Royal
Connoisseur of Exotic Pictures
It only hurts so long as the shadow of potential sanctions is hanging over their heads. Recruits don't like signing up for extra uncertainty, particularly the kind that has no upside. Remember when they announced the sanctions against Syracuse earlier this year then after that their recruiting immediately picked up (granted it was partially because the sanctions weren't all that bad, from a player's perspective)?
That uncertainty is what you want to avoid. It's a wrinkle that kills you in the highly competitive recruiting of 5 stars. I've seen what it's done to Carolina's recruiting the past few years. It's only just now starting to lift. A lot of fans of other programs complained about the NCAA taking their time so people just forget about it for the eventual sweeping under the rug, but the other coaches you're recruiting against don't let any of the potential signees forget it. The longer the investigation and the findings period drags out, the worse it is.
That uncertainty is what you want to avoid. It's a wrinkle that kills you in the highly competitive recruiting of 5 stars. I've seen what it's done to Carolina's recruiting the past few years. It's only just now starting to lift. A lot of fans of other programs complained about the NCAA taking their time so people just forget about it for the eventual sweeping under the rug, but the other coaches you're recruiting against don't let any of the potential signees forget it. The longer the investigation and the findings period drags out, the worse it is.