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Current NCAA Legislation A Division I or Division II institution may not produce video/audio materials to show or send to a prospect except as specified in 13.4.2.1, 13.4.2.2 and 13.4.2.3. Violations of this bylaw shall be considered institutional violations per 2.8.1; however, they shall not affect the prospective student-athlete's eligibility. Official Interpretations The NCAA Division I Management Council used its authority set forth in NCAA Constitution 5.4.1.2.1.5 to reverse a previous Council-approved official interpretation and agreed that it is permissible for an institution’s coaching staff member to include color attachments with electronic mail correspondence sent to prospective student-athletes. [Reference: Bylaw 13.4.1 (printed recruiting materials – correspondence – electronic transmissions)] The use of a pager to contact a prospect is considered a telephone call. If a pager permits a text message to be displayed, an institutional coaching staff member who leaves a message in excess of a greeting is considered to have made a telephone contact. [References: Bylaws 13.1.3 (telephone calls to prospects) and 13.1.3.1 (time period for telephone calls – general rule)] An institution may advertise its camp and clinic on a recruiting publication's Web site provided the format of such advertisements is identical and the Web site camp directory includes multiple listings of summer camps. The subcommittee noted that the half-page size restriction applicable to advertisements in printed publications is not applicable to advertisements placed on the Internet. [Reference: NCAA Bylaw 13.4.5.1.2 (summer camp advertisements)] Pursuant to Proposal No. 99-101, electronically transmitted correspondence between an institutional staff member and a prospective student-athlete shall be considered prearranged whenever a time and method for such electronic correspondence has been designated in advance. The subcommittee recommended that the NCAA Division I Management Council, pursuant to NCAA Constitution 5.4.1.1.1, consider using its authority to modify Proposal No. 99-101 to indicate that any electronic correspondence sent by "instant messenger" or similar means also would be considered a telephone call, regardless of whether such forms of communication are prearranged. [Reference: Proposal No. 99-101 (recruiting – telephone calls)] An institution may permit a noninstitutional publication that reports primarily on an institution's athletics program to purchase advertising space in an institutional publication (e.g., game program) or an institutionally-controlled media outlet (e.g., institution's coach's show or web site) without such advertising constituting an impermissible endorsement of the noninstitutional publication, provided the opportunity to purchase such advertising space is open to the general public on an equal-access basis at the established rate. Similarly, it is permissible for an institution to purchase advertising space in a noninstitutional publication that reports primarily on the institution's athletics program or a media outlet controlled by the noninsitutional publication (e.g., the noninstituional publication's web site) without such advertising constituting an impermissible endorsement of the noninstitutional publication, provided the opportunity to purchase such advertising space is open to the general public on an equal-access basis at the established rate. The subcommittee noted that it remains impermissible for an institution's web site to provide a hyperlink (i.e., direct link) or make direct reference to the web site of a noninstitutional publication that reports primarily on the institution's athletics program. [References: Bylaw 11.3.2.7 (noninstitutional publications that report on athletics program) and Official interpretation 11/17/98, Item No. 3] It is permissible for a institution's web site or an athletics department staff member's personal web site to include information related to the institution's athletics programs and a hyperlink to the institution's athletics web site, provided neither the institution's web site nor the athletics department staff member's personal web site contains: (1) information regarding prospective student-athletes, except as permitted under Bylaw 13.11.8; (2) any hyperlink to the web site of a recruiting/scouting service or a noninstitutional publication that reports primarily on the institution's athletics program; (3) recruiting videos or other audio/video materials, except as permitted under Bylaw 13.4.2.1. [References: Bylaws 13.4.1 (printed recruiting materials) and 13.4.2.1 (highlight film/videotape/audio tape)] : It is not permissible for an institution's website to provide a hyperlink (i.e., direct link) or make direct reference to either the website of a noninstitutional publication that reports primarily on the institution's athletics program or a recruiting/scouting service, inasmuch as such activity is considered to be a nonpermissible endorsement of the publication and/or scouting/recruiting service. [Reference: 11.3.2.7 (Non institutional publications that report on athletics program) and 11.3.2.10 (recruiting service consultants)]. The subcommittee determined that it would be permissible for an institution's coaching staff member to engage in a face-to-face contact with a prospective student-athlete via a videoconference or video telephone and that such contact would constitute one of the three permissible contacts. [References: NCAA Bylaws 13.02.3 (contacts); 13.4.2 (NCAA Division I and II audio/visual materials); 13.1 (contacts and evaluations); and 13.01.6 (time periods for telephone calls and contacts)] : (I) It is not permissible for members of an institution's coaching staff to show prospects computer recruiting presentations (e.g., using presentation software) during the recruiting process. [Reference: NCAA Bylaw 13.4.2 (Division I -- video materials)] : Reviewed the provisions of Bylaw 13.14.3 and determined that a prospective student-athlete may utilize a scouting service or other outside agency to produce a videotape highlighting his or her athletics ability in order to provide the videotape to a particular member institution, provided the institution does not arrange for or request that the videotape be produced.
Staff Interpretations The membership services staff determined that an institution may send electronic mail to prospective student-athletes during the conduct of one of its contests. The staff recommended that the NCAA Division I Academics/Eligibility/Compliance Cabinet Subcommittee on Legislative Review/Interpretations and the Division II Legislation Committee review this issue to determine if either wishes to sponsor legislation to preclude such activity. [References: NCAA Bylaws 13.1.3.2.1 (telephone calls to prospects -- during the conduct of athletics contest) and 13.4.1-(d) (electronic transmissions -- NCAA Divisions I and II)] : The legislative services staff confirmed that the same principle governing the use of a student-athlete with remaining eligibility in an advertisement promoting a printed athletics publication is applicable to an advertisement of an athletics publication that may be electronically accessed. Thus, a student-athlete's name or picture may appear in the advertisement only through a reproduction of the publication's cover and no direct reference to the student-athlete may be made. [References: staff minutes 09/02/88 Item No. 1-(e) and Bylaw 12.5.2.1 (advertisements and promotions subsequent to enrollment)] : An institution may not pay a subscription fee to a scouting service that "matches" prospective student-athletes with institutions on the basis of an institution's team profile and the prospect's interest and abilities, inasmuch as the information regarding the prospective student-athlete is not available to all institutions desiring to subscribe to the service. The Recruiting Committee reviewed this issue and supported the staff's interpretation. [Reference: 13.15.3 (published scouting service)] [Note: This staff minute replaces Item No. 1-a of the August 23, 1991, staff minutes, which has been archived in the legislative services data base.] |