Alabama Softball 2016 G33 vs Missouri

Alabama athletics director Bill Battle.

(Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)

The fallout from Baylor's sexual-assault epidemic and alleged cover-up was felt on the sandy gulf shores of Destin, Fla., this week.

The rising power has either fired or accepted resignations from president Ken Starr, athletics director Ian McCaw and football coach Art Briles in the wake of a damning report detailing a program that lost its way.

From obscurity to the national title discussion, Baylor is again viewed as an institution that allowed athletics success to come before the original mission. From recruiting transfers with a history of sexual violence to allegedly impeding investigations into new cases involving athletes, an independent law firm concluded the football program's power grew beyond the reach of the administration.

It's been a topic of conversation this week at the SEC Spring Meetings in Destin. Issues involving sexual and physical violence with women remain unresolved with two SEC programs. The handling of rape investigations involving football players at Tennessee remains in question. And Thursday, Mississippi State AD Scott Stricklin was grilled by reporters after the controversial decision to allow five-star recruit Jeffery Simmons play football after video emerged of him punching a woman.

Alabama athletics director Bill Battle touts the school's educational programs for players, coaches and administrators for behavioral concerns.

"I read in the paper that if every coach, player and administrator doesn't read the full Baylor report, they have their head in the sand," Battle said. "And I think they're right. We all better take a look at that.

"I really think, particularly in that particular area (sexual violence) because that's sorta been the crime that's a popular crime of the last couple of years -- or the one that's got the most attention. I think from an educational standpoint, we've done a pretty good job university-wide, also particularly in the athletics department trying to educate what to do and how you would respond in a case when those things did happen. The response, I think, was where part of the problem was at Baylor as I understand it."

The Chronicle of Higher Education has a database of Title IX complaints related to sexual violence dating back to 2011. UAB and Marion Military Institute have the only active cases in the state of Alabama. Neither of which appear to involve athletes.

In the SEC, complaints have been brought at Kentucky, Tennessee and Vanderbilt in investigations involving former or current football players. Another in Arkansas is looking into the school's handling of a case with a track and field athlete. LSU and Texas A&M currently have open cases not related to athletes.

According to the most recent Alabama campus safety report, in 2014 there were 14 rapes, nine cases of dating violence and three instances of domestic violence reported on campus.

Alabama hasn't been subject to a Title IX review in the last five years, but there have been cases involving physical violence with athletes. Cases reach the Title IV level when complainants say the school failed to protect their safety or properly investigate allegations at an institutional level.

One aspect of the Baylor case centers around coach Art Briles offering second chances to transfer players accused of violence previously. Sam Ukwuachu, convicted of rape at Baylor last year, was kicked off the Boise State team and had a history of an abusive relationship with a girlfriend. Shawn Oakman was dismissed from Penn State after a violent run-in with a convenience store clerk before landing at Baylor. He was arrested on sexual assault charges last month.

Alabama coach Nick Saban drew headlines in 2015 when signing Jonathan Taylor with domestic violence charges pending and after being booted from the Georgia football team. Taylor's time in Tuscaloosa was brief -- ending when a new domestic violence arrest occurred during spring practice. His dismissal quickly followed. Now he's enrolled and on the football roster at Southeastern Louisiana.

"All coaches think they could save everybody," Battle said in Destin. "Nick has had great success in taking players in his history. Some of them have really done well. And some haven't. But probably more than not, he has been able to change behavior. I think that's part of his DNA."

The SEC last year passed a rule prohibiting transfers with a history of domestic violence and sexual violence. The league will decide this week to expand the definition to other aspects of what commissioner Greg Sankey calls "interpersonal violence."

Recently graduated defensive lineman D.J. Pettway got a second opportunity from Saban and Alabama. He was dismissed from the program and suspended from the university after his 2013 arrest for second-degree robbery involving three football teammates. After a year at East Mississippi Community College, Pettway returned to Alabama. Upon his re-enrollment, the university released a full statement detailing the extra requirements Pettway would be required to fulfill to keep his second chance.

There was a degree of risk for the university allowing a student back with knowledge of past accusations. Pettway was not a disciplinary issue in his final two seasons at Alabama -- becoming an example of how second opportunities can benefit both parties. The New Orleans Saints signed Pettway to a free-agent deal after going undrafted this spring.

"All of us believe in second chances," Battle said. "Now, at some point it's probably not worth the risk of taking that. But I think, in my opinion, Nick has always done ... he's raised the bar in my mind in everything he's touched around the university. He can get criticized for certain things. But if you go back and look, there are cases that he has done well and succeeded in cases similar to that. So he can't win them all."

Avoiding the need for such decisions is obviously a big part of the recruiting process. Arkansas coach Bret Bielema acknowledged he hasn't recruited "all angels" but says he avoids "certain situations."

Saban said his staff has a list of 13 questions they like to ask those who surround recruits from high school coaches, principals and guidance counselors.

"We also ask the players specific questions. Something like, well, where do you think you need to do to be a good college football?" Saban said. "If the guy says nothing, that should set off a little alarm. I've had that happen before. I think we do the best we can."

There's more scrutiny placed on transfers because high school recruits are mostly minors and juvenile criminal records are sealed. The problems at Baylor allegedly extended to how coaches and administrators handled reports of sexual violence involving athletes. Battle said Alabama takes steps to avoid such mistakes.

"We spend an inordinate amount of time trying to educate our coaches and administrators that these are the processes to follow when bad things happen," Battle said. "So far, we've done a reasonably good job of doing that."