WAG New NCAA rules on "unofficial visits"

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tomtnt

Proud Parent
Looks like NCAA trying to get a handle on early gymnast recruiting, verbal offers etc. They recently passed ruling that prevents programs from arranging "unofficial visits" for gymnasts until Jr. year.

https://web3.ncaa.org/lsdbi/search/proposalView?id=100174

"In women's gymnastics, an unofficial visit with athletics department involvement (e.g., contact with athletics department staff, athletics-specific tour, complimentary admissions) shall not occur with an individual (or her relatives or legal guardians) before September 1 at the beginning of her junior year in high school."

Not sure if it will make a huge dent in the number of early verbal commits though - the coaches could still potentially make offers to the athletes at camps, JO nationals, home club, etc.

More strict regulation proposals regarding when verbal offers etc. can be made were tabled.
 
There will just be more "camps"....fall camp, winter camp, Monday camp, Tuesday camp....you get the drift...any excuse to get around the regs...

The only thing that will really "help" curb early recruiting is penalty for early verbal...and granted, it's only a verbal but that usually halts a gymnast's looking at other schools right then and there...if there were penalties for verbals, and sorry, these kids aren't making these up because they weren't courted by the schools and spoken to by their coaches, then that might put teeth into the regulations but without that, it's just a gesture with no means of enforcement...
 
There will just be more "camps"....fall camp, winter camp, Monday camp, Tuesday camp....you get the drift...any excuse to get around the regs...

too bad they didn't vote on this one sponsored by the Ivy League...

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I've never seen "early recruiting" as an Ivy league issue...you can't apply for admission until you're a senior, and that's always the deal breaker. The Ivy coach can give you a "likely" letter after reviewing your academics but it's definitely no guarantee...the admissions process itself keeps a lid on early recruiting for the Ivies.
 
I've never seen "early recruiting" as an Ivy league issue...you can't apply for admission until you're a senior, and that's always the deal breaker. The Ivy coach can give you a "likely" letter after reviewing your academics but it's definitely no guarantee...the admissions process itself keeps a lid on early recruiting for the Ivies.

yea- the proposal came from the Ivy League - they present it to the NCAA committee to vote on which would affect all Div. I school... other proposals come from SEC, PAC-12 etc.
 
So the Ivy schools want to be on more equal footing it seems...can't blame them. I do think the early recruiting is a problem...I just don't see how a 13-14 year-old can make a decision about their collegiate career.
 
So the Ivy schools want to be on more equal footing it seems...can't blame them. I do think the early recruiting is a problem...I just don't see how a 13-14 year-old can make a decision about their collegiate career.

It's not that I don't think early recruiting is a problem in general, but with the Ivies versus XYZ State , there is zero guarantee of admission, so the Ivies can recruit away but if you're not Ebee or a gymnast on that athletic and academic level, you're not going to stop your recruiting efforts because the Ivies or Stanford say they "want you" as a freshman.....because the academic part is what will trip you up.

I think with Ivies or Stanford, you're more likely to see what Rachel Flam did...committed early to Alabama , but when accepted to Stanford officially, "switched her commit"...
 
I get what you are saying....then why did the Ivy's push for later recruiting so you think?

Honestly, I don't know...because they've always had later recruiting....and kids going to Ivies typically aren't going to the Utahs, Bamas, LSUs...

I don't know if the Ivies think that they will get a higher calibre of athlete with later recruiting but if the high calibre gymnast committed to say Oklahoma , as a Jr, can't get into Cornell as a senior, she's still going to Oklahoma...the only thing I see putting the Ivies on an even playing field with the rest of the schools is to: 1. Lower their academic standards (and that's not going to happen)...or 2. Some type of draft, where the worse teams gets the better kids to even out the talent across teams ( and I never see this happening either) so maybe the Ivies are hust playing with our minds with this because it really doesn't change anything for them...
 
Maybe the Ivy's are pushing for it because it's good for the kids...

I get that but they won't be able to really have an effect in making others comply.....I DO think later recruiting is better for the kids but the key is getting the NCAA coaches to abandon their "I don't agree with it but everyone does it so I must or we'll lose that recruit" mentality...
 
I get that but they won't be able to really have an effect in making others comply.....I DO think later recruiting is better for the kids but the key is getting the NCAA coaches to abandon their "I don't agree with it but everyone does it so I must or we'll lose that recruit" mentality...
It is my understanding that is how the process is started. Leagues propose rule changes and then the NCAA votes on whether to impose them Div 1 wide. I do honestly think the Ivies are interested in changing the culture of early recruiting.

Also remember athletes announcing their "verbals" brings free publicity to Universities, publicity the Ivies don't get. Delaying verbals until junior year may be a small step to evening the playing field on that front.
 
Also remember athletes announcing their "verbals" brings free publicity to Universities, publicity the Ivies don't get. Delaying verbals until junior year may be a small step to evening the playing field on that front.
I'm not sure the Ivies really need/want athletic publicity though, do they? Their admissions process still will dictate a later final decision than this provides for, so I don't know that it solves much for them.
 
The NCAA may not have gone far enough with this new policy but it is at least a step in the right direction. They could easily go with the "no public announcements of verbals until Jr year" but we all know it will still be happening behind closed doors. The only way to prevent all this is to shutdown the camps which will never happen, or prevent the coaching staff from interacting with the gymnasts during the camps, which defeats the purpose of girls going to the camps. So again, never happen.
 

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