Rick Pitino: 'The NCAA enforcement staff should be disbanded, it's a joke'

In the month of January alone Florida State and Florida‘s football programs have been investigated for recruiting violations by the NCAA. With the Tennessee athletic program representing the latest to be investigated for violations regarding recruiting and name, image, and likeness.

The Tennessee and Virginia attorney generals responded by filing a federal lawsuit against the NCAA following the Vols’ investigation. And with those recent events across college athletics in mind, St. John’s head basketball coach Rick Pitino shared some strong words towards the NCAA and their enforcement staff on Saturday.

“It’s a very difficult time in college basketball, because it’s free agency,” Pitino said. “And now I think what’s going to happen is, they’re going to say everybody can transfer, and then if they don’t like it, they’re going to take ’em to court. So I think the NCAA enforcement staff just should be disbanded. It’s a joke. Not because I dislike them. But they’re of no value anymore. Because just, Tennessee now will take ’em to court, Virginia will take ’em to court.”

There’s no question that the rise of the name, image, and likeness has significantly changed recruiting across all of college athletics. With NIL collectives being established by schools and other money-making partnership opportunities being presented to high school or as transfer prospects as a part of their recruitment.

But with the lack of nationwide rules and regulations surrounding NIL paired with recent investigations and punishments being handed down to athletic programs, Pitino believes the NCAA needs to change its ways.

“The enforcement staff needs to go away,” Pitino said. “We need to stop all the hypocrisy of NIL. We need to stop it. Because they can’t stop it. Whether I’m for it or against it doesn’t matter.”

“They are professional athletes. Get professionally paid. It’s not going away. You can’t try to get loopholes, because they take you to court. That’s why I say — so I’m not knocking the enforcement staff — they’re going to get taken to court every time they try to make a rule. So it’s a tough time in college basketball right now. And for us, you can’t really build programs and a culture because everybody leaves.”

Pitino’s previous run-ins with the NCAA are well-documented, highlighted by Louisville basketball’s investigation in 2017 for alleged “pay for play” involving recruits during his tenure as the Cardinal’s head coach.

He returned to the college game in 2020 as the head coach for Iona following his dismissal from Louisville, becoming St. John’s head coach ahead of the current 2023 season. But he believes that the current state of NIL paired with the NCAA’s current regulation of said NIL is resulting in more head coaches stepping away from the college game.

“I think so many football coaches are getting out, so many basketball coaches are getting out, because of this culture,” Pitino said. “It’s tough to build a program. You’ve got to really innovate, get creative and understand these rules right now — or lack of rules.”

Two notable head football coaches moved on from the collegiate game following the season, with Alabama head coach Nick Saban announcing his retirement and Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh moving on to the NFL level following a national championship-winning season highlighted by numerous NCAA investigations.

The impact of NIL, the transfer portal, or the NCAA on Saban and Harbaugh’s decision is unknown, but there’s no question that coaches across all of college athletics are seeking more uniform rules and regulations surrounding some of the new changes across the collegiate sports landscape.