NCAA backs off unlimited texting plan
The NCAA has decided not to go through with rule changes passed in January to allow unlimited electronic communication between college coaches and football recruits.
The Division I Board of Directors officially suspended that proposal and several others during a meeting on Thursday in Indianapolis.
College and high-school coaches had reacted negatively to the easing of restrictions on such communications as text messaging, which had been banned since 2007 in football recruiting. The NCAA received more than 75 requests for an override.
The board also suspended:
-- the rest of Proposal 13-3, which would have allowed unlimited contact by college coaches with recruits;
-- Proposal 11-2, which would have eliminated a requirement that only a head coach or assistant could perform the duties of a recruiting coordinator;
-- Proposal 13-5-A, which would have allowed unlimited printed materials to be mailed to prospects.
-- Proposal 13-2, which would have established a uniform starting date for recruiting contact of July 1 before a prospect's junior season.
The board also tabled plans to raise academic standards in 2016 for a incoming Division I athlete's eligibility. The changes would have resulted in significant numbers of academic redshiirts for first-year student-athletes.
"We are supportive of moving as aggressively as possible while still studying the issues with due diligence," board chair and Wake Forest president Nathan Hatch said in a statement. "It's important to make sure all the pieces of the recruiting model work together to make the most effective change in the culture."
