NCAA: UT's cooperation in 'stark contrast' to former basketball staff's 'failures'

The University of Tennessee's self-imposed penalties and overall cooperation during its 22-month NCAA investigation went a long way toward the program escaping any further penalties from the Committee on Infractions.

Citing multiple bylaws in the report released Wednesday, the Committee on Infractions praised how UT handled its encounters with the NCAA's enforcement staff. It took the opposite stance with former men's basketball coach Bruce Pearl and his three former assistants — Jason Shay, Steve Forbes and Tony Jones — who violated the NCAA's "principles of honesty and sportsmanship" during their initial interviews with investigators.

"The cooperation the institution demonstrated in this case is in stark contrast to the conduct and failures of the former men's basketball staff," the report reads.

Largely for that, Pearl received a three-year show-cause penalty while the assistants each received a one-year show-cause penalty. UT, which self-imposed two years of probation and various recruiting restrictions in its men's basketball and football programs, did not receive any further punishment.

"We appreciate the opportunity to close this chapter with the Committee's announcement today, moving forward with no major violations in our football program and no additional penalties from the NCAA," interim vice chancellor for athletics Joan Cronan said in a university statement. "The institution cooperated fully with the NCAA and we have a strong culture of compliance, and a bright future is on the horizon for Tennessee athletics."

UT will not appeal the committee's rulings.

"It is time for the University of Tennessee to put this behind us and look forward," Chancellor Jimmy Cheek said in the university's release. "The NCAA commented very positively about our cooperation. We have worked hard to make things right and that has been accepted by the Committee. We have great coaches and great student-athletes, and now it's time to go out there and compete."

As required by the NCAA, UT shall be subject to "repeat violator" status for a five-year period beginning today.

"The Committee on Infractions advises the institution that it should take every precaution to ensure that the terms of the penalties are observed," the report reads. "Any action by the institution contrary to the terms of any of the penalties or any additional violations shall be considered grounds for extending the institution's probationary period or imposing more severe sanctions or may result in additional allegations and findings of violations."

The Committee on Infractions concluded that the football program under former coach Lane Kiffin committed 12 violations over a one-year period, but all were "secondary" and "isolated" in nature and, therefore, could not be classified as major.

"However, the committee was troubled by the number and nature of the secondary infractions by the football coaching staff during its one-year tenure at the institution," the report reads. "From January 2009 through October 2009 the staff committed 12 violations, all connected to recruiting.

"This is not a record of which to be proud."

Of note, the committee concluded that Pearl tried to influence John Craft, the father of then-prospect Aaron Craft, to make "false and misleading" statements to the NCAA enforcement staff. Pearl talked with Craft shortly after his own interview with the NCAA enforcement staff.

All four coaches were accused of providing misleading information and failing to protect the integrity of the investigation during their initial interviews with NCAA investigators regarding a photograph of Pearl and Aaron Craft taken inside Pearl's home.

Immediately afterward, Pearl was overwhelmed with regret and requested a follow-up interview, where he admitted to "panicking" about the photograph and confessed to impermissibly hosting unofficial visitors at his home.

It wasn't enough to influence the committee to go light on Pearl, whose future at the collegiate level is hampered by a penalty that would follow him wherever he tried to work during the next three years.

A "show-cause" penalty effectively prevents a coach from acquiring a job at an NCAA institution through the duration of its assigned length. If a school wants to hire a coach who is in the midst of serving a show-cause penalty, it must go before the Committee on Infractions to explain why it wants to do so.

If OK'd, the school could potentially risk being hit with additional penalties from the committee.

Nowhere to be found in the 21-page document is the alleged major violation levied against Pearl and Jones about a "bump" violation that took place days after UT announced it had received a Notice of Inquiry.

Pearl, whose salary was docked by 25 percent and was days away from a self-imposed, one-year recruiting ban, and Jones were originally accused of exchanging more than a passing greeting with then-high school junior Jordan Adams at Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va. UT did not consider the encounter to be a violation and defended Pearl and Jones in its response to February's Notice of Allegations.