Tennessee football: Trey Smith, Jay Bilas slam NCAA hypocrisy over Cade Mays ruling

One Tennessee football Volunteers offensive lineman slammed the NCAA on behalf of another.

Jeremy Pruitt’s revelation Monday that Tennessee football offensive lineman Cade Mays did not have his eligibility waiver approved by the NCAA did not sit well with a lot of people in Vol Nation and even beyond that. One of those people was a guy who was expected to start alongside Mays at guard.

Trey Smith took to Twitter Monday evening to defend Mays, who transferred from the Georgia Bulldogs earlier in the year amidst his father, a former Vol, being locked in a lawsuit with the university over a personal injury and his younger brother committing to UT. Mays sought a waiver to be able to play immediately.

At issue for Smith were a couple of things. He brought up the fact that Mays had worked too hard with the Tennessee football program to get to this point, but he also noted how hypocritical the NCAA was in letting other players, particularly quarterbacks, receiver waivers so easily.

Beyond Smith, a couple of national figures got involved as well. College basketball analyst Jay Bilas also point out the NCAA hypocrisy over the ruling, and he also brought up the double-standard regarding quarterbacks.

There’s no denying that Smith and Bilas have a point. Georgia quarterback JT Daniels, who transferred from the USC Trojans, was recently cleared to play. The same holds true for Maryland Terrapins quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa, the younger brother of Tua Tagovailoa who just transferred from the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Joey Gatewood, who transferred from the Auburn Tigers to the Kentucky Wildcats, and Joey Yellen, who transferred from the Arizona State Sun Devils to the Pitt Panthers, were both granted immediate eligibility as well. We should note that none of these players were graduate transfers, meaning the NCAA had to give them such eligibility at its own discretion.

By the end, Tennessee football’s superstar senior offensive lineman wasn’t the only one feeling this way. Smith was joined by lots of his teammates who went to bat for Mays and were not happy with the ruling. Mays even sent out a couple of tweets, getting in on the joke, and eventually, the hashtag #FreeCadeMays was trending in Vol Nation.

Of course, Pruitt himself expressed his frustration in the press conference, so it’s no surprise that his players would be upset by the situation. Pruitt has called for a one-time transfer rule where players can transfer once without having to sit out a season.

In 2017, Mays was a five-star recruit and had initially committed to the Vols. He only decommitted and committed to Kirby Smart and the UGA Dawgs because of the ensuing disaster that was taking shape under Butch Jones, who was fired from UT that year.

After earning Freshman All-American honors in 2018 and starting most of the past two seasons, Mays decided to transfer and join his younger brother, four-star Cooper Mays, a commitment in the Vols’ 2020 class. Both players were local products out of Knoxville Catholic, and their father, Kevin Mays, played for Phillip Fulmer in the early 1990s.

Players such K’Rojhn Calbert and Riley Locklear could fill the void that now exists at right guard without Mays. Tennessee football is appealing the ruling, so it’s not over yet. However, Smith clearly had a point.