Information provided by former Penn State gymnast Matt Abboud and NCAA spokeswoman Kay Hawes appears to confirm that the gymnast did not violate any NCAA rules by posing for the November issue of Playgirl.

In an e-mail to The Daily Collegian, Abboud, who is currently studying in Rome, said he posed in Playgirl in July after declining the magazine's initial offer to pose in January.

"[I] declined because I was NCAA-eligible and was representing Penn State gymnastics," Abboud said in the e-mail message.

His posing after the gymnastics season was over would alleviate any concerns about the Penn State men's gymnastics team's Big Ten title being called into question, a possibility had Abboud competed after posing for the magazine.

NCAA rules deem Abboud's actions -- posing for Playgirl subsequent to exhausting his eligibility -- permissible even though Abboud remains on scholarship as an athlete, Hawes said.

"Once you are no longer competing, a lot of the rules don't apply anymore," Hawes said, citing two different NCAA bylaws.

NCAA bylaw 15.5.1.8 states that "after becoming permanently ineligible due to a violation of NCAA regulations [a student athlete] may receive athletics aid in the subsequent year provided the athlete ... subsequently does not practice or compete in intercollegiate athletics."

This means Abboud, who is no longer competing, could receive aid whether he committed a violation or not.

If he had posed in the magazine and then subsequently competed in intercollegiate athletics, he would have violated NCAA rules and been declared ineligible. NCAA rules forbid athletes from using their image to influence the "sale, use or promotion of any commercial product."

Abboud appeared on the cover of the November issue of the magazine and was featured in the "Campus Hunks" segment. In the magazine, he is identified as "Steven," a Penn State student majoring in management and international business.

For his extra-curricular activities, "Steven" said: "I am a gymnist [sic]." Members of the Penn State gymnastics team had previously identified the person in the magazine as Abboud.

"I feel bad that the Penn State gymnastics community has expressed that I have reflected poorly on the university, department and team," Abboud said. "I have given blood, sweat and only 110 percent effort during my four legitimate years at Penn State with integrity. That is what I feel people should look back on, not the decisions that I currently make."