UGA hit with Level I secondary violation for inadvertent text messages
The SEC has determined that the text messages Georgia coach Mark Richt inadvertently sent to the father of an elite in-state recruit in May constituted a Level I secondary violation of NCAA rules.
That’s the bad news. The good news is UGA was granted relief from the standard minimum penalty associated with Level I violations “based on the fact there was no content to the text messages,” SEC Commissioner Mike Slive reported in a July 6 letter to the NCAA. The letter was obtained by the AJC through a Freedom of Information request.
Georgia has yet to hear back from the NCAA approving the SEC’s actions, but that is considered a formality.
“We have nothing to say on this subject,” Georgia Athletic Director Greg McGarity said.
In McGarity’s May 27 letter of explanation to Slive, he reports that Richt accidentally sent two text messages from his Blackberry to the father of Harris County defensive end Jordan Jenkins on May 26th. Jenkins is considered by many the top prospect in Georgia. Text messages to prospects or their family members are impermissible per NCAA rules until one day after a prospect has signed a national letter of intent with the school.
In the first instance, Richt received a text from Ron Jenkins asking for camp dates. Since Richt did not have the number programmed in his phone, the text was identified as “unknown.” Richt intended to forward the text to a recruiting assistant for identification but accidentally replied to Mr. Jenkins, which was a violation NCAA Bylaw 13.4.1.2.
Richt immediately reported the inadvertent violation to compliance director Eric Baumgartner, who subsequently asked Richt if Mr. Jenkins had replied. In an attempt to forward Mr. Jenkins’ response to Baumgartner, Richt accidentally replied to Mr. Jenkins again, hence he had to report another text violation.
Level I secondary violations are more serious than Level II violations. But this particular violation was considered Level I only because it involved inpermissible contact of a recruit.
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259 comments Add your comment
kevin
July 31st, 2011
6:30 pm
gt lied and mislead investigators left & right those are the facts
indianman
July 31st, 2011
6:35 pm
l you ga tech georja bulldogs have not has a title strip from them like your have hahahaha so talk on all your want too because we are still the best in the state
Ramblin Man
July 31st, 2011
7:05 pm
Chip,
Is thier a point were secondary violations build up and can turn into a major violation? Like in UGAs situation were several secondary violations have been reported and already addressed in regards to recruiting. Can the NCAA use that as a history of problems then decide that another what appears to be meaningless text message is one infraction too many and slam the program?
UGAgrad71
July 31st, 2011
7:10 pm
We need a scholarship limit of 185 or so for football, then UGA could sign enough BLACK O-lineman to make Tide Roll happy.
GR82BAG8R
July 31st, 2011
7:10 pm
indianman, just keep on crowing, bragging about beating Tech because they will never be able to compete with you. They simply don’t have the ability to recruit the top notch athletes.
Why not talk about real competition, like Florida….
If Richt were at Tech, he would be an abysmal failure. He has had perennial top 10 recruiting classes, yet finishes 6 – 7. Imagine what his record would be if he were limited to the stable of players at Tech….
Sweet Home Alabama
July 31st, 2011
7:23 pm
the mutts have always cheated and i have no respect for them.They are a second rate program .
We will be glad to hang a fifty on them anytime,.anyplace because we are BAMA.
MUTTS how did that white out work for you.I think we just scored again.Damn…
UGAgrad71
July 31st, 2011
7:36 pm
Have a minimum GPA of 2.50 coming out of high school to qualify for a scholarship in football or any other sport and you can, al least, stop some of the marginal students from receiving scholarships. A true student athlete would be able to hold his own in the classroom. If I remember correctly, Paul Johnson was being considered for the UGA staff in the late 80’s or early 90’s.
UGAgrad71
July 31st, 2011
7:39 pm
I vote to block ALL bloggers who cannot express themselves in any way but HATE!!
Dawg Tired
July 31st, 2011
8:40 pm
Isn’t that the same Mike Slive who found no violation in a recruit’s dad asking for money in return for his son agreeing to sign with a conference school? I do not give much credence to anything he says concerning violations of rules. He appears to be illiterate.
North Ave Trade School Hater
July 31st, 2011
9:44 pm
Level One secondary violation. Is that like double secret probation???
Buzz2011
July 31st, 2011
9:51 pm
The Dawgs need to have all 5 wins from last years season removed.
They never happened. The 5 games they win this year should not count.
Buzz2011
July 31st, 2011
9:56 pm
Bring in Jim Donnan to coach the Dawgs again. It is time for UGA to bring in a coach with real integrity..Besides his record was as good as Richts.
funny...
July 31st, 2011
10:22 pm
I like the post about the NCAA only caring about the schools that make money.
If the poster would care to do some research they would learn that UGA is consistently one of the top NCAA money makers.
Hairy Dawg
July 31st, 2011
11:00 pm
This proofs why we gots to keep Coach Richt. The top quality SEC talent has thier parents sending texts to Coach Richt to get advice on signing with Dawgs. The NCAA just looking for a frame up and Coach Richt done nothing wrong at all. We need more recruits and parents asking Coach Richt how to play for Dawgs to expose SEC talents and getting NFL drafted for big bucks. Then Dawgs lock up all talent and rule SEC like we suposed to be doing.
IL Jacket
August 1st, 2011
12:31 am
OK, so Mark Richt doesn’t know how to use his cellphone and has a fat finger mistake. I don’t know how this gets elevated to a Level I infraction. He immediately reported it, so from my perspective amounts to nothing. What are they going to do, send him to a remedial cellphone operation class? Too many meaningless rules-strain at the gnat and swallow the camel.
UGA is a 5th rate pee wee league team
August 1st, 2011
12:33 am
yo ‘Hairy Dawg’ … did you get your degree in English from UGA? My gosh, you’re TERRIBLE!!
Or maybe it was some sort of joke …
lewisbuzzard
August 1st, 2011
5:21 am
Mark Richt seems to have as much trouble with this new fangled technology as I do. Maybe we both need Tech support…LOL.
Say what!
August 1st, 2011
7:13 am
How in the hell can you respond to an unknown number. By defintion, blah, blah, blah.
I personally cannot stand Richt. He is history soon. FL rebuilding, TN rebuilding and everybody knows it and will discount his success against them accordingly as they should.
I said the West Virginia game would come to define his teams lack of discipline. God, was I not right or what.
FIRE RICHT NOW.
Say what!
August 1st, 2011
7:19 am
The fact he is responding at all should be a violation, regardless of the content. He is keeping his name in front ot the father. Lou Holtz said, you don’t go after the recruit, you go after the people who influence the recruit.
Ruck Ficht.
RedandBlackDAWG
August 1st, 2011
7:40 am
Il Jacket,
It gets elevated by the NCAA in the same way, they came up with the latest crap they accused Tech. of doing. The NCAA tries to mask their incompetence and inability to go after the real problem schools, by issuing a bunch of stupid crap against schools, that are really trying to conform by their sorry, illogical rules. They complain that they do not have enough staff members to do their job in a timely and efficient manner, but the real reason is somewhere between the money they would lose and their inability, to do the job, with all of the crap rules they have implemented.
olddog
August 1st, 2011
8:04 am
SEC gigs for butt-dialing? Can flag football be far behind?
SanDiegoJacket
August 1st, 2011
8:07 am
I love it. Albert Rocker leaves TECH’s football team early for a 6 figure salary with Microsoft. Caleb King takes his Ugag education and takes a job at __________________________ — I smell hamburgers!! The truth really hurts doesn’t it Ugagers??
THWG EVERY DAY IN EVERY WAY!!
schmeckdawg
August 1st, 2011
8:56 am
UH oh DAWG fans, I just found out the CMR passed gas in front of a recruit. Expect the NCAA to hand down the death penalty on the DAWGS. The NCAAholes…what a joke!!!!!!!!!
RedandBlackDAWG
August 1st, 2011
8:57 am
SanDiego Jacket,
King didn’t leave with anything from UGA, except a lot of broken dreams because he was lazy. It is kind of hard to compare a graduate to a non-graduate, but leave it up to somebody to try.
Another “Prisoner of UGA”, formerally know as a troll, speaks out again.
RedandBlackDAWG
August 1st, 2011
8:59 am
Must be getting closer to kick off time. All the jerks are out in force and can’t wait for a new article with anything about UGA, to spout their pathetic attempt at being witty.
If any of these negative blogger had half an ounce of brains, they would realize that psychological warfare, only works when they person can deliver it in person to a captive audience. Like a prisoner for instance. Interestingly enough, they are the prisoners of their own stupidity, so they are actually the ones being persuaded in their own minds, not the UGA fans. UGA fans have already won, because the prisoners are are already so worried, that they are trying to form barriers and platforms for their defense. In other words, you are gonna get your butt handed to you when UGA plays you, so you have set up your
defensive mechanisms ahead of time. Fear is your motivator, not superior skills or intelligence. You fear UGA and are jealous of the players, the team, the coaches, the fans and the great institution it is. I feel sorry sort of in a way, a soldier feels, just before he pulls the trigger, to end the enemies life. It leaves such a mess if you do it right.
I don’t think it is right to call these folks Trolls, anymore. I think I will just call them “Prisoners Of UGA”. It has a nice ring to it.
Charles
August 1st, 2011
9:29 am
Doesn’t ’sanction’ imply some sort of penalty. What am I missing here? Oh, just another sensational headline over a bunch of nothing.
Moving along, nothing to see here.
Whiskey Breath
August 1st, 2011
9:34 am
Mike Slive is about making more money for the SEC and himself. He was brought in to try to get us off the NCAA violation list. No only has he failed miserably, but he turns a blind eye to the obvious violations. He is the last one to find out about them. I have a dream that one day the SEC will discipline it’s on before the NCAA has to step in. Getting rid of Slive will be a start.
Russ, the Temporary Mascot turned Running Back
August 1st, 2011
9:34 am
Coach would be the first to tell you he’s not very good with a Blackberry. In fact, he is going to give his Blackberry to me because it is too hard for him to operate. I think he should enroll in cell phone college here at UGA. He can have a degree before you know it.
Pro Observer
August 1st, 2011
9:45 am
Dogs read well enough to read the sports page and laugh after almost every Tech Georgia game. So shut up Techie.
The Professor
August 1st, 2011
9:47 am
We now have the complete list of courses that Isaiah Crowell will be taking in the fall semester. It’s a pretty ambitious schedule for the lad, but I’m sure he’ll be up to it.
1. Know Your ABCs – Part I (A-M)
2. Fun With Dick and Jane – The Coloring Book
3. Life Studies: Put the Mojo on Your Teammates While Emptying Their Lockers
4. Law 101 – Know Your Miranda Rights
5. Dress for Success: The Inspiring True Story of the Fabled Red Panties
6. Arithmetic 1 – Multiplying by One Without a Calculator
7. Psychology: Getting Along With Your Cellmate
Blustery, isn't he?
August 1st, 2011
9:52 am
RedandBlackDAWG supplies enough hot air to heat a small city in the winter. And enough BS to fertilize a few thousand acres of crops.
IlliniDawg
August 1st, 2011
10:02 am
Was this meant to be a humor story? I was laughing my a** off. The NCAA is total crap. These guys are like the bored small-town cop who writes jaywalking tickets.
Ben
August 1st, 2011
10:10 am
You guys just can’t stand an honest, upright and clean living coach can you? Richt will make some mistakes but will never stoop to the level of some other coaches and all your bad mouthing him will not change that. He will be head coach at UGA for many, many years, and the real Bulldog fans will be glad he is there.
Joe Hamilton can't speak English
August 1st, 2011
10:17 am
This all silly and insignificant…just like GT football.
Dawg4Ever
August 1st, 2011
10:17 am
Why are non-Georgia fans so interested in the ‘Dawgs?
Speaks for itself, doesn’t it? Go ‘Dawgs!
GT45
August 1st, 2011
10:18 am
You dawgies have to understand how we have been chastized and lambasted by thousands of your cronies on our websites. I know many of you don’t participate, and I won’t, but it really gets old. That is why so many of our guys have been waiting on an opportunity to return the favor. You got to learn to skip over those comments!
Tech Man
August 1st, 2011
10:19 am
You DAWG fans better quit making fun of Tech. Your day may be coming (sooner than you think).
Gator Mike
August 1st, 2011
10:19 am
It is ridiculous to hammer Richt for this innocent blunder. Within a couple of years coaches will most likely be able to freely text potential recruits once again
However, the NCAA is a joke. Look at the ohio state fiasco, and the NCAA says that there was not a lack of institutional oversight.
Simply absurd.
weatherdawg
August 1st, 2011
10:23 am
Really—this is what is deemed necessary to put on the front of the web site. With all of the junk going on at other institutions, you choose to put something that means nothing as your lead story. What a joke!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tech Grad mows my Lawn
August 1st, 2011
10:32 am
9 out of 10 years we have beaten the “Joke by the Coke” and Tech fans act as if it didnt happen. Now they have to abandon their only measure of success and they are indignant about it. What’s their deal?
CecilDawg
August 1st, 2011
10:38 am
This is a non-event, just like the GT thing. The NCAA doesn’t do its job. If they were, they wouldn’t be getting ready to let Ohio State off with a wrist-slap. Giving GT four years was absurd. This text thing isn’t worth talking about. But why did the NCAA allow the 5 OSU players to play in the Sugar Bowl when they KNEW that they were guilty of violations ? The NCAA is a corrupt lawman, and they don’t even realize that they will ruin college football for all of us.
Tampa Gator
August 1st, 2011
10:41 am
All for a recruit that is going to play for Florida or Bama…….darn it….he should have sent the text to his wife concerning the correct time for the Wednesday night Bible study……of which many of the top recruits in Georgia attend by personal invitation from Ms. Richt. Just joshing…Dawg fans (except for the part about the Gators or Bama).
Jorge' O'leary
August 1st, 2011
10:44 am
I outcoached him in the bowl game. You leg humpers want me to school him on texting too?
Tampa Gator
August 1st, 2011
10:47 am
DawgforEver…..
More like……interested in reading the AJC and blogging about SEC football. I wouldn’t pride yourself too much in the outside interest in the Dawgs (though it is fun blogging with “some” less sensitive Dawg fans). Atlanta….if you don’t know…..is a major city with a major newspaper…..a city and a newspaper that people from all over the south enjoy living in (some of us used to live in), visiting, and reading its newspaper’s website.
Jorge' O'leary
August 1st, 2011
10:47 am
Hell you guys might can be 9-2 in Cusa, 7-4 in the suc…..
Tampa Gator
August 1st, 2011
10:49 am
Jorge’…….
O’Leary has his own issues these days………like practicing players with serious health issues and not caring…….resulting in his school losing a lawsuit that will cost it millions of dollars. (by the way, the player died)……a little more serious a issue, don’t you think?
Jorge' O'leary
August 1st, 2011
10:52 am
Hairy Dawg, you UGA english professors shouldn’t be blogging, you should be sharpening your crayons to be ready for fall classes to the football players…
Jimmy
August 1st, 2011
10:55 am
Accidentally sent text messages? How does that happen? My 90 year old grandfather is more tech savvy than Richt apparently.
Jorge' O'leary
August 1st, 2011
10:55 am
Hey Tampa Gator, at least he makes men out of his 2 star players. All Richt does is teaches them to read the bible from their prison cell. You guys got pushed around and bit@h slapped in your bowl game. Sorry about the Plancher kid, but there is no guarantees in life. Except Uga thinking they’re a national championship team at 8-3…
Tampa Gator
August 1st, 2011
10:57 am
RedandBlackDawg……
Wow…..a little sensitive…..are we? But soon……you will get your wishes……fall practice begins this week and maybe we will be able to read some stories on players playing football and getting ready for the SEC wars. But I would wait on that pounding of other SEC teams by the Dawgs comments…..until you have a winning record, at least…..don’t you think….because your first two games are not going to be easy ones……and a 0-2 start is not out of the realm of possiblity for the Dawgs. If so, text messages will be the least of Richt’s concern……..and more likely health concerns with trying to make his way to the athletic offices each day. On the other side….if Richt starts 2-0, then he will take his rightful place on the right side of God….replacing you know who.