(BCSNN) — The NCAA has placed the Wisconsin football program on one year of probation and fined the university $25,000 after an investigation revealed that nine coaches and staff members made 139 impermissible phone calls to recruits in 2023. The ruling, announced in the latter part of this week, also includes recruiting restrictions for head coach Luke Fickell and outside linebackers coach Matt Mitchell, along with show-cause penalties for two former staffers.
The violations stemmed from phone calls made to 48 prospective student-athletes, with 60 of those calls lasting one minute or less. The NCAA determined that the infractions were Level II violations, meaning they were significant but did not rise to the most severe Level I category. Wisconsin’s compliance monitoring system detected the violations, leading the university to self-report the infractions in September 2023 and collaborate with the NCAA on the investigation.
Former Wisconsin defensive line coach Greg Scruggs and former director of player personnel Max Stienecker received one-year show-cause orders, meaning any NCAA program that hires them must restrict their recruiting activities. Scruggs, now an assistant defensive line coach for the San Francisco 49ers, will be barred from recruiting communications for two months and suspended for one regular-season game. Stienecker, now USC’s executive director of personnel, is prohibited from recruiting communications with high school prospects from June 15-21, 2025.
Fickell and Mitchell will also be barred from recruiting communications during that same period. The NCAA cited head coach responsibility rules, holding Fickell accountable for violations committed by his staff. Wisconsin had already self-imposed penalties, including reducing fall evaluation days and spring recruiting person-days, as well as prohibiting recruiting communications for three weeks during the 2023-24 academic year.
Wisconsin officials acknowledged the violations but emphasized that they occurred under a rule that has since been changed. “We identified the mistake and were proactive in self-reporting, investigating, and resolving the issue,” the university said in a statement. The NCAA noted that the violations were largely due to staff unfamiliarity with compliance processes and misunderstandings of recruiting call regulations.
Despite the penalties, Wisconsin remains focused on its upcoming season under Fickell, who is entering his second year as head coach. The Badgers are expected to contend in the expanded Big Ten, but the recruiting restrictions could pose challenges in securing top talent. The NCAA’s ruling serves as a reminder of the importance of compliance in an era of evolving recruiting regulations.
