Tennessee fires men’s basketball coach Donnie Tyndall
Tennessee fired men’s basketball coach Donnie Tyndall after one season, though athletic director Dave Hart says the university never would have hired him if they knew the details of his unethical conduct at Southern Miss program during his tenure there.
Hart fired Tyndall on Friday after details of his activities at Southern Miss were revealed in an NCAA investigation, though UT officials have said they did their due diligence of vetting Tyndall’s background before hiring him.
In his termination letter, Hart said Tyndall – who was 16-16 in his lone season with the Volunteers – acknowledged deleting emails that could have been relevant to the investigation.
The Tennessee AD said it’s highly likely the NCAA will determine Tyndall failed to cooperate and that he failed to disclose “material information concerning violations of NCAA rules” during Tennessee’s hiring process.
Hart said the NCAA also will likely determine that “Level I and/or Level II violations relating to academic fraud and impermissible financial aid” occurred during Tyndall’s Southern Mississippi tenure. He added that the decision by the school is “in the best interests of the University of Tennessee.”
Tyndall had a history of being connected to NCAA violations before Tennessee hired him.
While Tyndall was at Morehead State, the program was placed on probation for two years in August 2010 because of violations related to booster activity. The school’s self-imposed penalties included the loss of one scholarship and other recruiting restrictions.
At Tyndall’s introductory press conference last year, Hart said he reviewed the situation “very thoroughly” and had no concerns about it moving forward.
Tyndall issued a statement on Friday, saying he was extremely saddened by my separation from Tennessee and apologized to his players, coaching staff and Volunteer fans.
“In the past months, I learned that violations of NCAA rules occurred in the Southern Miss men’s basketball program when I was that program’s head coach. That surprised and disappointed me,” Tyndall said. “NCAA rules prevent me from being more specific. However, as the head coach at that time, I accept ultimate responsibility for violations that occurred. While at Tennessee, I cooperated with the NCAA investigation process, and I will continue to do so.
Tyndall’s contract at Tennessee allows the school to fire him for cause if he is found to have committed an NCAA Level I or Level II violation “whether the conduct occurred during (Tyndall’s) employment with the university or another NCAA-member institution.”
His successor will become Tennessee’s third coach in three years and fourth in six years.
Bruce Pearl, who led Tennessee to NCAA Tournament appearances in each of his six seasons, but was fired in 2011 amid an NCAA investigation. Tennessee replaced Pearl with Cuonzo Martin, who reached two NITs and one NCAA Tournament in three years before leaving for California.
When Martin departed, Tennessee hired Tyndall from Southern Mississippi.