It's time to buy out Jeremy Pruitt and turn to a familiar face to resurrect Tennessee football
It’s time for Jeremy Pruitt to hand over the keys. He’s not ready to be a head coach.
Pruitt has proved in 2 games this season that he’s not the best coach in the SEC, SEC East or even in Knoxville. Someone else holds that title. Pruitt’s boss.
Someone in UT’s athletic department has a national championship under his belt and a couple of SEC championship rings. Can anyone imagine Pruitt ever doing that? I have a better chance of hoisting a winning lottery ticket than Pruitt does of hoisting a championship trophy.
If the Vols fired Pruitt they’d have to pay a hefty buyout — about $10 million. That’s steep — unless there’s another man on UT’s payroll who could do the job.
The Vols have proven they can’t go outside to hire a coach with a rich pedigree. Gruden, Gundy, Brohm. Nope. Nope. Nope.
Fortunately, the Vols have a coach with a much better résumé that would willingly accept the job. Imagine having a championship coach — no, seriously, a national championship coach — on the sideline immediately.
It was bound to happen. That was the case when UT hired its current athletic director. Being a former coach doesn’t necessarily mean one can rekindle championship success. However, it certainly is a good indicator of potential success or, at least, respectability.
It’s kind of odd how former UT quarterback Tee Martin declined to leave Southern California when Butch Jones was the head coach at Tennessee. However, Martin jumped at the chance to join Pruitt’s staff. What changed? There was a new athletic director in Knoxville with a very familiar feel.
It’s also odd that former UT defensive coordinator John Chavis is languishing at Arkansas after various SEC stops. Would he come back to Knoxville? Yes.
In replacing Pruitt, there’s that whole sticky $10-million buyout issue. However, let’s take a closer look at that. Pruitt is costing Tennessee an enormous amount of money daily. Stands are empty. Donations have to be waning. A generation has been lost. It’s time to get it back before another generation falls by the wayside.
Had some ill-fated changes not been made following the 2008 season, then the history of UT football would have been much different. No, the Vols probably wouldn’t have won another championship. Recruiting had slipped and UT’s coach at the time had made some very significant missteps in hiring assistants.
That’s all in the past. Tennessee’s football future is what is most significant. That future happens to be on campus. It’s time to turn back to the person who made Tennessee a national power. It’s time to turn to Phillip Fulmer. No, really.
In doing so, it’s important to keep in mind that Fulmer won’t likely win another national championship. However, he can return the Vols to respectability. After an 0-2 start, it doesn’t appear Pruitt can accomplish the same. Pruitt has found unique ways to lose games. His entire team was listless in the season opener against Georgia State. It was undisciplined in the waning moments of the BYU game.
How else can Pruitt find a way to lose a game? Do you really want to stand by and find out?
Sure, Fulmer wasn’t perfect during his tenure at Tennessee. He found embarrassing ways to lose just like Pruitt. However, Fulmer’s ceiling is much higher than Pruitt’s. Fulmer turned UT into a national power and was known as one of the top recruiters in the nation. Fulmer was considered one of the top offensive line coaches in the country. He would have settled with a starting 5 well before the season instead of using UT’s first 2 games to test countless players up front.
Fulmer just turned 69, but that just makes him a tad older than Nick Saban and Mack Brown.
If Fulmer were named the head coach at UT tomorrow, he wouldn’t immediately dominate the SEC. The landscape of the conference is far more challenging than when Fulmer last coached. However, it’s reasonable to think he could handle Georgia State and BYU … and Vanderbilt.
Pruitt is the perfect coach to hand Fulmer the job. Pruitt has recruited well enough. The Vols aren’t loaded with talent, but they have enough ability to be much more respectable than they are now. If the Vols ever have to make a coaching change, they won’t be able to simply hire whomever they want. UT will be stuck in the same series of “No thank you” responses that have become a Tennessee tradition.
There is one coach with a history of success that wouldn’t turn the Vols down. And he’s already in the building.
Admittedly, I was one of the many who thought that Fulmer should have been fired following the 2008 season and I still stand by that. Had Lane Kiffin not bolted after one season, the Vols would be in a whole different position. However, that’s not the case.
The reality is Tennessee is in real danger of missing out on a bowl game for the third consecutive season for the second time this decade and hasn’t finished a season inside the top 20 since Fulmer left.
Fulmer is the only plausible answer to getting the Vols back to respectability. UT can wait to make such a bold move. However, doing so only buries the Vols deeper in mediocrity.
Phil Fullmer is slimy. He weaseled his way into the HC job in the first place, and he probably is going to do it again. Tennessee needs to figure out its future, not dwell in the past. You think this 69 year old man is magically going to recruit in today’s climate? I doubt it. He should never have been hired as an AD. Live in the now Tennessee. I want you guys to be better.
Shhhhh. Let them do this. It’s going to be amazing.
I moved to TN just after the coaching search that ended with the hiring of Pruitt. I do hate I missed being in this office with all of these UT fans here and getting to point and laugh.
I for one am hoping for more grumouresque type of shenanigans and nonsense to come. Fat Phil stepping in would be very anti-climactic.
Anti-climatic? Oh no. Phil naming himself coach isn’t the beginning of the end, merely the end of the beginning. We haven’t seen how much fun this can become yet.
Keep laughing….your only a couple of years away yourself.
Yeah, because after all this is the only state a program can find itself after a legendary coach retires, right? Never any other outcome, huh?
Two words- Peyton Manning!
Hiring Peyton would be the most Tennessee move ever LOL
Hey Fellow Alumnus, I wouldn’t celebrate just yet, we have a Coach that is not much better than Pruitt. You will more than likely be feeling some of the same misery in about two weeks!
Yeah, at some point it’s no longer funny and just becomes sad. I have a few Vol friends that have just given up on college football. This doesn’t seem like year two to them. It seems like year 15 of the same train wreck.
I will admit, Monday’s here in TN are a little more fun in the office when UT is competing and they have some form of hope to hold on to.
Anti-climatic? Oh no. Phil naming himself coach isn’t the beginning of the end, merely the end of the beginning. We haven’t seen how much fun this can become yet.
The Georgia State coach may be ready to jump to the SEC. We know he can coach teams to winning big games.
Fulmer is not “Slimy”, and he should be the AD because he knows what matters and he loves the University. There is no excuse for losing the GA. St. game and they should have won Saturday night as well, but constantly changing coaches is why UT is in the position it’s in now. Lot of freshman playing and JG hasn’t got the offense down yet. It’s going to be a brutal first half of the year but It will get better.
100% agree with the strategy – just not sure I’m willing to agree about Fulmer’s slime status. But he definitely bleeds Orange and that’s what is needed in this situation as the AD.
John Currie got what Johnny Majors felt decades ago. And with the dysfunctional BOT that let it all happen HC for fat Phil is the next illogical step. What a slimeball of a human being.
@atlvol…………I hate to have to point out the obvious. But yes FULMER IS SLIMY!!!!!! All he has done is undermine Pruitt from DAY 1. I can see through all that FATHERLY LOVING CONCERN FOR JEREMY THAT FULMER PRETENDS!!!!!
He even mentioned more than once. ALL THEY HAD TO DO WAS ” ASK ME ” AND I WOULD HAVE BEEN HAPPY TO COACH THE TEAM!!!!
Fulmer is so obvious it’s sickening!!!!! Personally I honestly believe his presence at practices might just be what is wrong!!!!!
Maybe every time Jeremy tries to discipline one of the kids. I bet FAT PHIL comes over and says. I’m just not sure he should be the coach. He didn’t need to get on to you that way!!!! Jeremy is losing his temper to much. Doesn’t he know y’all are trying your best????? IN OTHER WORDS. TRYING TO GET THE PLAYERS ON HIS SIDE!!!!!!
I wouldn’t put it past FAT PHIL to be telling the players to lose on purpose!!!! He might be saying to the players privately. The only way their gonna let me coach you is if you lose and get rid of Jeremy!!!!
Or
Hey, y’all might need to take a few losses if you want a understanding coach. And a coach that has been a champion. And yes it is STRANGE that T Martin refused to come to Tennessee until FAT PHIL came around. Hmmm? All of this is beginning to STINK EVEN MORE BY THE SECOND. Yet you say Fulmer isn’t slimy!!!!!
Jeremy needs to tell FAT PHIL to get the hell off his football field and stay away from his players!!!!! Because the same knife that was used to stab JOHNNY MAJORS in the back is being used again!!!!! FAT PHIL FULMER THE JOKE IS HOLDING THE KNIFE LIKE ALWAYS!!!!!
I hope you get what you want. I hope FAT PHIL becomes the coach again. That way when he makes it WORSE. Nobody will ever coach Tennessee again. Y’all can lose your team for FAT PHIL!!!!!!! I believe he hired Jeremy Pruitt because of his KNOWN TEMPER. That way while Jeremy is getting pissed off and yelling and screaming. Good old NOT SLIMY fat Phil can sit back and take the side of players and look like a angel. Just full of self control. TALKING DIRTY ABOUT PRUITT BEHIND HIS BACK TO THE PLAYERS!!!! That SLIMY BASTARD does know exactly what he is doing!!!!! It’s all just a game. FROM THE SECOND HE SAID HE WAS GONNA BE THERE FOR JEREMY AS A MENTOR AND SOMEBODY TO COME TO FOR ADVICE. That is when I knew that he was up to no good!!!!! In the same breath of saying he was gonna be a mentor for Jeremy he also said. ALL THEY HAD TO DO WAS ASK ME, I WOULD HAVE COACHED THE TEAM!!!!!!! HE WAS SOOOOOOOOOOOOO PISSED THAT THEY DIDN’T ASK HIM TO COACH THE TEAM. HE WAS OUT TO WIGGLE HIS WAY IN LIKE THE SNAKE THAT HE IS, FROM THAT TIME ON!!!!!!! But like I said. I hope y’all get FAT PHIL back if that is what you want. If FAT PHIL would stay off the field and away from the players Pruitt could turn things around. But that FAT BASTARD is not gonna let it happen!!!!
So once FAT PHIL takes over again. Tennessee football is officially DEAD!!!!! Nobody will ever touch them again. I can’t blame them either!!!!! FAT PHIL IS THE REASON FOR THE WHOLE MESS!!!! Ill bet anything that HE IS CAUSING THE ISSUES WITH PLAYERS AND EFFORT. INCLUDING THE PLAYER THAT WALKED OFF THE FIELD AND TOOK HIMSELF OUT OF A GAME?????? That has FAT PHIL written all over it!!!!!
PS. Once FAT PHIL totally destroys your program I hope your happy!!!! By the way. How much did FAT PHIL pay for your support?????
King Negan
We learned the hard way it is possible, look at Mack Brown at UNC
You should know slimy….you got rid of Reicht. What a GA fan thinks of Tennessee is irrelevant.
How was getting rid of Richt slimy?
Georgia has done better since getting rid of Richt. How has Tennessee done since getting rid of Fulmer as HC? And who has been hiring this parade of coaches since he left?
I could be wrong but isn’t KS record after two years the same as Mark Richts? Didn’t they both achieve the same level of achievement?
I’m not saying that KS hasn’t improved the dawg’s recent performance because he has.
@tonytiger Only comparing the first two years? Okay. KS won a SEC Championship and played for a national championship in his second year as coach in the playoff era. MR only won a SEC Championship in his second year and NEVER played for a national championship in the BCS era.
But yes, their records are basically the same after 3 years.
How was Richt slimy?
There was never any hint of scandal around Richt, he was not slimy at all. A perfect gentleman on and off the field.
@timbo55………..Was it slimy to fire Richt???? The man was given 15 long seasons at UGA. He threw a QB into the Florida game that he knew had ZERO CHANCE to win. He barely beat Ga Southern in OT. He left our offensive line so depleted that my granny could have started nearly.
Yea, we can all see how firing Richt and hiring Smart worked out. From constant MEDIOCRITY to constant high ranking and huge expectations!!!! From losing to the tiny gators and the vols to totally DOMINATING THE ENTIRE SEC EAST. TOTALLY UNBEATEN IN THE SEC EAST FOR OVER 2 YEARS!!!!!! From competing for second in the EAST to competing for NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS AND OWNING THE EAST!!!!!! Yea firing Richt would be viewed as a huge mistake if I was a Florida fan or a Tennessee fan. But as a UGA fan it was long over due!!!!
That don’t mean I hate him. He was a wonderful person. He would probably take the Tennessee job if y’all want to hire him!!!!!! YES FAT PHIL IS SLIMY!!!!!
King Negan
You got to give the man a chance to get his system, his players and his staff a chance to get rolling. It’s the 2nd game of his second season. But whatever….fire him. Continue to be the SEC version of the Cleveland Browns.
I’m very high on Pruitt but following up a year two loss to Georgia State with a loss to BYU gets you fired.
I hear ya but who in their right mind would want the job? Why would any HC want to go to Tennessee knowing that if they don’t immediately turn the dumpster fire into a winning program they’re fired? Seriously how many coaches have they had since Fulmer? This problem is deeper than JP. They’ve got to give him a chance. Or continue the disfunction that’s gotten them in this position.
The problem is we were already at “who in their right mind would want the job?” when Pruitt was hired – and Pruitt wasn’t necessarily in his right mind, it was more of an offer he couldn’t refuse.
Right now Fulmer is thinking delusions of grandeur that he can right the ship and hand things off to a qualified caretaker in a couple of years. He can’t, he will definitely make it worse, and it’s going to rule.
I agree.
Says the team that fired Richt after winning 9 and 10 games. Yeah, I’m sure you’d rather us just leave him be…give him a chance…Whatever
Richt was at UGA for 14 years. But sure it’s the same thing.
You just proved our point……he was a winner for 14 years and you got rid of him. Again, you could be in the same place we are in a matter of a couple of years.
How is that proving your point??? Richt had 14 years. His system was in place and he had full backing of the fans and University. He peaked and couldn’t get there. It’s not the same as giving a coach one season to turn a around a school that has been spiraling for over a decade.
Timbo are you suggesting that Richt should have coached forever at UGA simply because he averaged about 10 wins per season? He clearly wasn’t going to win the NC and repeatedly failed to take advantage of the SEC East when it was down.
Tennessee, make Richt an offer, he might well come back to coaching if he wants a challenge.
They don’t deserve Richt
(That’s a terrible analogy because it worked out amazingly well)
I agree, too bad we share the same owner! That’s exactly why we’re at where we are.
First media needs to shut up! Not gonna happen though.
The next first is leave JP alone.
Second play the freshman quarterbacks and let JG sit and whine as a backup. Play all of the talented freshman and get them game experience, win or lose.
How long did it take you to write this slop, Dave? Whole lot of wishful thinking and very little actual substance here, spewing nonsense about empty stands and waning donations. You said it yourself, the next few games after UTC are going to be losses regardless of who is the head coach.
And you neglected to mention that we need to have faith in the administration to go hire a competent AD to replace Fulmer. The last few AD hires prior to Fulmer don’t exactly make a good case for such faith.
Fulmer was run out of the building in 2008 for losing too much, and now you think he’s the answer in 2019? Why does everyone think they know who will be a great coach for UT? There is no good answer at coach right now for them. Everyone thought Lyle was a great hire, then they thought Pruitt was a great hire. No one is a great hire for this job. Let’s keep expectations low for whatever poor soul is hired next.
It’s 2019. Every show from the mid 2019 is getting renewed or redone. Same with football coaches. Notre Dame might go and hire Lou Holtz any day now. Miami might bring back Jimmy Johnson. Green Bay might try and get the reanimated corpse of Lombardi to stalk up and down the sidelines. What’s Bobby Bowden up to? Who has Vince Dooley’s number? Are there any other TV GMs looking for a job somewhere?
I hate to say it, but Tennessee is looking more and more a place where coaches go to die.
+1
The sad reality of the situation is that Fulmer is the only option cuz he would say “yes”. By providing some semblance of credibility and stability,maybe he could get the program back to the point where the job would attractive again to a good candidate. Give him thru 2022.
More bad advice from a Vol hater. If your going to try and manipulate…do a better job.
I dont hate the Vols. Vols are only Dawgs 4th or 5th biggest rival and generally they are harmless. Whats to hate? I feel sorry for Vol fans cuz Ive been there (Ray Goff years)
Re: manipulation :wtf are u talking about?
A bit premature …you think? Did you really expect the crappy culture left behind by Butchy to be fixed in 14 games?
I don’t buy this at all – if you can’t get your players to buy in after a year you can’t do it.
I think Florida fans became too invested in “culture” arguments due to having two bad coaches in a row.
UT went back to back years without having a player drafted under Butch. That says a lot. As bad as Chump & Swamp donkey were they at least put dudes in the league. This was not a 2 or 3 year fix …let alone a 14 game one.
This is the most accurate comment. BYU was a result of players under the previous culture not executing. Pruitt has a good staff on paper and this rebuild will take time. I am not ready to jump ship yet, but lose to Chatt and it will be time.
Pruitt has been a National recruiter of the year. This is not going to get fixed in one class it will take two at least and more than likely three good ones. The kids today have no clue who Fulmer is. It will be funny he gets to fire Pruitt and hire himself does he also hire his own AD…
I haven’t logged in and left a comment on a SDS article in a good long while. I had to log on to say this: please no. Don’t live in the past, Vols fans. Look to the future. And while the Vols are sucking find something else to celebrate. Go watch a Titans game or a basketball game!
Or look to basketball where Vols are killing it
Hooker has put out some real doozies but this one is up near the top.
Fulmer had his day. he is not the answer and I doubt he would even consider such a move. There were 92K at the BYU game and that was after that deflating loss to ga st. So that blows your empty stands comment. Though they may be rather empty for UTC. To Alatide no everyone didn’t think jones was a great hire or any kind of answer. Most of us were scratching our heads just like we did when we hired a loser like dooley and even kiffin. The AD’s we have had are the ones we have a difficult time selecting. Hooker just loves to stir the pot. Nobody is happy with Pruitt today but he is in place and as painful as it is we are going to have to give him a bit more rope to turn around unless it just goes totally off the rails……, which I am not completely writing off. At this point anything could happen, except fulmer taking over.
What will we use to quantify officially going off the rails? I’m asking because “lose back to back games to Georgia State and BYU” was my previous benchmark for off the rails, so I’m going to need help refactoring things. TIA.
Lose a potential top 10 recruiting class if you fire Pruitt that is what you get and have to start all over again with Coaches who will have to build a relationship with recruits. BYU was a fluke loss but still a loss. When you have Vandy talent it is not going to be a win every game but you were not close to challenging Ga or Fla yet until you get talent there. If you think Fulmer who is not known to any recruits is the answer let him pull the plug. Fulmer was the reason you do not have Greg Schiano and none of this may have happened…
Get smart…this is all about talent. We don’t have enough to win right now. I will stick with Pruitt…he is restocking.
Yeah. The Vols just don’t have the talent of a Georgia State or a BYU.
True freshman MLB calling your defensive is a pretty good indication of lack of talent.
timbo55
What a ridiculous comment. Are you telling me GA State and BYU trotted out more talent than TN? TN has 5 stars on the roster. How many does GA State have? How many does BYU have? You lost because your coach is inexperienced and he’s learning on the job. If he loses a few more times you can replace the word “inexperienced” with “inept.” I have feeling Pruitt is headed for “inept.” Talent is not why they lost.
Does 1 or 2 five stars make you more talented than 85 four stars. Lack of depth has something to do with it also.
Georgia State and BYU have “85 four stars?” lol. What are you talking about. BTW Bama has a true freshman at MLB calling the defense. Lack of talent there?
Darth,
Your comment makes no sense. 85 four stars? BYU and GA State combined have less than 15 four star players. Even depth wise, TN has a far more talented and far deeper team than BYU and GA State. Talent and depth is not why they lost to GA State and BYU. If you think otherwise, it would be fair to question your intelligence.
@fuzzyvol………….Yea Fulmer would consider such a thing to. He said he would!!!! He is a snake and his presence on the practice field is the reason for the losses and lack of desire!!!! He is telling the kids in their ear to lose on purpose to get rid of Pruitt!!!! Probably telling them HE IS WAY TO HARD ON YOU!!!!!!! Snake!!!!!!
PS. SLIMY!!!!!!!!
King Negan
This may be the only option left. I don’t think Tennessee is going to get Gruden, Meyer or anyone else after the way the last coaching search went. Tennessee just isn’t a top 10 coaching job right now. They have the history but their boosters are way too involved. This is a nightmare situation for any established head coaches.
This is outrageous. I don’t think most Vols fans would agree with this at all. Volbean brought up a great point about hiring someone to replace Fulmer if he shifted positions. I think Fulmer is the right man for the AD position, and I think Pruitt needs to be replaced with someone else.
I’m not sure who the right coach for the job is, but UT is still attractive enough to find a talented coach willing to take on the job. The recruiting hasn’t dropped off far enough to leave the talent pool dry. This roster can compete with the right coach.
UT just has to do a better job in the vetting process. It’s last several hires have been embarrassing. And Pruitt can’t be the guy after these two losses. If their roster was barren when he took over, then sure. But there’s no excuse for losing to an FCS school.
Clemson fan were trying to get rid of Dabo about the same time in his career. They were dumb asses too.
Really? Clemson won their division in Dabo’s first full year. And I don’t recall him losing to an FCS school.
Tennessee can hang on to him as long as they want to. But if Pruitt doesn’t pan out after 4 years, it’s gonna get ugly. The further away it gets from the glory days, the harder it gets to hire decent coaching talent.
The truth is, UT couldn’t afford to strike out on the previous 3 coaching hires. That’s what makes it so urgent to fix the program now.
Dabo wasn’t as bad as Pruitt, but he was on the last leg of his chair before he turned things around. Clemson was already inquiring about other coaches before he had some sort of epiphany.
Pruitt didn’t lose to an FCS school. Georgia State is in the Sun Belt Conference, which is at the FBS division. That doesn’t make the loss any better but at least get the division correct.
If your a True Vols Fan, you will understand what I’m about to say. Phillip Fulmer was our Coach and our program went down hill when they let him go the way they did (like it or not that’s the truth). Fulmer bleeds Orange and is respected at UT, he has my respect so trust him. He brought Coach Pruitt on board to run this Team and 1 full season is not enough time to turn around the issues we had at UT.
He needs time, not this crap story and Dave if you could do any better you should have thrown your name in the hat. I’m guessing your Play Station Team is good.
Finally…someone with an IQ over 30.
It’s not about a turn around. It’s about getting better each week. UT has not done that. Pruitt has been head coach since Dec 2017. After two springs, two summers, two fall camps, UT should be better.
He ran off Currie who was about to hire Mike Leach. And instead Fulmer took over as AD then hired a defensive coordinator with zero experience as a college HC. Doesn’t sound like good judgement to me. Even if Leach wouldn’t have been a good fit, someone else with HC experience would’ve been a better hire. Tennessee was (is) a dumpster fire sitting on a volcano that’s about to erupt. And the best Fulmer could do is bring in someone that has no experience to rebuild a program? If you guys are cool with being laughed at by Vandy, and losing to them as well, continue trusting Fulmer.
Did everyone forget that the AD Fulmer hired Pruitt (with the buyout) and then supported $1.5 million hire of Chaney? Do not get caught in the “Mack Brown” mirage. Fulmer will never compete with Smart, Mullen, Fisher, Saban, Malzahn, in today’s SEC.
Malzahn? Fisher? Brhahahahahahahahahhaa. Who wants them??
So you wouldn’t trade Pruitt for them? You would be the only one. Both have won a National Championship.
Malzahn has competed in one NC game and lost. Ironically enough to Fisher. Are you referring to 2010 when he was the OC with a generational talent at QB? If you get to count winning NC’s as a coordinator than Pruitt has 2. Ironic again since one of them was against Malzahn. Ahh facts.
“Smart, Mullen, Fisher, Saban, Malzahn”. This is like an SAT question: which of the group does not fit with the rest?
Hint:Consecutive good years? Uh, no.
The Gus Bus doesnt belong in the same garage as those other guys. I like to bust on Mullen just cuz hes a Gator but he did do a great job at MSU
Saban and Fisher is the only two who have won a NC as a HC….
So Mullen, Smart and Malzahn don’t fit….
UT only won 4 games last year. He beat Malzahn by calling out their plays before the snap. It should also be noted that Gus has only had 2 seasons with 10 + wins and one was with inherited players. The other still had 4 losses.
Terrible idea. The one-two punch of firing a new coach only two (or so) games into his second season, along with the AD swooping in to right the ship, will scare away every prospective candidate for years. Not only does that clearly signal a coach has to turn UT around nearly instantly (a very tall task) but their boss (Fulmer) would be seen as a meddling figure with an itchy trigger finger. Most coaches want time and autonomy (from their AD), this is the exact opposite. Riding out this storm is the best long term solution in my opinion.
I usually like Dave’s stuff, but this is a ridiculous article. Lot of young talent and Pruitt is definitely learning on the job but no chance UT fires Pruitt right now or this year. 12 – 14 mil buyout and we’re still paying Butch. Not going to happen. Fan base needs to suck it up and get behind the team instead of spewing all the negativity. As bad as UT has been for over a decade now they are still listed in the Top 10 best programs of all time, no matter what list you see. Pruitt will get it turned when/if he can build the lines of scrimmage and that’s why CFP hired him.
Agreed.
Why not? Dabo and Saban are not walking thru that door.
The game was different when Fulmer coached. He’d be a disaster. Vol’s have been bad for a long time. It’s going to take time to rebuild. Chaney was a good hire. Good staff and recruiters in place. I wouldn’t panic over an overtime loss to BYU. Pruitt needs a few years.
Another coaching change would set the Vols back further.
Chaney was a good hire? LOL. More Vols delusion. Also, he’s not a good recruiter. At all. 247 had him ranked in the 500’s (out of all coaches) as far as recruiting goes when he was with Georgia.
More hater BS… keep you advice to yourself. Just because you had a couple of up years……
Better to have a couple of up years than a decade of down years.
I never agree with Corch, cause he’s as delusional a Georgia fan as you seem to be a Tennessee fan, but what he said isn’t “advice”. It’s an actual fact that can be proven just by looking it up.
We didnt hire him to recruit moron. We’ve got 3 previous recruiters of the year on staff. We hired him because yes, he is a good coach, but more importantly stability. He loves Tennessee and wants to retire here.
And what happens when Fulmer falls flat on his face? He makes another unceremonious exit? UT is that much further into radioactive territory?
I don’t know what the answer is; but it ain’t the old weasel.
You are 100% wrong. The last thing this program needs is more from Fulmer. We need to bench GuaranTANo and show Bailey he will be the man next season. GuaranTANo is 6-14 as a starter. Let that sink in, Dave.
Don’t need to bench JG. He threw 2 pics all of last season. He has definitely made some terrible decisions this year and he is not the best at reading the blitz but he is our best option at this point. Respectfully, I don’t think throwing in a freshman one week ahead of going to the swamp would be our best option. It’s his 4th coordinator in 4 years, JG will get better as the year goes on. Unfortunately it may not show in wins this year but then again, it might.
Respectfully, it is clear you buy the major media line on GuaranTANo. We won’t win 6 games with this stat padder. He is not a winner. He may be a great kid, but he is clearly not an SEC Qb. But keep on drinking the Kool Aid.
And what about a 6-14 QB who can’t read defenses and leads his receivers INTO coverages leads you to believe he will improve? He is the SAME Qb he has always been and won’t change.
Well, he threw 3 interceptions, actually. It doesn’t sound bad either way. Until, that is, you see he only threw 12 TDs to 3 INTs. That’s not a great ratio.
Are You Kidding Me? Football has changed tremendously since Fulmer coached and he was already lagging behind the changes then. Vol Nation ushered him out when he had success thinking that they could hang with Bama if they got someone new. Now they can’t hang with GS and BYU. The curse of the Bambino has been replaced by the curse of the Fulmer. Give your new coach a chance. The destruction that has ensued during the post Fulmer era cannot be turned around overnight. You knowingly hired a rookie, let him grow into the pro you thought he’d become. There will be more BYUs in the meantime but they will grow less and less.
Dave, this is dumb. you’re nor cut out to write about UT football you should step down and let someone with better opinions take your place.
Huh? So the only people allowed to write an opinion article about Tennessee are people that share your opinion? Then what would you have to whine about?
We at Bama went through this in the late 90s and early 2000’s so I know how the Vol fans feel. You want to take those Tennessee window decals off your car, burn your Vol shirts and never set foot on campus again, it gets embarrassing after awhile. 1997 (4-7) 1998 (7-5), 2000 (3-8), 2001 (7-5), 2003 (4-9), 2004 (6-6), 2006 (6-7) so I will always remember those days and hope to never see them again but it does happen to all of us at some point. But going back to Fulmer would have been like Bama going back to Stallings, his time was great but it has come and gone. The recruits are different the game is totally different, TN would do themselves an even worse fate by going backwards. I’d give Pruitt until the end of the year, see how things go, maybe he finds away to get some spark in the Vols. But if you choose a new coach you have to move forward, a new and upcoming coach not an old horse that’s been put out to pasture already.
I’m glad somebody remembers, because I get tired of hearing how Bama fans have it so easy. Not if you’ve been around for more than 10 years. The pain of those years STILL hurts. But, about Tennessee….I hope they only get worse. I hate Tennessee, man, I just hate ’em.
It would be huge mistake for T to even offer Fulmer the opportunity. I think at this point they need to give Pruitt more time. Quit looking for quick fix. Ain’t gonna happen. Progress was seen last season if not reflected in wins. Big mistake bringing in Chaney. The 4th and one end around was why Vandy beat us in 2016. Defense will improve but offense is gonna be predictable. He had all off season to work with JG and now he looks lost and tentative. He has no pocket presence and sense of danger. That’s why Chaney likes to run up middle he doesn’t have to trust QB who he hasn’t taught anything. He did same thing with Eason in 2016. When he should run straight ahead he calls stupid end around. Tenn fans need to get used to slow improvement each year and allow Pruitt to continue to recruit and develop his own players.
In my humble opinion, this is the most ridiculous article I have read on this site. Really, you recommend firing a coach after 14 games and replacing him with a coach that hasn’t coached in over 10 years and was not offered a job after he was fired. Unbelievable.
It has changed in this “I want it right now” culture, but before a coach got five years. His recruits and a redshirt recruiting year. I realize I no one wants to give him that long, but refer to Dabo.
Yes, the team was flat and soft the Ga St game. That is on both the coaches and players. The team was much better for BYU and there was no fault of the coach they lost. A young man made a mistake. You can see the quality of recruits he is bringing in. Give him time. He is learning and still has a lot of mess he inherited from Botch.
We can’t afford to fire him. The cost in warning any other coach they won’t have a chance to get their system in place, the change again of starting over, and the sheer cost in payout would be prohibitive.
The two idiot ADs hired the worst coaches ever, and we have been paying for it ever since. This place is not going to be fixed in 1-2 years.
Both Georgia and Florida fired their coaches after 9 and 10 win seasons yet somehow Tennessee is being unrealistic when 0-2 with losses to Georgia State and BYU is something we should just live with. I’m old enough to remember the screams about firing their coaches from Bama and Georgia and Florida fans when their teams were nowhere near as bad as ours. I also remember folks saying…”who ya gonna get?” before Bama opened up the wallet and hired Saban. There is a coach out there who can lead us back to prominence. As much as you other fans would rather us just learn to deal with it, I say Thanks but no thanks.
Big diff. Richt had 15 years and was regressing. Mac was a totally different game as well with his off-field embarrassments to UF. Cutting Jeremy loose before the 4-year mark, based on the team’s performance, screams “radioactive” to any other potential head coach.
Not really concerned about what our SEC East rivals think we ought to do. And yes it’s a big difference. You fired a guy who won 9 and 10 games in a season. We have a guy who can’t beat Georgia State…Yes Big difference.
Saban lost to Louisiana Monroe. Stuff happens when you’re in transition. This is JP first HC gig. He can be a good coach. Give him a few years to get his players and his staff in place. Or continue to do what Tennessee has been doing the past 15 years or so. It seems to be working really well replacing your coach every 2-3 years.
As a Georgia fan I hope you do fire hime. Keep the dumpster fire going as long as you can.
The SEC east wishes that you would get your s__t together because our divion is best when UGA, Uf and UT are all good.
When you repeatedly and openly declare you don’t care about the opinions of others it begins to come off as disingenuous. This is a CFB fan website with an active comment section. Of course people are going to share their opinions. That’s literally the point. If you dont want to be exposed to such opinions then this probably isnt the site for you.
Also, you’ve mentioned Richt in several comments so far. UGA was without question more than justified to move on. A program can’t award a coach tenure simply because he averages 9 or 10 wins. Richt was regressing all around. He struggled to identify, recruit, and develop QBs. His philosophy regarding OL and DL recruiting meant UGA was never going to beat top teams. He struggled with hiring good coordinators. He never seemed to have both a good offense and defense, it was always either/or. And with the behavior of Pruitt when he was DC it was clear he didn’t have full control of the program. None of that should happen under a HC of Richt’s experience.
That coach that could have led UT back to prominence may have been Greg Schiano, a very well respected coach in the coaching community. The way UT fans and the administration handled that is still going to be a very real problem for UT in any coaching search. I don’t think you understand how small the coaching fraternity is. Do you think Gruden or Meyer would put up with the UT boosters? Not a chance. Who would ya’ll get? Leach? After the way he was disregarded? UT is not an attractive job right now to most of the well respected coaches.
Clausen If svhiano is so great why has no other college team hired him as their HC? I think you may be right to an extent on that circus having an impact on SOME other potential coaching hire. But I don’t think Pruitt is going anywhere this season. This article is meant to stir the pot and get clicks. It’s the only style of writing hooker can do to get clicks. It worked too. Everyone needs to calm down. We are where we are. Pruitt is and will be the coach and guarantano is and will be the starter. We just have to hope the lights turn on for both of them. Sooner than later.
I didn’t say he Schiano is a great coach. I said that he is respected by the coaching community. UT and their fans lack of class in dealing with him is a bigger problem than UT fans understand. UT will only attract coaches that are desperate for the big stage. They won’t get coaches that will be able to change the entire football operation which needs to be overhauled.
Tennessee’s problem is that they really believe they are an elite football program. They are, in fact, a middle of the SEC program that has jumped up every few years to have a great season. At least that’s who they were. Now they are a lower tier program with fading memories of better times. Pruitt will get them back to respectibility if they give him time. Fulmer would just start the death spiral all over again.
We WERE elite. History shows that. Hence the fanbase so irritated year after year of mediocrity. We are currently at the bottom and have been. But you can’t say we were never higher than a middle of the sec program.
…In which we learn Wjones007 is 19 years old.
Wjones please point out all the posts saying TN fans think we are an elite program. Just posting nonsense and lies doesn’t make you look clever it makes you look dumb. Nobody knows better than we do just how far from elite we are.
You’re wrong, fellow Alabama fan. Tennessee was an elite program. They, and Alabama, are the two most storied programs, not just in the SEC, but in all of college football. There was a time when beating Tennessee meant something for Alabama. All you’ve done is shown that you don’t know the history of either program.
*two of the most
Not the two most
Thank you!
Oh believe me, the sane fans including myself donor think we are an elite-program. Proud program with winning history, yes, but those days are gone. We’re terrible. Those erratical fans leading the torch are why we’re in this mess and will continue the downward spiral if we keep firing coaches.
It’s going to be hard, but you Stick and stay and make it pay. DAve not to be rude, but your one dumb dude if you really believe the trash you write on here. I hope your just trying to comments cause your doing great on that, but for any true substance, my 10 year old can write better than you.
Nothing about this is a good idea. We are not getting anywhere by continuously looking for the next coach. These losses suck, but enough of the knee jerk reactions. This is not a good team right now. We are going to have to give the man time to have a shot at turning it around or we will never get out of this “rebuild” mode.
Relax justafan if you haven’t read much of hookers articles he is a TN hater and most of his articles are outlandish BS to get us to click and respond, which we do very well.
First of all, Fulmer will not be HC again. The problem with Tennessee is they go after the name not the coach. Seems like the name that is hot, they go after him.
Second of all, if you don’t think Tennessee will throw money at a coach and they will come, y’all are living in a different world. Money makes the world go around. One of Tennessee’s main problems with coaching searches, is that they didn’t want to pay over $3 million a year. Tennessee has the money. If Tennessee threw $15 million at Saban, guess who would be in Orange next week? Miami dolphins found that out. Oh I’m not going to Bama…..next day guess who’s announce HC at Bama. Money is the cure all. But go find an actual coach not someone with a bunch of 5 star talent that he doesn’t have to coach up. Talent made Pruitt look good. When he had to go coach some kids that didn’t have that talent that covers up mistakes, look what happened.
Number 3, Tee Martin only has a job bc of Fulmer AND his was fired at USC. I was kinda mad bc they hired his big a$$ back after he spurned UT a couple of times. He needs a job to pay for his wife and lifestyle. Only reason he is at UT. He can recruit but that’s it. Coaching is subpar at best.
So what’s your plan, BC? If you were AD and in UT’s financial shoes, what would you do? Serious question.
Do extensive research to find out how good a coach this guy is. We found out coaches at big time colleges with 5 star talent do good when they go to another school that has 5 star talent. Tennessee has some 5 star talent but mostly 3 star talent left by Butch Jones. Find a guy like Houston Butt, that makes the most of what he has. Find a guy that can coach a guy to run thru a brick wall if necessary. I am using Butt as an example of course, but when that man was at Arkansas, he did a dang good job. The Hogs don’t really recruit well, the state doesn’t produce that many D1 talent but look what he did. The fans and Gus Malzahn basically got him fired. Dooley wasn’t a coach, Butch Jones wasn’t a coach, Pruitt for dang sure isn’t one. Kiffin was the only coach we had. The man is an a$$ but can coach football and offense. Start with a good coach and then work on the rest. Don’t just go out and hire a name and hope he is good.
That’s Houston Nutt not Butt. Apparently my phone is a hog fan….lol.
Nutt? His only 10 win season was the year Gus was calling plays. He left Ole Miss in a dumpster fire.
Doesn’t every coach have to be a first time head coach? How do identify a good coach? By his results on the field. Just how did that first time head coach at OU win so many games? Hmmm, what would be the difference. Stoops left a full cupboard and Pruitt didn’t even get a cupboard.
Well chip you are partially correct. Money does make the world go round and we can buy a good coach but Saban would turn us down, right after bama made it $15,000,001
Saban likes a challenge. The man has done everything at Bama. Who knows. But until UT opens up that pocketbook, we will never find out. I just used Saban as an example. Tennessee has the money, just keep getting an “always save” coach
Saban like’s control, not challenges. If he liked challenges he would have stayed in the NFL. He would be in Texas right now if it weren’t for the boosters there. It’s not just money…UT would have to give him complete control. Something he already has.
Saban didn’t leave because of the money. He left because he was not allowed to have full control of the roster. Doesn’t make the rest of your post wrong. Example was wrong though.
Calm Down Tennessee. You guys always think the next one will be better. Still remember how did you trash Butch Jones and Greg Schiano, and you kept telling everyone how great Pruitt will be. You guys have too much expectations for him. Come on man, he is just a first time head coach no one was pursuing at that time. Not everyone is Kirby Smart, Georgia is also not as poisoned situation as Tennessee when they found Smart. If you cannot find a proven head coach, just give Pruitt some time, it is only 2 games in his 2nd year. Any rookie coach deserves at least 3 or 4 years, right? Fullmer is not the answer. I think you don’t want to look for another unproven head coach, then repeat this whole things again.
Gatorpyp I agree with you but you should have replaced “Tennessee” with ” Hooker” after ” calm down”.
gatorpyp,
You are 100% correct, but it’s hard for them to hear this after losing to GA State and BYU. Honestly though, I don’t blame them.
It amazes me how many non-Tennessee fans are posting comments about this. Most are opposed to the move? Why? If it’s such a terrible idea, you should be encouraging it. If it’s so bad, that’s an automatic win for you.
The truth is that a Fulmer return scares most of you because teams like Georgia and Alabama didn’t do so well against him. Sure, Florida had his number, or more accurately, Steve Spurier did, but Vanderbilt? Kentucky? Aside from two seasons, they knew Tennessee was going to kill them. Pruitt has failed to impress. Losing to two teams that are going to have losing seasons themselves, there is waiting to give a guy a chance and then there’s waiting for no apparent reason. Tennessee letting Pruitt go now is the smart decision.
“The truth is that a Fulmer return scares most of you”
Be serious. Fulmer scares no one. That’s straight up delusional talk. Fulmer had things rolling last century and that was the last time he “scared” anyone. Non-Tennessee fans are likely going to have an opinion of patience because they are not being moved by the emotions of two very disappointing losses. Hitting the eject button on Pruitt so soon will scare a lot of coaches away. Fulmer being seen as overly involved will also scare coaches away. Most good SEC fan, particularly in the East, want Tennessee to be good as it helps the conference in general. And if they can’t be good, at least better than where they’re currently at. Getting into the CFB playoffs is largely about quality wins and losses. Weak conference opponents offer neither.
Agreed. Emotions get in the way of logic, but some of us are logical thinkers who can put their emotions aside. We as vol fans have a right to be angry. Our team is and has been a train-wreck for a long time. Question is, can we accept that the situation is what it is, look at it as an out-sider looking in and support the man in charge? Too many armchair coaches approaching the brink of insanity. It’s toxic. We are the laughing stock of college football. Go ahead and fire another coach. See what happens. Vol football is on life support! If fans can’t pull their heads out of their entitled a**es, the program will die.
Please stop you sound foolish.
Tenn needs to stay the course. After Dooley, Goff got five years, Donnan got 5, the Rcht 15, Jeez first rule of being in a hole and wanting to get out is to stop digging. I know after 2008 been rough but takes a while. Give Spock a chance.
You people are DELUSIONAL, Hooker.
You have forgotten, in eleven short years, that in 2008, the modern CFB game had passed Fat Phil by, and now you want him back?
The reason why Fat Phil was fired was because Mark Richt shut down the Metro Atlanta Pipeline for recruits that Tennessee used to win that national title and two SEC titles. Without that pipeline, Tennessee doesn’t have the ability to compete for the SEC East, let alone the SEC or CFB Playoff.
Now with Clemson also shutting down the much lesser South Carolina Pipeline, it’s no surprise that Tennessee has sunk to the bottom of the league. Y’all can have all the donors and the money and the facilities, but if you don’t have the Jimmys and Joes, you won’t compete. The only way around this axiom is if Nick Saban is your coach.
Guess what? Fat Phil ain’t Saban.
DELUSIONAL. Tennessee will never be “back.” The best y’all can hope for is being Kentucky. Once ever 3 or 4 years, you win 10 games and MAYBE compete for the division if Georgia is down.
Jimmys and Joes are everything. Y’all don’t have that natural resource in Tennessee and you never will. Nashville will never grow to the point that it competes with Metro Atlanta in football recruiting output simply because all the people moving to Nashville are completely the wrong demographic. A bunch of lily-white neo progressive Millennials, if they even have kids, are not going to have their kids playing football.
Delusional, Hooker. You’re delusional if you think Fat Phil can return Tennessee to glory.
Nashiville is “a bunch of lily-white neo progressive Millennials”!!
Now that is some funny stuff
No, that’s who is moving to Nashville.
Clay Travis and the rest of Vol Nation believe that Tennessee CAN return to glory because Nashville is one of the fastest growing cities in the country, meaning they’re gonna start producing football talent that equals Metro Atlanta in about 10 years or so, giving Tennessee the one thing it’s always lacked: recruiting natural resources to compete with the states of Texas, Florida, Georgia, Ohio, California, or Louisiana.
What they’re too delusional to take into account is the kind of people who are moving to Nashville and swelling its numbers in the metro area would, most of them, never allow their sons to play football.
Metro Nashville will never become Metro Atlanta. Or Louisiana. It won’t even become Metro Charlotte or the Research Triangle Area of North Carolina, or the DMV area. Maybe it gets to the South Carolina level. That’s about it.
Why would Nashville want to become similar to Atlanta or Charlotte? Why ruin a good thing?
If you’re a fan of the Tennessee Vols, as Clay Travis is, your fervent, delusional hope (and the hope of all Vols fans) is that Nashville does become like Atlanta when it comes to the quality of recruits.
It’ll never happen, though.
Don’t need Nashville to turn into atlanta-like when it comes to recruiting, dummy! Schools recruit consistently out of state and into their region. Grow up from your childish comments.
HA – takes delusional to know delusional, Corch.
That was one of the dumbest, immature thing I have ever read.
First of all, this wasn’t the fault of the coaching staff. Last wee was…but not this weak. Second, if Pruitt is so bad, who the hell do you thing hired him. The guy that started our decline and hired Pruitt,
That is why you are a sports writer.
1.) Attendance is not waning, announcers noted the excellent turnout against BYU. Tennessee fans have always been really good about showing out
2.) The donors are not waning. Tennessee brought in more than every other program except Texas A&M last year
3.) The largest UT donors are the Haslam family which hate Fulmer(they were behind his removal in 08). The board answers to them and ultimately the athletic department answers to the board.
Fulmer has everything to lose by coming back and Tennessee needs to move forward. Fulmer did a poor job recruiting and hiring in his last few years and thats what ulrimatley lead to the beginning of the decline. I do not see that getting magically better if a 69 year old coach takes over an 0-2 team. He is not a long term option and at best would only last till the end of this season. If thats the case Tennessee needs him on the coaching search instead of the sidelines.
I think it’s pretty fair to say after this loss, attendance is going to drop off the map. At least according to my UT friends here in Nashville. They are beyond over it, until UT gives them some reason for hope again.
Most of your UT fans in Nashville are riding around with Alabama tags on their cars. LOL
They are welcome to give their tickets to the UTAD for free giveaway there are literally THOUSANDS in East Tennessee never been to a game at Neyland, due to cost.
Wow! That was quick. It was just a few days ago that Jeremy Pruitt was THE answer and second coming of Nick Saban and Tenn was certainly on the way back.
Creek who said that? Good grief what an exaggeration. In fact most posters on this site toured the hire as much or more so than UT fans.
Maybe not UT fans…but certainly ALL the talking heads were saying it. Everybody on ESPN Game Day and the people here at SDS. They ALL Loved this guy! That’s what struck me is how fast they turned on him.
Stop, Dave. Just stop.
Tennessee is in a tough spot. Disastrous coaching choices and short leashes have made it a very unattractive job at this point. You have a hands on AD, and boosters that run the show from behind the scenes. That eliminates almost any established coach who wants to run his own program. So you really have to hire a newcomer and hope he can navigate all the hurdles to success Tennessee has in place in the form of people behind the scenes who don’t seem to agree on much including who to hire, or how long they should get.
Now you are in a position where if you fire the coach this soon, it sends a message to every potential coach out there that their stay could be short…very short. The last search was a total crapshow. On the other hand, lose a couple more games like these, and you won’t even be able to recruit guys out of your own state, much less anyone else’s.
Tennessee needs to bite the bullet and hold on to Pruitt for a couple more years and put a stop to the inmates running the asylum at the top and behind the curtain to be able to move forward.
They aren’t the first huge program to fall victim to the money behind the scenes mucking things up figuring out what to do in the aftermath of a coaching change following a long successful run.
Take back control of your University. You have plenty of money. Tell the guys who think they are in charge to take a hike.
Another two minutes of my life wasted reading a stupid article written by the dumbest sports writer in the world! Maybe you should apply for the job Hooker sense you know a lot about nothing! SATURDAY DOWN SOUTH is HOOKER the best you can do!! PITIFUL
“Lily-white neo-progressive millenials” ? Little bit racist don’t you think?
If he did take over coaching responsibilities it would only be through the end of the season. The board would never let him take over unless it was well under market value. Say less than a million a year just to pay off the previous coaches buyouts. I see Pruitt getting another year unless things get really bad like player revolts or there is a lack of institutional control on his part.
I agree, much too soon to fire him.
uh regress? Phat Phil before Tenn was forced to hire him as AD shopped everywhere , to no avail. Then Tenn hired him out of desperation cause the fans turned on the guy at the time , that wanted to hire somebody they didn’t want. They could have had Pruitt for half of what he makes , but they had been through at least 3 names already. Heck Gundy turned them down. And, Tenn was gonna give him bank. So fire Pruitt and let Phat Phil coach , they already fired him once. They obviously know what its like?
Dumb post adb this article really brought out the BS from our competition. Many starting to sound like corch and I thought it would be difficult to sound that stupid.
if the shoe fits?
Jeremy Pruitt hadn’t unpacked in Knoxville for his introductory presser before I predicted this would happen. This has been the strategy all along. Phil Fulmer is in charge of this football team and Pruitt isn’t. He never was. It has never been his. He’s too young, too green and nothing, not even Phil Fulmer, can save Tennessee football from itself. Frankly, I’m glad. But, Fulmer has been ITCHING to put his headset on and roam the sidelines as a coach from day one. He even violated NCAA rules by doing just that last season. I hope the program tanks worse than the Titanic. I hope it is never heard from or spotted by human eyes for another 100 years. They deserve Fulmer.
Way to Join the crazy crowd TLS. You know as much about the situation as my dog. Pruitt not going anywhere and fulmer not coaching again anywhere. Geez some of you are so gullible.
Yeah? Go crawl back under your rock.
Volunteer fans deserve better than this. Pruitt constantly berating his qb is not going to make the player better.
That’s what I keep saying. Pruitt doesn’t seem to know how to talk to people.
stop coaching, try that?
Unless they want to pay another buy out to another coach, I think you need to give him time. Look how well it has paid off for Kentucky. Our AD was very patient with stoops through his first few seasons as head coach, and coupled it with exciting built in raises for when he found success. If you look at some of the details, its one of the best crafted contracts in the conference. They showed loyalty to stoops and gave him ample time to build. The problem is that the expectations are entirely different at UT than they are at UK because UK has always been historically bad. UT is desperate for at least some success right off the bat, because they have been waiting for so long. That makes it a very tough job. First time head coaches need time, so give him some. Unless they lose to Chattanooga next week, in which case it may appear that he has already lost this team and would need to be shown the door.
Patience BlueTickU fans…SpearchunkerU coach Willie Taggart will probably be available next year…
I’m just glad it’s not us. Now you can start to appreciate a little bit of what we have endured for decades upon decades. When you want to win but can’t win…now that builds character. It’s character building time for Tennessee. We’ll see just how much y’all love your team and school.
Yeah but UT has been to the mountain top MUCH more than the Gamecocks ever had, so the difference is a winning program suffering through hard times.
I respect Fulmer but I understand why Tennessee moved on. Basically the same reason LSU got rid of Les Miles. Stuck in the ground and pound era.
Pruitt is an excellent defensive coordinator but may not have what it takes to run an entire team. That said, the last two losses are not indicative of his ability to run or not run a program. He could be a terrible head coach and still beat Georgia State. And probably the 2019 BYU team. I haven’t watched enough of either of Tennessee’s first two games to have an opinion about what the problem is, but it isn’t the roster. Tennessee has far more talent than the two teams it lost to. Combined.
There may be some problems with the offense picking up Chaney’s play book. There may be a new O-line blocking scheme. Ansley may be a lousy defensive coordinator. Whatever the problem is, it will likely get identified and Tennessee will improve. I think at the end of the day, the biggest suspect for the losses is two brand new coordinators. Doesn’t mean they’re bad, although there’s nothing spectacular in either’s resume. Most notable is that Ansley’s never been a coordinator before (he had a co-coordinator title at Kentucky).
Fulmer is a good man. But him taking over as head coach again would be a disaster. I suspect he knows that.
Give Pruitt this season. Vol fans have nothing to lose.
Apparently, Dave is a bigger Fulmer homer than Doug Matthews. Didn’t think that was possible.
Here’s something I don’t understand. Tennessee’s border neighbor, Alabama, wandered in the wilderness for several years before ponying up the big bucks for the best guy available at the time…Nick Saban. Wouldn’t it have made sense when firing Fulmer to observe what Alabama did and go out and buy the best person at the time? I’m not sure who that was, but it probably was not Kiffin. Now Kiffin did coach the kids up, especially Jonathan Crompton, but he left UT in the lurch. Dooley never had a chance because of the circumstances under which he was hired. What was it? About two weeks before signing day as I recall. So he was doomed from the start. Then hiring Butch was just a head up the A$$ move. Who was he before that? He was the Cincinnati coach, and Dooley BEAT HIM before he was fired.
The time to go out and pay the big bucks for the best guy has probably passed. Which elite coach would want to go to UT regardless of the amount of money thrown at him? I’m afraid UT must now ride this one out. Maybe we will look back in 5 years and be glad we did not get rid of Pruitt. Or “maybe monkeys will fly out of my butt.”
Dooley was an AWFUL head coach. Period.
Fulmer should at least be doing his homework and trying to identify a replacement. I wouldn’t fire Pruitt this season unless it becomes obvious he has lost the team. Not sure about that yet. LSU went through this is the 90’s. Replaced Arnsbarger with Archer, who wasn’t ready. Could of had Spurrier then as he wanted the job. Terrible decision. Compounded the mistake by hiring Curley Hallman next, a good small school coach who couldn’t handle the pressure of LSU. Then it was Dinardo, another guy who couldn’t handle the expectations and eventually lost the team. Saban saved us, and LSU has done well since. I thought Leach was the right guy. He has turned around two bad programs, which is what UT is now. Not sure where the Vols go now, but it shouldn’t be Fulmer.
Oh please, Hooker. You came up through the same newspaper John ‘I hate Tennessee’ Adams works for and couldn’t wait to see Fulmer out. Now you’re calling for him to be coach again???
This has got to be a joke. Who could possibly take this seriously? No one in his right mind would buy this assinine line of B.S. Hooker has been puffing the old hookah. Fulmer is a has been.
They should give Pruitt 4 years regardless just to build some continuity. If he can be mediocre 500 then fine. Then anty up to get someone who can continue upward. I think Kiffin would be great there. You know he would love to have a team to be thorn in Saban but would only last few years cause Saban age. They just need to build the pantry and not leave hot mess for next guy. If Pruitt turns out then keep him. If not at least it won’t be bare.
Nobody deserves four years “regardless”. Lose the team, the fans, and the boosters, you gotta go. Pruitt may achieve that before the year is out if he doesn’t turn things around. No administration is going to accept that.
Again, did you MISS his departure from UT, for his “Dream job?”
People want to blame Fulmer, but the fault is squarely at Mike Hamilton’s feet – good fundraiser but *AWFUL* AD. Then Dave Hart, the woman hater.
Yeah LSUMC. I Forgot you were expert on all things. You and a few others are like the SDS comment Nazis.
What a stupid statement. Invoking nazi’s on a sports site is simply juvenile. I disagreed with you and you got your feelings hurt. Sad. You might want to search out your safe space. This isn’t it. I have never gotten personal with you before, but I guess there is always a first time for everything. If you are, or were truly a Marine, you might want to grow a pair.
LOL, no. This whole situation is his fault
In that case TN is tire fire not dumpster fire. Let it burn.
Just like I enjoy every LOSS the Dawgs have at the end to Bama?
Vol nation is getting what they deserved. Fulmer backstabbed Johnny Majors to get the Head coaching job. Didn’t Fulmer hire Pruitt. You need an offensive mind to pump life into your program. Maybe someone like Jeff Scott or Tony Elliot. I don’t think they would leave Clemson for UT. Maybe you should swallow your pride and bring back Lane Kiffin. At least Kiffin teams were competitive. Scott Satterfield would be a great pickup if you can pry him loose from Louisville. I mean seriously who would want to step into this mess and know that your at least four recruiting classes away from being competitive in the SEC. Not to mention that Vol Nation thinks the turnaround should be immediate.
How much do you REALLY know about UT or the program? I mean really?
Hey luscm whatever. I don’t answer to you. I said “nazi” like someone who polices everything you idiot. Get a brain armchair a$$. Don’t lecture me on Marine stuff unless you want to square off you overblown wannabe know it all. Have fun policing everyone’s comments like you own the site.
You should learn how the reply button works. It’s not that complicated. Square off? Ok then. You are who I thought you were. Again, all I did was disagree with your comment and you got your feelings hurt. My apologies, I didn’t realize I was dealing with an immature child. I’ll leave you alone now. Debate or disagreement aren’t your strong suits.
What if Pruitt goes winless ??? What will Tennessee do?? It looks like that might happen. Will fulmer fire him?? He might but I honestly think he deserves a chance Tennessee can’t keep hiring and firing coaches. I feel bad for the Vols I know it sucks right now haven’t won a sec championship in years haven’t Beatin Alabama in years no national championships since 1998 no playoff appearances its bad at Tennessee right now. But just give Pruitt a chance I think he can turn it around. Gus Malzahn don’t have any National Championships as a head coach he does as a oc did play for one as a head coach in 2013. He does have 2 sec west championships and one sec championship. There is only two sec coaches with a national championship fisher and Saban. Why didn’t tennessee go after fisher ?? Or Kirby Smart?? Pruitt has a lot of work to do a lot but i don’t think this season will end good for Vols fans.
Tenn. Fans showed up big against BYU but you need to shut up about Pruitt. You are destroying any chance of recruiting great players. All this fire coach makes recruits not want to go there.
Yeah it sure doesn’t help matters, the other schools like to use things like that against others in recruiting.
Yes, and we desperately need to keep Bailey and his boys from Marietta.
He proved he was a head coach last year. Things are really bad this year but since when are you given one year to put out the dumpster fire that he inherited. How about giving him a fire extinguisher and support him. The BYU loss had just as much to do with lack of depth than coaching. When your best starting MLB is a true freshman calling your defense you are thin.
He as lost his last four games, going from bad to really bad
So Pruitt’s not ready, and it’s time to kick him to the curb.
If Pruitt is not ready, then who’s fault is that? Fulmer himself.
So now it’s time to reward Fulmer for failing as AD, by giving him complete control of the very program that he has essentially set back because he hired the wrong man for the job.
Who takes over as AD? Or, maybe the 69 year old Fulmer who couldn’t get the coaching job done leading up to his firing following the 2008 season is now capable of not only being an effective AD, but also the HC of a team in a total rebuild..
When you hire a first time rookie as your head coach, you get a HC who is a rookie.
UT needs to be patient and give Pruitt their full support for at least 4-5 years. Only then will anybody be in position to rightfully judge what kind of coach Pruitt is capable of becoming.
Handing the job back to Fulmer would just be another huge mistake.
I mostly agree with you. I don’t think Coach Fulmer wants back in that seat, he has plenty on his plate as UT AD. Coach Fulmer was brought back BECAUSE he is a Tennessee Man. We’ve had enough of the outsiders, and frankly I WOULD like to have a UT man at the helm. Having said that, Pruitt has GOT to be given time to get it together. Is it painful, HAIL YES! Always hurts to lose, but with new coordinators, etc. it’s going to gel when it gels. Vols SHOULD have won this part week, but they choked. Left points on the field. JG wasn’t as good as he can be, alright. LOTS of boo-boos, no doubt.
Fire him? No.
This is absolutely not the answer. PF needs to provide some stability to the entire athletics program not step down to play glory days. I am nowhere ready to throw JP out. If things are this bleak (or god forbid worse) in 14 months, then we can have that conversation.
Agreed. Too soon to make that move.
I’m still trying to figure out when was UT all that to begin with? I know when MU was in purgatory late in the Big Eight dominance period and early in the Texas 12 plague I sorta pulled for the underdog vols. And I would welcome some competition for middle of the pack champs other than Kentucky who think they’ll be here for a minute. Tennessee at least has more fans that never lower expectations or passions. But Phil is way too old, it’ll look like Paterno when he had the title but not the real control of the day to day stuff and was mostly and barely the face of the program. What about that old Arkansas/Louisville coach? With name recognition that escapes me?
Not Petrino. NO WAY.
I have read some pretty stupid ‘articles’ from you, Hooker. This one takes the cake.
I agree. They have to give Pruitt at least 3 years. The guy can recruit. That’s more than half the battle. And he can coach too. Do you think Saban would have hired him back as DC if he didn’t have some serious coaching talent? Maybe he’s not a good head coach at this point but he’s learning on the job. If UT fires him they are setting themselves up for failure for at least another 5 years. As a Dawgs fan I hope Fulmer fires him.
There isn’t a soul in all of Christendom that could resurrect Tennessee football right now.
Phatimus Philopotamus is the coach 12ersee deserves. I look forward to watching the Vol football program’s death spiral become an out-and-out nosedive. Couldn’t happen to a phriendlier phanbase or a phatter loser of a coach.
So says the Bama fan who’s teams fanbase goes to celebrate wins at McDonalds.
I can’t believe how many of you still support this idiot of a coach and want to see UT burn that much harder as a result. Quit thrashing the writer of the article too, he’s not the only one in America who is calling out the facts for what they are, you just don’t like those facts. Fulmer went after a clown to be head coach because he knew first and foremost that he didn’t want his hire to succeed because his ultimate goal is to get back that head coaching job for himself. So Fulmer found the one person on the planet who was least capable of leading a football team and hired him. Outwardly he has been supporting him but he knows that Potatohead is digging his own grave as he has no idea what he’s doing.
It is amazing that some of you keep supporting Pruitt even after what he has done to destroy the Tennessee Vols over the past 18 months. You would probably all be Jews in a concentration camp cheering for Hitler if he came by for a visit.
I’ve been saying since day 1! Don’t hire Pruitt. He has no experience as a head coach, not even at the high school level. Not sure how he even made it to the college level.
Sure, he may finally get to mediocrity, in 20 years. I’m not waiting.
My fellow TN fans, you can keep blaming butch and his recruits for the failure. But it’s not going to change until you wake up to reality.
I’d rather see Fulmer back in there. At least we might have a chance at making a bowl and finishing in the top 25. That will NEVER happen under Pruitt.
ANd to SDS- TN is quite capable of hiring a big name coach! They just won’t spend the money! Do your research. The previous AD had Leach on his way until Fulmer stepped in. A lot of people didn’t even know that but it is on record. Look it up. All that is left is a conspiracy theory that this has been Fulmers plan all along to get back in there.
This whole article aged very, very well. Although I agree with you on the Kiffin point (we prob would have had some incredible years with Kiffin, both on the field and off), I can’t help but point out that Pruitt did an excellent job of righting the ship mid-October. I do think he’s the right man for the job. Just give him 2 more years. If entering season 5…and we’re still at this level…then okay…move on. But I think he’s made GREAT strides this season! GBO!