Could Ole Miss Recruiting Improve Due to Tennessee's NCAA Violations?

NCAA violations will help Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss recruit against Tennessee.

Anytime the NCAA Infractions Committee comes unexpectedly knocking at an athletic department’s door, the news will not be good. For the University of Tennessee and head football coach Josh Heupel, there’s a bit of a double whammy with their particular infractions case that was just sent over from the NCAA.

Heupel was the leader for UCF when now New York Giants Defensive Assistant Jeremy Pruitt reportedly gave impermissible benefits to recruits when he was the leader of the Vols. Heupel had nothing to do with those infractions.

When he was hired as the head coach for Tennessee, however, he knew one day the NCAA Infractions Committee would come calling. There’s a reason that Pruitt was fired from being the Tennessee head coach, and many people knew why.

Today is the day Heupel knew was coming. Now he must fend off other SEC programs that will be looking to swoop in and steal Tennessee’s current commitments.

Lane Kiffin happens to lead one of those programs, and at some point, it should be expected that he and his staff take advantage of the situation.

There are a few prospects that the Ole Miss Rebels could be making a phone call to with the impending NCAA decision on what Tennessee’s punishment will be. A couple of prospects come to mind.

First, the Vols nabbed safety John Slaughter out of Southaven (Miss.) High School on June 25. That’s a recruit Ole Miss would likely be happy to bring into the fold for National Signing Day on Dec. 14.

Slaughter is considered to be one of the best Mississippi prep players, and the 6-foot-2 and 195-pound safety would fill a position of need if the Rebels were he to flip him over from the Vols.

Tennessee has also been recruiting top-notch wide receiver prospect Ayden Williams, also a prime target for the Rebels. Williams hails from Ridgeland (Miss.) High School, just on the north edge of Jackson. The situation with Tennessee is certainly not going to hurt the chances of the Rebels landing the 6-foot-3, 190-pound wide receiver.

There are also out-of-state implications for Tennessee. The Vols currently have six verbal commitments from the state of Georgia. The Peach State is one that Ole Miss hits hard, so the violations could also be advantageous for the Rebels.

Regardless of where Ole Miss meets Tennessee on the recruiting trail, the violations could be a factor for each prospect giving the Vols a serious look. 

Look for Lane Kiffin and the Rebels to try and take advantage of those situations.

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