NCAA Infractions
On July 23, 2019, the Division I Committee on Infractions announced that a former DePaul associate head coach violated NCAA ethical conduct rules when he knowingly directed the former assistant director of basketball operations to provide impermissible recruiting benefits to a recruit. The committee said the men’s basketball head coach violated NCAA head coach responsibility rules when he did not stop or prevent violations from occurring in his program.
The men’s basketball program recruited the student-athlete, who had graduated from high school but had not yet met NCAA initial eligibility requirements. To help ensure the necessary coursework was completed, the committee said a former associate head coach arranged for the assistant director of basketball operations to live with the prospect. The assistant director of basketball operations did not complete the prospect’s coursework, but he monitored the recruit’s progress, limited his extracurricular activities and ensured tests were taken.
The student-athlete met eligibility requirements and enrolled at the university. Because the arrangement was an impermissible recruiting benefit, the committee said the student-athlete competed while ineligible. The arrangement also involved impermissible recruiting contact, which caused the men’s basketball program to exceed the number of allowable coaches.
The committee used the Division I membership-approved infractions penalty guidelines to prescribe the following measures:
“The decision and findings by the NCAA Committee on Infractions (COI) following a self-reported infraction, and subsequent cooperation, by DePaul University are disappointing. This infraction was an isolated incident directed and then concealed by a former staff member that resulted in, at most, a limited recruiting advantage relative to one former student-athlete. Since our self-report in January 2018, DePaul has cooperated with the NCAA Enforcement staff to proactively pursue the resolution of this matter and has reviewed and further strengthened related protocol and practice.
“DePaul respectfully disagrees with the COI's findings relative to head coach Dave Leitao under the Head Coach Control doctrine. Coach Leitao is a man of character and integrity, who has the support of the administration in leading our men’s basketball program.
“In the interest of concluding the infractions process and moving forward for the men’s basketball program, DePaul has agreed to accept the penalties as described in the COI’s decision.
“DePaul would like to thank the NCAA Committee on Infractions panel for its thoughtful hearing of this matter, and the NCAA Enforcement staff for their professionalism throughout this process. The university will make no further statements about this matter.”
Link: Complete NCAA Public Infractions Decision
The men’s basketball program recruited the student-athlete, who had graduated from high school but had not yet met NCAA initial eligibility requirements. To help ensure the necessary coursework was completed, the committee said a former associate head coach arranged for the assistant director of basketball operations to live with the prospect. The assistant director of basketball operations did not complete the prospect’s coursework, but he monitored the recruit’s progress, limited his extracurricular activities and ensured tests were taken.
The student-athlete met eligibility requirements and enrolled at the university. Because the arrangement was an impermissible recruiting benefit, the committee said the student-athlete competed while ineligible. The arrangement also involved impermissible recruiting contact, which caused the men’s basketball program to exceed the number of allowable coaches.
The committee used the Division I membership-approved infractions penalty guidelines to prescribe the following measures:
- Three years of probation.
- Suspension of the head coach from the first three regular-season games of the 2019-20 season.
- A three-year show-cause order for the former associate head coach. During that period, any NCAA member school employing him must restrict him from any athletically related duties unless it shows cause why the restrictions should not apply.
- A vacation of records in which the men’s basketball student-athlete competed while ineligible. The university must provide a written report containing the contests impacted to the NCAA media coordination and statistics staff within 45 days of the public decision release.
- A reduction of six men’s basketball recruiting-person days during the 2017-18 academic year (self-imposed by the university).
- A reduction of six men’s basketball recruiting-person days in April 2019 (self-imposed by the university).
- A $5,000 fine, plus 1% of the men’s basketball program budget.
“The decision and findings by the NCAA Committee on Infractions (COI) following a self-reported infraction, and subsequent cooperation, by DePaul University are disappointing. This infraction was an isolated incident directed and then concealed by a former staff member that resulted in, at most, a limited recruiting advantage relative to one former student-athlete. Since our self-report in January 2018, DePaul has cooperated with the NCAA Enforcement staff to proactively pursue the resolution of this matter and has reviewed and further strengthened related protocol and practice.
“DePaul respectfully disagrees with the COI's findings relative to head coach Dave Leitao under the Head Coach Control doctrine. Coach Leitao is a man of character and integrity, who has the support of the administration in leading our men’s basketball program.
“In the interest of concluding the infractions process and moving forward for the men’s basketball program, DePaul has agreed to accept the penalties as described in the COI’s decision.
“DePaul would like to thank the NCAA Committee on Infractions panel for its thoughtful hearing of this matter, and the NCAA Enforcement staff for their professionalism throughout this process. The university will make no further statements about this matter.”
Link: Complete NCAA Public Infractions Decision