The Cavinder Twins, formerly of the Fresno State women's basketball team, were among the first college athletes to announce endorsements. Haley Cavinder has No. 1 on her jersey. Image via Instagram

The women’s basketball coach who recruited twin players and social media stars Haley and Hanna Cavinder away from Fresno State violated NCAA rules by connecting them with a high-profile booster.

The NCAA made that announcement Friday, announcing a negotiated resolution with the University of Miami in Florida that resulted in a three-game suspension for coach Katie Meier. It was the NCAA’s first ruling on NIL (name, image and likeness) infractions.

College sport’s NIL policy went into effect 2021, allowing student athletes to begin signing paid endorsement deals.

The Cavinder twins, who together have more than 5 million followers on TikTok and Instagram, transferred to the University of Miami last year to play for the Hurricanes. Their endorsement deals are estimated in the millions of dollars.

The Cavinders were not sanctioned in the case that centers on their meeting with John Ruiz, a billionaire booster for the University of Miami, reported Sports Illustrated.

Without using names, the NCAA announcement details Coach Meier and Ruiz initially meeting at a university event, where Ruiz discussed an upcoming campus visit by the Cavinders. Ruiz had already reached out to the Cavinders’ agent requesting a meeting, according to the NCAA.

When that meeting was declined, Meier through an assistant coach vouched for Ruiz to the Cavinders, saying he was “a legitimate businessperson,” according to the NCAA, after which the invitation was accepted. The Cavinders and their parents met with Ruiz for a meal at his home. No NIL opportunities were discussed during the meeting, according to the NCAA, but Ruiz did promote the school, speaking about his children’s own experience as student athletes there.

NEWS: In its first NIL infractions ruling, NCAA sanctions Miami WBB for violations in the recruitment of Haley & Hanna Cavinder.

As recruits, Cavinders dined at booster John Ruiz’s home. Ruiz’s tweet that night drew NCAA attention

From @ByPatForde & me – https://t.co/84AVs5ZJzO pic.twitter.com/hzK6G1BW9A

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) February 24, 2023

Meier’s involvement in arranging the contact between Ruiz and the Cavinders violated NCAA rules.

“Boosters are not authorized recruiters and cannot have in-person, off-campus contact with prospects, and when the prospects visited the booster’s home, it violated recruiting rules,” according to the NCAA. “Similarly, when the booster provided the prospects with a meal, it violated inducement rules.”

The negotiated resolution process announced Friday avoids a formal NCAA hearing on the matter, relying on a panel of the Division I Committee on Infractions to review the case and find a resolution.

The decision contains a list of penalties for Coach Meier and the Miami Hurricanes program, including one year of probation, a $5,000 fine plus 1% of the women’s basketball budget, a reduction in the number of official recruiting visits and more.