Recruiting athletes to the University of Kansas could be a little trickier this year.
The University did away with Crimson Crew, the organization designed specifically for the recruitment of football players, before the start of this athletic season and just before the NCAA enacted stricter recruiting regulations for all universities nationwide. The new reforms will directly affect the recruiting process for all athletic programs at the University.
The NCAA adopted the new reforms after the organization’s board of directors met on Aug. 9, 2004, in the aftermath of a recruiting scandal at the University of Colorado. In the Colorado case, several women accused the football program of using sex and alcohol to entice potential athletes. The reforms involve tighter regulations about the treatment of recruits during visits.
Under the new regulations, only KU Ambassadors or current athletes can recruit prospective athletes, said Kara Milligan, former Crimson Crew director. Organizations that recruit only athletes, such as Crimson Crew, are no longer allowed.
Without the help of Crimson Crew, the University has to adjust to a new recruiting process, said Jim Marchiony, associate athletics director.
“With Crimson Crew we knew what was going to happen,” said Marchiony. “Whenever you change the process you have to concentrate on it to make sure that you have all of your ducks in a row.”
The football program will be most affected by the elimination of Crimson Crew because it recruits the most athletes, Marchiony said. Milligan said the men’s and women’s basketball teams, as well as the volleyball team, usually had current players host potential recruits.
Marchiony said the new policy would not affect the number of athletes the University could bring in or the quality of the athletes’ visits.
“It will change the process of what we do when they are here,” Marchiony said. “Rules change all the time. We just have to adjust.”
The University is not the only school that has to make adjustments to comply with new NCAA rules.
“Everybody is in the same boat,” he said.
The policy changes didn’t directly affect the University until the Kansas-Tulsa football game on Sept. 4, the first opportunity for Kansas recruits to see a game during a visit.
The new rules require schools to use standard cars to transport recruits to and from the airport and offer meals that are similar to what are offered on campus. In the past, some schools have chosen to pick recruits up in expensive cars and treat them to high-priced dinners. The NCAA also banned private planes and expensive hotels from the treatment afforded to recruits.
