Jeremy Pruitt Facemask-Grabbing Fiasco Has Been Blown Out of Proportion
By Scott Rogust
There were plenty of storylines exiting Saturday night's game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and Tennessee Volunteers, from Alabama winning a surprisingly close affair and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa suffering an ankle sprain.
Yet, nothing took center stage more that Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt grabbing the facemask of quarterback Jarrett Guarantano.
The signal caller ran a sneak run at the goal line, but fumbled the ball, resulting in Alabama's Trevon Diggs for a 100-yard touchdown. Considering it was a poorly designed play, Pruitt was furious at Guarantano, and used his index finger to pull onto his facemask.
I’m not here to argue — Just my 2 cents...
— Caleb Noe (@wvltCaleb) October 20, 2019
I can’t count the number of times my facemask was “tugged” as a player (and that’s putting it lightly).
Call me old-fashion, but it would have to be a lot more than what it was, for me to be concerned.https://t.co/74iTrUrKRO
The action has been blown out of proportion. Not saying that it's right to do, but this is something that's done at all levels of football. From high school to college to the pros, it happens.
Just look at the following example from Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher, which was arguably way worse that what Pruitt did.
I don’t remember all the outrage for when Jimbo Fisher actually grabbed his players entire face mask last year...
— Feels Like ‘98 Vol Recruiting (@KBRecruiting) October 20, 2019
But non-UT fans aren’t okay with Pruitt using just one finger to pull JGs face mask a little.
It’s called passion people. Happens in basketball all the time. pic.twitter.com/4zvAIt4ciW
Following the game, Pruitt did say that the quarterback sneak was due to miscommunication from the coaching staff, and he took full responsibility for it.
Many of Pruitt's critics pointed out how the coach could lose out on college commits due to the facemask pull. However, that doesn't appear to be the case. The father of 3-star wide receiver commit Jalin Hyatt sent out a tweet on Sunday morning, saying that he supports Pruitt.
Dear @CoachJPruitt and other Vol coaches:
— Jamie Hyatt (@coach_hyatt) October 20, 2019
If my son acts like a nut, or needs correcting, you have my permission to lay hands on him, his facemask, his shoulder pads, or put his butt on the ground. I'm signing him over to you to develop a man, warrior and winner. Signed, Dad. ?
Was it a tense situation? Yes. Should it be blown this out of proportion? No.