Miami women’s basketball team has found itself at the center of the NCAA’s first ruling on name, image, and likeness (NIL) infractions, with the team being penalized for violating recruiting rules. The team was put on probation for one year, and Coach Katie Meier was handed a three-game suspension, which the school had self-imposed at the start of this season. The team also received multiple recruiting restrictions, but the players involved were not punished. The ruling follows a case that involved Miami guards Haley and Hanna Cavinder, who became stars after the NCAA allowed college athletes to profit from their NIL in July 2021.
The Cavinder twins had previously played at Fresno State before transferring to Miami, where they met John H. Ruiz, a prominent Hurricanes booster who had signed several Miami athletes to NIL deals, including the Cavinders. Before the twins signed with Miami, the NCAA found that Coach Meier had facilitated a meeting between them and Ruiz, a meeting that violated recruiting rules. The NCAA also found that Ruiz providing the players with a meal violated inducement rules. The NCAA determined that Coach Meier’s involvement in arranging contact between Ruiz and the Cavinders was a violation of recruiting rules.
Miami has agreed to several other minor sanctions, including a fine and a reduction in the number of official recruiting visits this season. The NCAA did not name Ruiz in its ruling, but it did reference an April 13 tweet posted by a booster last year that included a photo of “the booster, booster’s son, prospects and prospects’ parents.” Ruiz had posted a photo with the Cavinders after a dinner at his home that matched that description.
Despite the ruling, Ruiz has defended his actions, stating on Twitter that “these girls decided where to go, no one else did it for them.” The NCAA’s decision stated that Ruiz would not be forced to dissociate from the school, but the Committee on Infractions “will strongly consider disassociation penalties in future cases involving NIL-adjacent conduct.”
The NCAA’s ruling highlights the challenges that the organization faces in dealing with the evolving landscape of NIL. Boosters are now involved with prospects and student-athletes in ways that the NCAA has never seen before, making addressing impermissible booster conduct critical. The disassociation penalty, the NCAA’s effective penalty, is available to the Committee on Infractions in future cases involving NIL-adjacent conduct. The NCAA’s decision will undoubtedly have a significant impact on the future of NIL in college sports.
 infractions. The article explores the penalties, the involvement of booster John H. Ruiz, and the challenges the NCAA faces in regulating NIL.){kind=link}