The NCAA’s Next Wave of Proposed Real-Time Rule Changes
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More Modern(ization) Love – The NCAA’s Next Wave of Proposed Real-Time Rule Changes
Executive Summary
The Division I Board of Directors are spearheading faster-paced legislative process to modernize the Division I rule book
The Board of Directors’ Infractions Process Committee adopted last month a first wave of proposals for the modernization track that were proposed in October and adopted in November
The Division I “modernization track” enables NCAA governance structure to propose and adopt rule changes closer to “real time”
Eliminating the annual NCAA coaches recruiting exam headlines this next wave of legislative modernizers
The next wave of modernization proposals also seek to provide more flexibility with in-person scouting; eliminate nuanced recruiting phone-call provisions; and provide more flexibility around media activities involving college coaches and high school coaches and institutional involvement with broadcasts covering prospects’ competition
The Modernization Campaign Continues
A couple of days after the five proposals summarized in last week’s AV were adopted in November by the Division I Council, the Council introduced another batch of proposals into the modernization legislative track.
Procedurally, to be introduced into the modernization track, a proposal must be recommended to the Council by the NCAA Division I Legislative Committee and its Modernization of the Rules Subcommittee. This latest batch of proposals may be voted on as early as the December 15, 2021.
Here is a summary of the next wave of modernization proposals:
2021-31: To replace the requirement that a coach shall have passed a standardized national NCAA recruiting exam as a condition for being permitted to engage in off-campus recruiting. In lieu of the national exam, this proposal would require that a coach shall not engage in off-campus recruiting activities until the coach has received, from the coach's institution, rules education covering NCAA legislation, including Bylaw 13 (recruiting) and other bylaws that relate to the recruitment of prospects.
The NCAA’s national recruiting exam had been the only required step that had been in place before coaches could recruit off-campus, but its efficacy was often called in to question. The exam was a multiple-choice, open-book exam.
In some respects, the NCAA recruiting exam didn’t measure a coach’s comprehension of recruiting rules as much as it tested their ability to find an answer in the NCAA manual; the exam was open-book and multiple choice. Division I schools will still be able to give coaches and support staff exams and quizzes on recruiting rules, but NCAA member schools can diversify the content and mode of testing and delivery as ingredients to their overall comprehensive rules education campaign each year.
NCAA schools would still be required to provide rules education covering NCAA legislation to a newly hired coach who already received annual rules education from the previous institution. This proposal requires every newly-hired coach to receive rules education from the new institution prior to recruiting off-campus.
An institution must provide initial rules education covering NCAA legislation including NCAA Division I Bylaw 13 and other bylaws [e.g., Bylaw 15.3 (institutional financial aid award) and 14.3 (freshman academic requirements)] that relate to the recruitment of prospects before a newly hired coach can engage in off-campus recruiting activities.
Additionally, an NCAA member school, at a minimum, must provide continuing rules education on the same topics to all coaches on an annual basis. Institutions determine how to best deliver rules education to their coaching staff. An NCAA member school would be required to administer the NCAA recruiting exam for a newly hired coach to recruit prior to August 1, 2022.
2021-32: To eliminate the prohibition on off-campus, in-person scouting of future opponents. Under current rules, coaches can only in-person scout at multi-day events at same-site or conference and NCAA championships.
This proposal comes forward on the premise that livestreams of intercollegiate competition and prerecorded game film are readily available in the digital age. The minimal competitive advantage gained by scouting future opponents in-person is outweighed by the monitoring and enforcement burdens of ensuring compliance with the legislation. This new flexibility, if adopted, would also defer to campus-based decisions and sport program budgets as far as coaches traveling to scout future opponents in person.
2021-33: To eliminate the collect and toll-free telephone calls provisions and, in men's basketball, the 1-900 telephone calls restriction.
When’s the last time you heard reference to a 1-900 telephone number? This is a great example of the outdated nature of some NCAA rules. The 900-number rule that would be eliminated is specific to men’s basketball and prohibited coaches from calling 900-numbers that were set-up by prospects or individuals associated with the prospect. For all sports, NCAA rules also included permitting toll-free and collect calls by prospect to the coach once the prospect was old enough to receive calls. All of these various forms of phone calls would be removed from the NCAA manual under this proposal. Specifically, in the digital age, restrictions on specific forms of telephone calls are outdated and any potential recruiting advantage of making or receiving collect calls, toll-free calls, and making 900 number calls is outweighed by the monitoring and enforcement burden of ensuring compliance with the legislation.
2021-34: To eliminate the restriction on participation of a high school, college preparatory school or two-year college coach in media activities with an institution's coach and to permit an athletics staff member, other than a coach or a noncoaching staff member with sport-specific responsibilities, to serve as an announcer or commentator for any athletics contest in which a prospect is participating.
This proposal recognizes the rapidly evolving digital age and that it is reasonable to allow a high school, college preparatory or two-year college coach to be engaged on an institutional media activity (e.g., podcast, TV interview), or allow athletics staff members other than coaches or sport-specific noncoaching staff members from an NCAA member school to be involved in the broadcasts of prospects’ athletics contests as these scenarios generate minimal recruiting concerns. General publicity restrictions regarding the recruitment of specific student-athletes would remain in place to deter material recruiting advantages.
The elimination of the annual coaches recruiting exam from both coaches and administrators point of view may be seen as addition by subtraction. It will be incumbent on NCAA member schools’ compliance offices to continue generating timely, engaging rules education material including when onboarding newly-hired coaches and sport specific staff.
AV will continue to check in on the Division I Council’s modernization track and its efforts to tune-up the NCAA Manual and reduce the regulatory bloat.
Athletics Veritas is presented for information purposes only and should not be considered advice or counsel on NCAA compliance matters. For guidance on NCAA rules and processes, always consult your university’s athletics compliance office, conference office, and/or the NCAA.
