NCAA penalizes Raiders coach Antonio Pierce over ASU violations

The NCAA slapped Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce with a significant penalty that will take effect should he ever return to college coaching. The Division I Committee on Infractions announced Thursday that Pierce received an eight-year show-cause order for his role in recruiting violations when he served as associate head coach on the staff of former Sun Devils coach Herm Edwards. The committee said Pierce and former noncoaching staff member Anthony Garnett "participated in a program wide effort to engage in impermissible recruiting activities during the COVID-19 dead period." As a result, should Pierce ever be hired by an NCAA school, he will be suspended for the first year. Garnett received a five-year show-cause order and a one-year suspension. Earlier this year, four other members of the Arizona State staff agreed to penalties for violating the dead period, but Pierce and Garnett contested. The NCAA laid out a series of events that were part of what it termed as a recruiting "scheme." Pierce, other football staff members and a booster orchestrated unofficial -- and impermissible -- visits to Tempe, Ariz., for recruits and their families during a time in which in-person recruiting was on pause due to the pandemic. The NCAA said the committee's investigation found that Pierce "ran the show" and some members of the coaching staff feared they would be fired if they didn't follow his orders. Pierce, 45, was an assistant coach and the recruiting coordinator for the Sun Devils from 2017-21. He resigned prior to the 2022 season and was hired as the linebackers coach of the Raiders. Pierce took over as interim head coach in Las Vegas on Oct. 31, 2023, when Josh McDaniels was fired. The team named him the permanent head coach in January. --Field Level Media