Cats_Fan

25 years ago I was growing up watching Tennessee teams that were some of the best in the nation. They were close to being on the same level as maybe Ohio State is today. If they weren't fighting for conference or national championships then they were at least in the conversation every year. What I don't understand is why Tennessee has not been able to hire that coach that their fans want and it seems like the program deserves. I don't mean Tennessee has made the wrong hires, although they definitely haven't made the right hires. What I mean is that Tennessee has not been able to get any of the coaches they wanted after Kiffin. Seems like most Vol fans were fixated on Gruden for the better part of a decade. In hindsight, he was never going to coach college ball, but it's not like Dooley, Jones, or Pruitt were your second choices. I don't understand why Tennessee has been turned down by so many of their top choices, even their top 5 or higher choices, year after year. They have great history and tradition, fan support, facilities, and seemed to be willing to pay top dollar to the top coaches if they would have accepted the offers. They don't have the in state talent of a Georgia or Florida but Tennessee has its share of quality 4 star players and I don't think 5 stars are too rare. Plus, 20 years ago Tennessee could recruit nationally and weren't dependent on in state talent alone. They still recruit well, at least better than their record shows. I know it's a high pressure job but all SEC head coaching jobs are high pressure and the elite schools of the conference like Tennessee once was should have attracted a top level coach that wasn't afraid of that pressure or challenge. So I'm asking Tennessee fans what they think it is that's prevented them from being able to land one of those top 5 coachesm They aren't that level of a program right now, but it has been a long slide and 20 years ago they were an elite, top tier program that should have been having those type of head coaches lining up to take the UT job. The SEC and all of college football are better off when Tennessee is contending for conference or national titles every year. I just don't understand why a program with all that tradition, talent, and resources has had such a tough time attracting a top level coach year after year and I'm wondering what Vol fans think are the reasons behind it? I don't know what it is about the program that's preventing them from landing a top coach but now every 3 or 4 years we're seeing UT fans making a wish list of top coaching names that you'd think would be thrilled to coach the Vols only to be turned down by 1st, 2nd, 3rd choices and so on until they end up with someone who wasn't even on their radar to begin with. I feel for Tennessee fans. I really do. They beat my Wildcats almost every year no matter how good either team is but even we have been able to make a much better hire than anything Tennessee could do. So I'm just wondering what Vol fans think is their inability to attract the kind of top coach that their type program should be getting? It's not like Tennessee has been hiring a Jimbo Fisher level of a coach that didn't work out. As recent as 15 years ago Tennessee was a program that could get those coaches, or even a Saban or Dabo. It still surprises me when you hear someone like Gundy turned them down. What do you think is behind it all Vol fans?