Here's what you need to know from NCAA verdict in Tennessee football, Jeremy Pruitt case
Two and a half years after Tennessee fired Jeremy Pruitt for cause, the NCAA released its verdict Friday after an investigation into a sloppy recruiting scandal.
For Tennessee, it's good news. The Vols were hit with a few penalties, including an $8 million fine and some additional scholarship restrictions, but spared the dreaded postseason ban.
For Pruitt, the investigation painted a portrait of a reckless cheater, and the sanctions included a six-year show-cause penalty that will further cripple his career. Pruitt and staff members pedaled more than $60,000 in cash payments and impermissible benefits, and they did a poor job covering their tracks.
Pruitt and other football staffers displayed "an unwillingness to even pretend to follow the rules," Kay Norton, the NCAA infractions committee’s chief hearing officer, said Friday.
On this edition of "The Volunteer State," Blake Toppmeyer of the USA TODAY Network and the News Sentinel's Adam Sparks and John Adams unpack the NCAA's findings and discuss what the sanctions mean for Tennessee and Pruitt.
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This is about the best outcome Tennessee could have hoped for in January 2021, when it fired Pruitt after uncovering what UT Chancellor Donde Plowman described as a "stunning" amount of malfeasance.
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While Pruitt got hammered, his former boss, Phillip Fulmer, is not mentioned in the NCAA report. Fulmer's cluelessness became apparent in the investigation, but he was not directly linked to the scheme.
Pruitt turned the Vols into a mockery, but Tennessee regained its footing and got the last laugh, and the Vols are free to pursue a third straight bowl appearance behind Josh Heupel.
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Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network's SEC Columnist. Adam Sparks covers the Tennessee Vols for the News Sentinel. John Adams is the News Sentinel's senior columnist. You can subscribe to read all their coverage, or check out the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: What to know from NCAA verdict in Tennessee football, Jeremy Pruitt case
