On This Day In Vol History: 1970 Bill Battle Hired

#26
#26
I was in high school then and my father was a huge Tennessee fan. He and every Vol fan wanted Johnny Majors to get the job then. Majors was at Iowa State then and doing pretty well for that place. He actually took them to a bowl game or two by 1970. He has an unbelievable staff with Jackie Sherrill, Jimmy Johnson, Larry Lacewell, etc. Even Colonel Tom Elam, chairman of UT Board wanted Majors.

Woodruff didn't want to lose the assistants (although Dickey took the best ones with him). He hired Battle and Elam went along with it cause Woodruff was considered one of, if not the, best ADs in the country at that time.

Battle won big early but he wasn't as successful at recruiting out of state as Dickey. Once DD's recruits left, Battle's teams went down fast.

If your son grew up to be a Bill Battle, you did a great job as a parent. He was a class guy. But not a winning coach. Woodruff probably ruined his coaching career by making him a HC so early.

My dad always thought Majors would have been a better Tennessee coach if he'd been hired in 1970 instead of after he won a NC at Pitt. Something happens to people once they win a NC as we saw with Fulmer.
 
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#27
#27
1972 Grad said:
That didn't seem to be much of a problem the first 3 years, when he went 31-5.
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After that, Battle had a .596 win pct. Butch currently has a .588 win pct. One could argue that Battle was declining at the end and Butch is ascending?
 
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#28
#28
90 Vol said:
After that, Battle had a .596 win pct. Butch currently has a .588 win pct. One could argue that Battle was declining at the end and Butch is ascending?
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Battle played 6 SEC games a yr, Butch plays 8. Battle took over a program that was clearly top 10, probably top 5 in country, Jones took over the worst program in SEC outside of Ky at the time.

I doubt Battle would have won a game vs anyone in 1977 with the team he left Majors, who went 4-7 and won only 1 SEC game that yr.
 
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#29
#29
wmcovol said:
Battle played 6 SEC games a yr, Butch plays 8. Battle took over a program that was clearly top 10, probably top 5 in country, Jones took over the worst program in SEC outside of Ky at the time.

I doubt Battle would have won a game vs anyone in 1977 with the team he left Majors, who went 4-7 and won only 1 SEC game that yr.
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Perhaps. I'm aging myself but I remember the Bill Battle days and the uhaul story. He really dropped off at the end. Also, Al Gore hadn't invented the internet yet but if he had, there would have been folks screaming that he just needed more time. After all, how can you fire a coach that never had a losing record...
 
#30
#30
Backwards K said:
This was a terrible hire. Not as bad as hiring Kiffin or Dooley but may have been the worst hire in Tennessee HC history up to that point. Battle took over a program that Dickey had elevated to the top of the SEC and was poised for great things. Battle was capable enough on the field but admittedly did not like recruiting and the talent level plummeted quickly and it took Tennessee 15-20 years to get back to where it was when he took over.

If the Vols had hired Johnny Majors at that point, they would have done much better. Johnny understood the importance of recruiting and he would have built on the momentum started by Dickey.
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Was Johnny at Iowa St. then?
 
#33
#33
In all fairness, Johnny was still a relatively unproven head coach in his own right at that time. In his first two years at Iowa State (1968-1969), the Cyclones finished 3-7 each year, with a 1-6 conference record, good enough for 7th in the, then, Big Eight. It wasn't until his last two years that his teams achieved bowl eligibility, going 8-4 and 5-6-1 in 1971 and 1972, respectively ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Majors).
 
#34
#34
Volosaurus rex said:
In all fairness, Johnny was still a relatively unproven head coach in his own right at that time. In his first two years at Iowa State (1968-1969), the Cyclones finished 3-7 each year, with a 1-6 conference record, good enough for 7th in the, then, Big Eight. It wasn't until his last two years that his teams achieved bowl eligibility, going 8-4 and 5-6-1 in 1971 and 1972, respectively ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Majors).
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That is true on Majors' early time at Iowa State but how on earth should a Tennessee AD turn away the Vol hero of that era - John Majors - who had 6 or 7 years more coaching experience including as a head coach and hire the kid on the staff - Battle who played at Alabama? That was insane. Woodruff knew the moving vans would be at his door if he did not bring Majors home in 1977 but it was too late. Absolutely true Battle would have gone 1-10 with the squad left for Johnny. Majors paid heavy dues he did not deserve. However, Butch Jones inherited a similar mess and is rebuilding much faster than Majors did. I guess only fans that saw Majors struggle out of the quicksand for so long can appreciate the progress Butch has made. Once an SEC power hits rock bottom as did the Vols twice, it is hard to rise back up particularly with Tennessee's weak instate talent base for high school football players.

Bill Battle was a fine man and eventually might have been a good head coach - but hired at age 28, in the SEC? Heck I seriously doubt he could have gotten head coach at an OVC school no more experience than he had. Woodruff - you were temporarily insane.
 
#36
#36
My dad went to all home games until poor health during the Fulmer decline. Was told he and others in his section wore their UT hats inside out when Battle was beyond bad. That was the extent of their protest back then.
 
#37
#37
knox73 said:
That is true on Majors' early time at Iowa State but how on earth should a Tennessee AD turn away the Vol hero of that era - John Majors - who had 6 or 7 years more coaching experience including as a head coach and hire the kid on the staff - Battle who played at Alabama? That was insane. Woodruff knew the moving vans would be at his door if he did not bring Majors home in 1977 but it was too late. Absolutely true Battle would have gone 1-10 with the squad left for Johnny. Majors paid heavy dues he did not deserve. However, Butch Jones inherited a similar mess and is rebuilding much faster than Majors did. I guess only fans that saw Majors struggle out of the quicksand for so long can appreciate the progress Butch has made. Once an SEC power hits rock bottom as did the Vols twice, it is hard to rise back up particularly with Tennessee's weak instate talent base for high school football players.

Bill Battle was a fine man and eventually might have been a good head coach - but hired at age 28, in the SEC? Heck I seriously doubt he could have gotten head coach at an OVC school no more experience than he had. Woodruff - you were temporarily insane.
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I don't disagree with anything you said. I made this observation, however, simply to demonstrate that, at that precise point in time, Majors, notwithstanding his legendary status as a Vol, was relatively unproven as a head coach. If Dickey had bolted for Florida following the 1972 season, asking Johnny to come back home then and there would have been a far safer bet. I remember the Battle tenure quite well. You might call him the Jimmy Carter of Tennessee football, one of the finest people ever to hold the head coaching position at Tennessee, but he could not recruit worth a flip. Incidentally, Johnny has said, for the record, that the roster Butch Jones inherited was even more depleted than the team he inherited in 1977.

P.S. On the other hand, don't forget that Dickey was hired without prior head coaching experience. And he wasn't much older than Battle; he assumed the reins at the tender age of 32. That particular hire worked out very well . . . right up until his departure for the Reptilian Horde after the '69 season.
 
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#38
#38
The 1970 team, Battle's 1st year, was one of our best ever. I was a student at U.T. then, and followed the team to the Sugar Bowl at the end of the season. We had one loss that year to Auburn at Auburn, by 3 or 4 points.

The 3rd Sunday in Oct, we drilled Alabama 24-0 in Neyland, and the very next week, Doug Dickey brought his new Florida Gator team into Neyland. The crowd was as loud as any that I remember. Everybody wanted to make Dickey pay for leaving us. We kicked their butts 38-7, I think.
 
#39
#39
You are correct on all counts. Bobby Scott threw for roughly 385 yards vs. Florida. The 1970 team set the NCAA single-season record for turnovers caused (57) in only eleven games. Had they also counted the 1971 Sugar Bowl victory over Air Force, that total would have stood at 65; they intercepted four passes and recovered four fumbles vs. AF.
 
#40
#40
wmcovol said:
Battle played 6 SEC games a yr, Butch plays 8. Battle took over a program that was clearly top 10, probably top 5 in country, Jones took over the worst program in SEC outside of Ky at the time.

I doubt Battle would have won a game vs anyone in 1977 with the team he left Majors, who went 4-7 and won only 1 SEC game that yr.
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Battle beat Alabama and UCLA his first year, and a 10-0 Penn State team his second year. He never played Tennessee Tech or some of the softies Butch has played the last couple of years.

I agree that Majors should have been hired in 1970, but Battle schooled the Bear in 1970. Still waiting for Jones to make us competitive in the SEC.
 
#41
#41
LWSVOL said:
waited 47 years on that one

our history says it is a long time in between them
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18 years removed from a natty isn't bad at all. I can wait another 30 on that.

I want to win in Atlanta again. 18 years removed from an SEC ring is too long.
 
#42
#42
Volosaurus rex said:
You are correct on all counts. Bobby Scott threw for roughly 385 yards vs. Florida. The 1970 team set the NCAA single-season record for turnovers caused (57) in only eleven games. Had they also counted the 1971 Sugar Bowl victory over Air Force, that total would have stood at 65; they intercepted four passes and recovered four fumbles vs. AF.
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The Sugar Bowl was a rout, and the most memorable thing for me is when the dog ran out on the field, and stopped the game.

I went with 3 friends from U.T. and we partied all night. We were all hung over, 2 got sick on the bus on the way to the game. It was a noon kickoff, and those 2 didn't even want to go to the game because they felt so bad.

One of the guys threw up on the bus, and over the railing at the top of Tulane Stadium, and in the trough type urinal along the wall in the restroom. He stuck his head between a bunch of people taking a leak and barfed.
 
#43
#43
Volosaurus rex said:
I don't disagree with anything you said. I made this observation, however, simply to demonstrate that, at that precise point in time, Majors, notwithstanding his legendary status as a Vol, was relatively unproven as a head coach. If Dickey had bolted for Florida following the 1972 season, asking Johnny to come back home then and there would have been a far safer bet. I remember the Battle tenure quite well. You might call him the Jimmy Carter of Tennessee football, one of the finest people ever to hold the head coaching position at Tennessee, but he could not recruit worth a flip. Incidentally, Johnny has said, for the record, that the roster Butch Jones inherited was even more depleted than the team he inherited in 1977.

P.S. On the other hand, don't forget that Dickey was hired without prior head coaching experience. And he wasn't much older than Battle; he assumed the reins at the tender age of 32. That particular hire worked out very well . . . right up until his departure for the Reptilian Horde after the '69 season.
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An unproven Dickey worked out well as the Tennessee HC, and the "proven" Dickey completely flopped at Florida. That's something I always think about when I read a comment about "opening up the wallet and getting a proven commodity." Majors came to UT with a Heisman winner and a NC under his belt, and yet .... Charlie Strong is another case in point. Maybe there's something Gumpian about hiring "proven" coaches.
 
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