University officials submitted a report to the American Southwest Conference, and a ruling from the NCAA is pending. None of the coaches or members of the athletic department were aware of Warren's participation in the league. Warren was not paid. He told us that his coach said it wouldn't affect his eligibility, so he didn't think it was a problem. Warren, who leads the Cowboys in receptions with 47, played in one exhibition game and two regular-season games for the Texas Bullets of the Professional Indoor Football League during the 1998 season.
Integrity is important to our university and to our program of athletics.
I know that Coach Keeling is a man of great integrity. We are terribly disappointed to learn the information about the player being ineligible. Our coaches and the young men on the team have played their hearts out, they have made us proud and they have been very successful. But one of the hard lessons of life is that we must play by the rules and if anyone violates those rules there are consequences that can affect a team, a program and the university. Warren, a 1996 graduate of Midway High School in Waco, attended Kilgore College in 1997 before transferring to HSU prior to the 1998 season.