Infractions Cases Where a Head Coach Successfully Defeated a Head Coach Responsibilities Violation Allegation

Abstract

To increase head coaches’ accountability, the NCAA strengthened its head coach responsibilities legislation in August 2013. The NCAA Enforcement Staff has since levied dozens of head coach responsibilities violation allegations. The Committee on Infractions (COI) has affirmed all but three of these charges, concluding that head coaches did not violate the legislation in: (1) Wichita State University’s 2015 baseball case; (2) A 2017 case involving the University of the Pacific’s baseball program; and (3) Baylor University’s 2021 case that involved its football program.

This Article explores what college athletics constituents can learn from these three cases. This information is increasingly important given both the frequency with which the Enforcement Staff alleges violations of the legislation and the number of pending cases involving high-profile universities, sport programs, and head coaches.

Keywords: Sports law, administrative law, NCAA, Committee on Infractions, higher education