Introduction
Stephen F. Austin State University is a member of the Southland Conference, the Southland Football League and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and is responsible for insuring that its coaches, student-athletes, faculty, staff, boosters, and friends abide by conference and NCAA regulations.
Please use this as a "quick reference" to the many NCAA rules which apply to out boosters and friends of the University. Since all applicable situations cannot be covered in this guide, please feel free to call if you have any questions. The University appreciates your interest and support but reminds you that inappropriate contact or an inadvertent action on your part can jeopardize the eligibility of a prospective student-athlete, an enrolled student-athlete, and the University.
The University is proud to have the loyal support of and continued interest in its athletic programs by you. As we strive for continued excellence, we believe was can accomplish these goals.
THE PRINCIPLE OF RULES COMPLIANCE - "Responsibility of Institution"
Each institution shall comply with all applicable rules and regulations of the Association in the conduct of its intercollegiate athletics programs. It shall monitor its programs to assure compliance and to identify and report to the Association instances in which compliance has not been achieved. In any such instance, the institution shall cooperate fully with the Association and shall take appropriate corrective actions. Members of an institution's staff, student-athletes, and other individuals and groups representing the institution's athletics interests shall comply with the applicable Association rules, and the member shall be responsible for such compliance (NCAA Constitution 2.8.1).
QUESTIONS ABOUT NCAA RULES
Q: Who is a representative of athletics interests?
An individual is considered to be a representative of SFA's athletics interests just by being a former student, friend or fan. Once an individual is identified as an athletic representative, that person retains that identity for life.
Q: Is SFA responsible for the actions of its representatives and their support groups?
Yes. Representatives of athletics interests are subject to NCAA regulations and SFA is subject to penalties for any violation of NCAA rules by athletic representatives or their support groups.
Q: Who is considered to be a prospective student-athlete (prospect)?
A prospective student-athlete remains a prospect even after committing to or signing a National Letter of Intent to attend SFA or any other institution. Both the institution and the prospect continue to be governed by NCAA recruiting legislation regarding prospects until the prospect reports for regular squad practice or the prospect attends his/her first day of classes in any regular term.
Q: Is it permissible to contact a prospective student-athlete or his/her parents or legal guardians?
No. An athletic representative may not contact a prospect or his/her parents in person, by telephone or in writing. Contact may not be made with a prospect or his/her parents on or off the SFA campus.
Q: Is the contact rule applicable to established family friends or neighbors?
No. However, it must be understood that such contacts cannot be made for recruiting purposes and cannot be initiated or arranged by SFA coaching staff members. In addition, the established relationship must have occurred prior to the friend or neighbor becoming a prospect.
Q: What if a prospect calls an athletic representative?
An athletic representative may have a telephone conversation with a prospect ONLY if the prospect initiates the call. Such a call may not be prearranged by an institutional staff member and the athletic representative MAY NOT have a recruiting conversation, but may exhibit normal civility. The athletic representative must refer any questions about the University's athletic program's to the Athletic Department.
Definition of Recruiting
Recruiting is any solicitation of the prospect's family (guardian) by an institutional staff member or by any representative of the institution's athletics interests for the purpose of securing the prospect's enrollment and ultimate participation in the institution's intercollegiate athletics program.
Q: What if a prospect knows an athletic department representative is an SFA graduate and contacts him/her to ask questions about SFA?
If a prospect contacts an athletic representative, he/she may answer questions regarding various aspects of SFA as long as NO discussion takes place regarding the SFA Athletic Program. If a prospect asks about SFA athletics, refer him/her to the Athletic Department.
Q: What if unavoidable incidental contact is made with a prospect by an athletic representative?
An unavoidable incidental contact with a prospect is permissible provided that contact is not prearranged by the athletic representative or an Athletic Department staff member, does not take place on the grounds of the prospect's educational institution or at the sites of organized competition and practice involving the prospect or the prospect's team, is not made for the purpose of recruitment of the prospect, and involves only normal civility. The athletic representative must refer any questions about the SFA Athletics program to the Athletic Department.
Q: Is it permissible for an athletic representative to telephone a prospect once the prospect has committed to or signed a National Letter of Intent?
No. Even if the purpose of the call is only to congratulate the prospect, he/she is still a prospect and the same contact rules apply after committing or signing that applied before. Do not contact a prospect for any reason without first checking with the SFA Athletic Department (Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance), unless the prospect is a relative.
Q: May an athletic representative contact a prospect to discuss a summer job?
Yes, but ONLY AFTER the prospect has signed a National Letter of Intent to attend SFA. the prospect may not be employed until the completion of his/her senior year in high school. Additionally, any such contact must receive prior approval of the Athletic Department. When a prospect is employed, he/she must be paid only for work actually performed and at a rate commensurate with the going rate in that locality for similar services.
Q: May an athletic representative speak to an SFA coach when the coach is with a prospect?
If an SFA coach is with a prospect, do not approach the coach until the prospect and family have gone elsewhere. Other wise the coach will be placed in an awkward situation because he/she will not be able to introduce the prospect to the athletic representative. If a prospect approaches an athletic representative on or off campus regarding the athletic program, explain that the NCAA rules do not permit discussion of the Athletic Program and refer the prospect to the Athletic Department.
Q: Is it permissible for an athletic representative to contact an enrolled student-athlete from another institution for the purpose of recruiting?
No. Student-athletes at other institutions are not to be contacted for purposes of recruitment to SFA.
Q: What kinds of tangible inducements are prohibited for prospects, their parents or friends?
Some types of inducements that are prohibited include, but are not limited to the following: cash or loans; promise of employment after college education; special discounts or payment arrangements on loans; employment of relatives or friends of the prospect; involvement in arrangement for free or reduced charges for professional or personal services, purchases or charges; use of an automobile; providing transportation to or from a summer job or to any other site; signing or cosigning a note for a loan; the loan or gift of money or other tangible items (e.g., clothes, cars, jewelry, electronic/stereo equipment); gifts of any kind; guarantees of bond; purchases of items of services from a prospect of the prospect's family at inflated prices; providing directly or indirectly transportation to enroll in classes; any financial aid other than that administered by the promise of financial aid for postgraduate education; free or reduced cost housing arrangements; arrangement for or payment of transportation costs incurred by relatives or friends of a prospective student-athlete; entertainment of a prospect or prospect's family on or off campus; tickets or admission to an athletic, institutional or community event; educational expenses e.g., (typing costs, course supplies, use of a copy machine); or registration fees for summer sports camps.
Q: Is it permissible for an athletic representative to bring to SFA's attention outstanding prospects from the representative's local area?
Yes. An athletic representative may not, however, get involved in the actual evaluation of the talent of the prospect. In other words, an athletic representative may not contact a prospect's coach, principal, or counselor, nor visit the prospect's educational institution to pick up film or transcripts pertaining to the evaluation of the prospect's athletic or academic abilities. In addition, an athletic representative cannot contact the prospect for purposes of soliciting the prospect's enrollment to SFA and ultimate participation in athletics.
Q: Is it permissible for an athletic representative to accompany an SFA coach when he/she visits the local high school campus?
No. If an athletic representative transports an SFA coach from the airport to a high school campus, the athletic representative may not enter the high school with the coach and may not observe the prospects.
Q: Is it permissible for an athletic representative to reimburse the coach of a prospect for expenses incurred in transporting a prospect to visit SFA?
No.
Q: Is it permissible for an athletic representative to entertain high school, preparatory, or junior college coaches at any location?
No. However, it is permissible for SFA to provide two (2) complimentary admissions to the coaches for a home athletic event.
Q: Is it permissible for an athletic representative to provide transportation to or from campus or free to the institution's athletic event or off-campus to prospects, their friends, or relatives?
No.
Questions related to Current Student-Athletes
A student-athlete is a student whose enrollment was solicited by a member of the athletic staff with a vies toward the student's ultimate participation in the intercollegiate athletics program. Any other student becomes a student athlete only when the student reports for an intercollegiate squad that is under the jurisdiction of the athletic department. A student is not deemed a student-athlete solely on the basis of prior high school athletic participation.
Q: Can student-athletes be provided a benefit not available to the general student body?
No. Under the rules of the NCAA, an extra benefit is any special arrangement by an institutional employee or a representative of the university's athletic interests to provide a student-athlete or the student-athlete's relative or friend a benefit not expressly authorized by NCAA legislation. Receipt of a benefit by student-athletes or their relatives and friends is not a violation on NCAA legislation IF IT IS DEMONSTRATED that the same benefit is generally available to the institution's students or their relatives and friends or to a particular segment of the student body (e.g., foreign students, minority students, etc.) determined on a basis unrelated to athletic ability.
Q: What are some examples of extra benefits an athletic representative may not provide to student-athletes, their relatives and friends?
- Cash or loans
- Special discounts or payment arrangements
- Employment of relatives or friends of a student-athlete
- Arranging for free or reduced charges for professional services
- Use of an automobile
- Providing transportation to and from a summer job or other sites
- Signing or cosigning a loan
- Loan or gift of money
- Gift of tangible items (e.g., clothes, jewelry, electronic equipment)
- Gifts or awards of any kind
- Arrangement for or payment of transportation for relatives
- Entertainment of friends and relatives on or off campus
- Benefits connected with on or off campus housing (e.g., television set, stereo equipment, computer equipment)
- Educational expenses (e.g., typing costs, course supplies, use of a copy machine)
- Payment to a student-athlete for use of his/her complimentary admission tickets; or receipt of payment for admissions sold to a third party.
- Use of payment of long distance telephone calls
- Purchase of athletic apparel from a student-athlete
- Payment of restaurant meals or gifts of free meals from fast-food restaurants.
Q: Is it permissible for anyone to use the name or picture of an enrolled student-athlete to advertise, recommend or promote sales or use of a product or service of any kind?
No.
Q: Is it permissible for a student-athlete to receive an honorarium or expenses for a speaking engagement?
Student-athletes may receive only necessary travel expenses and meal expenses in conjunction with participation in the speaking engagement, provided the meeting occurs within a 30-mile radius of the institution's main campus and a tangible award or honorarium is not provided to the student-athlete. All speaking engagements must be approved by the Athletic Department.
Q: Is it permissible for student-athletes to be involved in any type of promotional activities?
It is permissible for student-athletes to be involved in promotional activities for institutional, charitable, educational, or nonprofit agencies provided the activity is approved by SFA's Athletic Director.
Q: Is it permissible for an athletic representative to employ student-athletes?
Yes. However, a student-athlete receiving an athletic scholarship may have a limit on the amount of earnings he/she can earn during the academic year. Please note that student-athletes may only be compensated for work actually performed and a rate commensurate with the going rate for similar services. For questions regarding employment of student-athletes, please contact the SFA Athletic Department.
Q: Can an athletic representative provide a student-athlete a meal in a local restaurant?
No, but a student-athlete or the entire team may receive an 'Occasional Family Home' meal from an institutional staff member or athletic representative under the following conditions:
1. The meal must be provided in an individual's home (as opposed to a restaurant) and may be catered.
2. Meals must be restricted to infrequent and special occasions (SFA has determined this to be no more than one (1) time per month).
3. Institutional staff members may provide reasonable local transportation to student-athletes to attend such meals. An athletic representative may provide reasonable local transportation to student-athletes to attend the meal function ONLY if the meal is in their respective home.
Q: What action should an athletic representative take if he/she becomes aware of a rules violation? Contact the SFA Athletic Department and speak with the Athletic Director or Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance to report or discuss the information pertinent to the violation. If the athletic representative wishes to remain anonymous, he/she can do so without giving a name. All information will be reviewed by the Athletic Department and processed as is necessary.
Every SFA fan, friend, and athletic representative wants to avoid actions which might penalize the institution and the athletic program. the manual of NCAA rules is thick and complex, and the opportunities to inadvertently break the rules do exist. However, if we all understand two general principles and act accordingly, then most of the confusion can be avoided.
- Recruitment of prospective student-athletes is the sole responsibility of the coaching staff at Stephen F. Austin. DO NOT become involved the the recruiting process.
- Ask questions regarding interaction with student-athletes or prospects prior to the interaction taking place to insure that it is permissible.
Remember, ASK BEFORE YOU ACT
If you have any questions, please contact us at:
Stephen F. Austin Athletic
Department
P.O. Box 13010 • SFA
Station
Nacogdoches, Texas 75962
409-468-3501
Steve McCarty
Director of Athletics
409-468-4540
E-MAIL
Matt Fenley
Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance
409-468-3501
E-MAIL
