Ole Miss offers NCAA 'full cooperation' into Tunsil investigation

Ole Miss' athletics department launched an internal investigation last week into allegations of NCAA rules violations involving star offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil, the school announced Monday, according to Ben Garrett of Scout.

University officials said the probe was prompted by widely publicized claims from Tunsil's stepfather, Lindsey Miller, that the projected top-five NFL draft pick has received gifts, such as cash and clothes, from player agents.

Miller has also said he's aware of violations during Tunsil's recruitment process, including claims of falsified academic records and gifts from the school.

The athletics department released the following statement:

The University of Mississippi Department of Athletics is aware of allegations made by Laremy Tunsil's stepfather regarding potential NCAA violations involving Laremy. As we do with any allegation, we initiated an internal investigation last week and have offered the NCAA our full cooperation. We take the obligations to the NCAA and SEC very seriously and we will continue to educate, monitor and enforce all applicable rules. Any other reports are speculation until the process is complete.

Miller had previously said he met for about three hours last week with the collegiate sports organization's director of enforcement for football Chris Howard and another unnamed official about the purported rules violations.

The visit by NCAA officials comes mere weeks after Tunsil was arrested for domestic assault against his stepfather - an altercation Miller claims was sparked by his warning to Tunsil about having contact with player agents.

However Hugh Freeze, football coach at Ole Miss, has said Tunil assaulted his stepfather in defense of his mother.