KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The NCAA fined Tennessee more than $8 million on Friday and issued a scathing report outlining more than 200 infractions during the three-year tenure of former football coach Jeremy Pruitt. The Volunteers escaped a postseason ban.
The sprawling report said Tennessee committed 18 Level I violations, the most severe, and said most involved recruiting infractions and direct payments to athletes and their families — benefits that totaled approximately $60,000.
The NCAA praised Tennessee for its cooperation and the Vols escaped the postseason ban penalty. But the infractions panel noted that decision was a difficult one given the circumstances.
“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.”
Four former staffers were given show-cause orders, including one spanning six years for Pruitt, who was fired in early 2021.
The NCAA report said the school failed to monitor its football program. “Additionally, due to his personal involvement in the violations, the former head coach violated head coach responsibility rules," according to the document.
Tennessee chief communications officer Jason Baum said in an email to The Associated Press the school would not comment until after the NCAA’s briefing Friday afternoon.
The NCAA found that most violations related to a paid unofficial visit scheme that was used consistently by the football program over two years.
It involved at least a dozen members of the football staff, and the resulting violations included at least 110 impermissible hotel room nights, 180 impermissible meals, 72 instances of providing impermissible entertainment or other benefits, 41 impermissible recruiting contacts, 37 instances of providing impermissible game day parking, and 14 times in which gear was impermissibly provided to prospects, according to the report.
The NCAA's final decision ends a troubling chapter in Vols football, although Pruitt's dismissal opened the door for Tennessee's revival under his replacement, Josh Heupel, who's led the team to an 18-8 record the past three seasons with a win over Southeastern Conference heavyweight Alabama last year.
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