Without coaching a single game yet, Tennessee head coach Lane Kiffin has bull's eyes coming at him from all different directions. After attempting to turn the current national champions in for cheating and trying to raid every rivals' coaching staff, Kiffin has now committed several NCAA recruiting violations and stirred up some serious ill will for Citrus, I mean Rocky, Top.
The problems started for Kiffin the first day he got the job. South Carolina head coach, the master of trash talk, Steve Spurrier, suggested Kiffin might have committed a recruiting violation by calling a recruit before he was authorized to do so by the NCAA. Kiffin says he was authorized to make phone calls, and did so to his prized recruit, top-ranked receiver Marlon Brown, who eventually committed to Georgia. Ouch.
Since then, Kiffin has made several more missteps. Kiffin said Florida head coach Urban Meyer cheated in the recruiting process by contacting wide receiver Nu'Keese Richardson while he was on an official visit to Tennessee. Kiffin made two mistakes on that public announcement:
1. What Urban Meyer did was not a recruiting violation.
2. What Kiffin did by talking about it in public was a violation.
"Coach Kiffin has violated the Southeastern Conference Code of Ethics," SEC commissioner Mike Slive said in a statement. "SEC Bylaw 10.5.1 clearly states that coaches and administrators shall refrain from directed public criticism of other member institutions, their staffs or players."
Not only did Kiffin not know the rules of violations by falsely accusing another coach, he ended up committing a violation himself. Ouch.
Later that week, Tennessee announced it was going to self-report more violations committed by Kiffin to avoid further punishment from the NCAA. The first of the new wrongdoings was during a recruiting visit at Tennessee where nine recruits participated in a mock press conference at the university's media center. The second violation was the use of a fog machine for a recruit's entrance to Neyland Stadium. Both of these violated NCAA recruiting rules, which prohibit simulating a game experience for recruits during official visits. Ouch.
The week after that, Kiffin ran into trouble again for referring to an unsigned recruit by name on a local Knoxville radio show. Kiffin talked about Bryce Brown, a Rivals.com five-star running back, who reneged on his verbal commitment to the University of Miami and is considering playing professionally in Canada before going to the NFL. What made it worse was before asking questions, the radio host told Kiffin he couldn't refer to specific recruits by name. Ouch.
Not only has Kiffin shot himself in the foot several times, he has also made quick enemies with some of his top competitors. After Spurrier's recruiting accusations, Kiffin lured Spurrier's brother-in-law, David Reaves, off the South Carolina staff to Tennessee. The Ole' Ball Coach certainly won't forget about that one.
Despite accusing Florida of cheating, Kiffin allegedly went after the Gators' receivers coach, Billy Gonzales, while Florida was preparing for the national championship game. However, Gonzales did not take the job. Ouch.
Kiffin then went after Forbes magazine's most powerful man in sports, Alabama head coach Nick Saban, hiring Lance Thompson, one of Alabama's best recruiters. Maybe Thompson can go over the rules with Kiffin one more time. Saban has since asked all of his committed recruits to not take visits to Tennessee.
Finally, Georgia head coach Mark Richt bested Kiffin once again. Not only did he snag Marlon Brown, Tennessee's number one recruit, he also kept one of the Bulldogs' best recruiters from going to Knoxville. Kiffin offered recruiter Rodney Garner a $400,000 bonus to join the Volunteers, but he turned it down, choosing to stay in Athens. Ouch.
Kiffin can try all he wants to bring some excitement to Rocky Top, even if it means ruffling a few feathers while rebuilding the program. However, he needs to understand what he's doing in the big picture. He has now made himself the biggest target in the SEC next year, and he doesn't really have the firepower to thwart the attack. We've seen what Urban Meyer can do when he wants to seek revenge. We've seen how motivated Mark Richt can get his team. We've seen how surgical Nick Saban can be when the Tide rolls. Next year, Tennessee goes to the Swamp and Tuscaloosa. Georgia and South Carolina will come to Knoxville. Don't expect any house warming gifts.
The problems started for Kiffin the first day he got the job. South Carolina head coach, the master of trash talk, Steve Spurrier, suggested Kiffin might have committed a recruiting violation by calling a recruit before he was authorized to do so by the NCAA. Kiffin says he was authorized to make phone calls, and did so to his prized recruit, top-ranked receiver Marlon Brown, who eventually committed to Georgia. Ouch.
Since then, Kiffin has made several more missteps. Kiffin said Florida head coach Urban Meyer cheated in the recruiting process by contacting wide receiver Nu'Keese Richardson while he was on an official visit to Tennessee. Kiffin made two mistakes on that public announcement:
1. What Urban Meyer did was not a recruiting violation.
2. What Kiffin did by talking about it in public was a violation.
"Coach Kiffin has violated the Southeastern Conference Code of Ethics," SEC commissioner Mike Slive said in a statement. "SEC Bylaw 10.5.1 clearly states that coaches and administrators shall refrain from directed public criticism of other member institutions, their staffs or players."
Not only did Kiffin not know the rules of violations by falsely accusing another coach, he ended up committing a violation himself. Ouch.
Later that week, Tennessee announced it was going to self-report more violations committed by Kiffin to avoid further punishment from the NCAA. The first of the new wrongdoings was during a recruiting visit at Tennessee where nine recruits participated in a mock press conference at the university's media center. The second violation was the use of a fog machine for a recruit's entrance to Neyland Stadium. Both of these violated NCAA recruiting rules, which prohibit simulating a game experience for recruits during official visits. Ouch.
The week after that, Kiffin ran into trouble again for referring to an unsigned recruit by name on a local Knoxville radio show. Kiffin talked about Bryce Brown, a Rivals.com five-star running back, who reneged on his verbal commitment to the University of Miami and is considering playing professionally in Canada before going to the NFL. What made it worse was before asking questions, the radio host told Kiffin he couldn't refer to specific recruits by name. Ouch.
Not only has Kiffin shot himself in the foot several times, he has also made quick enemies with some of his top competitors. After Spurrier's recruiting accusations, Kiffin lured Spurrier's brother-in-law, David Reaves, off the South Carolina staff to Tennessee. The Ole' Ball Coach certainly won't forget about that one.
Despite accusing Florida of cheating, Kiffin allegedly went after the Gators' receivers coach, Billy Gonzales, while Florida was preparing for the national championship game. However, Gonzales did not take the job. Ouch.
Kiffin then went after Forbes magazine's most powerful man in sports, Alabama head coach Nick Saban, hiring Lance Thompson, one of Alabama's best recruiters. Maybe Thompson can go over the rules with Kiffin one more time. Saban has since asked all of his committed recruits to not take visits to Tennessee.
Finally, Georgia head coach Mark Richt bested Kiffin once again. Not only did he snag Marlon Brown, Tennessee's number one recruit, he also kept one of the Bulldogs' best recruiters from going to Knoxville. Kiffin offered recruiter Rodney Garner a $400,000 bonus to join the Volunteers, but he turned it down, choosing to stay in Athens. Ouch.
Kiffin can try all he wants to bring some excitement to Rocky Top, even if it means ruffling a few feathers while rebuilding the program. However, he needs to understand what he's doing in the big picture. He has now made himself the biggest target in the SEC next year, and he doesn't really have the firepower to thwart the attack. We've seen what Urban Meyer can do when he wants to seek revenge. We've seen how motivated Mark Richt can get his team. We've seen how surgical Nick Saban can be when the Tide rolls. Next year, Tennessee goes to the Swamp and Tuscaloosa. Georgia and South Carolina will come to Knoxville. Don't expect any house warming gifts.
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