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Josh Heupel admits to being 'nervous' while waiting to see if Tennessee received a bowl ban

PeterWarrenPhoto2by: Peter Warren07/18/23thepeterwarren
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KNOXVILLE, TN - APRIL 15: Tennessee Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel speaks to the media after the Tennessee Volunteers spring game on April 15, 2023, at Neyland Stadium, in Knoxville, TN. (Photo by Bryan Lynn/Icon Sportswire)

Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel knew what the possible punishments for violations committed under former head coach Jeremy Pruitt might be for his Volunteers program, including and most notably a bowl ban.

The program received some harsh penalties as part of the violations, including an $8-plus million fine, but there was no bowl ban. Heupel admitted to the SEC Nation crew Tuesday night that he was nervous such a ban was coming in the days prior to the decision being announced.

“Was nervous before the announcement came,” Heupel said. “During the process, you really don’t find out until a couple hours before it goes public. Trusted in our administration and what they had done, but you don’t know until you know and was really excited to relay that information to our team, to our staff and to our recruits and their families as well.”

Pruitt also received a six year show-cause order for his part in the violations. There were 18 violations in total and all were labeled as Level I violations. Level I is the most severe infraction on the NCAA’s scale.

The current Tennessee head coach gave a shoutout during his interview with the SEC Nation crew to the athletic department staffers he said were diligent and forthcoming about the problems from the prior administration. Heupel said he thinks their choice to work with the NCAA and not be a burden during the process led to their not being a bowl ban.

“Hats off to our leadership for finding out about the issues that were here inside of the program before our staff arrived,” Heupel said. “Relaying that to the NCAA, investigating it, inviting them to campus to (investigate) it, working really pretty quickly to come to a solution, being transparent during the entire process. That affords us the opportunity to not have a postseason ban and not place innocent student athletes and staff really in a position where they don’t have an opportunity to go compete and chase their dreams as a collective group on the football field.”