Should the NCAA restrict coach movement during certain times?

[Ohio Vol]

With the announcement of Randy Edsall as the new Maryland coach coming less than 24 hours after UConn's Fiesta Bowl loss, it seems pretty obvious that the interviewing process and contract discussions were taking place during UConn's bowl preparations. Last year saw much the same, as Brian Kelly left Cincinnati for Notre Dame, forcing the Bearcats to play the Sugar Bowl with an interim coach. The NCAA was concerned about OSU-related suspensions undermining the integrity of the Sugar Bowl this year, but nothing has been or will be said about coaching moves.

So the question is this. Is it time that the NCAA act to restrict coaching movement between the end of the regular season and the end of the bowl season? Small schools have to worry about losing their head coach before a bowl game, larger schools have to worry about their assistants and coordinators before their game, and involved parties from the players to the coaches themselves have to worry about these as well.

My idea would be to have a no-contact period between schools and coaches under contract from the end of the regular season to the end of the bowl games (the whole bowl season, not just when that team's bowl game ends). There would then be one week where interviews could be conducted, coinciding with a no-contact period of recruiting. Then, eight days after the end of the bowl season, coaches are free to move. To compensate for the later-running period of instability, Signing Day would be pushed back by two weeks.

This would prevent a bowl game from suffering as a result of having to break in new coaches during preparations. It would prevent schools from losing their coaches, which in the process currently gives a competitive advantage in recruiting to other schools who don't have to deal with that period of instability. And it would also allow for more bidding wars to take place for the services of coaches, which I doubt most coaches would object to.

 

[tvolsfan]

No, it shouldn't.

 

[CountVolcula]

No. None of their business

 

[JZVOL]

No. There is way too much time between the end of the regular season and most bowl games and universities are going to talk to coaches during that time.

 

[bam15]

Absolutely not.

 

[Ohio Vol]

No. None of their business

Any pro sports league would absolutely drop the hammer on an active coach who was talking contract with another team while still under contract to another team. Why should the NCAA not regard the same as being contract tampering, with the only period excepted being what I mentioned in the first post?

Notable previous tampering case:
- The NHL suspended coach Pat Quinn for life [later reduced, as noted below] for signing a contract in December 1986 with Vancouver beginning for the 1987-88 while still under contract to Los Angeles. The lifetime suspension was later reduced to being suspended from Los Angeles for the remainder of the season, and being barred from coaching Vancouver until 1990.

 

[Brave Volunteer]

Actually, I don't think it should be allowed for Universities to even contact other coaches until AFTER the bowl season. The reason I say that is because it serves as a unfair distraction to the teams who have coaches that are being hired away.

 

[justingroves]

Actually, I don't think it should be allowed for Universities to even contact other coaches until AFTER the bowl season. The reason I say that is because it serves as a unfair distraction to the teams who have coaches that are being hired away.

What about the recruits?