Tennessee’s technical football team remains in limbo as the school investigates possible NCAA violations, according to a report published Thursday by ESPN.com.
Volunteers have not yet replaced defensive line coach Jimmy Brumbaugh, who was fired in the middle of the 2020 season, or offensive line coach Will Friend, who got a job in South Carolina (although he may be going to Auburn from according to some reports). In addition, running back coach Tee Martin (a Mobile native) and in-house lineback coach Brian Niedermeyer (a former Alabama employee) have not had their contracts extended, although they expire in late January.
The school hired an outside lawyer to conduct the investigation.
“We take our institutional commitment to NCAA compliance seriously and are looking at regulatory issues that have been brought to our attention,” University spokeswoman Tyra Haag said in a statement via ESPN. “As part of that process, we are currently working with lawyers Kyle Skillman and Michael Glazier with Bond, Schoeneck & King. We will provide additional information when appropriate. “
Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt, a former Alabama player and defensive coordinator, is aged 16-19 over three seasons. The volunteers finished 3 to 7 in 2020.
ESPN said that running back Eric Gray, who led the Volunteers in the race in 2020, should be part of the compliance investigation. Gray missed out on the season finale against Texas A&M for undisclosed reasons.
Also potentially under investigation is the recruitment of five-star striker Amarius Mims, who signed with Georgia.