Q2 2024 Committee on Infractions Case Summaries

Kara Carlson

Author: Kara Carlson

POST DATE: 7.23.24
Ccha  Sports Law

Quarter 2 Committee on Infractions Case Summaries

Arkansas State University, Failure to Monitor, Impermissible Benefits

Negotiated Resolution

Level: Level II – Mitigated (institution, head football coach, and head women’s soccer coach), Level II-Standard (former assistant football staff member and former assistant football coach)

Facts: The institution agreed it failed to monitor its women’s soccer program when they provided impermissible travel expenses to families of recruits during official visits.

The head soccer coach paid for the travel expenses for parents of 10 recruits during their official visits. The total cost of the impermissible benefits (which occurred over three years from 2019-2023) was $4,144, and this was considered a recruiting inducement which meant four of the student-athletes who then enrolled at Arkansas State University competed in 82 games and received actual and necessary expenses while ineligible.

The athletic department staff members did not identify the violations when they were reviewing the official visit paperwork and they did not specifically address travel costs for official visits in rules education. The violation was discovered during a January 2023 rules education when the staff announced the legislative changes that made it permissible to pay for a family’s travel expenses on a visit and the head soccer coach said he thought that was already permissible and had been paying the travel expenses.

The institution also agreed there was a tampering violation in the football program when a former assistant coach and former staff football staff member contacted a student-athlete who was not in the transfer portal.

The Enforcement staff was contacted by a head football coach of a DII school, who reported that one of their student-athletes had been impermissibly contacted by the coaches at Arkansas State. The former assistant staff member had a pre-existing relationship with the DII student-athlete from when the former assistant staff member was employed at the DII institution. The student-athlete messaged the former assistant staff member asking him to post a highlight video of the student-athlete on social media. The former assistant then put the student-athlete in touch with the former assistant coach at Arkansas State and the former assistant coach texted and called the student-athlete and then met him in-person on the DII campus. The head football coach was not given any additional penalties because he was not aware of the violations and it was determine that he promoted an atmosphere of compliance and monitored his staff.

Bylaw Violations Found:

  • 2.8.1
  • 8.01.3
  • 11.1.1.1
  • 12.11.1
  • 12.11.2
  • 13.1.1.3
  • 13.2.1
  • 13.5.2.6
  • 16.8.1

Penalties:

Core Penalties for Level II – Mitigated Violations

  • One-year of probation.
  • Financial penalty of $15,000.
  • Recruiting restrictions in women’s soccer:
    • Reduce official visits for the 2024-25 academic year by 10% of the average number of official paid visits during the previous four years.
    • A four-week reduction in off-campus recruiting contacts and evaluations.
  • Recruiting restrictions in football:
    • Reduce official paid visits by three for the 2023-24 academic year.
    • A consecutive two-week reduction in off-campus recruiting contacts and evaluations for the entire football coaching staff for the spring of 2024 off-campus recruiting period.
    • Two-week period during the 2024-25 academic year with no unofficial visits.

Core Penalties for Level II-Mitigated Violations (head women’s soccer coach)

  • Suspension for one regular season contest during the 2024-25 season.

Core Penalties for Level II – Standard Violations (former assistant football coach)

  • One-year show-cause order.

Core Penalties for Level II – Standard Violations (former assistant football staff member)

  • One-year show-cause order and one week suspension.

Additional Penalties for Level II – Mitigated Violations

  • Public reprimand and probation requirements.
  • Vacation of team and individual records for the ineligible participation that occurred over three years in the women’s soccer program.

Southern Utah University - Tampering

Negotiated Resolution

Level: Level II – Standard (institution), Level II – Aggravated (assistant football coach)

Facts: The head football coach contacted two student-athletes who were enrolled at other NCAA institutions and not in the transfer portal. The head coach texted student-athlete 1 who was not in the transfer portal and asked him for game film. Student-athlete 1 responded that he was not interested in transferring. The head coach also contacted a second student-athlete who was not in the transfer portal at the time. Student-athlete 2 entered the transfer portal four days later and then transferred to the institution.

It was determined that the institution failed to provide the football staff with adequate rules education related to contacting potential transfers. When certifying the transfer student-athlete met the one-time transfer exception, they did not require the football staff to verify they had not been in contact with the student-athlete prior to the student-athlete being in the portal and that the student-athlete had gone into the portal during their sport-specific window. This resulted in the institution failing to monitor their football program.

Bylaw Violations Found:

  • 8.01.3
  • 11.1.1.1
  • 13.1.1.3

Penalties:

Core Penalties for Level II – Mitigated Violations

  • One-year probation.
  • Financial penalty of $5,000.
  • Prohibit all recruiting activities for the football program for two weeks during a permissible recruiting period in 2024. One week must take place from April 15-21 during the spring transfer window for football.

Core Penalties for Level II-Standard Violations

  • Two-year show cause order for head football coach and one-game suspension.
  • Public reprimand and censure.
  • Probation requirements.