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PROSPECTS

AMATUERISM | ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS | HAZING LETTER | OFFICIAL VISITS

AMATEURISM :: Involvement with Professional Teams

12.2.3.1 Competition against Professionals
An individual may participate singly or as a member of an amateur team against professional athletes

12.2.3.2 Competition with Professionals
An individual shall not be eligible for intercollegiate athletics in a sport if the individual ever competed on a professional team (per Bylaw 12.02.4) in that sport. However, an individual may compete on a tennis, golf, two-person sand volleyball or two-person synchronized diving team with persons who are competing for cash or a comparable prize, provided the individual does not receive payment of any kind for such participation.

12.2.3.2.1 Professional Player as Team Member
An individual may participate with a professional on a team, provided the professional is not being paid by a professional team or league to play as a member of that team (e.g., summer basketball leagues with teams composed of both professional and amateur athletes).

12.2.3.2.2 Professional Coach or Referee
Participation on a team that includes a professional coach or referee does not cause the team to be classified as a professional team.

12.2.3.2.3 Amateur/Professional Leagues
An individual may participate as a member of an amateur team in a league in which one or more teams are professional, provided the league is not a member of a recognized professional sports organization or is not directly supported or sponsored by a professional sports team or organization.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS CHART (.pdf)

INITIAL ELIGILIBILITY

In 2003 and 2004, a prospective student-athlete may use either the new 14 core-course or the current 13 core-course initial-eligibility requirements to become a qualifier. Elements of the two standards MAY NOT be combined to attain qualifier status. Beginning in 2005, all prospective student-athletes must be cer-tified under the 14 core-course standard.

Partial-qualifier certification will be eliminated for a prospective student-athlete who enters August 2005 and thereafter.

A nonqualifier will continue to have the opportunity to earn a fourth season of eligibility if he or she obtains his or her degree by the beginning of his or her fifth year of collegiate enrollment.

CONTINUING ELIGILIBILITY
Transfers

A midyear transfer is subject to the above requirements and is able to use transferable degree credits to satisfy the requirements.

A transfer student-athlete (foreign or domestic) who initially enrolls as a full-time student in any collegiate institution's regular academic term on or after Au-gust 1, 2003, will be subject to the academic requirements set forth above.

Part-Time Enrollment

A student-athlete is responsible to earn 18 semester/27 quarter credit hours in any academic year in which the student-athlete was full time during one or more terms. Part-time hours may be used to fulfill this requirement.

Exception: A student-athlete who enrolls in his or her first full-time term of collegiate enrollment following the fall term will not be responsible for earning 18/27 credit hours until he or she has spent a full academic year at the institution.

Averaging Method

The averaging method for determining eligibility may not be used with the new academic requirements.

Summer Credit Hours

Summer credit hours may be used to satisfy the 24-credit-hour requirement when certifying a student-athlete entering his or her second year of collegiate enroll-ment. Summer hours may also be used to meet the 40/60/80-percent-of-degree requirements.

Remedial, Tutorial or Noncredit Courses

A student-athlete may use remedial, tutorial or noncredit courses earned during his or her first year of collegiate enrollment and when certifying a student-athlete entering his or her second year of collegiate enrollment. These courses may be used to meet the 24-semester/36-quarter credit-hour requirement, but may not exceed six semester/nine quarter total credit hours.

Six Credit Hours

All student-athletes, including those currently enrolled, must successfully complete at least six (6) semester or quarter hours in the previous regular academic term of full-time enrollment to be eligible to participate in the next regular academic term (pursuant to the adoption of Proposal Nos. 2002-66 and 2002-70).

HAZING LETTER

HAZING LETTER (.pdf)

OFFICIAL VISITS

OFFICIAL CAMPUS VISITS BY PROSPECTIVE STUDENT-ATHLETES MANUAL (.pdf)

SMU Athletics Official Visit Guidelines for PROSPECTS (.pdf)

OFFICIAL VISIT ACTIVITIES
The following should be used as a resource only, in determining permissible/impermissible official visit activities. This document is not all-inclusive and should not be used as a substitute for the NCAA Manual.

Showing a Video/Prospect's Name on a Scoreboard

Permissible if the stadium is empty and the scoreboard is not visible to the general public. Keep in mind that although this is a possibility in most basketball arenas, many, if not all football scoreboards can be seen from the outside public.

Publicizing prospective student-athletes' visits through bulletin boards, signs and scoreboards
Determined that Bylaw 1-4 (publicity) and Bylaw 1-9 (visitations) would not preclude a member institution from hanging on its admissions office bulletin board the name of a prospective student-athlete visiting the institution, even if the athletics department arranges this through the admissions office, provided the same arrangement is made for all students visiting the institution; noted further, that it would not be permissible for a welcome sign bearing the prospective student-athlete's name to be displayed in a dorm window if the athletics department arranged it; reaffirmed that a prospective student-athlete's name may be displayed on a scoreboard in the institution's stadium when the stadium is empty and the scoreboard is not visible to the general public. (Staff Interp, Dec. 21, 1988, item h)

Showing a Video to Prospects on a Scoreboard

Permissible as long as the video meets the requirements of 13.4.2.

Impermissible if the video does not meet 13.4.2. Examples of impermissible videos include but are not limited to:

Pulling recruiting (i.e. evaluation) videotapes of prospects to manipulate/splice together into one video and show during a dinner/event to the group.

Using highlight films/audio tape that meet 13.4.2.1, and altering it in anyway to include the prospect or anything irrelevant to the game (i.e., playing an actual audiotape of a game and narrate over the current student-athlete's name by inserting the prospect's name; in essence, altering an actual game audio to sound like the prospect scored, completed a pass, etc.)

Showing a video of plans for a new athletic facility.

Video Material Shown to a Prospective Student-Athlete (I)
The membership services staff confirmed that an institution is not permitted to show a video on its scoreboard to a prospective student-athlete visiting its campus while the prospect is touring the stadium, unless the video meets the requirements of a highlight film or a nonathletics video available to all students. [References: NCAA Bylaws 13.4.2 (video/audio materials), 13.4.2.1 (highlight film/videotape/audio tape) and 13.4.2.2 [videotapes/audio tapes/electronically produced information (nonathletics) available to all students]; 12/21/88 staff interpretation, item h; and a 10/14/98 staff interpretation, item d, which has been archived.] (Staff Interp, Apr. 02, 2003, Item 1a)

Using the PA to Announce the Prospect

Permissible as long as the general public cannot hear the announcement, and it is a "live" announcement, made by an actual person and not an audiotape. Also, the individual announcing the prospect must be a staff member within the athletic department.

Usage of Fog Machines and Lights

Permissible as long as the use of smoke and/or lights is in an empty arena/stadium and not visible to the general public.

Police Escorts

Impermissible to use a police escort to transport prospects to/from the airport.

Bands and Cheerleaders

Impermissible to use the band or cheerleaders in any manner during the recruiting process. These groups would be excessive entertainment per Bylaw 13.5.2.

13.5.2 Excessive Entertainment
A member institution may not arrange or permit excessive entertainment of a prospect on the campus or elsewhere (e.g., hiring a band for a dance specifically for the entertainment of the prospect, a chauffeured limousine, a helicopter).

Meals or Entertainment to Student Support Groups

Impermissible unless the student is designated as the student host during the prospect's official visit.

Member Institution Utilizing Student Groups During a Prospect's Official and Unofficial Visits
The membership services staff confirmed that an institution may not provide free meals at a restaurant facility or entertainment to those members of an institutional student support group that accompany a prospect during the official visit unless the student is designated as the student host and thereby eligible to receive the permissible entertainment allowance to entertain a prospect during the prospect's official visit. [Note: This minute replaces Official Interpretation, 10/01/91, item 4, which has been archived.] [Reference: NCAA Bylaw 13.7.5.5.2 (multiple hosts)] (Staff Interp, Oct. 14, 1998, Item 14)

Participation in Team Activities

Impermissible to allow prospects to participate in any activities that would make the public or media aware of the visit.

Prospect's Involvement with Team Activities During a Visit to Campus
An institution shall not make the public or the media aware (or arrange to make them aware) of a prospect's visit to the institution's campus. Therefore, it is not be permissible for prospects to participate in team activities that would make the public or the media aware of the prospect's visit to the institution's campus (e.g., running out of the tunnel with the institution's team, celebratory walks to or around the stadium/arena, on-field pregame celebrations). (Official Interp, Feb. 20, 2003, Item 5) *This interp is archived - Incorporated into the manual by divisional interpretive body on 9/12/03 in to Bylaw 13.11.4