Former Tennessee Coach Bruce Pearl Awaits Punishment, Hopes To Coach Again

After being fired from his position as the University of Tennessee's men's basketball coach, Bruce Pearl thought the worst was over. Caught lying to NCAA investigators about specific recruiting violations, the 51-year old had fallen down the same tragic path of so many others before him.

"Do you want me to write the book about how do you lose $10 million jobs? I can write the book," Pearl emotionally  explained to Atlanta sports talk radio station 790 ‘The Zone'. "How can you be so dumb and so careless?"

Yet, Pearl's problems may only be starting. The former coach currently sits awaiting further judgment, and possibly punishment, from the NCAA for the infractions he incurred at Tennessee. Should the NCAA come down on him, it would be unlikely that another university would take on a flyer such damaged goods.

Nevertheless, Pearl remains optimistic that he will receive his second chance.

I do think that I'm going to have the opportunity to coach again. I've got to wait and see what the Committee on Infractions, what they say, probably coming up sometime in the middle of August and how quickly will they allow me to come back into coaching.

Times as they are right now, we all kind of get lumped into one, big 'These are the guys that violate the rules. These are the cheaters'.

Pearl's case is one that is becoming common-place within the broken realm of college athletics. As the system continues to be rigged to support the strong at the expense of the weak, and is policed by loose code of honor that is rarely followed, it can be guaranteed that his won't be the last story we hear of this nature.