INDIANAPOLIS---The NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions has penalized the University of Richmond for impermissible recruiting text messages and telephone calls to prospective student-athletes. In addition, the committee found the university failed to monitor its athletics program and the head men’s and women’s basketball coaches did not promote an atmosphere of compliance.

The case involved 516 impermissible text messages and 83 impermissible phone calls to 17 total prospective student-athletes and parents. Penalties in this case included two years probation and multiple recruiting restrictions across eight sports.

This case was resolved through the summary disposition process, a cooperative effort where the involved parties submit the case to the Committee on Infractions in written form. When the NCAA enforcement staff, the university and involved individuals agree to the facts of the case and penalties proposed by the university, they may use this process instead of a formal hearing. This was the third summary disposition case involving impermissible text messages, e-mail or telephone calls reviewed by the committee within the last year.

Following the review of the summary disposition report, the committee concluded that the case warranted additional findings of violations for some of the involved coaches. In September, the committee and the university reached an agreement with regard to these additional recruiting findings.

Between August 24 and November 1, 2007, members of the men’s basketball staff sent 129 impermissible text messages to five prospective student-athletes and one parent of a prospective student-athlete. Further, between August 2 and November 13, 2007, members of the men’s basketball staff placed as many as 83 impermissible telephone calls to a then prospective student-athlete and his parents.

Between September 1, 2007, and January 12, 2008, members of the women’s basketball staff sent 368 impermissible text messages to four prospective student-athletes and one parent of two prospective student-athletes.

These violations led to a finding that the head men’s and women’s basketball coaches failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance within their programs and failed to monitor recruiting contacts through text messaging and phone calls.

Between August 1, 2007, and January 10, 2008, several coaches from six additional sports sent 19 impermissible text messages to six prospective student-athletes and one parent of a prospective student-athlete. The involved sports were baseball, football, women’s golf, women’s lacrosse, women’s soccer and women’s track and field.

These violations led to a failure to monitor charge for the university, with the committee noting that the institution did not adequately monitor the transmission of text messages by coaches to prospective student-athletes and their parents.

The penalties in this case, including those self-imposed by the university, are as follows:

• Public reprimand and censure.
• Two years of probation from November 5, 2009, to November 4, 2011.

Men’s basketball penalties

• Reduced the men’s basketball coaching staff’s allowable recruiting days for the 2007-08 and 2008-09 academic years from 130 to 100.
• Reduced the number of official visits for men’s basketball prospective student-athletes from the 2007-08 and 2008-09 academic years from 12 to six.
• Reduced the number of permissible telephone calls to senior prospective student-athletes from two per week to one per week during the 2008-09 academic year.
• Prohibited an assistant coach from engaging in all recruiting activities other than receipt of phone calls from prospective student-athletes for 60 days.
• Prohibited an assistant coach from initiating any telephone contact or correspondence with prospective student-athletes for 30 days.
• Prohibited an assistant coach from any telephone contact or correspondence with prospective student-athlete 6 for a period of two weeks.
• Required the head men’s basketball coach, and three assistant coaches to attend, at personal expense, an NCAA Regional Rules Compliance Seminar during the 2007-08 academic year.

Women’s basketball penalties

• Prohibited the head women’s coach from initiating any telephone contact or correspondence with prospective student-athletes for a period of six weeks.
• Prohibited two assistant coaches from all recruiting activities, except the receipt of phone calls from prospects for a period of six weeks.
• Reduced the women’s basketball coaching staff’s allowable recruiting days for each of the 2007-08 and 2008-09 academic years from 100 to 50.
• Reduced the number of official visits for women’s basketball prospective student-athletes for each of the 2007-08 and 2008-09 academic years from 12 to six.
• Reduced the number of permissible telephone calls to each senior prospective student-athlete from one per week to two per month during the 2008-09 academic year.
• Required the head women’s basketball coach and a assistant coach to attend, at personal expense, an NCAA Regional Rules Compliance Seminar during the 2007-08 academic year.

Women’s lacrosse penalties

• Prohibited telephone contact and correspondence with a women’s lacrosse prospective student-athlete for a period of two week.
• Reduced the permissible number of contact days allowable during the August 2008 contact period from seven to five.

Baseball penalties

• Prohibited telephone contact and correspondence with a baseball prospective student-athlete for a period of four weeks.
• Prohibited an assistant baseball coach from engaging in on- or off-campus contacts for four days during the August 2008 contact period.

Football penalties

• Prohibited telephone contact and correspondence with two football prospective student-athletes for a period of four weeks.

Women’s golf penalties

• Prohibited telephone contact and correspondence with a women’s golf prospective student-athlete for a period of four weeks.

Women’s soccer penalties

• Prohibited telephone contact and correspondence with a women’s soccer prospective student-athlete for a period of two weeks.

Women’s track and field penalties

• Prohibited telephone contact and correspondence with a women’s track and field prospective student-athlete for a period of two weeks.

The members of the Committee on Infractions who reviewed this case include Paul Dee, lecturer of law and education at the University of Miami and formerly the institution's athletics director and general counsel. He is the chair of the Committee on Infractions. Other members are John S. Black, attorney; Melissa Conboy, deputy director of athletics at University of Notre Dame; Eileen Jennings, general counsel emeritus at Central Michigan University; Britton Banowsky, commissioner of Conference USA; and Dennis Thomas, the commissioner of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and formerly director of athletics at Hampton University.