Tennessee AD Danny White Calls Out ‘Cheating’ In NIL Era — But The Vols Live In A Glass House

Tennessee athletic director Danny White decided it was the right time for him to come out with a stance against ‘cheating’ to win the transfer portal, along with trying to throw stones while living in a glass house. 

What in the world was the Vols AD thinking by going after other schools, without actually naming them? 

As you have all probably seen over the past few years, the transfer portal and NIL have become a staple point in college athletics. Large deals for players have become the norm in a sport that, just over five years ago, was still paying players under the table. 

Now, we have schools using their multimedia rights partners as a bridge to fund third-party deals that essentially go around the new revenue cap that was implemented following the House settlement. 

The NCAA Is Dead, And Pay-For-Play Is Alive, Well And Now Out In The Open | Trey Wallace

Simply put, this has turned into an expensive mess behind the scenes. But, to act as though you are operating outside the chaos, while others slop around in the mud, is really putting yourself out there for scrutiny from colleagues, and your own fan base. 

"There are schools that don’t intend to submit (NIL deals) through the (NIL) clearinghouse, and I think that’s a low integrity move. It’s akin to paying players under the table in the old world," Danny White told Adam Sparks of KnoxNews. 

"If we’re going to have rules, then people need to follow them. And if they don’t, there needs to be penalties."

Oh, so we're going to act as though Tennessee has been playing things above board over the last few years of NIL and the portal? Is that really how Danny White wants to play things regarding Tennessee athletics? If he's 100 percent confident that the Vols have not broken any rules pertaining to recent NIL contracts, then have at it. 

Jeremy Pruitt Sues NCAA, Claiming $100 Million In Lost Wages And That Tennessee Conspired To Have Him Fired

Tennessee AD Danny White Says They Won't Cheat, But He's Way Off The Mark

If so, that's fine. But, you can expect pushback from colleagues in the business, or those outside the conference. 

And, it's not as if the Vols aren't wiling to spend money on their roster, so you can't fault Tennessee for trying. But, saying others are cheating to bring in talent in this era, with tampering so rampant in college athletics, is a pretty big stretch. 

This is the same Tennessee administration in their first big move on campus decided that paying former AD Phillip Fulmer $30,000 a month to go away because of the Jeremy Pruitt saga was the right way to handle the fallout. Then, Danny White was hired to help lead the Vols out of the basement. 

This came after Jeremy Pruitt was found guilty by the NCAA of paying players behind the scenes, while also running a hotel scheme pertaining to recruits visiting Knoxville. It also goes deeper than that. 

And yes, White has done a fantastic job at creating a massive amount of revenue for an athletic department that was draining funds when he first took over. 

A Lack Of Buzz For Indiana Versus Miami Proves College Football Calendar Is Screwed Up: Here's How To Fix It

But, this is also the same program that signed Nico Iamaleava to the first massive "NIL" deal of this new era. Are we going to act as if what Tennessee was doing during Iamaleava's recruitment was above board? 

There's a reason why the Tennessee Attorneys General sued the NCAA a few years ago over how NIL rules are interpreted. They wanted to keep the NCAA from hitting them with new violations tied to the recruitment of Nico, and they succeeded in court. 

Tennessee, Virginia Win Injunction Against NCAA In Landmark NIL Case

Sure, they won, but that doesn't mean they weren't bending the rules. Did you honestly think Tennessee was doing that for the love of the game? If you do, I have some oceanfront property in Kentucky I'd like to interest you in. 

Can Tennessee Really Afford To Act High And Mighty? 

Right now, there is a massive problem in college athletics centered around third-party NIL deals that are being promised to players, some of which are being put together in ways to skirt the current rules. 

But, who in the world is actually enforcing these rules? It's not the NCAA, and it's darn sure not the newly established College Sports Commission. 

"We need enforcement and accountability if that (cheating) is happening, and I believe that it is," Danny White told Adam Sparks. "There are two sides to it: Are you planning on just cheating and never submitting it to the clearinghouse? If so, there needs to be penalties for that. Otherwise, why do we even have rules?

"Because if we want to go that route, then my goal will be that (we) become the New York Yankees of college sports. We can do that at Tennessee."

Ok great, White is threatening to become one of the highest spenders with NIL, if the rules continue to be broken by others or guardrails aren't established. 

So, I guess he's willing to wait a few years to start doing things that others in his own conference are participating in on a daily basis. 

Tennessee Says It Won't Cheat, But… (Photo by Bryan Lynn/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Danny White is not going to garner sympathy from others, and he's not going to get a pat on the back from colleagues for standing above those who might bend the rules a bit. 

Fans want their teams to win right now, not lay back in the weeds because you're afraid of upsetting the ones who ‘enforce’ the rules. Ok, I can promise you that reasoning will not fly if Josh Heupel endures four or five losses next season. 

If Tennessee is worried about getting in trouble once again, it should probably move past that fear. Jeremy Pruitt, the one who helped get the Vols on the probation they are still dealing with, is heading back to college football next season thanks to an injunction granted by an Alabama judge. 

But, you keep fighting for the good of college athletics, Tennessee. And sure, keep pointing out to your fans that not breaking the rules is the right move at the moment. 

The Vols have money to spend on roster building, which has proven true in the past. Though right now, for some reason, they are trying to act as though they are morally operating with integrity in a sport that is currently playing in the mud. 

Good luck, and watch out from your glass house.