Pearl to UT - Fire When Ready. Oh, You're Ready.

It was announced today that the University of Tennessee has fired popular head men's basketball coach Bruce Pearl.

Did he deserve it? Probably not.

UT Athletic Director Mike Hamilton's words regarding the firing are "The cumulative effect of the evolution of the investigation combined with a number of more recent non-NCAA-related incidents have led to a belief that this staff cannot be viable at Tennessee in the future."

Now, the investigation refers to the NCAA looking into a cookout Pearl had for some high school juniors. The "recent non-NCAA-related incidents" are, according to ESPN's Andy Katz, a player getting caught violating the substance abuse policy.

I think this "cumulative effect" nonsense is ridiculous. Pearl was suspended earlier this season for the NCAA investigation. One would assume that would be it. He was punished and that should be that. You can't keep punishing the guy for the same incident. But hey, he broke the rules and Tennessee is well within their rights to let him go, they're just wrong to do so.

Is Pearl's off-court judgement suspect? Sure. This cookout is just one example. His "I've got guys from Chicago, Detroit...I'm talking about the 'hood! And I've got guys from Grainger County, where they wear the hood," joke is another example.

Are these offenses fire-able? They shouldn't be, because here is something else Bruce Pearl was - the single greatest basketball coach Tennessee men's basketball has ever seen. Except for Kentucky, SEC basketball was a wasteland until Pearl came to UT and Billy Donovan started making noise at Florida. Pearl led the Vols to a no. 1 ranking in 2008 and to the Elite Eight last year, places they never really sniffed until his tenure. In a previous job he led UW-Milwaukee to the Sweet Sixteen. The man can flat out coach.

He'll have no trouble landing a new job. Indiscretions aside, he is a great recruiter, amazing in the community, a terrific interview, and a fun passionate guy. (Remember the orange body paint to support Pat Summit and Lady Vols?) Most importantly, he puts asses in the seats. Fans love him and love his teams. I'd love to see Pearl go to Harrisonburg and coach my JMU Dukes, but that will never happen.

What would I do if I were him? Give his collection of orange ties to Digger Phelps, give his collection of orange jackets to Craig Sager, sit on the fat payout UT is giving him, do a little TV work, and in a year take a job elsewhere in the SEC, just to fuck with the Vols.