BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- The NCAA adopted 25 proposals today as part of a shift in the organization's focus, including allowing unlimited communication between coaches and recruits through various forms. The changes reflect the NCAA acknowledging the increasing financial gap between the haves and have-nots.

The Division I Board of Directors approved deregulation in areas such as personnel, amateurism, recruiting, eligibility and awards, and benefits and expenses. All of the proposals go into effect Aug. 1, 2013.

"These new rules represent noteworthy progress toward what can only be described as more common sense rules that allow schools more discretion in decision-making," NCAA President Mark Emmert said in a press release outlining the changes. "This vote by the Board of Directors refocuses our attention on the things that really matter, the core values of intercollegiate athletics."

One change is allowing coaches to communicate with recruits through all forms of communication as long as the conversations are private. That means text messaging, private social media messaging and instant messaging will be allowed and unlimited. The limit on phone calls per week -- or any communication, for that matter -- disappears.

The only proposal that got tabled for now is when coaches can begin to contact recruits. There had been a proposal to allow recruits to be contacted starting July 1 after their sophomore year of high school.

Other proposals that passed include:

-- No restrictions on which staff members contact recruits. Right now, only a head coach or assistant can call, e-mail or evaluate recruits. In the future, non-coaching staff members will have no limits except they can't be involved in off-campus recruiting.

-- The elimination of the so-called "baton rule," which has limited the number of coaches who can recruit off-campus at any one time.

-- Athletes will be able to receive $300 more than the actual and necessary expenses, provided the expenses come from a permissible source.

-- College athletes and recruits will be allowed to receive actual and necessary expenses for training, coaching and health insurance from a governmental entity. This had been a rule that hurts international athletes.

The NCAA Rules Working Group has moved on to the second phase of deregulation,

E-mail:

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