Division I Introduction to Recruiting Telephone Calls/Contacts/Evaluations

1. Division I Introduction to RecruitingTelephone Calls/Contacts/Evaluations Ryan Hall and Katie Willett

2. Overview • History • Telephone Calls. • Recruiting Periods. • Contact. • Evaluation. • Quiet. • Dead. • Contacts and Evaluations. • Restrictions at Specified Sites.

3. History

4. History • 1970’s. • General regulations to limit intrusion on PSA’s. • Established parameters. • Intended to curtail costly recruiting practices. • Competitive inequities. • Re-establish positive public opinion. • Harnessed recruitment.

5. History • 1980’s. • Legislation customized for sport specific recruiting periods. • Less-intrusive recruiting process. • Improve coaches work-life balance. • More cost-effective recruiting process. • Consideration of high school sports calendars.

6. History • 1990’s. • Focus on specific recruiting periods. • Football, men’s and women’s basketball. • Sport specific recruiting calendars. • Addressed the needs, schedule, resources and culture of each sport.

7. History • 2000’s. • Curb influence and intrusion of nonscholastic events. • Academic evaluations for academic preparedness. • Continued emphasis on sport specific legislation.

8. History • 2.11 The Principle Governing Recruiting • Balancing the interests of PSA’s, their educational institutions and the membership. • Limit intrusion of recruiting process into lives of PSA’s. • Coaches work-life balance. • Establish competitive equity among institutions. • Promotion of cost effectiveness. • Emphasis on scholastic environment.

9. Telephone CallsNCAA Bylaw 13.1.3

10. Violations • Major Infraction Cases. • January 1, 2005 – December 31, 2009 • 11 major infractions involved communication. • 9 involved impermissible telephone contact. • 3 involved impermissible text messages.

11. Violations • Secondary Violations. • January 1, 2005 - July 20, 2009 • 695 secondary self-reports (Bylaw 13.1.3 – Telephone Calls). • 349 - excessive calls during one week. • 277 - prior to permissible time period. • 214 secondary self-reports (Bylaw 13.4.1 – Text Messages).

12. Definition • All electronically transmitted human voice exchange (including videoconferencing and videophones) is considered a telephone call. • [NCAA Bylaw 13.02.14]

13. Time Period for Telephone Calls • Time period -- general rule. • Not before July 1 following junior year of high school. • One per week. • One telephone call per week per institution even if recruiting in more than one sport. • Collect and toll-free telephone calls. • PSA may call anytime at his or her own expense, including before July 1 following junior year. • [NCAA Bylaw 13.1.3.1]

14. Sport Exceptions • Football -- FBS/FCS -- [Bylaw 13.1.3.1.1.] • Men's basketball -- [Bylaw 13.1.3.1.2.] • Women's basketball -- [Bylaw 13.1.3.1.3.] • Men's ice hockey -- [Bylaw 13.1.3.1.4.] • Women's ice hockey -- [Bylaw 13.1.3.1.5.]

15. Exceptions to General Rule • Unlimited telephone calls countable coaches: • Five days immediately before PSA's official visit. • In conjunction w/ official visit (August 1, 2010). • Initial date for signing of the NLI and two days immediately following initial signing date. • Football 48 hours prior/after, and after PSA has signed with an institution. • Day of an off-campus contact. • During a contact period, in sports with defined recruiting calendars other than football. (2009-32-B) • [Bylaw 13.1.3.3]

16. Exceptions to General Rule • Unlimited telephone calls athletic department staff: • In conjunction with Official Visit.*  (2009-18) • Noncoaching staff members & noncountable coaches. • After NLI signing or other written commitment. • May 1 after receipt of financial deposit in response to offer of admission.* (2009-33) • [Bylaw 13.1.3.3]

17. Permissible Callers • Head or assistant coaches who count toward the limitations. • Exceptions. • “Top 4”. • Permitted to return, subject to applicable limitations. • Compliance administrators. • Permitted to return, no limit on number, compliance issues. • Academic advisors. • Permitted to make/receive, subject to applicable limitations, content. • Noncoaching Staff Members and Noncountable Coaches. • Official visit. (2009-18) • [NCAA Bylaw 13.1.3.4]

18. Additional Items of Note • Nonpermissible callers. • Representative of athletics interest. • Enrolled student-athletes. • Collect and toll-free telephone calls. • Permissible on or after July 1 after PSA's junior year. • Exceptions -- men's and women's basketball. • Noncoaching staff members & noncountable coaches. • After NLI or other written commitment. • After receipt of financial deposit. [Bylaw 13.1.3.5] [Bylaw 13.1.3.6] • [NCAA Bylaw 13.1.3.4.1.2]

19. Case Study #1 • Coach Sonny, from Port College, is recruiting at a soccer tournament. • LuLu is a PSA on a club team that is participating in the tournament. • Coach Sonny calls LuLu’s home and speaks with her mother who says that she is not available. • Did coach Sonny make a countable call?

20. Case Study #1 • No, provided the coach ended the conversation without discussing recruitment. • If the coach, for example, left a message regarding the merits of a program the telephone call is countable. • Consider the content of the call not necessarily the duration.

21. Case Study #2 • Jason is a senior men’s swimming PSA that is being recruited by Metro Court University. • Coach Jax from Metro Court U calls Jason while driving home from practice. • Coach Jax loses his cell phone service and the call is dropped. • May Coach Jax call Jason again that evening?

22. Case Study #2 • A second telephone call during the same week initiated by institution is presumed to have violated the legislation. • However, if contemporaneous documentation shows continuation of original telephone call = no violation. • Telephone call dropped inadvertently. • For reasons beyond control. • Burden is on institution. • Best Practices.

26. Recruiting Periods

27. Recruiting Periods • Contact period. • Evaluation period. • Quiet period. • Dead period.

28. Contact Period • Permissible for authorized athletics department staff members to make in-person, off-campus recruiting contacts and evaluations. [Bylaw 13.02.4.1]

29. Evaluation Period • Permissible for authorized athletics department staff members to be involved in off-campus activities designed to assess the academic qualifications and playing ability of PSAs. [Bylaw 13.02.4.2]

30. Quiet Period • Permissible to make in-person recruiting contacts only on the member institution's campus. [Bylaw 13.02.4.3]

31. Dead Period • Not permissible. • Contacts or evaluations on or off the member institution's campus. • Official or unofficial visits by PSAs to the institution's campus. • No complimentary admissions. • No visit to PSAs educational institution. • Generally, may not speak or attend a meeting or banquet in which PSAs are present. • May only call or write PSAs. [Bylaw 13.02.4.4]

32. Contacts and Evaluations

33. Contacts • Any face-to-face encounter and exchange of dialogue in excess of a greeting. • Any prearranged, face-to-face encounter even if no conversation occurs; or • Any face-to-face encounter at: • Prospect’s educational institution. • Site of organized competition. [Bylaw 13.02.3]

34. Contact • Not a contact, provided: • The encounter was not prearranged; • There is no engagement in any dialogue in excess of a greeting; and • Appropriate steps are taken to terminate the encounter. [Bylaw 13.02.3]

35. Contactable Individuals • High School PSAs • Off-Campus contacts may not be made before July 1 following completion of junior year of high school • Two-year college PSAs • No contact with nonqualifier in first year • Four-year college PSAs • Must obtain permission to contact • If not granted, no contact and no athletics aid during first year. • [Bylaw 13.1.1]

36. Evaluation • An evaluation is any off-campus activity designed to assess the academic or athletics ability of a prospect; OR • The observation of a prospect participating in practice or competition at any site. [Bylaw 13.02.6]

37. Contacts and Evaluations • Off-campus recruiting contacts shall not be made with an individual (or his or her relatives or legal guardians) before July 1 following the completion of his or her junior year in high school . [Bylaw 13.1.1.1.]

38. Contacts and Evaluations • In sports other than football and basketball each institution is limited to: • Seven recruiting opportunities (contacts and evaluations combined) per prospective student-athlete. • During the senior year of high school, not more than three of the seven opportunities may be off-campus contacts at any site. • This includes contacts with the prospective student-athlete's relatives or legal guardians. • Does not include contacts made during an official visit. Bylaw 13.1.6.1

39. Football • Six in-person, off-campus recruiting contacts per prospective student-athlete at any site and shall include contacts made with the prospective student-athlete's relatives or legal guardians, but shall not include contacts made during an official visit. Bylaw 13.1.6.2

40. Men’s Basketball • Seven recruiting opportunities (contacts and evaluations combined) per prospective student-athlete. • During the prospective student-athlete's senior year, the institution is limited to not more than three in-person, off-campus contact.

41. Men’s Basketball Evaluations • Recruiting-person days = 130. • Fall contact period. • Evaluations only at PSAs' educational institutions. • Regularly scheduled scholastic practices and contests. • Academic year evaluation period. • Regular scholastic activities involving only those PSAs enrolled at that institution. • March and April contact periods. • No evaluations of nonscholastic events. • Summer evaluation period. • Summer certified events and institutional camps Bylaw 13.1.8.8

42. Women’s Basketball Evaluations • Recruiting-person days = 100. • Academic year evaluation period. • Regularly scheduled scholastic practices and contests. • Pick-up games and open gyms. • Nonscholastic events only: • Last full weekend of fall contact period; and • Friday, Saturday and Sunday of spring evaluation period. • Summer evaluation period. • Certified events, institutional camps and noninstitutional, nonorganized events (e.g., pick-up games). Bylaw 13.1.8.8

43. Basketball – Prior to Ninth Grade • Coaching staff member may observe an individual who has not entered the ninth grade participating in athletically related activity, provided such observation occurs during a contact or evaluation period when it is permissible to evaluate prospective student-athletes. Bylaw 13.1.8.19

44. Restrictions at Specified Sites

45. Contact at Practice or Competition Site • Not Permissible • At any site prior to a contest on the day of competition. • After PSA reports "on-call" for competition-related activity (travel to an away contest) until released. • During a multi-day competition (tournament) before PSA released by coach after the final game. • Electronic mail at competition site(Bylaw 13.1.7.2)

46. Case Study PSA Ryan Nolan: State University’s Baseball coach visits Ryan Nolan’s high school during a contact period. The coach meets with Ryan’s coach and also receives a copy of Ryan’s transcript. However, the coach never actually sees or talks to Ryan. Is this a contact or evaluation?

47. Answer This is an Evaluation A visit to a prospect’s school during a contact period counts as an evaluation, as long as there is no contact with the prospect. (NCAA Bylaw 13.02.5)

48. Case Study • Sluggin Suzy is a Senior PSA in the sport of softball. • The coach at State University watched Suzy compete at 3 softball games. He did not talk to Suzy after the games. • Coach also made a home visit to Suzy’s residence during the previous semester. • How many contacts and evaluations has the coach used for Sluggin’ Suzy?

49. Answer • The coach has used one contact and three evaluations. • How many recruiting opportunities remain? • Three opportunities (7 – 4 = 3). Two of the three remaining recruiting opportunities may be contacts.

50. Case Study • Leapin’ Larry is taking his official visit at State University Friday through Sunday. • On Saturday morning, Larry is going to leave his official visit to participate in his club team's soccer match. Once the match is over he will return to his visit. • Can the coach at State University have breakfast with Larry Saturday morning?