Players in 10 Bowls Reportedly Tested for Drugs

About 725 football players from 20 universities scheduled to play in postseason bowl games have been tested for drug use in recent weeks, according to a published report.

The New York Times, in today’s editions, quoted an unidentified National Collegiate Athletic Assn. official as confirming the tests. But the newspaper said the official declined to reveal if any players tested positive for any of 100 drugs on its banned list.

Players who tested postitive for any of the drugs, which range from heroin to diruetics, would be ineligible for the bowl games, the newspaper reported. It said the only exception would be for marijuana, which would carry a warning for the first positive test.

The newspaper said players tested included those from 10 teams scheduled to play in the Fiesta, Cotton, Rose, Sugar and Orange Bowls. It said an NCAA official revealed that 10 bowls were selected at random from among 18 postseason contests, with 36 players from each participating school tested on their campuses.

“Our players were tested,” said Bud Thalman, an associate athletic director at second-ranked Penn State, which meets top-ranked Miami in tthe Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 2.

Miami Athletic Director Sam Jankovich also confirmed that Hurricane players were tested.

The tests were the first involving major football teams conducted by the NCAA under legislation passed last January. Five players from Division II and III schools were barred from playoff games this season after testing positive.