Georgia Tech self-reported an NCAA violation after football coach Paul Johnson made public comments about an incoming graduate transfer a half hour too soon.
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Johnson committed the violation in April by saying that the Yellow Jackets were excited to have Stanford transfer Patrick Skov join the program, but it turned out that the transfer process was 30 minutes from being official.
"Some of that stuff is ridiculous," Johnson told the newspaper. "It certainly isn't gaining an advantage over anybody."
Per NCAA rules, the school cannot make public comments on unsigned recruits (including transfers) other than confirming its recruitment of the prospective player. Georgia Tech classified the error as a Level III violation, per the newspaper, which obtained the school's report through an open-records request.
It stands to reason that the school was being extra vigilant in reporting the mistake, as Georgia Tech was placed on four years' probation in 2011 and had its 2009 ACC title stripped after an investigation into impermissible benefits given to former player Demaryius Thomas. The school had its probation extended two years in 2014 after coaches were found to have made hundreds of impermissible phone calls to recruits in 2011 and 2012.
Johnson was required to attend a rules education session in light of his premature comments on Skov.
"I was told not to do it," Johnson told the newspaper. "I was like, OK."