Tennessee AG responds in lawsuit: 'NCAA defends a world that doesn’t exist'

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti lambasted the NCAA for defending "a world that doesn’t exist" in the latest exchange amid an antitrust lawsuit involving name, image and likeness rights of athletes.

The states of Tennessee and Virginia are seeking a restraining order that would pause enforcement of NCAA rules governing NIL benefits until a federal judge hears arguments Feb. 13 over whether to freeze enforcement while the court considers the challenge to the NCAA rules.

If granted, the restraining order would halt the NCAA's rules banning NIL recruiting inducements and pay-for-play deals. A preliminary injunction would extend that status until at the least the end of the lawsuit.

Either victory for the Tennessee attorney general would have a seismic effect on college sports.

On Saturday, the NCAA said the restraining order would "invite chaos" in college sports if it was granted.

On Sunday, the state of Tennessee fired back at the NCAA's response.

"The NCAA waits until page 16 — two-thirds of the way into its brief — before it defends the NIL-recruiting ban on the merits. And even then, the NCAA defends a world that doesn’t exist," Skrmetti said in the response.

"It says it must 'prohibi[t] NIL compensation' to protect amateurism, competition, and athletes. But NIL compensation is allowed now. The question is not whether college athletes can get paid for their name, image, and likeness. The question is whether the NCAA can make them get paid an artificially depressed amount by depriving them of crucial information. The NCAA has no defense of that practice."

Tennessee and Virginia asked for a temporary restraining order by Feb. 6, the day before the Division I football regular signing period during which recruits can sign a letter of intent with a university. There was also an early signing period in December.

The ambiguity of the NCAA rules for NIL deals are at the heart of the states' lawsuit and the catalyst for the NCAA’s ongoing investigation into allegations that the University of Tennessee broke rules involving NIL of athletes.

The suit and the investigation are not directly linked. But Skrmetti mentions the UT investigation as an example of the “unlawful restriction” of the NCAA's NIL policy, and his lawsuit immediately drew support from Gov. Bill Lee and other state officials.

Who knows Tennessee law — NCAA or attorney general?

In his response, Skrmetti also chastised the NCAA’s reading of Tennessee law by saying its understanding is “wrong and irrelevant.”

The NCAA, Skrmetti said, falsely claimed the state of Tennessee showed no possibility of irreparable harm because, by state law, NIL compensation cannot be based on a pay-for-play structure.

"The NCAA, apparently, knows the meaning of Tennessee law better than Tennessee’s attorney general," he wrote.

Skrmetti added that NIL laws in Tennessee are consistent with NCAA rules regarding pay-for-play. He wrote, "NIL deals use only an athlete’s intellectual-property rights as the consideration."

Tennessee AG: NCAA 'seemingly' wants high school testimony

One of the main thrusts of the NCAA’s Saturday response was that the state of Tennessee provided no player with proof showing how keeping NIL recruiting rules in place would create irreparable harm ahead of the Feb. 7 date.

The response pointed to the lone example given by Tennessee, UT football player Jackson Lampley, who was not recruited during the NIL era but filed a declaration of his availability to testify.

The state’s response was, in short, “duh.”

"The NCAA seemingly wants a testimonial from a current high schooler … That’s convenient, since the NCAA knows no current recruit would risk incurring the NCAA’s wrath by admitting he has (or would like to) violate its rules,” it said.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Emailadam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.

Get the latest news and insight on SEC football by subscribing to the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.