Notre Dame goes on year of probation
Tennessee, with opening for coach, first hires AD
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame’s football program is on NCAA probation until next January after admitting to recruiting violations in 2019 in which a now-former assistant had an impermissible in-person meeting with one prospect and sent impermissible text messages to another.
The NCAA announced the negotiated resolution Thursday after it was reviewed by the Division I Committee on Infractions.
“Any violation of NCAA rules is unacceptable and Notre Dame Athletics takes full responsibility for its actions in this regard,” Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick said in a statement. “While we made clear to the NCAA our view that the agreed-upon penalties exceeded the nature of the infractions, we accept the final outcome of the case. In addition, the assistant coach involved is no longer employed by the university.”
Head coach Brian Kelly also was found to have had impermissible off-campus contact with a prospect when he had his picture taken with the prospect at his high school.
The NCAA described the former assistant’s violations as Level II, which are considered significant but not the most egregious in the four-level penalty structure. Kelly’s violation was characterized as Level III.
The number of official recruiting visits Notre Dame can host in 2020-21 will be reduced by one, from 56 to 55, and there will be 14 days when prospects won’t be allowed to make unofficial visits. The Irish also will impose a seven-day off-campus recruiting ban for the entire staff this spring.
Probation started Thursday, and the school also will pay a $5,000 fine.
TENNESSEE: Central Florida athletic director Danny White was hired as the Volunteers’ new AD just three days after the firing of football coach Jeremy Pruitt and athletic director Phillip Fulmer’s retirement.
White will be Tennessee’s fourth different athletic director since Dave Hart took over in September 2011, and his first job will be hiring a new football coach with the Volunteers in the midst of an NCAA investigation into recruiting violations that cost Pruitt his job.
ALABAMA: Former Houston Texans head coach Bill O’Brien has been hired as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. He is replacing Steve Sarkisian, who left to become head coach of the Texas Longhorns after the national championship game.
O’Brien spent six-plus years as the Texans head coach, going 52-48 with four AFC South titles and four playoff appearances. Houston quarterback Deshaun Watson threw for 4,165 yards in 2018 and 3,852 yards in 2019.
The Texans fired the 51-year-old O’Brien after an 0-4 start last season.
VIRUS: Citing health and safety concerns, Northern Colorado football program won’t participate in the Big Sky Conference and Football Championship Subdivision spring championship season.
Instead, the Golden Bears, led by rookie coach Ed McCaffrey, will pursue a modified non-conference schedule in late spring. Northern Colorado is the fifth Big Sky program to either opt out of the spring season or to pursue a modified spring schedule. The others are Montana, Montana State, Portland State and Sacramento State.
The Big Sky pushed its football schedule from last fall to the spring in response to the coronavirus pandemic.