How embedded is Fulmer now at UT?

#1
Volfan76

Volfan76

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#1
The discussion I'd like to raise is how difficult would it be to remove Fulmer, given his ties to some of the boosters and the current admin? Deductive reasoning suggests that his ties aren't as strong as they once were, but how deep do these ties now run? How difficult is he to remove? Fulmer has always been too tolerant of mediocrity. He was always reluctant to remove assistants who performed poorly without "encouragement"....see the link below. This seems to be running strong with his inexplicable extension to a head coach that has yet to prove anything. I, personally don't want to see Fulmer hire another defensive minded coach in this era of football and would like to see some, fresh, new ideas here. I have no idea what his current relationships are, but I feel like it's time for him to go in order to make a proper turnaround. How big of an undertaking is this?

Randy Smith: A Tale Of Two Programs
 
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#7
#7
I really only see Fulmer as someone who came into stop the bleeding and attempt to stabilize the program after backlash to Currie when he tried to hire Schiano and then went rogue and was rejected by several candidates - further embarrassing this once great program. I really hope Fulmer steps aside soon, takes a special role with the University, enjoys retirement, and they put in a solid AD. Of course, this is UT and that probably won't happen.
 
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#9
#9
Pruitt's buyout is way to high to fire him for a new hire replacement.

to save money, Fulmer will either name himself as interim for one year or expect Chaney to become head coach and Tee becomes OC; all to save money
 
#10
#10
The issue has been at the top of UT's leadership for some time. Hamilton didn't magically become director of men's athletics. Joan Cronan had her reasons for not becoming the first consolidated AD. Somebody hired Beverly Davenport, who threw Tennessee's own David Blackburn under a bus to hire John Curry, despite his close association with some of the worst mistakes during Hamilton's tenure.

Face the facts, folks. Wayne Davis and Phil Fulmer were emergency hires. Doing so gave UT just enough credibility to hire CJP. At the time and in those circumstances, CJP was a better hire than was to be expected. The UT administrative blunders are too fresh for the "football saviors" you favor to seriously consider taking the job in K-town. It will take time, more than you think.
 
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#12
#12
I wonder if the Fulmer supporters and the basketball fans are one in the same? I nearly cried (in a good way) when Fulmer was announced AD, and he did do a good job of keeping Barnes in the fold.

For the record (as it were) I want Fulmer to succeed, but I want UT football to succeed more.
 
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#13
#13
Volfan76 said:
How much pressure will it take to step down? And follow up question...how do you keep cancers like the Haslams pushing their influence back into the vacated spot?
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This ... this right here.

Haslam was pulling the strings behind Hamilton, Hart, and Curry, and played a huge role in Fulmer being fired, (not sure his role in Dooley and Butch) but he was going to deliver Schiano. These things, coupled with the Browns (yes, I know, different Haslam, but still the same family) makes me not want them anywhere near our beloved football program again ... (unless they pony up the money for Pruitt and staff buyout and a big hire like Freeze, lol, but that ain't happening).

Fulmer being AD is a slap in the face of the Haslams, and an indication that they aren't the ones running things at UTK.

At least that's my understanding of things, which things I believe.
 
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#14
#14
preacherwebb said:
I wonder if the Fulmer supporters and the basketball fans are one in the same? I nearly cried (in a good way) when Fulmer was announced AD, and he did do a good job of keeping Barnes in the fold.

For the record (as it were) I want Fulmer to succeed, but I want UT football to succeed more.
Click to expand...
Fulmer wasn't the one who ultimately decided to pay Barnes.
 
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#16
#16
What many of you are forgetting is the AD is responsible for ALL athletics, not just football. Most of our other team sports are doing really great. I do believe this is PF's fault. Pruitt needs to stop picking his buddies for jobs and get the best person for the job. JMHO
 
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#17
#17
I still continue to believe that Fulmer got the job in something of a coup. He also was pretty much the only person equipped or who wanted to take the job after Currie was fired. I also think he and Pruitt are a package deal; if Pruitt is fired, Fulmer will be too.

I saw him as an interim/transition person who'd step aside after 6 months or a year, but when the promptly signed him to a long-term contract after Pruitt was hired clearly that went out the window.

Fulmer has had a fascinating run at Tennessee. He had a nice but certainly not unblemished legacy at Tennessee when he was fired. If Pruitt is unable to get this thing turned around, I think Fulmer's legacy would decidedly go into the mixed category; at that point he'd not only be the former title-winning coach who let the program slip and was fired, but he'd also be known for coming back as AD and making a big football hire, but that also not going well.
 
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#18
#18
Volfan76 said:
The discussion I'd like to raise is how difficult would it be to remove Fulmer, given his ties to some of the boosters and the current admin? Deductive reasoning suggests that his ties aren't as strong as they once were, but how deep do these ties now run? How difficult is he to remove? Fulmer has always been too tolerant of mediocrity. He was always reluctant to remove assistants who performed poorly without "encouragement"....see the link below. This seems to be running strong with his inexplicable extension to a head coach that has yet to prove anything. I, personally don't want to see Fulmer hire another defensive minded coach in this era of football and would like to see some, fresh, new ideas here. I have no idea what his current relationships are, but I feel like it's time for him to go in order to make a proper turnaround. How big of an undertaking is this?

Randy Smith: A Tale Of Two Programs
Click to expand...
Fulmer is not embedded and can and will be replaced before we have a coaching search.....
 
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#19
#19
preacherwebb said:
I wonder if the Fulmer supporters and the basketball fans are one in the same? I nearly cried (in a good way) when Fulmer was announced AD, and he did do a good job of keeping Barnes in the fold.

For the record (as it were) I want Fulmer to succeed, but I want UT football to succeed more.
Click to expand...

The Barnes deal initially gave me heartburn...All of a sudden, his core team was graduating or going pro, and it came across to me that he didn't want to rebuild UT after UCLA expressed interest. He was well compensated in a state with no income tax and fairly low cost of living. Then it appears UCLA was going to offer him $5 mill to move to Westwood, and he took time to consider it. Then Fulmer upped his pay to around $5.2 mill, a heck of an increase from $3.5 mill...Don't get me wrong I loved being ranked #1 for a month, and hearing all of the great things about our program, but for him to entertain an offer from UCLA at the time that he did just rubbed me the wrong way...
 
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#20
#20
malibuvol said:
The Barnes deal initially gave me heartburn...All of a sudden, his core team was graduating or going pro, and it came across to me that he didn't want to rebuild UT after UCLA expressed interest. He was well compensated in a state with no income tax and fairly low cost of living. Then it appears UCLA was going to offer him $5 mill to move to Westwood, and he took time to consider it. Then Fulmer upped his pay to around $5.2 mill, a heck of an increase from $3.5 mill...Don't get me wrong I loved being ranked #1 for a month, and hearing all of the great things about our program, but for him to entertain an offer from UCLA at the time that he did just rubbed me the wrong way...
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It wasn't just anybody that expressed interest though...it was UCLA. If you're in Rick's position you kind of "have to" at least listen to them. They haven't been good in a long time but they are one of the legendary programs in college basketball.

Rick is great for Tennessee's basketball program, and is probably about as good of a coach as we can get, but we had to overpay to keep him.
 
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#21
#21
malibuvol said:
The Barnes deal initially gave me heartburn...All of a sudden, his core team was graduating or going pro, and it came across to me that he didn't want to rebuild UT after UCLA expressed interest. He was well compensated in a state with no income tax and fairly low cost of living. Then it appears UCLA was going to offer him $5 mill to move to Westwood, and he took time to consider it. Then Fulmer upped his pay to around $5.2 mill, a heck of an increase from $3.5 mill...Don't get me wrong I loved being ranked #1 for a month, and hearing all of the great things about our program, but for him to entertain an offer from UCLA at the time that he did just rubbed me the wrong way...
Click to expand...

Sometimes these things aren't just about the specific individuals, but also the situation around the program along with its perception and momentum. UCLA came in swinging money at Barnes to have him come coach at their "real" basketball school, and Tennessee fired back by upping the ante. I can't say that Barnes would be worth quite that much in a neutral vacuum, but to Tennessee, a program that has wandered the basketball wastes for decades (aside from Pearl), Barnes represents legitimacy and immediate access to the inner sphere of college basketball influence. You have Barnes on your bench, then you also have his relationships with the sport, and the program connections, the recruiting connections, all of which probably _is_ worth that much to Tennessee. Or put differently, Tennessee's reputation has completely changed under Barnes. The amount of credibility UT gets in the media is demonstrably higher now. Which goes back to Barnes. One could argue that such an improvement in reputation is worth a little more cash.
 
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#24
#24
05_never_again said:
It wasn't just anybody that expressed interest though...it was UCLA. If you're in Rick's position you kind of "have to" at least listen to them. They haven't been good in a long time but they are one of the legendary programs in college basketball.

Rick is great for Tennessee's basketball program, and is probably about as good of a coach as we can get, but we had to overpay to keep him.
Click to expand...

Fulmer's best hire so far is Kellie Harper.
 
#25
#25
The Original Fade said:
The fact that Fulmer seriously entertained the idea of hiring Dan Doren disturbs me on many levels.
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Pretty sure that was Currie. Fulmer only interviewed Pruitt, Mel Tucker, and Kevin Steele.

I doubt Doeren would have done any worse than Pruitt has done so far, although he did manage to go only 9-4 with a team that had 4 future NFL defensive linemen on it, and 7 NFL draft picks overall in 2018. I don't think he's a good coach either.
 
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