Jerry Tarkanian always was a second-chance guy. Sometimes, a third- and fourth-chance guy.

Now, the NCAA has one more chance to resume a decades-long sparring session with a favorite old adversary.

He was known as Tark the Shark, shopping for basketball rejects, making them into his personal reclamation projects, and sometimes succeeding. Some of his recruits arrived with considerable baggage assaults, arrests, drugs all complicating the coach’s task.

It was the kind of stuff that kept NCAA investigators on Tark’s trail, always suspecting violations, always poking around his programs at Long Beach State, UNLV, and finally Fresno State.

Tired of the continuing hassle, Tarkanian filed suit. Four years ago, without admitting to doing anything wrong, the NCAA paid him $2.5 million to settle out of court.

Now, four months after he retired as the fourth winningest coach in college basketball history, the investigators are back, buzzing around Tarkanian’s last program one more time, looking into reports of more misdemeanors.

Two years ago, the owner of a local Japanese restaurant told the Fresno Bee he had supplied free meals to every player on the basketball team since 1993. The estimated tab was $3,000.

The university launched an investigation and determined that most of the players had, indeed, consumed the meals, which included a menu staple known as rice bowls. According to Fresno State, the total was less than $100 per player and the players were required to pay back the restaurant.

All of this was self-reported by Fresno and, of course, caught the NCAA’s attention, perhaps because of the coach’s name and its history with him.

The issue fits under the special benefits category of NCAA rules and regulations, which require that athletes get nothing more than is available to any other students.

No free transportation. No free T-shirts. No free movie tickets. And certainly, no free rice bowls.

In October 2000, the NCAA issued a preliminary letter of inquiry. That was followed a couple of weeks ago by a letter of official inquiry, the next step on the enforcement ladder.

The NCAA wants to know about some other things at Fresno, as well. There was a report of a recruiting violation by the women’s basketball program and improper aid for a men’s soccer player.

As for Tarkanian’s team, Tito Maddox was dismissed last year for allegedly accepting a free plane ticket, and Melvin Ely and Chris Sandy were suspended for six games apiece for extra benefits violations.

And then there is the matter of all that free food.

Tarkanian is enraged every time the subject comes up. He thinks this is a vendetta.

“We’ve been through this so many times,” he said. “It doesn’t stop. There’s absolutely nothing there. The charges are so ridiculous. Can you imagine? A $3.40 rice bowl? Those Michigan kids they were talking about one kid getting $280,000. They did nothing to Michigan. But they’re all over us for copping a free meal.”

The Michigan affair involves former booster Ed Martin, who was accused of illegally lending $600,000 to four former Wolverine basketball players.

Martin later pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges of money laundering.

Though the NCAA never comments publicly on investigations, it is almost certainly looking into Michigan.

It would, however, seem considerably more serious than a player getting free rice. That is why Tarkanian is bugged about the NCAA breathing down Fresno State’s neck.

Right now, though, the 71-year-old old coach has other issues with which to deal. His annual physical revealed prostate cancer. He is undergoing radiation therapy to deal with the problem, which he said was caught early.

“I’m doing good,” he said. “It’s coming along.”

Fresno State has until Oct. 1 to respond to the NCAA.