Picture of Tennessee Hostesses at Byrnes High Game in South Carolina

My man Andy Staples who does excellent work during college football season at SI came up big with this damning photo evidence against Tennessee. The picture serves as evidence against the Vols football program which is under investigation by the NCAA for improper conduct by its Orange Pride “student ambassador group.” Two members of the group, captain Lacey Earps and member Dahra Johnson, traveled over 200 miles to watch Byrnes High recruits Corey Miller and Brandon Willis play in their game against Gaffney High. As far as I understand things, the hostesses are not allowed to recruit off campus since they are representatives of the University. This photo alone shows they committed a violation, so here’s the picture of the Tennessee hostesses at the Byrnes High game:

It may have been minor matters up until this point, but due to the volume of negative stories against Lane Kiffin, I can no longer give him and his staff the benefit of the doubt. If the hostesses are going out of their way to do more than is legal, that gives them a clear cut advantage over rival schools. Think about it: most recruits will feel a stronger tie to one school if that university is making excessive contact that they’re not supposed to be making. Can’t you see the high schoolers saying “I like Tennessee the most because they reached out to me more than anyone else. They even sent some girls to one of my games.” Yeah, illegally. This is not a good start for Lane Kiffin, that’s for sure. He’s created far more headlines for negative things than positive ones in his first year on the job. I also must include this anecdote from the latest NY Times story on the matter, it’s a beauty:

Keith Easterwood, a veteran summer basketball coach, said that on a visit last year with his son, a football recruit, he had to ask a hostess to stop brushing her breasts against both him and his son.

He recalled saying, “Young lady, if you don’t stop doing that, we’ve got a problem.”

Easterwood said that he took a group of basketball players to a Western Kentucky football game at Tennessee this year, and that the presence of the hostesses had his players “literally reduced to blubbering idiots.”

Pops may have had a problem with it, but I’m guessing 98% of recruits love that sort of thing. Believe me, Tennessee is not stupid and neither are the Orange Pride ladies. They know exactly what they’re doing.