AP Sources: Bruce Pearl hit with multiyear penalty

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (World News) -- The NCAA has hit former Tennessee men's basketball coach Bruce Pearl with a multiyear show-cause penalty, but the Volunteers program will not face additional sanctions beyond what it self-imposed in response to charges of 12 major violations, people familiar with the situation said.

The show-cause penalty means any school wanting to hire him must go before the NCAA to explain why and could face penalties.

Former assistants Tony Jones, Jason Shay and Steve Forbes were slapped with one-year show-cause penalties, a person told The Associated Press on Wednesday on condition of anonymity because the school had not announced the NCAA's decision. A conference call was scheduled by the NCAA for Wednesday afternoon to discuss the Vols' case.

The dozen charges against Tennessee were made by the NCAA in February after nearly two years of investigating Pearl, football coach Lane Kiffin and their staffs. Both coaches were accuse d of recruiting violations, and Pearl was charged with unethical conduct after he acknowledged in September lying to NCAA investigators about a cookout he hosted at his home attended by recruits.

Tennessee docked the salaries of Pearl and his staff and limited their recruiting, and the Southeastern Conference suspended Pearl for eight conference games. The entire staff was fired in March at the end of the 2010-11 season.

Kiffin, who left Tennessee in January 2010 to coach Southern California, was accused of failing to promote an atmosphere of compliance and to monitor his staff's activities. ESPN reported the NCAA had not sanctioned him.

Tennessee imposed a two-year probation on itself and additional recruiting restrictions on the basketball and football programs, and athletics director Mike Hamilton quit in June, days before he and university officials met with the NCAA's infractions committee.

School officials told the NCAA they agreed with most of the allegations but asked for leniency at the meeting because they considered several of the violations to be secondary instead of major ones.

Pearl is considering an offer to coach the NBA Development League's Texas Legends. Jones now is a high school basketball coach, and Forbes and Shay are coaching at a Florida junior college.