After injunction, will NCAA drop Tennessee investigation or press on? Here are options
The NCAA’s investigation into the University of Tennessee isn’t dead after a federal judge suspended enforcement of name, image and likeness rules.
But it may be on life support.
On Feb. 23, Judge Clifton Corker granted a preliminary injunction in the Eastern District of Tennessee, freezing the NCAA’s rules regarding NIL benefits for athletes until the case concludes.
It takes the teeth out of NCAA enforcement regarding NIL rules, which UT is alleged to have broken, Knox News has learned. But the NCAA hasn’t given UT a notice of allegations, so still there’s an opportunity for this probe to heat up or cool off.
Either way, the NCAA has the next move. Here are its options.
NCAA could give up and go home
It appears violations related to NIL form the crux of the NCAA’s investigation, specifically in the UT football program.
But with the injunction granted, the NCAA would be attempting to punish a school for breaking NIL rules in the past that are unenforceable and potentially illegal in the present.
So the NCAA could accept defeat and return to headquarters in Indianapolis without ever issuing a notice of allegations.
Granted, an investigation rarely goes this long without bearing fruit. But these are extraordinary times in college athletics.
NCAA could downgrade its investigation
There are allegations in multiple sports, not just football, Knox News has learned. And while the most serious charges involve NIL, that’s not necessarily every allegation.
The NCAA could steer its focus into allegations of minor violations in those other sports.
If so, the NCAA could issue a notice of allegations with downgraded charges. Then it could potentially negotiate with UT on minor and manageable penalties. Ideally, that would not include a lack of institutional control charge or postseason ban.
UT could put the investigation into its rearview mirror with a sense of victory. And the NCAA could leave Knoxville with at least something to show for its months-long probe.
NCAA could hold out for the trial
The preliminary injunction is only in effect until the federal case concludes.
So in theory, the NCAA could win at trial and have NIL rules reinstated. But in reality, that appears very unlikely.
Corker already indicated in a denied temporary restraining order and a granted preliminary injunction that the NCAA likely will lose at trial.
“The NCAA's prohibition likely violates federal antitrust law and hams student-athletes,” Corker wrote in his injunction order.
But aside from the improbability of winning the case, there could be a public relations reason for the NCAA to pause the investigation rather than drop it.
If the NCAA leaves the investigation open, it’s not admitting outright defeat. And if it drops it several months from now, when the federal case ends, it could be a footnote among other storylines in college sports.
NCAA could try to reinterpret violations
This would be bold and likely unsuccessful.
But the NCAA could attempt to reinterpret UT’s alleged violations as something other than breaking NIL rules.
After all, the NCAA rulebook is massive with bylaws overlapping. NIL rules intersect with booster-related rules, but they aren’t all connected.
The New York Times reported that Spyre Sports, an NIL collective that represents UT athletes, facilitated a private jet for quarterback Nico Iamaleava to fly to Knoxville while UT was recruiting him.
If the NCAA deemed Spyre or the person who provided the plane as a booster, that would be a violation in the old interpretation of NCAA rules.
The NCAA’s problem with that strategy is that Corker made no distinction between NIL collectives and the boosters acting on behalf of the collective.
In his order, Corker wrote that the NCAA could not restrict athletes from doing business in the NIL space with “any third-party entity, including but not limited to boosters or a collective of boosters.”
That leaves the NCAA very little room to maneuver, even within its enormous rule book.
Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Will NCAA drop Tennessee investigation or press on amid injunction order?
