VTTW Board Index

"NCAA credited Tennessee for self-reporting violations and its "exemplary cooperation" in the investigation."

https://www.knoxnews.com/story/sports/2022/07/22/tennessee-football-notice-of-allegations-jeremy-pruitt-wife-recruiting-scandal/5593158001/ (https://www.knoxnews.com/story/sports/2022/07/22/tennessee-football-notice-of-allegations-jeremy-pruitt-wife-recruiting-scandal/5593158001/)

Extended to Casey Pruitt (former COMPLIANCE OFFICER)
Violation 3
Casey Pruitt provided $12,500 in cash car payments – 25 payments of $500 each – and $3,000 in cash rent payments for a player and his mother from September 2018 to March 2021. The gifts began during the prospect’s recruitment and continued after he enrolled and played for the Vols.
That represented most of the $23,260 in impermissible inducements given to the player by Jeremy and Casey Pruitt, Felton, Niedermeyer and Gunn. The remainder included hotel stays, meals, entertainment, team apparel and game day parking.

Notably, Casey Pruitt worked in Florida State’s NCAA compliance office in 2013 when she met Jeremy Pruitt, then the Seminoles’ defensive coordinator. She was tasked with verifying players’ eligibility and ensuring the athletics department followed NCAA rules. She also worked in Troy University’s compliance office.

Violations 10-16
Jeremy Pruitt, Felton, Niedermeyer, Gunn, Boone, Hughes and an unnamed student recruiting assistant were each assigned a Level I violation for unethical conduct. 

The investigation determined they knowingly provided impermissible inducements to recruits, provided false information to investigators and influenced others to do so.

Violation 17
The investigation determined that Jeremy Pruitt committed a violation involving head coach responsibility because he failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance in the football program and monitor staff from September 2018 to January 2021.

That period spanned all but the first eight months of his tenure.

Violation 18
The investigation determined the university failed to monitor the football program’s recruiting plans to ensure the staff followed NCAA rules during Jeremy Pruitt’s tenure. However, the university was not found to have committed the worse violation of lack of institutional control.

TJeremy and Casey Pruitt; assistant coaches and recruiting staff members Drew Hughes, Bethany Gunn and Chantryce Boone were the most dirty and shouldn't be involved in college athletics ever again! :bird:

(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FYSo9kjWIAEikpy?format=jpg&name=900x900)

Chancellor Plowman:

“Earlier today, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville received a notice of allegations from the NCAA regarding the football program led by former head coach Jeremy Pruitt.

In every step of this process, we took quick and decisive actions that exemplified the longstanding values of the NCAA reiterated in the membership’s new constitution. The university hired outside counsel to fully investigate allegations about the football program, acted promptly to terminate the employment of football coaches and staff members, and shared our conclusions with the NCAA enforcement staff.

The NCAA Division I Board of Directors recently endorsed significant reforms to the infractions process proposed by the Transformation Committee, including clearly and meaningfully incentivizing the type of responsive institutional actions we took in this case – self-detection and reporting, self-accountability, and the active involvement of the institution’s chief executive. The NCAA enforcement staff recognized the university’s “exemplary cooperation” in the case and stated that “[t]he actions taken by the institution during the investigation should be the standard for any institutional inquiries into potential violations.”

While we will take appropriate responsibility, last fall, the university announced that we will not self-impose penalties that harm innocent student-athletes like postseason bans based upon the actions of coaches and staff who are no longer part of the institution. Under the NCAA’s new constitution, rules “must ensure to the greatest extent possible that penalties imposed for infractions do not punish programs or student-athletes not involved or implicated in the infraction(s).”

While NCAA bylaws prohibit the university from publicly commenting about the specific allegations, we have and will continue to seek a timely resolution of this case that is consistent with the NCAA’s new constitution and in the best interests of the University of Tennessee.

In the meantime, we will continue to support our football program’s new leadership, our exceptional student-athletes and the culture of winning and accountability they are building.”

Dis gonna be good!    :dielaughing:  Got ya popcorn ready?

(https://media1.giphy.com/media/6pJNYBYSMFod2/giphy.gif?cid=790b7611886b9ae42ccdd71312a76958cea9f532a74fff20&rid=giphy.gif&ct=g)

Stupid is a stupid uga

On local TV:  Cornbread ended his career with 16 wins and 18 NCAA violations

Move along, troll.  We'll be fine.

I find it hard to believe Pruitt just started this behavior when he got here. We know where his previous stops were  :rolleyes: Mark Stoops recently said he KNOWS he is playing against players that have been paid. Hopefully NIL will level the playing field. Funny the ones barking loudest about NIL have had the most recent success  :loco:

given the allegations perhaps he learned how to beat the compliance system while dating his wife to be.

Also, he did spend time working for the mater …
So,etching perhaps our resident puppy troll needs to think about …

(https://i.ibb.co/5vN2KZM/Mcmurphy-vols-violations.jpg)

(https://i.ibb.co/2FYxJf8/salee-vols-violations.jpg)

Know what I find interesting?  UTk could have settled with Pruitt, and none of this would have seen the light of day.  That's what most schools would have done.  But Donde didn't want to pay his buyout, so UTk instead commits hari kari with the NCAA, basically serving up all of the violations on a silver platter, and in doing so putting all of this on Pruitt and a few minions so they don't have to pay his buyout (since they fired him "with cause").  It was certainly a novel approach, unlike Auburn which would have just lawyered up and denied any and all allegations (re: Scam Newton).

(https://i.ibb.co/TRPP8pw/Tennessee-Mc-Donalds-rock.jpg)

Yep, pretty wild.   :dunno:

No, this story broke while Pruitt was still employed at UT. During a game, IIRC. That we were ready to shizzlecan him anyway is just a happy coincidence.

I don’t think we would’ve come out any farther ahead if we had stonewalled the NCAA. We might’ve prolonged our punishment, but we still would’ve suffered the recruiting consequences in the meantime. It’s not like we had a bright future under Pruitt to preserve anyway.

We’ll have to see if the NCAA adds any significant punishment beyond what we’ve already self-imposed. If they do, I’d never cooperate with them again (the NCAA as we know it isn’t long for this world anyway, IMO). But given their commendation for our compliance department in this notice, I’m not expecting much.

Me neither.  Actually glad this finally came, so we can get on with moving on.

Mostly agree.  Except that UT was ready to shizzlecan him was just a happy coincidence - the happy coincidence aspect is the only part that I question.  Wouldn't take much of a conspiracy theory to believe that UT wanted to move on, but didn't want to pay the buyout to do so.  They may have been aware at the time of some illegal comp (i.e., now known to be up to $60k worth) and saw that as the self-reported means to move on from Pruitt.  I remember when UT first hired their prominent law firm to internally investigate, while Pruitt was still the HC.   

I also believe it is possible that UT admin didn't trust the accused (Pruitt and minions) to keep their mouths shut if they were to go the buy-out route first, and therefore it was too risky to pay the buyout and then have these violations become public (i.e., NCAA aware) after the fact.  That would have been a double-whammy (i.e., pay the buyout and then face NCAA penalties).

Agree, moving on and putting all of this behind UT has to be the end game.

You are forgetting what Jimbo Fisher said (See below).  Perhaps the most incriminating of all.  :naughty: Well...not liteally incriminating.  Let's say "revealing look at Saban's considerable seamy side".   :naughty: :naughty: :naughty:

“Some people think they’re God,” Fisher said. “Go dig into how God did His deal. You may find out about a guy, a lot of things you don’t want to know. We build him up to be this czar of football. Go dig into his past or anybody who’s ever coached with him. You can find out anything you want to find out what he does and how he does it.”

Good point

You are way off base that "UTK could have settled with Pruitt and none of this would have seen the light of day".  As if Pruitt "told all" after he left.   :rolleyes:

It came out well before he left, and he is still denying it so far as I know. 

As to your questioning our strategy of outing him (if that's even what happened, and you have no proof of that) to ditch him, I am okay with it.  Since we came clean, Pruitt is gone (thank God for that!) and we have been praised by the NCAA for cooperating.

What will follow is anyone's guess, but given their recent trend to not do much, and the fact that this is all OBE by NIL, I don't see a huge penalty coming.

Without thinking about it at all, I would guess losing 10 schollies for a couple years. Not good, but hell, were not full strength last year anyway.

10 for 2 years is the upper end. Lower end is 1-2 schollies for 2 years and a relative slap on the wrist.

I guess we will see.

In the meantime, with most of your defense now in the NFL, what do you think Uga's first loss will be this year?  (not if, but when)