The NCAA has delivered punishment to the Tennessee football program for what it labels as hundreds of violations over the course of three seasons.
According to the NCAA announcement, the Tennessee football program committed 18 Level I violations that encompassed more than 200 individual infractions during the course of three seasons under previous head coach Jeremy Pruitt.
Here is an excerpt about the punishment from the NCAA release:
Penalties
In February 2023, the enforcement staff and several individuals in this case reached an agreement about the violations and penalties.
For the remaining parties, the panel weighed the school’s exemplary cooperation and classified this case as Level I-standard for Tennessee, Level I-standard for former assistant coach 3, and Level I-aggravated for the former head coach, former director of recruiting and former assistant director of recruiting.
Current NCAA rules and penalty guidelines require a one- or two-year postseason ban for a Level I-standard case. However, in January 2022, NCAA members adopted a new constitution that states divisional regulations should ensure “to the greatest extent possible that penalties imposed for infractions do not punish programs or student-athletes not involved nor implicated in infractions.” In April 2023, the Division I Board of Directors endorsed a set of principles recommended by the Infractions Process Committee that in part emphasized incentivizing cooperation by schools by rewarding those that demonstrate exemplary cooperation and reserving postseason bans for Level I cases that lack exemplary cooperation.
Taking into consideration the board’s guidance and the school’s cooperation, the panel therefore declined to prescribe a postseason ban in this case. However, “to redress the severe and sustained misconduct” that occurred, the panel prescribes an enhanced financial penalty, with a fine of $8 million that is equivalent to the financial impact the school would have faced if it missed the postseason during the 2023 and 2024 seasons. The panel also prescribed the legislated fine of $5,000 plus 3% of the football program budget and a fine to address the ineligible competition in the 2020 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl Game.
“The panel encountered a challenging set of circumstances related to prescribing penalties in this case,” it said in its decision. “The panel urges the Infractions Process Committee and the membership to clearly define its philosophy regarding penalties — which extends beyond postseason bans — and memorialize that philosophy in an updated set of penalty guidelines.”
The committee used the Division I membership-approved infractions penalty guidelines to prescribe the following penalties in addition to the fine:
Five years of probation.
A reduction in football scholarships by a total of 28 during the term of probation, including at least two scholarships each year.
Tennessee previously self-imposed and is credited with 16 scholarship reductions from the 2021-22 and 2022-23 academic years.
A reduction in football official visits by a total of 36 during the term of probation, including a reduction of at least four per year. Tennessee shall prohibit official visits in connection with a total of 10 regular-season home games, four of which must be against SEC opponents.
Tennessee previously self-imposed and is credited with a reduction of seven official visits from the 2021-22 academic year, and the school can be credited for any additional reductions in visits from the 2022-23 academic year if they were imposed in connection with regular-season home games.
A reduction in football unofficial visits by a total of 40 weeks during the term of probation, including at least six weeks per year. Tennessee shall prohibit unofficial visits in connection with 10 regular-season home games, four of which must be against SEC opponents.
Tennessee previously self-imposed and is credited with a six-week reduction in 2021 and two weeks during 2022, and the school can be credited for any additional reductions imposed for regular-season home games during the 2022-23 academic year.
A total 28-week ban on recruiting communications during the term of probation, including at least three weeks per year. This will include one week each in December and January and one week from March to June.
A total reduction in evaluation days by 120 during the term of probation.
Tennessee self-imposed and is credited with a reduction of 12 days in fall 2021 and eight days in spring 2022, and the school can be credited for any additional reductions it imposed during the 2022-23 academic year.
A six-year show-cause order for the former head coach. Should the head coach become employed in an athletically related position at an NCAA school during that show-cause order, he shall be subject to a suspension from 100% of the first season of his employment.
A five-year show-cause order for the former director of recruiting.
A 10-year show-cause order for the former assistant director of recruiting.
A two-year show-cause order for former assistant coach 3. Should he be employed by an NCAA member school during that period, he shall be prohibited from participating in on- and off-campus recruiting activities.
A vacation of all records in which student-athletes competed while ineligible. The university must provide a written report containing the contests impacted to the NCAA media coordination and statistics staff within 14 days of the public release of the decision.
An indefinite disassociation of booster 2 (self-imposed by the school during the 2021 football season).
Additional self-imposed penalties:
During the 2023-24 academic year, Tennessee shall forgo the purchase of advertising with all football postseason broadcasts in which it is a participant.
Each year of the probation term, an external group shall conduct a compliance review of the football program, with an emphasis on recruiting operations.
Each year of the probation term, Tennessee shall host an annual, mandatory compliance seminar with an emphasis on recruiting for all football staff (coaches, part-time and volunteer staffs included). Staff from either the NCAA national office or the Southeastern Conference office will be in attendance.
