INDIANAPOLIS — The NCAA Division I Council approved on Tuesday a package of proposed penalties for infractions cases that would include stricter punishments for individual rule breakers.
The proposals include expanding suspensions for coaches to include the days between competitions, having schools incur penalties for employing individuals who have received a show-cause order and expanding disassociations with boosters who violate rules.
The council was also expected to discuss proposals for name, image and likeness compensation regulations and potentially adjusting transfer portal windows. The council meeting concludes Wednesday and its actions are not final until the meeting adjourns.
The NCAA is trying to modify the infractions process to encourage cooperation by schools by punishing individuals involved rather than hitting programs with postseason bans or recruiting restrictions that impact athletes who were not part of the rule-breaking.
Also, among the package of proposals OK’d by the council was publicly identifying individuals involved in major violations and creating a public database of coaches with a history of Level I and II infractions.
The NCAA Committee on Infractions has been handing out suspensions to coaches more frequently, but those suspensions include only game days.
Michigan in August self-imposed a three-game suspension for football coach Jim Harbaugh in an infractions case that involves contact with recruits and players during the pandemic dead period.
NCAA rules allowed for Harbaugh to coach his team at practice and meetings leading up to game day.
Show-cause orders are commonly given to coaches, administrators or staffers who have committed serious infractions. In a case resolved earlier this year involving Tennessee football, former head coach Jeremy Pruitt received a six-year show cause.
Currently, a school that wants to employ an individual with a show-cause in place needs to explain to the NCAA why and exposes itself to stricter penalties if other violations involving that employee occur.
Under the proposal, simply hiring an individual under a show-cause would result in the school being penalized.
