The NCAA placed LSU's football program on one year of probation and issued a three-year show cause against a former assistant coach who admitted to meeting with a prospect and giving him team gear.
The offensive line coach was fired in June 2021. He was awarded $500,000 by a Louisiana judge after he found that LSU had terminated his contract. The judge's ruling was to be appealed.
LSU had already self-imposed a $5,000 fine, a one-week prohibition in recruiting communication and unofficial visits, and reductions in official visits and evaluation days as part of the punishment for violating NCAA rules.
The decision of the NCAA's Committee on Infractions involving a former LSU assistant football coach ends a 21-month cooperative process between the University and the NCAA. The University has cooperated with the enforcement staff to determine the truth and impose sanctions. We are happy to be able to move forward as an institution and as a football program thanks to the Committee and the enforcement staff. LSU is working through the IARP process to find out if there are other rule violations.
The NCAA's investigation was concerned with the timing of the violations during the Pandemic.
"Although the committee has encountered more egregious conduct in the past, the violations in this case represent intentional misconduct that should be of concern to the membership," the committee said. The purpose of the dead period was to make sure the health and safety of prospects, student-athletes and institutional staff were protected. At a time when government imposed COVID-19 restrictions, it leveled the playing field for recruiting.
The mother of a prospect arranged for a group of recruits to visit the LSU campus in September 2020, which was allowed by the NCAA at the time. According to the report, LSU officials met with the football coaches to make sure they didn't have any in-person contact with recruits.
If the son attended LSU, his mother would move to Baton Rouge, according to the NCAA report. She wanted to know if there was a neighborhood that she could visit.
According to the NCAA report, the former assistant coach recommended several neighborhoods including his own, provided directions to his neighborhood, and arranged to greet the prospect and his family as they traveled through the neighborhood. The assistant coach gave the prospect a bag of used LSU gear he had gathered from his house before he left in violation of NCAA rules.
An assistant recruiting director picked up the prospect and his girlfriend from a hotel and took them to Tiger Stadium for a tour. Theprospect and his family drove through the former assistant coach's neighborhood. NCAA rules prohibit in-person contact during a dead period, and the assistant coach was in contact with the prospect's mother as they approached and stood outside of his home to meet the family.
According to the NCAA, the recruiting assistant director returned to the prospect's hotel and gave him used LSU gear. According to the NCAA, the recruiting assistant director violated NCAA rules for in-person contact during a dead period, countable coaches rules, and off-campus recruiting contact by a non-coaching staff member.
LSU's football and men's basketball programs are being investigated by the NCAA through the Independent Accountability Resolution Process.
A notice of allegations was sent to the university on March 8. The men's basketball program is linked to seven people. There is an allegation that the institution failed to monitor the conduct and administration of its football and men's basketball programs.
There were also allegations of football and basketball.
The men's basketball coach was fired. He is accused of five violations.
The NCAA's enforcement staff received information that Wade arranged for, offered and/or provided impermissible payments, including cash payments, to at least 11 men's basketball prospective student-athletes, their family members, individuals associated with the prospects.
LSU's football program is accused of three violations, including a Level I charge that a booster stole more than $500,000 from a hospital foundation and gave some of the money to the parents of two players.
The Tigers are accused of a Level II violation for their actions after the College Football Playoff National Championship in January 2020.
The San Francisco 49ers have an assistant offensive line coach who helped guide the team to a College Football Playoff national title. The Joe Moore Award was won by his unit.
Pete was a contributor to this report.
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