ATHENS — Georgia will have to report an NCAA secondary violation regarding its recruitment of Josh Harvey-Clemons. But as far as secondary violations go, they don’t get much more secondary than this one.
Jim Booz, UGA’s senior associate athletic director for compliance, confirmed to The AJC Thursday that coach Mark Richt ran afoul of NCAA bylaws when he commented on Harvey-Clemons shortly after the highly-touted prospect announced on national television his decision to sign with the Bulldogs on Wednesday. Harvey-Clemons’ signing ceremony at Lowndes High School in Valdosta was televised live by ESPN and the sports network also had a reporter and camera crew with Georgia coaches in Athens.
Shortly after Harvey-Clemons made his announcement in Valdosta, ESPN reporter Cara Capuano asked Richt for his reaction and for his thoughts on prospect’s athletic abilities. Turns out that violates NCAA bylaw 13.10.2, which states that no one from a member institution can comment on a prospective student-athlete until his or her signed letter-of-intent has been received. As has been well-documented now, Harvey-Clemons’ letter-of-intent was not received by UGA until Thursday morning.
“It is something we’re having to deal with,” Booz said. “It’s not a significant issue. It’s not one that’s going to impact any of the individuals involved. It’s going to be considered a Level II secondary violation. Because of how everything transpired yesterday — it was a very, very odd and very unique situation — it just kind of caught everybody off guard.”
Booz said Athletic Director Greg McGarity will send a letter to the Southeastern Conference informing them of the mistake. But he said was highly unlikely any enforcement would result.
“In my opinion there was certainly no advantage gained by any stretch from what transpired yesterday,” said Booz, who came to UGA from Virginia last month. “It is a violation of a technical nature. But the way we’re going to operate is, if something creeps up, even something like this, we’re going to comply and report violations to the SEC if necessary and do it the right way. It’s just one of those things.”
Richt was in Louisville Thursday to attend the Paul Hornung Award banquet honoring 2012 recipient for Georgia senior cornerback Brandon Boykin and could not be reached for comment.
For what it’s worth, here’s how the NCAA bylaw reads:
NCAA Bylaw 13.10.2: Comments Before Signing.
Before the signing of a prospective student-athlete to a National Letter of Intent or an institution’s written offer of admission and/or financial aid, a member institution may comment publicly only to the extent of confirming its recruitment of the prospective student-athlete. The institution may not comment generally about the prospective student-athlete’s ability or the contribution that the prospective student-athlete might make to the institution’s team; further, the institution is precluded from commenting in any manner as to the likelihood of the prospective student-athlete’s signing with that institution. Violations of this bylaw do not affect a prospective student-athlete’s eligibility and are considered institutional violations per Constitution 2.8.1.
288 comments Add your comment
Dawg48
February 2nd, 2012
5:09 pm
Is Clemson paying players? Must see this!
http://georgia.247sports.com/Asset/Detail/382072
NERD ALERT
February 2nd, 2012
5:09 pm
Impartial Observer – Good One DOUCHEBAG Techie
“It tried to change it to UVA hahaha – What a dork.
NERD ALERT
February 2nd, 2012
5:10 pm
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRDDDDDDDDDDDDDSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
62-39-5
Verne Lundquist
February 2nd, 2012
5:12 pm
GT has NO hot girls, high school crowds, who would want to go there? I wouldn’t.
@ Nique A.K.A. Nikki, nobody is putting words in your mouth, just don’t you ever in your pathetic little Tech life compare Georgia Southern to UGA…there’s no comparison…quite like GT.
Red Pants
February 2nd, 2012
5:13 pm
GTBob,
Then I agree. Defense wins championships stopped being true once the spread offense caught on in college football and the rules changed in the NFL. Now it’s all about putting up points in the 30’s or up on an almost every game basis. Unless of course you’re Bama, where they’ve perfected defensive football. That title game performance was perhaps the most flawless defensive showing I’ve ever seen.
GTBob
February 2nd, 2012
5:13 pm
GT has NO hot girls, high school crowds, who would want to go there? I wouldn’t.
We don’t really wan’t you here Verne. Unless you want to play Nosetackle.
Verne Lundquist
February 2nd, 2012
5:14 pm
UGA’s defense isn’t quite on par with Alabama’s yet, nobody’s is. But give Grantham a few more years to recruit to his style of player and more and more of his coaching and he’ll have this guys up there with them. It’s not hard to imagine it being that way. We just need more depth, and more experience in the 3-4. Remember, we just finished year TWO.
gtfanfrom1951
February 2nd, 2012
5:14 pm
NCAA haas to mant rules that do not apply to this day and age. As both UGA and Tech have found out
gtfanfrom1951
February 2nd, 2012
5:15 pm
has to many sorry
Verne Lundquist
February 2nd, 2012
5:15 pm
@ GTBob, looks to me you guys need help on defense. You might need a nosetackle. Would you like John Jenkins or Kwame Geathers? Yeah I bet you would.
GTBob
February 2nd, 2012
5:18 pm
Would you like John Jenkins or Kwame Geathers? Yeah I bet you would.
Nah, keep them. I’m not sure GT has enough tutors to keep them eligible.
Gary
February 2nd, 2012
5:19 pm
NiquePhotog you have no idea what you are talking about. You cannot get into the stadium as a student without a student ID. Students don’t have tickets. The ID is their ticket and it only works to let them in if they were selected by the lottery. One of the reasons the student section is not as full as it used to be is that if a student can’t go at the last minute they can’t just give a friend their ticket. I pretty damn sure our student section is not filled with students from the two schools you mentioned. Your statement is so dumb I am not even sure you know where our stadium is. Something Georgia does not have a problem with on Saturdays is attendence. Go to Valdosta State you troll.
Verne Lundquist
February 2nd, 2012
5:20 pm
You act like UGA’s academics aren’t on par. We’re one of the top universities in the country. Our academics are very good and it’s not easy whatsoever to get into UGA. This is a football board so let’s be real and talk football. You guys can’t compare GT to UGA in football so you run to academics. Sad really.
GTBob
February 2nd, 2012
5:21 pm
Red Pants, finally a reasonable response. Defense in College Football is going to get worse also just because the NFL is turning into a pass happy offense league with less and less emphasis on a running game. College will mimic the pros eventually just like they always have. Even the SEC will turn into an offense happy conference eventually.
BipolarDawg
February 2nd, 2012
5:21 pm
Oh well so be it ….Mark Ritch is not a lawyer you know? he can not know everything every detail about this stupid violation crap…come on now let him know and move on…just make sure he ain’t doin that again.
Verne Lundquist
February 2nd, 2012
5:22 pm
@ GTBob, I don’t think Georgia is going away from defense anytime soon. Not with Grantham. He breathes fire. He has instilled a mental toughness we haven’t had in a while. No more soft zone, reacting to the ball….it’s in your face man on man coverage while Jarvis Jones comes at your QB. This style of defense is nasty and it’s rubbing off on Richt.
NiquePhotog
February 2nd, 2012
5:26 pm
Gary,
Unfortuntaly I can poke a hole in your reasoning since I’ve gotten into the student section many times with my girlfriend who goes to UGA. All you need is a ticket into the stadium. Then you get a current UGA student with their student ID to enter the student section. They get wristbands as they enter, but they do not put them on. They come back out of the student section, give their wristbands to their friends, and then the UGA students re-enter the student section and get new wristbands.
Beast from the East
February 2nd, 2012
5:27 pm
While the violation was unintentional and no one gained an advantage, Richt is rapidly becoming the “King of Secondary Violations”. Seriously, can he not follow the rules like everyone else or is he just too dense to understand them?
NiquePhotog
February 2nd, 2012
5:29 pm
Oh Verne, they’re really not on par.
UGA is an astounding state school, and a very good southeastern school. However, they are not recognized on a national level, and definitely not internationally.
GT’s joke/jock major, management, is ranked higher than the “so highly esteemed” Terry College of Business which also happens to be one of UGA’s hardest majors. Hey, and guess which one has been landing football players with jobs at Microsoft???
OkieDawg
February 2nd, 2012
5:30 pm
I’m a big Mark Richt fan and supporter. But, quite frankly, I sometimes wonder how smart he is. He can make some real blunders. I mean I understand the heat of the moment in an interview you may be a little distracted. But in the recruitment of Jordan Jenkins, Richt accidentally “pocket dialed” Mr. Jenkins…twice, resulting in 2 NCAA secondary vialolations. He may just lack focus sometimes. Oh well, he always has Bobo to fall back on.
Tech Rules, you sissy boy mutts....
February 2nd, 2012
5:30 pm
Dirty stinking cheating dogs……
Beast from the East
February 2nd, 2012
5:31 pm
“GT has NO hot girls, high school crowds, who would want to go there? I wouldn’t.”
Verne,
Might want to have your glasses checked again.
http://hottestgirlsoncampus.com/tag/georgia-tech/
Verne Lundquist
February 2nd, 2012
5:31 pm
@ Nique, I bet I have more money than you…and guess what? I graduated from UGA in 81
Verne Lundquist
February 2nd, 2012
5:32 pm
ARIZONA STATE has the hottest college women…we all know that…Tech stinks.
Red Pants
February 2nd, 2012
5:35 pm
“Running a football program not a day care center.”
Man I love that mentality. All business. Buy in to the process or get out. That’s why they win championships. Contrary to the vibe my posts may give off. I actually like CMR, but wow could we use some of that attitude in Athens.
NiquePhotog
February 2nd, 2012
5:35 pm
Verne,
I’m sure you do as I’m still currently a student at GT. However, I hope you’re pleased to hear that this “pathetic Tech life” of mine has landed me an internship with Apple to work on the iPhone RF design team. How’s it feel to see a kid more successful than you’ll probably ever be?
NiquePhotog
February 2nd, 2012
5:37 pm
Verne,
at least we can agree on arizona st.
Jaw Jaw Homer
February 2nd, 2012
5:37 pm
Even when we cheat, we suck.
Beast from the East
February 2nd, 2012
5:46 pm
ASU might have the hottest girls, but I was just responding to your claim that GT has “NO hot girls”. I have no dog in this fight….I’m a Gator and prefer my hot girls in orange and blue or nothing at all!
OkieDawg
February 2nd, 2012
5:51 pm
Or in jorts?
Beast from the East
February 2nd, 2012
5:55 pm
Jorts work.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2469/3637617316_a5ce71e82c.jpg
JT from Columbus
February 2nd, 2012
5:58 pm
The NCAA is a joke!
OkieDawg
February 2nd, 2012
6:00 pm
Pardon me Beast, Now I suddenly like jorts.
BiggDawgK
February 2nd, 2012
6:08 pm
The ajc ran a story on a violation that Georgia commited. boo hoo hoo. Oh woe is me. This is obviously a conspracy.
Beast from the East
February 2nd, 2012
6:09 pm
OkieDawg,
I just googled “jorts” and looked at the images. What are these people thinking and do they not have mirrors?!?!?! FUNNY STUFF!
Dr. Phil
February 2nd, 2012
6:10 pm
Richt gets a pass on this one, but this kid’s grandfather is a diva.
BiggDawgK
February 2nd, 2012
6:10 pm
Beast
Her body is ok but that is a butter face.
Beast from the East
February 2nd, 2012
6:14 pm
BiggDawgK,
Google Gator Girl Heidi and tell me if you still think that.
BiggDawgK
February 2nd, 2012
6:14 pm
nique photog
That is your idea of success? You texties sure set the bar low. Maybe one day a girl will talk to you and then you can really brag. LOL LOL LOL
Stinger
February 2nd, 2012
6:15 pm
Cheaters
13-1
February 2nd, 2012
6:19 pm
Auburn’s Rushing Defense was # 9 in the nation, despite winning 7 games against teams who finished in the AP Poll Top 25, and 3 of those 7 finished in the AP Poll Top 10. Nah, that’s not any good. Yeah, right. Like 33 percent of your enrollment is not Asian men; nothing against Asian men, but this is college and you only have 29 percent women (note please I do not say ladies.) You have more Asian men that you do all women. In a city of 6 million. And, no one goes to your football games. You give away 2 hotdogs, 2 bags of boiled peanunts, 2 cokes, a moonpie and free parking, and cannot give away your seats, except to Georgia alumns who follow our Program 10-1 with our current coach against you, and we only buy your season tickets for the UGA game and throw all the rest away. You’re a joke saying that the # 9 Rush Defense the year before last wasn’t any good, when they Won Games over 3 Top 10 teams in the Final AP Poll and Won 7 Games over teams in the Final AP Poll Top 25 with this Rushing Defense nationally ranked # 9.
NiquePhotog
February 2nd, 2012
6:21 pm
Good one, bigdawg.
Fortunately, I stole one of the uga sweethearts away from the jack*sses such as yourself.
Apparently you don’t understand how hard it is these days to get your foot in the door with a company as esteemed as Apple. Internships lead to full time. If I was working year round, I’d be making ~70k as an intern still doing my undergrad degree. I’d consider that a great success.
roughrider
February 2nd, 2012
6:22 pm
GTBob and 13-1 try to recapture their youth by being on these college blogs everyday.
13-1
February 2nd, 2012
6:24 pm
If you think that’s a good-looking face
http://hottestgirlsoncampus.com/tag/georgia-tech/
then, you would love it down there in slums with that hardened face, because they have those type faces on every street corner, for a small fee.
13-1
February 2nd, 2012
6:26 pm
and what are you doing in here roughrider, when you have NEVER posted a post to this blog ever son.
Yeah, we both passionate about UGA football
so what ?
13-1
February 2nd, 2012
6:27 pm
I of us knows what we’re talking about, while the other doesn’t, obviously on both cases.
Then, there is you.
13-1
February 2nd, 2012
6:29 pm
one post and it not about football – yeah, you really fit in around here
Big Crimson 75
February 2nd, 2012
6:30 pm
They cheat & still can’t win!
UGA is the Big 10s b_tc_.
All the over-signing garbage is a ploy by the Big 10 conference to “even” the playing field with the SEC.
And look at whose fan base is beside itself over good roster management? UGA !!!
Just because y’all :
a. Can’t beat a Big 10 team, or a Mountain West team for that matter — doesn’t mean the rest of us can’t!!
b. have no shot at a National Championship Trophy any-time soon.
Keep taking orders from your “massa”, the Big 10.
I went on this oversigning.com site & it’s nothing but a bunch of old school mid-western elitist’ trying to take down the SEC. I stopped reading on there because I couldn’t get past all the Notre Dame gushing.
Nice Sleeping partner UGA!!!
Roll Tide
sports
February 2nd, 2012
6:31 pm
anything to slight Georgia’s signing class, uh Towers…what reporting!
bosshawg
February 2nd, 2012
6:39 pm
thanks woodrow