The Arkansas State women’s soccer and football programs are on probation until April 19, 2025, for separate and unrelated NCAA rules violations, which are detailed in a public report issued by the NCAA. Throughout the infractions process, our administration and coaches cooperated fully with the NCAA’s staff to perform an investigation and expedite a final Negotiated Resolution that is available
here.
Arkansas State agreed that it failed to monitor its women's soccer program, which impermissibly provided travel expenses for families of recruits during official visits, according to a negotiated resolution released by a Division I Committee on Infractions panel. An additional tampering violation occurred in the football program when a former assistant football staff member Nick and former assistant coach contacted a Division II student-athlete who had not entered the NCAA Transfer Portal.
The parties also agreed that the women's soccer head coach and football head coach violated head coach responsibility rules as a result of the violations in their respective programs.
It was agreed that the majority of the violations in this case occurred when the head coach misapplied recruiting rules by arranging for and paying for the travel expenses for the parents of 10 recruits while those prospects attended official visits at the campus. In total, approximately $4,144 in impermissible benefits — which constitute recruiting inducements — were provided to the families of the prospects. As a result, four student-athletes went on to compete in 82 games and received actual and necessary expenses while ineligible.
Because of his direct involvement in the violations and failure to promote an atmosphere of compliance, the head women’s soccer coach violated head coach responsibility rules.
Arkansas State and the enforcement staff also agreed that because the school's compliance department did not identify the impermissible benefits, despite approving expense reports for the visits that included the arrangements for parents, the school failed to monitor its women's soccer program.
Additionally, it was agreed that a tampering violation occurred in the football program when a former football assistant staff member contacted a Division II football student-athlete who was not in the Transfer Portal and arranged for him to speak on the phone and subsequently in person with a former football assistant coach.
Beginning in January 2023, head coaches are responsible for the conduct of their staff. Because the impermissible contact occurred in April 2023, the head coach responsibility violation automatically attached. However, because the head coach was not directly aware of or involved in the violations and because he demonstrated that he promoted an atmosphere of compliance and monitored his staff, the parties declined to prescribe a penalty.
The parties used ranges identified by the Division I membership-approved infractions penalty guidelines to agree upon Level II-mitigated penalties for the university and head women’s soccer coach and Level II-standard penalties for the former football assistant staffer and assistant coach. The decision contains the full list of penalties as approved by the Committee on Infractions, including:
- One year of probation.
- A $15,000 fine.
- A reduction in official visits for the women's soccer program during the 2023-24 academic year by 10% from the school's average visits provided during the previous four years.
- A four-week reduction in off-campus recruiting contacts and evaluations in the women's soccer program.
- A reduction of official visits in the football program by three during the 2023-24 academic year.
- A two-week reduction in off-campus recruiting contacts and evaluations for the entire football coaching staff during the spring 2024 off-campus recruiting period.
- A two-week ban on unofficial visits for the football program during the 2024-25 academic year.
- A suspension from one regular-season game during the 2024-25 women's soccer season for the head women’s soccer coach.
- A one-year show-cause order for the former football assistant coach. During the show-cause order, any employing member school shall suspend the former assistant coach from two games and impose a two-week off-campus recruiting ban.
- A one-year show-cause order for the assistant football staffer. During the show-cause order, any employing member school shall suspend the former football assistant staff member for one week from all athletically related responsibilities.
- A vacation of all women's soccer records in which student-athletes competed while ineligible.
