The Ohio State athletic department self-reported two minor violations from the football program in 2022-23 that did not result in disciplinary action from the NCAA.
According to documents obtained by The Columbus Dispatch on Friday, the Buckeyes had two Level III infractions in the past academic year: The use of a blocking sled during offseason conditioning in February, and a former player contacting a recruit on a visit in September 2022.
The NCAA considers Level III infractions the lowest level of violation for a program. These infractions are “isolated or limited in nature” by the organization and traditionally result in minimal or no penalties for the program and its athletic department.
Ohio State's first infraction, the use of a blocking sled, occurred on Feb. 13 when players pushed a sled that had been altered to include more weights. According to NCAA rules, teams are prohibited from using sport-specific equipment during this portion of the calendar, which led to the violation.
Another school's compliance staff notified Ohio State after a video of the workout was posted on Twitter. In response to the violation, the Buckeyes reduced countable athletics-related activities by 30 minutes for the week of March 5-11. A blocking sled previously led to a minor offense for Ohio State in 2020 when it was added to a conditioning workout, and a similar response followed.
Ohio State's second infraction, illegal contact between a former player and recruit, occurred when the Buckeyes hosted Wisconsin on Sept. 24, 2022. A staff member escorted the recruit to meet a former player at their tailgate in a parking lot across the street from campus. Because the interaction occurred off campus, it is considered impermissible.
After the Buckeyes self-reported the issue, Ohio State provided a letter of education to the staff on the campus’ footprint and reduced contact with the recruit. Neither the recruit nor the former player is identified in the university's documents. The location of the tailgate was also omitted from the report.
Ohio State's self-reported violations did not result in any disciplinary action from the NCAA.
