It’s time to free former Tennessee Football head coach Jeremy Pruitt. The defensive guru who led the Vols from 2018 through 2020 has paid for his crimes that occurred during an antiquated system. Yahoo Sports reports he’s now suing the NCAA for $100 million, claiming UT was cheating before his arrival and made him the sacrificial lamb.
I know you like to poke fun at Pruitt. He’s an easy target. The guy speaks with a uniquely strong accent, even for the most die-hard southerners, and doesn’t spend a lot on haircuts, which became a Tennessee tradition in the 2010s along with former Vol Butch Jones. However, being the butt of a joke isn’t reason enough to sideline Pruitt for misdeeds that aren’t even remotely considered violations nowadays.
Free Pruitt.
Amidst this lawsuit, Tennessee fans should want Pruitt to get off the hook. His suggestion that there was some collusion with UT to railroad him out of coaching isn’t entirely wrong. Pruitt hasn’t coached in college since he got fired by Tennessee and was hit with a six-year, show-cause penalty. That seems a bit harsh in retrospect.
Allowing Pruitt to, at least, coach again would be good for Tennessee, which doesn’t want to get drug into this new lawsuit, if it hasn’t been already. The Vols don’t want any part of what he is alleging.
Free Pruitt.
Sure, Pruitt wasn’t smart in how he handed out cash before it was deemed legitimate by the NCAA’s revamped NIL rules, which allow players to get paid. He used fast food containers, his wife and whoever else was willing to pay players. Nowadays, there’s no need for all of that. May I just have your account number and routing number please?
It’s important to remember that being dumb or doing dumb things isn’t a crime. It may be embarrassing, but it’s not a crime, nor should it even be an NCAA violation any longer.
Free Pruitt.
Reducing Pruitt’s buyout while instituting a show-cause for over half a decade for what is no longer a violation makes it look even worse. So he gets hit with a financial penalty and, essentially, can’t work? That doesn’t seem right. It’s also worth noting that the NCAA only pinned $60,000 in payments to players. Nowadays, a solid player can earn that in little more than a week.
Plus, Pruitt was only guilty of funnelling money to his players. There wasn’t any sort of widespread misconduct that negatively affected the Knoxville area or sullied UT’s reputation, such as Georgia’s issues with serious traffic violations in Athens, Ga., over the past two years.
Times have changed. Pruitt could be a true success story. He only did what was named completely permissible just a few short months after the NCAA handed down his punishment. Who doesn’t like a good comeback tale?
Free Pruitt.
Although he is a hard person to read, I think Pruitt truly cares about his players and can develop them from good to great. He could be a valuable addition to most any coaching staff, such as Tennessee’s. Yes, I’m going there.
Hire Pruitt.
This may seem crazy, but the Vols should consider Pruitt if Tennessee Football defensive coordinator Tim Banks receives a well-deserved head coaching offer sometime soon. Pruitt can evaluate talent and build a strong defense. There’s always a need for both of those traits.
It seems very unlikely that Tennessee would ever even consider a notion such as re-hiring Pruitt. However, he deserves a shot to resurrect his career. The 50-year-old is much more suited to be on a practice field than a court room.
The NCAA and Tennessee can only make this worse by fighting Pruitt in court. Both parties need to meet him halfway by eliminating his show cause penalty that doesn’t expire until 2027.
Allowing Pruitt to coach again is not only the right thing to do, but it’s the best way to avoid a massive embarrassment if his case has legal legs. Pruitt has already claimed he “immediately reported” possible payments to former Tennessee athletic director Phillip Fulmer, who told Pruitt “he would handle it,” according to the lawsuit.
Pruitt wasn’t the problem. He just wasn’t that bright when it came to funnelling cash to players. The issue was with the NCAA, which kept countless dollars to themselves while players didn’t get more than a crumb from the financial pie known as college football. That’s not Pruitt’s fault.
Yes, Pruitt broke rules, and it sets a bad precedent to reduce penalties, especially when it looks like the NCAA and Tennessee would be changing their stance on Pruitt just because of a lawsuit. That doesn’t matter. It would be best for all involved if this just went away.
Free Pruitt.
