North Dakota Found Guilty of Tampering Violations

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MANHATTAN, KS - AUGUST 30: A view of North Dakota Fighting Hawks helmets during a college football game between the North Dakota Fighting Hawks and Kansas State Wildcats on August 30, 2025 at Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, KS. (Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

On Friday the NCAA announced that it has found North Dakota’s football program guilty of tampering violations as it relates to the transfer portal. Per their findings, assistant coach Travis Stepps had knowingly engaged in conversation with a student athlete at a separate school that had not yet entered into the portal last fall well prior to the transfer window opening. Stepps had reportedly recruited the player out of high school and their conversations centered largely on the student transferring to North Dakota.

The university self-reported the violation after Stepps sent a transcript of his messages to the school’s own compliance department. Stepps as well as the head coach Eric Schmidt and the school all agreed that tampering did indeed occur. The Division I Committee of Infractions has reviewed the case and has doled out the following penalties to UND:

• Stepps will be suspended for one game during the 2026 season
• Stepps will be subject to a show-cause order for one year in which he will be restricted from communicating with any four-year transfer prospects from other NCAA schools during the entire January 2027 transfer window
• North Dakota will be placed on probation for one season (will still be postseason eiligible)
• North Dakota will pay a $25,000 fine
• North Dakota will be prohibited from communicating with recruits for one week during the January 2027 transfer window
• North Dakota will be subject to three separate one-week bans on unofficial football visits during the 2026-27 academic year
• North Dakota will be subject to a 3% reduction in official paid visits during the 2026-27 academic year

These penalties come less than three months prior to North Dakota’s 2026 season kick off which will take place on August 27 when the team hosts LIU.

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