ASU Defends Self-Imposed Postseason Ban in Light of Ongoing NCAA Investigation

Arizona State is defending the school's self-imposed postseason ban for the upcoming 2023-24 season recruiting violations that took around COVID-19 restrictions under then-head coach Herm Edwards. 

The school hopes the ban, which was announced Aug. 27, will protect the team from potential losses of scholarships and fines that could result from an ongoing three-year NCAA investigation. 

Head football coach Kenny Dillingham said it will be a challenge to keep his players motivated. 

"It was upsetting," Dillingham said at the press conference.

The full statement from ASU athletic director is as follows: 

The deadline for ASU undergraduate student athletes to enter the transfer portal was in April 2023.

The NCAA case involving the University of Tennessee, which was particularly relevant to ASU’s case, was pending until the Committee on Infractions announced its decision on July 14, 2023.

In the University of Tennessee case the NCAA Committee on Infractions imposed “an enhanced financial penalty” of $8 million in lieu of a postseason competition ban.  It also required enhanced recruiting penalties, e.g., a 120-day reduction of evaluation days (28 fall days and 92 spring days), a 40-week reduction of unofficial visits, a loss of 28 scholarships, and a 28-week “reduction of communications” with recruits, i.e., no communications.

ASU believes that if recruiting penalties of the type set out in the Tennessee case were applied to ASU, such penalties would seriously impair Coach Dillingham’s ability to build ASU’s football program.

ASU self-imposed a postseason ban to help pave the way for program stability and greater clarity going forward.