...and it's NOT Kentucky's John Calipari. The University of Tennessee released a list of self-imposed sanctions for the Men's Basketball team earlier today. Head Coach Bruce Pearl lied to the NCAA during a 17-month long investigation concerning possible recruiting violations. Athletic director Mike Hamilton is taking away $1.5 million of Pearl's salary over the next five years and Pearl is forbidden to leave campus to recruit for the next twelve months. The salaries of assistant coaches Jason Shay, Tony Jones, and Steve Forbes have been reduced by 25 percent as well. Shay cannot recruit off-campus for three months, Jones for nine months, and Forbes for an entire year. And remember these sanctions are self-imposed, as the NCAA investigation is ongoing. The NCAA investigation should be wrapped up by December.
Some people are calling for Pearl and/or his assistants to be fired. Some people are saying the sanctions are too harsh, saying the recruiting limitations could affect the school for several years to come and the salary cuts were excessive or unnecessary. But I'm satisfied with the punishment. I think Hamilton made the right moves, and he deserves credit for taking such swift actions against his own program. Many schools have imposed recruiting restrictions on themselves in an attempt to appease the NCAA. But I've never heard of an Athletic Director going after a coach's money the way Hamilton did. Coach Pearl will miss out on $500,000 of his $1.9 million salary in 2011. Even to someone averaging over $2 million a year between now and 2015, that's alot of money to lose. Hopefully this decision by Tennessee will set a precedent. If you break the rules, there's a chance your wallet could take just as big of a hit as your school. Losing $2 million is alot scarier for a high-profile coach than a post-season ban, no TV, recruiting restrictions, etc. that may or may not follow him to the next job. For coaches that leave programs facing sanctions, it's a way that the coach responsible for the sanctions can be held accountable for his actions. If Pearl left for the NBA tomorrow, it wouldn't matter what type of punishment the school or NCAA impose on Tennessee...but losing $1.5 million hurts, and I'm guessing it hurts bad.
What the NCAA has in store for Tennessee remains to be seen, and it could be months before we find out. But until then, I'm content with the job Mike Hamilton has done handling the situation.
links...
Mike DeCourcy, Sporting News http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-basketball/feed/2010-09/vols-penalties/story/tennessee-self-imposes-penalties-on-basketball-program
Associated Press, from ESPN.com http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=5554682
Pearl looks like a gorilla..
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