Published October 17, 2012 - 3:05pm
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Here are a few quotes from Erik Ainge in the interview:
“There’s five or six games on the schedule every year that you care about. I remember when I first got to school, they told me, “I don’t care if you beat anybody else but beat Alabama; beat Florida!”
“If you’re 0-5 against those teams – Florida, Georgia, Mississippi State, Alabama and South Carolina – to me the other games are sort of irrelevant. Tennessee football needs to get back to the point where we’re competing for Eastern Division Championships. Our problem used to be that we couldn’t win the big game. After 1998, we could get to the SEC Championship, but we just couldn’t win the SEC Championship. Now, our problem is trying to beat one of those teams ever.”
“There’s no other option [than to get a big name head coach]. People throw around names like Kirby Smart and Charlie Strong, but I believe you either spend the money and hire a homerun, or you continue to let Dooley try to right the ship.”
Everyone needs to stand behind Derek Dooley. He is a good coach but he has to have time to right all the wrongs that have ben done before him. After all the year of the California wonder was as bad as it could be. We got a fashion show every week and that was it. SUpport Dooley and he will bring the best out in this team. He is SEC from the start.
I’m with Erik on this one. If Tennessee knows it can make a homerun hire, you get ‘em. But if the only opportunity is an up-and-coming coach, I think you have to wait. Good stuff from EA.