NCAA Clears Tennessee's Bryce Brown

Tennessee's brief national nightmare is over as the NCAA has cleared tre-suspicious freshman back Bryce Brown to play. It had investigated him after allegations he received funds from people in his home state of Kansas to pay for recruiting visits. The real target was probably Brown's 'advisor' Brian Butler, a character profiled in the New York Times with this inspiring summary:

...a former rapper and cellphone call-center manager, is among a new breed of entrepreneurs inserting themselves into college football recruiting. Some say he is navigating gray areas of NCAA rules and brokering his clients' futures for personal gain

The big winner in this may not be Brown but coach Lane Kiffin a man ever in need of some good press.

I really believed that they were going to get this right," Kiffin said. "I really spent time explaining who this kid is and what he's about. Obviously this is not a kid that should be punished for something like this."

So uh, way to go Lane. I really thought the NCAA would win out on this and it remains a suspicious situation worthy of their concerns but Brown needn't be the loser in all this so long as he is legitimately academically eligible.

Kiffin alleges they were considering up to a four game suspension and a fine but backed down after aggressive lobbying from Tennessee to work the situation through in a timely and fair manner.