Story By Heath Hambrick

On the Wednesday before the annual “Third Saturday in October” game between Alabama and Tennessee, the hearing for the lawsuit involving former Tennessee Head Football Coach and Rainsville native Jeremy Pruitt against the NCAA was continued. 

The two parties were set for a hearing on Wednesday, October 15, at the DeKalb County Courthouse in Fort Payne, but the case will now have to wait for a later date. According to the DeKalb County Circuit Clerk’s office, a new date has not been set at this time; however, it is expected to be announced in the coming days. 

The lawsuit filed by Jeremy Pruitt on March 26, 2025, is a result of Pruitt being fired as the head football coach at the University of Tennessee in 2020. 

Tennessee fired Pruitt for allegations that his staff committed recruiting violations involving players receiving cash payments.

In the lawsuit, Pruitt claims that the Tennessee chancellor informed him he had not committed any violations during the meeting, which led to his subsequent firing. The lawsuit also states that the University of Tennessee made Pruitt the “sacrificial lamb’’ for the violations that had been committed long before Pruitt arrived in Knoxville. The amount Pruitt is suing the NCAA is $100 million for salary that was lost and the damages sent he was terminated at Tennessee. 

After being hired by the athletic director and former Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer, Pruitt discovered that payments were being made to players. Pruitt immediately informed Fulmer of his discovery, and Fulmer told Pruitt that “he would handle it”.