CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd said Wednesday an NCAA suspension “is definitely in play” for Ole Miss football coach Hugh Freeze.
Dodd made the comments on “SportsTalk with Bo Mattingly,” a syndicated radio show in Arkansas.
“He’d be the first football coach suspended under new penalties,” Dodd said. “I think Freeze ultimately survives at Ole Miss, but not without damage and embarrassment.”
Ole Miss’ football program is accused of 13 NCAA rules violations, and former Ole Miss tackle Laremy Tunsil said during the NFL draft he took money from Ole Miss coaches. The rule Dodd refers to is a 2013 NCAA rule that allows coaches to be held responsible for violations.
Freeze wasn’t accused of wrongdoing in the Notice of Allegations (NOA) the NCAA served to Ole Miss in May. The NCAA hasn’t released its findings from an investigation into the Tunsil incident.
“There will come a day where we get to stand before the (NCAA’s) Committee on Infractions, which are the ones that matter, and we will be held accountable for any wrongdoing that is found, and that’s the way it should be,” Freeze said last week during Southeastern Conference Media Days.
Freeze said last week he had “zero update” on the status of the NCAA investigation. He also mentioned that the length of the probe has bothered him.
Ole Miss released its response to the NCAA’s NOA in May. The response included a reduction of 11 scholarships, rules education for staff members, recruiting suspensions for two assistant coaches, disassociation with four boosters, three years’ probation, and a fine of more than $150,000.
Ole Miss is scheduled to open fall camp Aug. 7. It is uncertain when the NCAA will rule.
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