Spring 2023 Alvin Bowers NCAA: San Jose State baseball violated practice time rules

https://247sports.com/college/san-jose-state/Article/NCAA-San-Jose-State-baseball-violated-practice-time-rules-121518108/

NCAA: San Jose State baseball violated practice time rules

Sep 6, 2018

Jason Hawkins (pictured in March 2017) lasted only one season as San Jose State baseball coach, due to NCAA violations heading into what could have been his second season. (Photo: Andrew Pang, Scout.com)

Answers regarding the mysterious suspension and resignation of former San Jose State baseball head coach Jason Hawkins came out on Thursday, in an NCAA infractions report.

Due to violations of NCAA rules regarding practice time, the NCAA issued San Jose State baseball two years of probation and a $5,000 fine. Hawkins also received a one-year show-cause order restricting his ability to become a head coach at any NCAA member school.

San Jose State athletic director Marie Tuite issued a statement responding to the NCAA decision.

"Compliance will always be at the core and a guiding principle of everything we do in our athletics program," said Tuite.

Although the two-year probation term did not include a postseason ban, San Jose State baseball will have practice time reductions for the 2018-19 academic year. San Jose State self-imposed a suspension of all organized practices for three weeks this fall. Three hours lower than the normal NCAA limit, the team self-imposed a regular season limit of 17 practice hours per week. Baseball student-athletes must send the compliance office hourly records of voluntary athletic activities. The NCAA also required the athletics department to file regular compliance reports and provide staff with continuing compliance education.

On December 23, 2017, Kendall Rogers of D1Baseball.com reported that San Jose State placed Hawkins on administrative leave. Around two weeks later on January 8, The Mercury News became the first media outlet to reveal rumors about Hawkins conducting illegal practices. San Jose State named former assistant Brad Sanfilippo as interim head coach on January 29, and Hawkins resigned on February 12, four days before the season opener.

As a result of his show-cause, Hawkins must serve a start-of-season, ten-game suspension if he gets a head coaching position with any NCAA member school before September 5, 2019.

In its 13-page report, the NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions (COI) revealed that the baseball team exceeded time limits on CARA during the 2016-17 and part of the 2017-18 academic years. CARA (countable athletically related activities) is NCAA lingo for practice sessions organized by a team's coaching staff. 

Most severely, during the offseason, the team participated in twice the maximum hours of CARA allowed per week.

"During 13 and one-half weeks of the nonchampionship out-of-season segment of the 2016-17 (10 weeks) and 2017-18 (three and one-half weeks) academic years, the head coach or his coaching staff directed or supervised baseball student-athletes' participation in approximately 15 hours and 30 minutes of CARA per week, exceeding the maximum of 8 hours per week," explains the COI report.

In daily practice plans, Hawkins mixed mandatory practice activities with others that he called "voluntary". However, players perceived those "voluntary" activities still to be required. At times, Hawkins failed to provide the San Jose State compliance office with proper records of practice time.

"…sometimes the head coach allowed the required practice and skill activities to run longer than their scheduled times…in both the in-season and out-of-season nonchampionship segments of the academic year. Finally, when the head coach logged and submitted his daily CARA hours to the compliance office, he did not at all times accurately record the amount of time the student-athletes were involved in the day's activities," says the report.

San Jose State administration launched an internal investigation in October 2017, after some baseball players raised concerns about practice time during a separate Title IX investigation.

Two of last season's best hitters responded to this report by criticizing the NCAA.

"Every program in the nation goes over practice hours each week," tweeted Shane Timmons, the newest home run record holder in program history.

How is this a thing. Every program in the nation goes over practice hours each week and now you decide to do something? Stop wasting every bodies time @NCAACWS https://t.co/ordl6iiaKl

— Shane Timmons (@shanemtimmons) September 6, 2018

In the infractions report, the COI cited similar practice time violation cases from other Division I schools all in 2016, specifically Sacramento State tennis, San Jose State women's basketball, and Alabama State softball.

"We talking about practice. Not a game," tweeted 2018 first-team All-Mountain West left fielder and leadoff hitter Brett Bautista, in homage to a famous quote from basketball player Allen Iverson at a 2002 press conference.

"We talking about practice. Not a game. Not a game. Not a game. We talking about practice." SMH https://t.co/d2lj0RkvsJ

— Brett Bautista (@brett_bautista) September 6, 2018

Because San Jose State and Hawkins agreed to the NCAA's findings of fact and penalties, San Jose State will not be able to appeal this decision.

7COMMENTS

This is the second San Jose State athletics program to be placed under NCAA probation for practice time violations. In 2016, the NCAA placed women's basketball on one year of probation. 

Gene Bleymaier, athletic director at San Jose State from 2012 to 2017 and Boise State from 1982 to 2011, left both schools with pending NCAA sanctions under his watch. In August 2011, Boise State fired Bleymaier after the NCAA charged the athletic department with 22 infractions. The NCAA placed Boise State on three years' probation the following month.

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