STARKVILLE — It was a quiet spring and summer for Mississippi State’s compliance staff. The department has self-reported just three NCAA compliance violations since Jan. 1, 2022, according to documents the Clarion Ledger acquired through a public records request as part of a Gannett/USA TODAY Sports directive.
The trio of violations, committed by football, women’s track and field and softball, are considered Level III infractions, which are defined by the NCAA as "isolated or limited in nature" and "provide minimal recruiting, competitive or other advantages."
Mississippi State self-reported 12 violations between Jan. 9, 2020 and Jan. 1, 2022.
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A shipment of two Mississippi State T-shirts and pullovers to a kicking coach at ProKick Australia marked the second self-reported violation for MSU football since Mike Leach became coach.
An assistant coach made a memorabilia request on Feb. 10 but didn’t send documentation to the compliance office. The request was approved two weeks later, and the package arrived March 2.
The violation was discovered the day the package arrived when an athletics department staffer was processing a UPS reimbursement and noticed compliance hadn’t signed off.
The violation occurred during a recruiting dead period and was valued at $200.
The assistant was forced by MSU to inform the kicking coach of the violation and request the apparel be returned. The SEC required MSU’s coaches avoid contact with the kicking coach and ProKick Australia for 30 days. The assistant also couldn’t be engaged in off-campus recruiting for 15 days during the football spring evaluation period.
More than one Mississippi State softball player received a free meal during a recruit’s official visit. The MSU staff allowed the player, who was not serving as the host, to purchase a $13 breakfast.
The MSU staff believed they could purchase the meal because the athlete was also serving as an intern for the program.
The athlete was forced to donate $13 to a charity of her choice by Mississippi State. The SEC didn’t implement any additional penalty.
Three days before an early March visit, a Mississippi State women’s track and field coach was informed a club coach would accompany a recruit and her dad. The dad and club coach made the arrangement on their own.
The club coach shared a hotel room with the dad, per the dad’s suggestion. The club coach also received $72.82 worth of free meals during the visit.
The recruit isn’t eligible to compete until the club coach donates the value of the meals to a charity of his choice, per MSU’s action. An MSU assistant was prohibited from all off-campus recruiting for 50 days.
Stefan Krajisnik is the Mississippi State beat writer for the Clarion Ledger. Contact him at skrajisnik@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @skrajisnik3.