The Fall-Out From UT Armed Robbery Could Be Felt For A While

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The biggest story in the SEC today, obviously, has been the arrest on attempted armed robbery charges of three Tennessee freshman football players.

A quick scan of the situation shows just how far-reaching something like this could be.  And I said, “COULD BE,” so don’t start firing off the “you hate the Vols” emails, Tennessee fans.

* For the three young men involved, they have probably thrown away their college careers at Tennessee.  Nu’Keese Richardson and Mike Edwards will most definitely be dismissed from the team, while Janzen Jackson will probably be booted, too. 

(I do believe that Jackson — due to the fact he wasn’t one of the two players to ask for money AND the fact that he’s the best player of the three — might get another shot in Knoxville.  I wouldn’t be surprised to see Kiffin dismiss him from the team for now and then say that he can earn his way back for 2010 if he plays his cards right.  The kid is can play… and that’s all many coaches care about.  We’ll see.)

* If all three are heave-ho’d from UT, they might land somewhere else.  If Houston Nutt was willing to take Jamar “I used a dead girl’s credit card” Hornsby he might be willing to take these guys.  But even if the players do wind up somewhere else and do develop into good players, they have most certainly damaged their NFL draft stock.

* All of this is speculative as Richardson and Edwards might actually have to do some jail time on these charges.  I doubt it, but they might.

* And what of the families of these three players?  Today they’re trying to worry about huge bonds.  Tomorrow they’ll have to deal with the embarrassment of everyone in America knowing what their loved ones did.  Jackson’s father is a coach at Miami of Ohio.  Think he’s busy game-planning today?

* And if the players do NOT land somewhere else, what will become of them professionally?  These aren’t minors.  A felony charge on a permanent record doesn’t look too good during an employer’s background check.

* As for Tennessee, the Volunteers were looking pretty good for their stretch run until The Tennessee Three decided to play Jesse James.  Ole Miss will be without Greg Hardy this weekend which should have upped UT’s chances of winning on the road.  Now that the team will have to deal with this distraction, who knows how Kiffin’s bunch will perform on Saturday?

* If the Vols lose, that could cause a monetary hit to the university in regards to their bowl destination.  An 8-4 team could land in the Outback Bowl.  A 7-5 team could land in the Chick-fil-A Bowl or worse.  The farther the fall, the less the bowl payout.

* And what of recruiting?  You can be certain that other SEC coaches will ask recruits — and their parents — if they want to go to Knoxville to team up with armed robbers.  Might something so unsavory (it’s all over ESPN today) drive away some prospects who are already committed to the Volunteers?

* Let’s say Tennessee’s recruiting does take a hit, though I think there’s only a small chance of that.  With a less stellar class and WITHOUT Jackson to help replace Eric Berry next year, Kiffin’s second season might not go as well as planned… putting him on a warmer seat heading into his third season.

* And get this one: even gamblers and bookies are affected by this nonsense.  The line on the Tennessee-Mississippi game moved by as much as three points on some boards today when news of the arrests came out. 

Perhaps this will be one small blip on the radar.  But being that it comes so early in Kiffin’s UT career, it might have bigger ramifications than one would normally expect.  It could be an example of the butterfly effect.

All because of the stupid decisions of three teenagers.

Fans of other schools shouldn’t be yukking it up too loudly, either. 

As Kiffin has now learned, one day you’re talking about your school’s arrest-free record… and the next you’re dealing with an armed robbery.

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