LSU won't be able to sign any recruits who wish to enroll early to financial aid agreements for the next two years.
The Advocate found the penalties handed down from the SEC via a public records request. The penalties stem from a player who signed a financial aid agreement with LSU to enroll early in January. When a player does so, the school he signs an FAA with is allowed unlimited contact – but only if he early enrolls with that school. The player didn't, and therefore LSU violated the unlimited contact provision.
As part of the sanctions, LSU will also lose 21 (10 percent) of its 2015 recruiting evaluation days.
The name of the recruit is unknown and the Advocate said LSU declined comment. The report does list one player who signed a FAA early but didn't sign a LOI with LSU.
Matt Womack, an offensive tackle from Mississippi, signed a financial aid agreement with LSU in August intending to enroll at the school in January. Instead, Womack de-committed — as hundreds of prospects do each year — and signed a National Letter of Intent with Alabama in February.
Financial aid agreements, instituted by the NCAA in the fall of 2013, allow high school seniors who plan to enroll early to sign with that school starting Aug. 1 of their senior years.
A financial aid agreement doesn’t bind the player to that particular school like a National Letter of Intent does, but it affords coaches of that school unlimited contact with the signee — contact that would normally be considered against NCAA rules.
However, Womack's father said in the fall to the Clarion-Ledger that LSU wasn't using the financial aid agreement to contact his son on an unlimited basis.
Players can sign multiple financial aid agreements. Therefore, by initiating unlimited contact with a not-rock-solid recruit who has signed a financial aid agreement with the intention to enroll early, programs run the risk of the violation LSU committed.
LSU's 2015 recruiting class was ranked No. 8 in the country by Rivals.
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
From Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo Sports - LSU can't sign early enrollees to financial aid agreements for 2 years
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