Tennessee hopes its "exemplary cooperation" with the NCAA helps the Volunteers avoid serious punishment from 18 major rules violations as easily as they dodged paying former coach Jeremy Pruitt's multi-million dollar buyout.

The NCAA notified Tennessee on Friday of the Level 1 violations, the NCAA's most serious, for allegations of providing impermissible cash, gifts and benefits worth about $60,000 to football recruits and their families under Pruitt. The notice of allegations says at least a dozen members of Pruitt's staff were involved in more than 200 individual violations over a two-year period.

Tennessee has until Oct. 20 to respond, according to the letter it received from the association's enforcement staff.