Sixteen athletic teams at Alabama have been penalized for their involvement in improperly obtaining free textbooks for other students, with the football team ordered to vacate wins between the 2005 and 2007 seasons, the NCAA committee on infractions announced Thursday.

Alabama will be forced to vacate 21 football victories that came under the watch of former coach Mike Shula and current coach Nick Saban, the university said in a release.

The football program, which will not lose future scholarships, and the other 15 teams have been put on three years' probation -- the third probation penalty for university athletics in the past decade. Alabama also was ordered to pay a $43,900 fine.

It wasn't immediately clear if Alabama would appeal the probation, which would last until June 2012.

"First of all, I think the University of Alabama, Dr. [Robert] Witt [president], and Mal Moore [athletic director] did a great job of demonstrating institutional integrity in the way they handled this internally," Saban told the Birmingham News on Thursday before the NCAA's announcement. "I'm really happy for the players we have in the program that this won't affect their future, nor will it affect the players we're recruiting. We're always happy to be moving on, and we're looking forward to the future."

Former Miami athletic director Paul Dee, chairman of the committee on infractions, said 201 student-athletes improperly obtained textbooks from the school's bookstore. Dee said four football players were the worst offenders, obtaining books worth between $2,700 and $3,950. Dee said the athletes improperly obtained textbooks worth approximately $40,000. Athletes get free textbooks with their scholarships, but some were accused of getting additional textbooks for other students.

The NCAA identified seven Alabama football players who intentionally obtained textbooks improperly, Dee said. The NCAA asked Alabama officials to identify the games in which the ineligible players competed during the 2005-07 seasons for the purpose of vacating those victories. Alabama did so and came up with the 21-win number (see inline).