NCAA Gives Raiders Coach Antonio Pierce Eight-Year Penalty for ASU Recruiting Violations, Including Strip Club Visit

Oct 3, 2024, 04:25 PM

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce has been handed an eight-year show-cause penalty by the NCAA for recruiting violations committed during his tenure as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at Arizona State University. The NCAA found that Pierce participated in a "program-wide effort to engage in impermissible recruiting activities" during the COVID-19 dead period, which included hosting 35 prospects despite restrictions on in-person visits. Only eight of these prospects later enrolled at ASU. Violations involved providing impermissible benefits such as meals, entertainment—including taking a recruit's parents to a gentlemen's club—and travel expenses. The NCAA's report noted that Pierce "did not fear the potential consequences for NCAA violations due to the financial security provided by his self-proclaimed wealth." If Pierce were to return to college coaching during the eight-year show-cause period, he would be suspended from all athletically related activities for the first year.