Donnie Tyndall's past caught up to him
Donnie Tyndall arrived at the University of Tennessee with plenty of baggage.
He leaves with a lot more.
Tyndall already had one brush with the NCAA on his resume from his coaching tenure at Morehead State in 2009 when he was hired by the Vols last spring.
After just 48 weeks on the job, Tyndall was terminated when UT administrators were informed of allegations of major rules violations on his watch at Southern Miss in 2012-14.
For those keeping score, yes, Lane Kiffin was on the UT campus longer than Tyndall.
Unsolicited word of advice to UT: This time, don't hire somebody with a history of using the NCAA rule book as a foot rest.
Some will say UT did the right thing by firing Tyndall. To the contrary, UT had no choice. You can't afford to have two of your last three basketball coaches tainted by rules infractions. The university had to move on.
Over the last few days, UT became privy to results of the NCAA investigation at Southern Miss. Those findings portray Tyndall as a coach who ran a rogue program in Hattiesburg.
When NCAA investigators circled back around for a second interview with Tyndall on March 16, they arrived with what amounted to a smoking gun.
Investigators found that Tyndall had deleted emails from a Southern Miss account to which he still had access. Those emails, which were deleted in mid-November, were believed to be pertinent to the investigation.
By deleting them, Tyndall was guilty of failing to fully cooperate with an NCAA investigation, which is considered a major violation.
In his March 16 interview with the NCAA, Tyndall acknowledged he had deleted the emails, according to the letter of termination he received from UT on Friday morning.
The NCAA is expected to deliver a formal letter of allegations to Southern Miss in a few weeks. However, UT officials had pushed for preliminary notification of the NCAA's findings to make a decision on Tyndall as soon as possible.
Dave Hart, Vols athletics director, had defended his vetting process of Tyndall. Clearly, however, that process was flawed.
At a press conference on Friday, Hart made reference to Tyndall's previous brush with the NCAA at Morehead State, saying:
"I was convinced at the time of the hire that Donnie had learned his lesson from Morehead State."
UT did not employ a search firm during the last coaching search, empowering Hart to handle the entire process. It is a mistake that will not be repeated. On Friday, Hart acknowledged that a search firm will be involved this time.
Based on the letter of termination, UT fired Tyndall for cause, which means he is not owed a buyout currently listed at $3 million. It should be noted, however, that when Bruce Pearl was fired in March 2011 — also for cause — he was paid $948,728.
Tyndall's termination, which is effective on March 31 (he is on administrative leave until then) means the Vols will be hiring their third coach since Pearl's exit. Cuonzo Martin succeeded Pearl. When Martin bolted for California after the 2014 season, Tyndall was hired.
It was a whirlwind couple of days for Tyndall and the Vols. While UT administrators were discussing the matter with NCAA investigators on Thursday, Tyndall was in New Mexico on a recruiting trip targeting junior college big man Ray Barreno. On Friday, point guard Rob Gray was on the UT campus on an official visit.
It remains to be seen where the Vols will stand with those and other prospects when Tyndall's replacement is hired.
Where will UT turn? The Vols join a handful of programs that are in the market for coaches. That group includes Alabama, St. John's, Arizona State and DePaul. There are also rumblings that Rick Barnes may not return at Texas.
This is a key hire for Hart. He needs to get a quality coach who has no NCAA issues in his background. Because of the instability of Vols basketball over the last four years, some candidates will defer.
Tyndall coached UT to a 16-16 record in his only season with the Vols. He did a very good coaching job with a roster that lacked overall talent and size. Off the court, he connected with fans. He also developed a good relationship with the administration at UT.
And then it all came crashing down because of one nagging problem: Tyndall was carrying a lot of baggage from his three years as coach at Southern Miss.
On Friday, his past caught up to him.
Reach David Climer at 615-259-8020 and on Twitter @DavidClimer.