Division I compliance troubles reach Augustana’s level

In the wake of compliance troubles at Division I schools, Augustana's athletic programs may be forced to change their recruiting of and marketing styles with athletes.

With the media's attention focused toward Univeristy of Southern California and University of North Carolina mainly, the average sports fan has found himself or herself in the middle of a compliance nightmare, where agents, recruiters, coaches and student athletes have been uncovered as liars and cheats. 

"Fortunately at Augustana we have a coaching staff that cares for the well-being of our student athletes," Assistant Athletic Director Ann Traphagan said.  "Our coaches would never do anything that could jeopardize the future of any of their athletes by violating NCAA bylaws."

That being said, the NCAA is always looking to better their control over situations that may go awry.

"With the ever-changing ways coaches and colleges recruit students, the NCAA's basic goals are to keep a fair playing field and to not allow colleges to overwhelm recruits," Traphagan said.

This January, members of the NCAA will vote on legislative proposals surrounding student athletes.  This year's proposals are focused on length of playing seasons, start dates for pre-season workouts, and evaluating the number of exempt contests teams have or use.

At least at the Division II level, no proposals are specifically dealing with recruiting.

"The NCAA wants to look out for the well-being of students being recruited for athletics," Traphagan said. 

That includes limits on the number of phone calls, visits, and times of the year that recruiting can occur.

Another focus of NCAA's investigations has been related to students already accepted and playing collegiate athletics.

Formally known as the Clearinghouse, now the NCAA Eligibility Center, oversees eligibility of student athletes in their first year of college.

"The Eligibility Center can only determine eligibility from the information they receive from student athletes," Traphagan said. 

While the Eligibility Center has red-flags for fraudulent information, "[i]f the student athlete chooses to fraudulently provide false documentation, the Eligibility Center…can miss them," Traphagan said.

No Augustana students have been found to be in violation with the Eligibility Center, which Traphagan said points to the type of students the school has.

"The types of players we recruit at Augustana have to have good character, as well as talent," Traphagan said.  "That says a lot about our student athletes."

Finally, student athletes looking to further their careers after graduation, more often than not have contact with scouts and agents.

"We often have professional scouts at games and the average fan does not know it," Traphagan said.  "There was a professional football scout at a home game already this year."

While the NCAA supports scouts looking at athletes, the problems heard about in the media come "when agents get in contact with the student athletes directly and entice athletes into deals that uneducated student athletes are not ready for," Traphagan said.

When athletes do make those deals, the agents are not liable for any repercussions, and it is the student athlete who faces punishment.

Those situations have been avoided at Augustana, Traphagan thinks, because of the coaches looking out for their players.

"College coaches across the NCAA have stepped up to the plate denying agents access to their players," Traphagan said.  "This is one way for coaches to help protect their athletes from agents that are not looking out for what is best for the athlete."