Antonio Pierce gets show-cause penalty for Arizona St. violations - ESPN

Las Vegas Raiders coach Antonio Pierce was slapped with an eight-year show-cause order because of violations that occurred when he was an assistant coach at Arizona State, the NCAA announced Thursday.

Most of the violations were related to what the NCAA referred to as a «scheme» orchestrated by Pierce to circumvent restrictions in place during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pierce facilitated impermissible recruiting contact with 35 prospects, including «tryouts, football facility tours and entertainment.» It was also determined he directed an assistant to engage in tampering with a player enrolled at another school and traveled out of state to observe and meet with prospects during a recruiting dead period.

«In arriving at an eight-year show-cause order for Pierce, the panel emphasized his role as the ringleader in orchestrating the recruiting violations,» according to the report from the NCAA.

In the event Pierce is hired by a NCAA school during the show-cause order — which runs until Oct. 2, 2032 — he would be suspended for the first football season and would be allowed no contact with any of the program's coaches or players during that period.

During the investigation, Pierce provided «false or misleading information» and was unwilling to provide his financial records, according to the report. One ASU staff member told the NCAA that Pierce «did not fear the potential consequences for NCAA violations due to the financial security provided by his self-proclaimed wealth.»

«Pierce used his position of authority to pressure staff members into engaging in violations, often by instilling fear that they would lose their jobs if they did not follow his orders,» the report says.

The NCAA also issued a five-year show-cause order for