Post by 75tranzam on Jan 12, 2024 8:39:55 GMT -5
NCAA penalizes Florida State for recruitment of Georgia offensive lineman Amarius Mims
247sports.com/college/georgia/Article/ncaa-penalizes-florida-state-for-recruitment-of-georgia-offensive-lineman-amarius-mims-225172877/
The NCAA handed down penalties to the Seminoles for violations related to their pursuit of the former five-star prospect.
There was a time in the spring of 2022 when it looked like former Georgia offensive lineman Amarius Mims would leave the Bulldogs for the chance to play elsewhere. One of the schools vying for Mims at that time was Florida State, which was penalized by the NCAA on Thursday for their recruitment of the former five-star prospect.
The NCAA suspended Florida State offensive coordinator Alex Atkins and handed down a two-year show cause penalty to Atkins for violations regarding the recruitment of Mims. Mims was not specifically named in the NCAA report, but Noles247 confirmed through multiple sources that his recruitment led to the punishments.
The full list of punishments from the NCAA include:
Two years of probation
A two-year show cause order for the assistant coach, including a suspension from the next three regular-season games, a two-week restriction on recruiting communication, and required attendance at a NCAA Regional Rules Seminar attendance
A restriction from off-campus recruiting during fall 2023 for the assistant coach
A three-year disassociation from the booster
A one-year disassociation from the collective
A $5,000 fine plus 1% of the football budget
A 5% reduction in football scholarships over the two-year probationary period, amounting to a total reduction of five scholarships
A reduction in official (paid) visits in the football program in the 2023-24 academic year by seven. The school also will not roll over six unused official visits from the 2022-23 academic year
A reduction in football recruiting communications for a total of six weeks during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 academic years
A reduction in the number of in-person recruiting days during the 2023-24 academic year by six evaluation days during fall 2023 and 18 during spring 2024
Per the NCAA, Atkins drove a recruit (Mims) to and from a meeting in which terms of an NIL deal were negotiated before the player signed with FSU. The NIL deal was to be with Rising Spear, a collective which Florida State must disassociate with for three years.
The NCAA’s report included the following about the incident:
The school, assistant coach and enforcement staff agreed that the violation occurred after a prospective transfer student-athlete entered the NCAA Transfer Portal and communicated with the assistant coach to arrange an official visit to Florida State. During that visit, the assistant coach transported the prospect and his parents to and from an off-campus meeting with a booster, who at the time was the chief executive officer of an NIL collective that also was a booster. The prospect and his parents stated the assistant coach informed them that they would be meeting with the booster. The coach did not stay for the meeting.
During the meeting, the booster encouraged the prospect to enroll at Florida State and offered him an NIL opportunity with the collective worth approximately $15,000 per month during his first year at the school. After the meeting, the booster contacted the prospect and the prospect's mother via text message and/or phone call. Shortly thereafter, the prospect withdrew his name from the Transfer Portal and remained at his previous school. The prospect did not enter into an agreement with the booster or receive any related compensation.
Mims entered the transfer portal on April 10, 2022 and visited Tallahassee soon after. Florida State emerged as one of the favorites to land the rising sophomore offensive lineman, but he ultimately withdrew from the portal on April 18 and returned to Georgia.
“I knew if I stayed here and I stayed true to the university and believed what Coach Smart said, I would be good,” Mims said in September 2022. “I went in and experienced the portal, but nothing felt like Georgia so I came back."
Mims’ decision to come back to Georgia paid off in a big way. He regularly rotated in at right tackle behind starter Warren McClendon in 2022 and started the final two games as McClendon battled injury. Mims started the first three games of Georgia’s 2023 season before suffering an ankle injury that required surgery. He returned to action later that fall and ultimately played in seven games that season.
Mims did not play in the Orange Bowl and declared for the draft on Dec. 31. He is widely considered to be one of the best offensive tackles in the 2024 draft.
247sports.com/college/georgia/Article/ncaa-penalizes-florida-state-for-recruitment-of-georgia-offensive-lineman-amarius-mims-225172877/
The NCAA handed down penalties to the Seminoles for violations related to their pursuit of the former five-star prospect.
There was a time in the spring of 2022 when it looked like former Georgia offensive lineman Amarius Mims would leave the Bulldogs for the chance to play elsewhere. One of the schools vying for Mims at that time was Florida State, which was penalized by the NCAA on Thursday for their recruitment of the former five-star prospect.
The NCAA suspended Florida State offensive coordinator Alex Atkins and handed down a two-year show cause penalty to Atkins for violations regarding the recruitment of Mims. Mims was not specifically named in the NCAA report, but Noles247 confirmed through multiple sources that his recruitment led to the punishments.
The full list of punishments from the NCAA include:
Two years of probation
A two-year show cause order for the assistant coach, including a suspension from the next three regular-season games, a two-week restriction on recruiting communication, and required attendance at a NCAA Regional Rules Seminar attendance
A restriction from off-campus recruiting during fall 2023 for the assistant coach
A three-year disassociation from the booster
A one-year disassociation from the collective
A $5,000 fine plus 1% of the football budget
A 5% reduction in football scholarships over the two-year probationary period, amounting to a total reduction of five scholarships
A reduction in official (paid) visits in the football program in the 2023-24 academic year by seven. The school also will not roll over six unused official visits from the 2022-23 academic year
A reduction in football recruiting communications for a total of six weeks during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 academic years
A reduction in the number of in-person recruiting days during the 2023-24 academic year by six evaluation days during fall 2023 and 18 during spring 2024
Per the NCAA, Atkins drove a recruit (Mims) to and from a meeting in which terms of an NIL deal were negotiated before the player signed with FSU. The NIL deal was to be with Rising Spear, a collective which Florida State must disassociate with for three years.
The NCAA’s report included the following about the incident:
The school, assistant coach and enforcement staff agreed that the violation occurred after a prospective transfer student-athlete entered the NCAA Transfer Portal and communicated with the assistant coach to arrange an official visit to Florida State. During that visit, the assistant coach transported the prospect and his parents to and from an off-campus meeting with a booster, who at the time was the chief executive officer of an NIL collective that also was a booster. The prospect and his parents stated the assistant coach informed them that they would be meeting with the booster. The coach did not stay for the meeting.
During the meeting, the booster encouraged the prospect to enroll at Florida State and offered him an NIL opportunity with the collective worth approximately $15,000 per month during his first year at the school. After the meeting, the booster contacted the prospect and the prospect's mother via text message and/or phone call. Shortly thereafter, the prospect withdrew his name from the Transfer Portal and remained at his previous school. The prospect did not enter into an agreement with the booster or receive any related compensation.
Mims entered the transfer portal on April 10, 2022 and visited Tallahassee soon after. Florida State emerged as one of the favorites to land the rising sophomore offensive lineman, but he ultimately withdrew from the portal on April 18 and returned to Georgia.
“I knew if I stayed here and I stayed true to the university and believed what Coach Smart said, I would be good,” Mims said in September 2022. “I went in and experienced the portal, but nothing felt like Georgia so I came back."
Mims’ decision to come back to Georgia paid off in a big way. He regularly rotated in at right tackle behind starter Warren McClendon in 2022 and started the final two games as McClendon battled injury. Mims started the first three games of Georgia’s 2023 season before suffering an ankle injury that required surgery. He returned to action later that fall and ultimately played in seven games that season.
Mims did not play in the Orange Bowl and declared for the draft on Dec. 31. He is widely considered to be one of the best offensive tackles in the 2024 draft.