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Tennessee football: Vols first violation under Pruitt shows NCAA can do better

By Garrett Sanders

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - MARCH 16: The NCAA logo is seen in the second half of the game between the Northwestern Wildcats and the Vanderbilt Commodores during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 16, 2017 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - MARCH 16: The NCAA logo is seen in the second half of the game between the Northwestern Wildcats and the Vanderbilt Commodores during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 16, 2017 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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Tennessee football’s first NCAA violation under Jeremy Pruitt was due to an asinine rule. The Volunteers showed the organization can do better.

As everyone is told by administrators everywhere by the NCAA, rules are rules. But there has got to be a defining line of what kind of regulation is “right” and what kind of policy is “wrong.” Tennessee football’s recent NCAA violation brings that to light.

Sure, the Vols have had their history with violating rules the NCAA has put in. Recently though, the university’s offenses have been absurd. A great example of this is when Rick Barnes gave money out of his pocket to provide a raise for one of his coaches. Apparently, this was a violation.

Yes, I understand. It is a “rule” by the book. But the logic of this “rule” is blasphemous. How is it that you can dictate a coach on what he does with the money that he rightfully earned? The NCAA has no right to put their nose into Barnes’s earnings. Barnes chose to give money out of his own pocket to his coach that the University didn’t have.

Where is the common sense in this logic? It’s simple. There is none.

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Then you have Tuesday’s report. The University of Tennessee violated another NCAA rule. What was it this time? You guessed it! Another preposterous regulation made by the NCAA.

A Tennessee Athletic staff member contributed Tennessee football tickets to a local high school auction to give back to their community. This was to help the school have more money to give a better education to their students. How can this even be a violation rule the NCAA has in place?

The NCAA’s mission is supposed to be about caring for their student-athletes and their communities around them. They advertise this in their commercials. Instead of having these ridiculous rules, how about they teach their student-athletes to be the best they can be. This includes volunteering and giving back to their communities.

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Having these rules and regulations only limits not only the student-athlete but the Universities as well. Universities like Tennessee deserve a better organization that healthily represents their student-athletes. If the NCAA wants to do what the claim their mission is about, they must re-evaluate their policies. If they don’t, it will only bring a negative environment around them.

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