I respect Fulmer a little more after each game we lose

[Vol865]

Surely you jest. He hired the guy that cheated and had no character, but he was not involved in the cheating and was involved in the decision to excise him and any staff member they could find involved. He could not put the bullets back in Pruitt's gun and he knew he had to go to minimize the programs exposure with NCAA and made the exit easy for his bosses as they explained in the presser. The NCAA will not take away any of his 152 victories nor the NC and doubt he is booted from the HOF for the bad hire. Now if he was overseeing the bad acts or even tried to cover them up then it would be different. I am betting when the smoke clears we will find one of his hires blew the whistle.

Proof of how much people take things for granted

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

Only successful because Johnny set him up.

Sure was nice of Johnny to tank the season that CPF had going during his leave. I guess you also think CPF was the architect of Johnny's contract negotiations. Go back and check your history of that year before you make statements like that. Can't play the record card on CPF and not CJM. They both put their jobs in play and both lost. Replacement results radically different.

 

[Zues1]

Still getting a check

 

[cobbwebb0710]

Fulmer had a losing record the year he was let go. He was no better than Butch Jones from 2002-2008

I give you credit for making me laugh.
GBO!!

 

[cobbwebb0710]

Still getting a check

Make no mistake, I am highly p!$$ed at Fulmer and have come to realize that he may not be the lovable grandpa figure we wanted him to be. But I will never forget the run he had and the joy and excitement he provided. He’ll always have a place in this Vol fans Big Orange heart.
GBO!!

 

[Orange931]

I give you credit for making me laugh.
GBO!!

Yw, but was it really that big of a gap when Fulmer didn’t win anything in that time period.

 

[vegasvolfan]

Fulmer had a losing record the year he was let go. He was no better than Butch Jones from 2002-2008

Huh? Butch Jones got 9 wins twice. Fulmer got 9 wins 4 times and 10 wins three times in that span clinching the East the year before he was let go. We haven’t won 10 wins since That year. There’s no contest there. I’m with the OP. It will take recruiting to get back there!

 

[VOLINVONORE]

To get there quickly we would have to talk teams into getting rid of their HC's. Then hiring coaches like Sparky Woods, Mike Shula, Jim Donnan etc... The coaches across the board are so much better than they were in the 90's. It was Fulmer Spurrier and the rest. We had the best players( most to NFL) and Spurrier did more with less but also had great players but he didn't recruit like Fulmer. The coaching competition is tremendous in the SEC, that's why this is a hard climb.

Fuller recruited more good talent of any coach other than Neyland. When he recruited the Atlanta, he usually got the players he wanted.

 

[SonOfGodVolforlife]

We make a big deal about winning games nowadays he use to win blindfolded. I’m not sure we will ever get back within being 75% of the win production he produced . Recruiting is the key. Must needs. Vol for life , hate losing especially to Georgia.

Not giving fulmer the respect he earned shows a lot of class by our fans. The man is a legend. Hate on him all we want but we are chasing what fulmer built in the 90s early 00s. I would love to have that back.

 

[Iam4utalways]

Fulmer had a losing record the year he was let go. He was no better than Butch Jones from 2002-2008

Seems like we beat Alabama in 2003 in a 5ot game in Tuscaloosa. Didn’t we go the SECCG 2 years in that stretch.

To compare to Jones is poor form. They were both HC at UT. After that is another stretch.

 

[Evol]

Fulmer had a losing record the year he was let go. He was no better than Butch Jones from 2002-2008

Well… except for during that time period we won the SEC East 3 times (tied for first in 2003), had 3 ten win seasons, and won 64% of our games.

Where as Butch never won the East, never won 10 games, and had a 55.7% win percentage.

And this was the worst stretch of Fulmers career.

 

[Iam4utalways]

Phil is/was a selfish human, who put HIS interests first and used his school, and the people that supported him, to get what HE wanted, from stabbing Johnny in the back to gain head coaching position to later his coup against John Currie.

I often wonder about how he stabbed JM in the back. Was it by beating Georgia and Florida? JM came back too early from his surgery. He could have let PF finish the year and figure it out then. I think he saw the writing on the rock and new he needed to come back to protect his position. Sure Fulmer could have walked away at any point and left his dream job for something else, same goes for JM. They both were looking out for themself. I’m no insider so what happen behind closed door is news to me.

Currie’s attempt to hire Shiano was plenty to get him gone. Anything anyone did to ensure Currie was gone if fair. Sometimes you have to read a room better.

I like our HC and AD. They seem to be about restoring the Vols back to our best days. I appreciate then for that.

 

[stlou07]

We make a big deal about winning games nowadays he use to win blindfolded. I’m not sure we will ever get back within being 75% of the win production he produced . Recruiting is the key. Must needs. Vol for life , hate losing especially to Georgia.

Agree. Coach could recruit but the young boys did not play that first year. They waited their turn and developed more strength and speed. They needed to mature. The bulk of the team was mostly juniors and seniors that were now 22, 23 or 24 years old. Tennessee tried to compete with 18 and 19 yr olds. Alabama plays mature players that are stronger this they push you around and hurt you. College football in the SEC is for the older players. A good example is Hooker because of his maturity is more disciplined as a qb. Georgia was well coached against Tennessee. The rushers got in the throwing lanes with their arms high and Hooker over-through receivers in 3rd down. Georgia made us run the ball and Tennessee did not want to adjust. The Kentucky game was silly. Kentucky has a strong running game but their qb wanted more exposure and thus through 38 passes. Tennessee had trouble with their running backs. If Vandy rushes 3 or 4 all night with 7 or 8 defending the pass, Tennessee will have trouble completing passes and getting first downs. GBO

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

Not giving fulmer the respect he earned shows a lot of class by our fans. The man is a legend. Hate on him all we want but we are chasing what fulmer built in the 90s early 00s. I would love to have that back.

I have posted a lot in these threads, not because posters are not giving respect, but because their attacks don't reflect the facts of the case BY IN LARGE. For example they crucify CPF for his last season yet ignore that in JM's last season CPF started off while filling in 4-0 with wins over GA and FL plus two OOC. CJM closed out the season with one OOC victory and 3 and 3 in the SEC... That is truth. The whole truth is the three losses were to AL, ARK, and SC while the three wins were a 2-9 LSU, and 90's vintage Van and KY.

On top of that the whole back stabbing thing is so bogus. JM forced his way back in to lose those real games, was rejecting the contract offer on the table and being blustery while doing it. If Johnny was stabbed in the back it was a self inflicted wound. He tried to play the returning hero card and it did not work. Some of the tactics that brought him success were out of date, like the way he treated staff. He is famous for hiving a lot of good coaches,, but I have always heard that many left for lateral jobs to get away from him, so lots of guys came through here.

As I have posted several times, two bad hires cost CPF both jobs here. Clawson is a good coach, but a bad fit here and thus his last losing record. Then of course there is Pruitt. That total cost cannot be calculated yet.

I will appreciate what both guys gave back NET to the Alma Mater while facing very different situations, yet recognize they both put their jobs in play when at low points of their service. No lack of integrity by either.

 

[Hank Bukowski]

Here are all the ways 2002-2008 (Fulmer's latter years) were better than 2013-2017 (Jones tenure):

• Fulmer's latter record was 57-32. Butch's was 34-29. That's a 64% win rate for Phillip, versus 54% for Butch.
• Fulmer won the SEC East twice in that time period. Butch never won the division.
• Fulmer had three (3) 10-win seasons in that window. Butch never got to double digits.
• Fulmer's worst season was 5-7. Butch achieved a team history worst, at 4-8.
• Ditto in SEC play: Fulmer's worst ever was 3-5. Butch took us to the cellar at 0-8.

There is simply no comparison between the two. Fulmer's worst years were still significantly better than the Butch Jones era, or the Dooley era, or the Pruitt era.

Folks like to hate on Phillip Fulmer, but he was one helluva great coach. Second best in our team's history. You don't get to a lifetime 75% win rate being a scrub.

But, haters gonna hate.

Go Vols!

This all day. And also: Fulmer may have been a politician but he represented the program extremely well as coach, while Jones was a charlatan. His recent mistakes aside, I’ll take Fulmer over Jones any day — as a coach and leader of young men. They don’t need to even be mentioned together in the same sentence.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

We make a big deal about winning games nowadays he use to win blindfolded. I’m not sure we will ever get back within being 75% of the win production he produced . Recruiting is the key. Must needs. Vol for life , hate losing especially to Georgia.

75% of Fulmer’s W/L record is 56% and Lane, Dooley, Butch, Pruitt, and Heupel didn’t inherent top 10 programs that were trending upward and they actually had to hire their assistant coaches.

 

[VFFL@THE BEACH]

Fulmer made it a point to interject himself into the equation this last go around and parlay what was supposed to be a temporary assignment as a special assistant to Davenport into a full time AD job.

A job he is now being paid not to do through his own incompetence.

I see the point of him having nothing to do with that 7 year window youre referring to, however, if Fulmer doesn't let his complacency and arrogance get in the way then it's very possible that 7 year window never happens.

Win 8 games a year and his contract would have automatically rolled over with his last deal as coach.

Would've, Should've, Could've though.

Right now we have a program still under NCAA investigation that still can't stay within 20 points of Bama, GA, or FL.

That is 100 percent on Fulmer and Pruitt along with a completely inept and dysfunctional power base in Knoxville.

I get it.

You need someone to blame. Your the kind if person who punches the table after he stubs his toe.

UT is has had 99 problems for a long time. Fulmer has made some bad calls but he hasn't caused as many problems some people blame him for.

 

[beamerman]

We make a big deal about winning games nowadays he use to win blindfolded. I’m not sure we will ever get back within being 75% of the win production he produced . Recruiting is the key. Must needs. Vol for life , hate losing especially to Georgia.

Fulmer did one thing well, recruit against the stiffs that were coaches at Ga and SC. He had a losing record against Fla and never outcoached anyone, he out talented them. Our guy Heupel is a coach that if he can recruit a little bit, we will be fine. Fulmer was allowed to hang on too long and then to continue the spiral was hired as ad.

 

[JonGrudensAgent]

I get it.

You need someone to blame. Your the kind if person who punches the table after he stubs his toe.

UT is has had 99 problems for a long time. Fulmer has made some bad calls but he hasn't caused as many problems some people blame him for.

When you can't formulate a legitimate argument, start making vague personal judgements on people you don't know. Been the Vol Nation way for some folk for years on here.

 

[Kinglberry]

I'm not reading pages of Fulmerites waxing over his illustrious career, nor do I want to hear how bad he was at this or that. I also don't want to read all the we shoulda, if only's, and etc. Every game we win this year, I lose respect for Fulmer, he picked Pruitt. Every game we lose to such far superior programs who were progressive and taking charge, I lose more. The rebuild of the athletic department was supposedly in it's way while he was here. Apparently, it wasn't. There has been such a huge turnaround from the interior, you can see it like beams of light emitting. This can only be signs of the bright future Tennessee will hold now that we've got a proper AD for the first time since Hamilton was hired, maybe before, I didn't follow it that closely before then.

 

[beamerman]

I get it.

You need someone to blame. Your the kind if person who punches the table after he stubs his toe.

UT is has had 99 problems for a long time. Fulmer has made some bad calls but he hasn't caused as many problems some people blame him for.

He did, but even if he didn’t the money he was siphoning off hampered getting another coach. Fulmer would have coached for as long as he needed to break the General’s record. How many 5 win seasons would it have taken?

 

[VFFL@THE BEACH]

When you can't formulate a legitimate argument, start making vague personal judgements on people you don't know. Been the Vol Nation way for some folk for years on here.

When you must push a negative narrative on a great former coach because you must blame someone. Must be the new vol nation way.

 

[VFFL@THE BEACH]

He did, but even if he didn’t the money he was siphoning off hampered getting another coach. Fulmer would have coached for as long as he needed to break the General’s record. How many 5 win seasons would it have taken?

How many 5 win season have we had since? And I will add, how many 10 win seasons since?

 

[Behr]

No one lives in the past like "we" do.

 

[VFFL@THE BEACH]

No one lives in the past like "we" do.

It's all we have had since the past was relevant.