Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce has been penalized by the NCAA due to recruiting violations dating back his time at Arizona State, the organization announced Thursday. Pierce, in addition to former staff member Anthony Garnett, violated recruitment rules during the COVID-19 dead period, according to a ruling from the NCAA.
Pierce and Garnett, as well as other members of the staff and an ASU booster, arranged unofficial visits to Arizona State during the COVID-19 dead period, violating recruitment rules during that time. The staff also provided free meals and travel expenses, which violates NCAA recruiting rules unrelated to the dead period.
With the ruling, the NCAA has penalized Pierce with an eight-year show-cause order, and handed down a five-year show-cause order for Garnett. Pierce and Garnett would miss 100% of athletic activities for the duration of their punishment if either are hired by an NCAA school during that time.
According to the NCAA, 27 prospects participated in these visits. Eight of the prospects went on to enroll at Arizona State, and played in 19 games while ineligible due to the recruitment violations.
Pierce and other members of the staff arranged the unofficial visits over 15 weekends during the COVID-19 dead period. These visits included tryouts and football facility tours with free meals, clothes, airplane tickets and lodging. The visits also included entertainment, which, per the NCAA, “included taking a prospect’s parents to a gentlemen’s club.”
Garnett, who was the only other individual named in the NCAA ruling, had in-person contact with prospects and families while also coordinating transportation and facilitating a tryout. Pierce and Garnett also traveled out of state to observe prospects — another violation during the dead period.
Pierce also told an assistant coach to contact an athlete at another school that was not in the transfer portal, which the NCAA deemed as “tampering.” The coach, under Pierce’s orders, sent the athlete 46 text messages and at least one call. The student did not end up transferring to Arizona State.
In interviews as part of the probe, multiple members of the coaching staff told the NCAA that Pierce held significant power over the program, and that they were afraid that they would lost their jobs if they did not comply with Pierce’s illegal recruitment scheme.
Pierce joined Arizona State in 2018 as the linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator. In 2020, he added associate coach and defensive coordinator to his list of responsibilities, while maintaining his role with recruitment. Pierce was then hired by the Raiders in 2022, before being promoted to interim head coach last season and having the “interim” tag removed in January.
The NCAA said that Pierce failed to cooperate with the investigation after leaving Arizona State. He participated in an interview and confirmed some of the facts around the visits, but repeatedly denied organizing any visits or committing any recruitment violations. The organization said that Garnett took some responsibility, acknowledging that he had engaged in some recruitment contact, but he denied other violations.
Arizona State has already self-imposed a one-year bowl ban in relation to this investigation. It is unclear whether the school or other staff will receive any additional penalties beyond Pierce’s and Garnett’s show-cause orders.
