. "Currently, we and our administration are gathering facts. Until we know more, it would be premature for me to comment on anything further. Therefore, I won't be answering any questions regarding this other than to say we are aware of the reports. We are gathering information and facts." ESPN's Alex Scarborough contributed to this report.