Colorado football players will now have time alone with recruits and recruits will not have to be back to their hotel until midnight, under a policy acting Boulder chancellor Phil DiStefano has approved.
The policy change will go into effect Sept. 1, DiStefano said.
The previous policy, implemented in 2004 after a series of allegations that football players enticed recruits with alcohol and set up sexual encounters, had an 11 p.m. curfew and required adult supervision at all times.
DiStefano said that with recruits allowed only one-day visits, they needed the extra time and unsupervised meetings with players to get a better sense of the school.
“They needed to be able to talk to players about coaches without the coaches present,” he said.
But DiStefano disputed he was significantly backing away from a policy that was designed to prevent a repeat of recruiting scandals.
He said a coach would approve any activity the player and recruit did without supervision, and it is against the rules to go to private parties, strip bars or places where people are using drugs or alcohol.
Coaches could be fired and players expelled if the rules are broken, and the recruit would not be allowed to attend the school. Coaches are responsible for ensuring the recruit is at the hotel by midnight.
DiStefano presented the changes to the regents Wednesday, but he does not need a regents’ vote and has decided to approve the changes.
He rejected a proposal by the Academic Policy Board for Athletics to extend recruit stays to two nights. “I thought one night was enough to do everything,” he said.
The regents said the policy was a good step to restoring confidence in the school.
“It has us on the right track,” regent Pat Hayes said.
Hayes questioned whether recruits should be accompanied by their parents on trips, but DiStefano said NCAA rules prevent the school from paying for travel for family members.
Members of an independent commission who investigated the recruiting scandal could not be reached for comment on the changes.
Arthur Kane can be reached at 303-820-1626 or akane@denverpost.com.
