The Lady Volunteers have cut starter Ruby Whitehorn after she was arrested for the second time in only three months, just ahead of the 2025 season opener.
The team announced Whitehorn’s fate on Sunday, with second-year Tennessee head coach Kim Caldwell confirming the dismissal of the senior guard.
“It is my responsibility to protect the high standards of this historic program,” Caldwell said in a statement, according to SBNation. “In light of recent events, Ruby has been unable to reflect those standards, and I have made the difficult decision to dismiss her from our team. I love Ruby and will always be rooting for her, but my priority is to uphold the respected reputation of the Lady Vols.”
Whitehorn was arrested at the end of October on a minor drug charge for possession of 5.59 grams of marijuana. It was arrest number two for the player after she was arrested on August 8 and hit with charges of domestic assault and aggravated burglary. She pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors — aggravated trespassing and aggravated burglary — in the August 8 incident.
She had been suspended indefinitely after the arrest but reinstated for the exhibition games.
“It’s not an ideal situation; it’s not a situation that reflects our program the way we want it to. There’s a strong legacy here, and it did not withhold the name of the brand… It’s not something that helped us at all in recruiting. It’s something that we have addressed. We addressed it seriously, and we’re hoping that we can now move on and put our next foot forward,” coach Caldwell told the press last month.
Whitehorn started with Clemson, where she was voted to the 2023 All-ACC Freshman Team and started in 62 of 66 games. In her first season with Tennessee, she averaged 11.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game while shooting 46.3 percent from the floor. She was one of the Lady Vols’ top players.
Despite being released, she could still be picked up by another school.
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