Athletics Veritas is a weekly series aimed at helping higher education executives, faculty, and other stakeholders stay tuned in on trending national issues impacting college athletics, especially NCAA Division I. Athletics Veritas is created by senior DI athletic administrators around the nation.
Term-In-Ology: Show-Cause Order
One long-standing tool available to the NCAA Committee on Infractions and the new Independent Resolution Panel to hold individuals found in violation of NCAA rules and the NCAA member institutions who employ them accountable is the show-cause order.
A show-cause order is an order that requires a member institution to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Committee on Infractions or Independent Resolution Panel why it should not be subject to a penalty or additional penalty for not taking appropriate disciplinary or corrective action with regard to an institutional staff member or representative of the institution's athletics interests (aka booster) found by the Committee on Infractions or Independent Resolution Panel as having been involved in a violation of the NCAA constitution and bylaws.
Show-cause orders may be general in nature or have specific conditions attached to them. Show-cause orders’ length and severity are commensurate to an individual's conduct that violated NCAA legislation while on staff with a member institution or based on their affiliation as a booster.
General show-cause orders will, for a specified period of time, require the individual subject to the show-cause, as well as any member institution retaining the individual in an athletically related capacity or any member institution seeking to subsequently employ the individual, to appear before a panel to show cause why restrictions in the individual's duties should not be prescribed if the individual is hired by the institution.
Show-cause orders that are general in nature are typically prescribed regarding individuals who are no longer employed at a member institution and are often prescribed for individuals based on the number and seriousness of the violations. In an effort to hold the individual accountable over time, show-cause orders of a general nature will usually encompass a period of several years. A panel may wish to discuss with the individual and a potential employer at a show-cause hearing a wide range of restrictions that could be prescribed. Should the member institution fail to abide by restrictions determined by a panel as the result of a show-cause hearing, the institution may be subject to penalties
Specific show-cause orders are usually prescribed for individuals who either remain at the institution where the individual committed the violations or are already employed at another member institution. Show-cause orders with specific conditions are prescribed consistent with published infractions penalty ranges. Restrictions include, but are not limited to, reduced recruiting opportunities and game suspensions. Specific show-cause orders function similarly to a traditional penalty. If there is non-compliance with a specific show-cause penalty, additional penalties may be prescribed.
NCAA infractions cases that are resolved through the negotiated resolution process may still include show-cause orders as well. This recent major infractions case resolved through negotiated resolution shows both a Division I head football coach and an assistant football coach, still employed by the Division I institution where the infractions occurred, each being given six-month show-cause orders that are being resolved with corresponding prescribed penalties including recruiting restrictions.
If a determination is made by an infractions hearing panel that an institution has not taken appropriate disciplinary or corrective action regarding an individual found in violation of the NCAA constitution and bylaws, the panel may issue an order that the institution take additional disciplinary or corrective action including but not limited to the restriction of some or all athletically related duties -- unless the institution appears before the panel to show cause why the additional penalties should not be applied. Decisions regarding disciplinary or corrective actions involving personnel shall be made by the institution, but the determination of whether the action satisfies the institution's obligation of NCAA membership shall rest solely with the Division I Committee on Infractions or Independent Resolution Panel.
Show-cause orders ten years or longer have been issued in recent years to coaches and administrators for more egregious major infractions, including lack of cooperation with NCAA enforcement during an investigation. NCAA rules hold that current and former institutional staff members have an affirmative obligation to cooperate with NCAA investigations.
In this infractions case, for example, a former Division I men’s basketball head coach was issued a 15-year show-cause order by the NCAA Committee on Infractions for lack of honesty for knowingly accepting money from a prospect’s parent to train and recruit the prospect, multiple recruiting violations, and a lack of cooperation with the NCAA during the investigation, among other violations. If this former head coach seeks employment or affiliation with any athletically related position at any NCAA member institution during the 15-year show-cause period, any employing institution shall be required to contact the Office of the Committees on Infractions to make arrangements to show cause why restrictions on all athletically related activity at their institution should not apply. The net result is that individuals with current show-cause orders face a higher hurdle landing a position at another NCAA member school.
Sometimes involved individuals refuse to furnish relevant information to an investigation when requested by the NCAA or member institution. Other times, the involved individual knowingly furnishes or influences others to furnish false or misleading information concerning an individual’s involvement with a potential violation. If that behavior occurs (which is considered unethical conduct, by NCAA rule) while the involved individual was not employed at the institution where the underlying alleged infraction(s) occurred, the NCAA enforcement staff will not attach the unethical conduct allegation to that institution. Instead, the NCAA enforcement staff will issue a separate notice of allegations to the individual and any resulting show-cause order would apply to NCAA member institutions attempting to employ the individual in the future.
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.
