The NCAA will impose several penalties against Florida State due to NIL-related recruiting violations committed during the 2022-23 academic calendar, the governing body announced Thursday. According to the NCAA, a Florida State assistant coach (identified by Yahoo Sports as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Alex Atkins) facilitated an impermissible recruiting contact between a booster and a transfer prospect (identified by 247Sports as Georgia offensive tackle Amarius Mims).
Among other punishments, Atkins was hit with a two-year show cause and will be suspended for the first three games of the 2024 regular season. Florida State must also disassociate from the booster in question for three years and from his associated NIL collective for one year. Atkins is expected to remain on staff at Florida State, Yahoo Sports reports.
Atkins transported the prospect and his parents to and from an off-campus meeting with the booster, who served as the chief executive officer for Florida State's associated NIL collective at the time. During the meeting, the booster "encouraged the prospect to enroll at Florida State" and offered him an NIL opportunity worth $15,000 a month -- all according to the NCAA's release.
The unnamed prospect withdrew from the transfer portal and remained at his previous school. The NCAA also states that Atkins "provided false or misleading information about his knowledge of and involvement in the violations," which increased the severity of his punishment.
Here's a full rundown of the punishments included in the agreement between the NCAA and Florida State:
- Two years of probation for Florida State.
- A two-year show cause, a suspension from the next three regular season games, a two-week restriction on recruiting communication and a restriction from off-campus recruiting during fall 2023 for Atkins .
- A three-year disassociation from the booster.
- A one-year disassociation from the collective.
- A $5,000 fine plus 1% of the football budget.
- A 5% reduction in football scholarships over the two-year probationary period.
- A reduction in recruiting official visits in the 2023-24 academic year.
- A reduction in football recruiting communications for a total of six weeks during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 academic years.
According to the NCAA, the case was processed through a negotiated resolution procedure, meaning Florida State, its enforcement staff and Atkins agreed on the violations and the resulting penalties. Notably, negotiated resolutions cannot be appealed.
