Four Tennessee Vols Basketball Players Arrested Friday on Drugs and Weapons Charges

Four UT Vols basketball players have been arrested after a traffic stop on New Year's Day. Included in the arrests were Tyler Smith, Cameron Tatum, Brian Williams and Melvin Goins according to an article on Go Vols Xtra. You can read the story about the Tennessee men's basketball players arrest here.

The Tennessee men's basketball team is fresh off a win over in-state rival Memphis. The Vols are ranked 14th in the country and certainly these arrests could be big news. The players are facing felony and/or misdemeanor drug and weapons charges. Tyler Smith is the most notable of those involved in the arrest. Smith is the starting point guard for power forward for the 10-2 Volunteers.

Tennessee men's head coach Bruce Pearl has already commented on the four UT Vols arrests. "We take these matters very seriously. We are still gathering information".

The news could certainly be huge on Rocky Top. The Vols were on pace for a terrific season and bordering on a top ten team in college basketball until the arrests. There is more information on the Tennessee men's basketball players arrest on the Knoxville News Sentinel website here.

Tyler Smith's drug and weapons arrest comes on the heels of a fine season with the Volunteers. Tyler Smith is a senior who is averaging 11.7 ppg through the team's 12 contests. Will the UT Vols basketball arrests ruin what could have been a special season in Knoxville? Losing four players could do irreparable harm to the depth of an SEC team like Tennessee. It's tough to win in the SEC, and losing 4 UT Vols potentially to drug and weapons charges or arrests could certainly crush the Volunteers.

If the four are suspended then Tennessee would have to lean heavily on it's remaining players. The 4 UT Vols all played at some point in the season but Tyler Smith was the only listed starter. Bruce Pearl might have to choose whether or not to kick the four Tennessee men's basketball players involved in the arrest off the team.
Once the information comes in, Pearl will have some tough decisions to make.