A federal judge denied the temporary restraining order sought by the states of Tennessee and Virginia that would've put the NCAA's rules regarding name, image and likeness on hold, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel's Adam Sparks and Tyler Whetstone.

Sports Illustrated's Pat Forde shared a portion of the ruling handed down by the judge in the Eastern Tennessee District of federal court:

Pete Thamel of ESPN reported on Jan. 30 the University of Tennessee is the subject of an NCAA investigation over potential NIL violations, some rising to Level I or Level 2 infractions.

Tennessee chancellor Donde Plowman responded in a letter to the NCAA that the allegations are "factually untrue and procedurally flawed," and she went on to say the NIL rules are "intellectually dishonest," per Thamel.

The following day, Tennessee attorney general Jonathan Skrmetti indicated his state, along with Virginia, was taking legal action against the NCAA:

"The NCAA waits until page 16—two-thirds of the way into its brief—before it defends the NIL-recruiting ban on the merits," their preliminary injunction read, per the Associated Press' Teresa M. Walker. "And even then, the NCAA defends a world that doesn't exist. It says it must 'prohibi(t) NIL compensation' to protect amateurism, competition, and athletes."

Tennessee athletic director Danny White issued a statement on Feb. 1, saying in part "the NCAA staff does not understand what is happening at the campus level all over the country in the NIL space." He added he will "refuse to allow the NCAA to irrationally use Tennessee as an example for their own agenda."

Sparks and Whetstone noted Tuesday's ruling is only a brief victory for the NCAA.

The judge presiding over the case will hear additional arguments regarding a temporary restraining order on Feb. 13. Should the plaintiffs succeed, the NCAA's NIL rules would be set aside until a final outcome in the suit is reached.

This is happening at the same time a regional director for the National Labor Relations Board deemed Dartmouth College men's basketball players are employees of the school. While many steps remain, this reopens the door for college athletes at large to potentially be classified as employees, which would represent a paradigm-shifting moment for college sports.