NCAA: Vols committed 18 Level I violations under ex-coach Jeremy Pruitt
The NCAA listed 18 violations and almost $60,000 of cash or gifts provided to players and families by former Tennessee football head coach Jeremy Pruitt, his wife, and several members of Pruitt's coaching staff, according to a document obtained by Adam Sparks of the Knoxville News Sentinel.
All 18 violations are Level I, the most serious in the NCAA's four-level infractions structure, Sparks notes.
The NCAA opened an investigation into potential recruiting violations during the 2020 season. Tennessee fired Pruitt and several members of his coaching staff for cause in January 2021.
Tennessee is unlikely to be punished for the incident involving Pruitt, as the NCAA credited the school for self-reporting violations and cooperating with the investigation, according to Sparks.
The NCAA argues that Pruitt and his staff gave players cash and gifts throughout his three-season stint with the Volunteers. The organization said Pruitt's wife, Casey, paid more than $15,000 in rent and car payments for a Tennessee player and his mother over two years. The report lists 32 instances of recruits or players taking cash or gifts.
Other names cited in the NCAA's report are assistant coaches Derrick Ansley, Shelton Felton, and Brian Niedermeyer, and recruiting staff members Drew Hughes, Bethany Gunn, and Chantryce Boone.
"Receipt of our notice of allegations was an expected, requisite step in this process - a process our university initiated proactively through decisive and transparent actions," Tennessee athletic director Danny White said in a statement, according to Brett McMurphy of Action Network.
"This moves us one step closer to a final resolution. Until we get to that point, I am unable to discuss the case in any detail. As a university, we understand the need to take responsibility for what occurred, but we remain committed to protecting our current and future student-athletes."
White joined Tennessee a week after Pruitt's firing in January 2021 to replace Phillip Fulmer, who retired that same month. The Vols hired Josh Heupel as head coach to replace Pruitt and went 7-6 in his first year on the sideline.