Should Lane Kiffin Be Recruiting Convicted Rapists?
Dashiell Bennett —So far, Lane Kiffin’s numerous recruiting shenanigans have been adorably goofy and pointless, but his latest controversy is so serious and meaningful and worthy of mindful debate that I kind of prefer the other kind. One of the players Kiffin is bringing to Tennessee next year is Daniel Hood, a 6-foot-5, 240-pound defensive end from Knoxville Catholic High. He is 19 years old, and a “model student on and off the field,” with high grades and higher test scores. However, when Hood was 13 he was convicted of kidnapping and raping his 14-year-old cousin. His 17-year-old accomplice was tried as an adult and got 10 years in prison. Hood has been in the care of the state ever since. Kiffin, the Volunteers, Hood’s father, the dean of his Catholic school, the principal, his coaches, his teachers, the athletic director—all of them say that Hood is a stand up guy. The proverbial “nicest kid you’ll ever meet,” who even paid his own way through private school. He did a terrible, u
