Allegations surfaced this week that Tennessee head coach Butch Jones got into a physical altercation with offensive lineman Mack Crowder at practice. The story, originally reported by Gridiron Now, maintains this happened during fall camp after Crowder missed several days of practice.
Butch Jones denies altercation with Vols lineman, but former player claims ‘this man hit players’
The Tennessee head coach has the support of administration, but a former player from Cincinnati claimed he’s seen the coach hit players before.
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Jones called the allegations “absolutely ridiculous,” and university president Jimmy Cheek released a statement lending the school’s full support to Jones.
“There’s been a lot of rumor and misinformation on social media and message boards about an alleged incident during football practice. It’s not our practice to respond to rumors, but I thought it was important to let you know that we’ve done our due diligence and Dave Hart and I are very confident there was no inappropriate conduct with any players or coaches.”
Crowder’s father, Michael, refused to comment when contacted by the Knoxville News Sentinel. Crowder himself took to Twitter and was preaching togetherness, while also not outright denying anything.
P1) I'm proud to be a VFL and honored to be a part of this University and Vol FAMILY. I've given my all to this program and will continue to
— Mack Crowder (@ClamCrowder57) October 8, 2015 P2) I want nothing more than for Vol Nation to come together and get ready to beat the Dawgs on Saturday, as my Teammates, Coaches, and I
— Mack Crowder (@ClamCrowder57) October 8, 2015 P3) ....are already working hard to do. Everything else is just a distraction. "Luke 11:17"
— Mack Crowder (@ClamCrowder57) October 8, 2015 However, a Twitter account that appears to have long belonged to former Cincinnati punter John Lloyd sent off a series of tweets alleging that he had seen Jones hit players before, and stating his lack of surprise at the current situation in Knoxville.
.@WillWestWNML here are the tweets. pic.twitter.com/cFj2LkDLLn
— Football Time in TN (@FootballTimeMag) October 8, 2015 That account has since gone private, but contains interactions going back years that would suggest its authenticity.
It’s uncertain how much further this will be pursued by the university, considering the statement from the school says that they did their due diligence investigating the claims involving Crowder. Other players coming forward with similar stories could do the trick.
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