The Tennessee baseball program is under NCAA inquiry for alleged tampering with star transfer Maui Ahuna.
As a result of the inquiry, the school has suspended head coach Tony Vitello for their weekend series and released the following statement:
Tennessee’s official statement on the suspension of #Vols baseball coach Tony Vitello.
Self-imposed. pic.twitter.com/4SF60oUV4l
— Wes Rucker (@wesrucker247) February 24, 2023
According to Outkick.com:
This inquiry centered around Tennessee’s alleged tampering with the former Kansas star while he was still in Lawrence. Currently, Ahuna is not eligible to play for the Vols (ranked No. 3 in the nation by D1Baseball), who open up a three-game series against Dayton this afternoon in Knoxville.
According to multiple coaches who talked with OutKick, the overwhelming sentiment is that tampering is occurring more frequently at Power-5 schools than in the past, thanks to new transfer rules. The NCAA allows a one-time transfer for student-athletes, with two separate portal periods in the summer and winter.
“If you aren’t having someone make that phone call, somebody else has most likely already called them twice,” says one Power-5 head coach. “It’s your loss, but the new transfer rules only made this easier to find players to fill key spots. I’m surprised a school would risk inviting the poorly-ran NCAA into their house by squealing on someone else.”
