ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) -New Mexico plans to self-impose penalties, including the reduction of two scholarships for next season, in response to an NCAA investigation into academic fraud involving the school's football team.

According to a report released Wednesday, New Mexico also proposes cutting the number of coaches who can recruit off campus from seven to six for the next two seasons and reducing the number of official visits to recruits from 50 to 46 during the 2007-08 recruiting period.

The school cut the number of junior college recruits who were academic non-qualifiers out of high school by 50 percent for two years. UNM's four-year average of nine will be trimmed to four for next season and five in 2009.

The university imposed two years' probation on the program.

``We recognize we need to be held accountable for our actions,'' athletics director Paul Krebs said at a news conference. ``We feel these are appropriate sanctions, based upon the violations.''

The NCAA notified the university of its investigation in a Sept. 6 letter, saying it was looking into four potential rules violations involving three members of New Mexico's football coaching staff.

None of the coaches has been identified, and names were deleted from copies of the school's response that were distributed to reporters. Athletic director Paul Krebs has said two coaches are no longer on staff. Head coach Rocky Long is not accused of any wrongdoing.

``We're disappointed and we're embarrassed to say that we believe three of the four allegations are accurate,'' Krebs said.

New Mexico is contesting the allegation that an assistant coach who remains on the staff interfered with the NCAA investigation.

The assistants were accused of helping four prospective student athletes and one student athlete already enrolled at New Mexico to improperly obtain credits through correspondence courses at Fresno Pacific University. They were credited for work never performed and were granted eligibility.

``We will no longer accept course work from Fresno Pacific. It sounds fairly obvious, and it is,'' Krebs said.

Only two of the five played for the Lobos. No current players are involved in the case, which dates from the spring of 2004 and fall of 2005. The school first learned of the violations in July 2006.

Krebs has said that administrators, including Long, weren't aware of the violations when they occurred.

New Mexico administrators must appear before the NCAA's infractions committee in the spring. Committee members then will decide whether to accept the self-imposed penalties or levy additional sanctions.

``At this point, what I'm comfortable saying is that we believe we had strong processes in place but we need to strengthen some things we do,'' Krebs said. ``We're doing that. We have a vigilant compliance staff.

``Yet if individuals choose to operate outside the rules, outside the structure, things can happen.''