The Vols’ senior All-SEC captain Arion Carter won’t be able to appear in Tennessee’s season opener against Furman and Week 2 game against Georgia Tech following an NCAA ruling. The governing body suspended the athelete over a violation.

Before Carter returned to Knoxville for his senior year, his agent had allegedly paid an NFL pre-draft training facility for a flight around $427, as per Tennessee internal athletic department document obtained by Knoxville News Sentinel.

That violation led to this two-game suspension, as per Tennessee’s spokesperson. The Vols’ head coach, Josh Heupel, has already issued a statement showing his protest against the NCAA decision.

“Arion Carter represents everything that is right about college athletics, dedicating all four years of his career to the University of Tennessee. His high character, loyalty and leadership within our program are unmatched,” said the Tennessee head coach in a statement, as reported by Tennessee Football.

“We disagree with the NCAA’s ruling on punishing Arion with a multi-game suspension this fall. Arion made the right decision for his future health and well-being. He will proudly graduate from Tennessee in public health with Dean’s List honors in August. Our team stands behind AC and his family, and we can’t wait to be on the field with him during training camp next week.”

This is a developing story….