KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl has been suspended for the Tennessee Volunteers' first eight Southeastern Conference games as punishment from league Commissioner Mike Slive for violating NCAA rules and misleading investigators.

"I have been a very public advocate for playing by the rules," Pearl said Friday. "When you don't play by the rules, these are the things that can happen. So while these penalties that we've self-imposed and now the commissioner's imposing are unprecedentedly strong, it sets a very high standard and a high standard that I agreed to."

Tennessee associate head coach Tony Jones will replace Pearl during those eight games with help from assistants Jason Shay and Steve Forbes.

Slive, who was given authority to issue suspensions during the SEC's spring meetings, sent a letter Thursday informing Pearl he cannot participate in SEC games between Jan. 8 and Feb. 5 and any related activity or practice on those game days.

"The violations were conference-related," Slive told ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach. "The institution did what it felt appropriate. The NCAA will do what it feels is appropriate. I was acting on violations of conference rules and procedures, and therefore I concluded that the suspension should reflect half of the conference season."

The commissioner said he considered suspending Pearl for the entire slate of SEC games and punishing Pearl's assistants, who have also been accused of NCAA violations, but took into account Pearl's admission of misleading the NCAA and the punishment Tennessee officials had already imposed on him.

"In the analysis I determined there may well have been enough for the entire conference season, but the fact that he owned up to what he had done, owned up to the underlying violations, I felt half of the conference season was an appropriate matter," Slive said.

It's the first time Slive has suspended a coach since SEC athletic directors, presidents and chancellors confirmed his authority to do so.

"With the authority granted to the commissioner at the meetings in May, I think the SEC was trying to take a stand that we were trying to attack these issues aggressively," Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton said. "I would think there are coaches in America today that are probably sitting up straight in their chairs and thinking about the implications."