Vols’ Plavsic doesn’t get waiver, must sit out this season

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee center Uros Plavsic must sit out the 2019-20 season after the NCAA refused to grant the Arizona State transfer a waiver that would have enabled him to play for the Volunteers immediately.

Athletic director Phillip Fulmer announced the NCAA’s ruling Saturday. Fulmer says Tennessee also filed an appeal that was denied.

Fulmer says in a statement that “we are extremely disappointed — quite frankly, stunned — in this outcome, and feel strongly that very compelling facts support clearance for immediate eligibility.”

Players who transfer from one Division I school to another must sit out a season unless they receive a waiver. Plavsic, a 7-foot redshirt freshman, transferred to Tennessee after the 2018-19 season.

Fulmer says “we will stand by Uros and support him in every way possible as we exhaust all options in advocating for his competitive opportunity.”