Pruitt Frustrated By Lack of Support

[Dudleys87]

Why? Because he made a hire that hasn't worked out? Who, among the "hot" names at the time would you have hired? I'm willing to bet that almost every coach on your short list 3 years ago has not panned out. Mullen is the only coach we could have had that could be judged as a good hire. We probably could have had him had Currie gone after him. By the time Fulmer took over, Mullen had moved on. Other "hot" coaches at the time were: Tom Herman, Scott Frost, Justin Fuentes, Chip Kelly, Willlie Taggert, Mike Leach and maybe Malzahn. With the exception of Leach, all are either on the hot seat or fired. The "sure-fire" coaching hire of the last decade was Harbaugh. Barring a miracle, he's gone after this season or next. Hiring a coach to meet fans' expectations is almost impossible. If you don't hire Saban or Dabo there isn't a coach you can hire that will guarantee success. That's just the way it is. Hiring a head coach is a big gamble and the odds are stacked highly against you.

People's "hate" of Fulmer absolutely mystifies me. He's the greatest Vol coach of our lifetime by a HUGE margin and far too many idiots don't appreciate him. I wish he were the head coach now. We would be far better off than we have been over the last 10 years.

Herman: He walked into a situation he was never going to win.
Frost: Accepted money to walk into a situation he can’t fix. It’ll never be what it was in the 90s
Fuentes: Good coach, not a good HC
Chip Kelly: I truly expected more from this hire. It goes to show what many others said it was all his assistants and not so much him.
Willie T : In over his head, he’s made for smaller schools.
Mike Leach : Good for pressers, had a fun and flashy offense, never gonna win anything note worthy
Malzahn: incredibly lucky to make it as long as he did. Every year he seemed to earn another year by beating X coach. A genius for getting them to sign a ridiculous contract. Desperate need of an athletic QB

 

[hog88]

He also has a long history of excellent hires. You can't sustain the long winning record and top 5 teams that Fulmer had unless you have great coaches. Before his last couple of years, he was the winningest active coach in college football. Fulmer and his coaches probably put more players in the pros than any HC during his tenure. How can you even contemplate that he has "a long history of bad hires?" It's an absurdly unfounded statement. Did he make some bad hires--yes. So has EVERY other college football coach.

His two great hires were Cutcliffe and John Chavis and without Cutcliffe Fulmer was average at best. If Fulmer had a long history of excellent hires why does he only have 1-2 branches coming off of his coaching tree? Where's all the HCs that Fulmer got started up the ranks?

 

[DownNDirty]

The fact you are a media member doesn't mean much in this day and time. Just watch the fake news. You can twist things to look anyway you want. Pruitt is not blaming mistakes on anyone. Being in the media you should get your facts straight. He has always owned it when things go wrong and it was his fault. If you watch his show on Sunday, he will say I just made a bad call there. Then he will say WE weren't on the same page or the player wasn't lined up right. He is not making excuses. Do you really think because Pruitt makes more money than you, we have the right to act like a bunch of classless idiots? If you truly think that, then that is a reflection of you and not me. We have the right and should be able to express our displeasure without personal attacks on the coach. Our next ELITE coach everyone wants can't expect us to act differently than we are now.

I'm not sure what makes me a classless idiot for wanting the coach at UT to perform better than the trumpet blower we ran off before him. He's regressing and showing signs that he can't get the job done. I'm not sure what kind of personal attack I have made on him other than to call a spade a spade and to call him Gomer. I would assume that all of us have been called much worse names in our lifetimes.

He's the head football coach at UT which comes with scrutiny when things are going like they are right now. When in the world did it become such a big deal to express displeasure with mediocrity. Heck, at this point the team isn't even mediocre. And whoever they bring in behind him should be held to the same level of accountability that being the coach at the University of Tennessee comes with.

ALL I ask for in a coach over his first few years is to show upward trajectory. Show improvement - don't make really stupid mistakes. Don't get blown out by rivals like we have been getting blown out. And really don't get blown out by a bad team like Kentucky at home in year three. I gave him mulligans last year in Georgia State and BYU even though I felt like I knew where it was heading. That Georgia State loss was one of the worst losses in program history but I was perfectly willing to give him a pass and hope he learned from that loss.

The eyeball test rarely lies - and this team has taken several steps backward despite being one of the most experienced teams in the SEC this year. I know I'm not going to change your mind or opinion and that's fine. But I still don't know what makes me a classless idiot for expecting more out of this head coach and wishing him well in his future endeavors when he goes back where he likely belongs in being a nice defensive coordinator for someone. It's not personal - this is a multi-billion dollar industry that is totally performance based.

 

[Vol524]

I'm not sure what makes me a classless idiot for wanting the coach at UT to perform better than the trumpet blower we ran off before him. He's regressing and showing signs that he can't get the job done. I'm not sure what kind of personal attack I have made on him other than to call a spade a spade and to call him Gomer. I would assume that all of us have been called much worse names in our lifetimes.

He's the head football coach at UT which comes with scrutiny when things are going like they are right now. When in the world did it become such a big deal to express displeasure with mediocrity. Heck, at this point the team isn't even mediocre. And whoever they bring in behind him should be held to the same level of accountability that being the coach at the University of Tennessee comes with.

ALL I ask for in a coach over his first few years is to show upward trajectory. Show improvement - don't make really stupid mistakes. Don't get blown out by rivals like we have been getting blown out. And really don't get blown out by a bad team like Kentucky at home in year three. I gave him mulligans last year in Georgia State and BYU even though I felt like I knew where it was heading. That Georgia State loss was one of the worst losses in program history but I was perfectly willing to give him a pass and hope he learned from that loss.

The eyeball test rarely lies - and this team has taken several steps backward despite being one of the most experienced teams in the SEC this year. I know I'm not going to change your mind or opinion and that's fine. But I still don't know what makes me a classless idiot for expecting more out of this head coach and wishing him well in his future endeavors when he goes back where he likely belongs in being a nice defensive coordinator for someone. It's not personal - this is a multi-billion dollar industry that is totally performance based.

You may can write but your reading comprehension leaves a little to be desired. I NEVER called you a Classless Idiot. I said WE as in many of the current VolNation posters. I suspect some of the posts are by people that don't even watch Vols football. There are a bunch of miserable people in this world that ONLY look for any reason to spew negative crap. Just in case no one noticed, we played an ALL SEC schedule. We lost a couple of games we should have won. But, to say this team is worse then when Pruitt got here makes many look stupid. This team has NO quit in it. Even when we lose they are fighting to the very end. That was not the case Butch's last year. If you can't see that you need to start watching golf. The point I was trying to make when we stoop to acting like idiots and start the personal attacks on our current coach, I don't think it makes us appealing to an ELITE coach we may want and need. I mean if someone is truly trying to decide if this is where they want to coach, a bunch of rabid, clueless, and classless fans could enter in to the decision. I know I have turned down a job in the past due to the reputation of the company. It was more money than I was making but I just didn't want to get mixed up in that mess.

 

[LAVol1]

Negotiated a contract with Pruitt that guaranteed him 60% of his remaining contract with no mitigation clause.
Extended Holly Warlick in August of 2018, only to turn around and fire her in March of 2019.
Couldn't orchestrate the funding to keep Rick Barnes, forcing then interim president Boyd to step in with 9 other boosters to come up with the $3 million to keep him.
Extended Pruitt to an 8-year contract before his 3rd season, and raising his salary to $4.2 million a year, doubling the buyout on his contract.

He's incompetent as an AD, which is not at all surprising, since he is utterly unqualified to hold the position.

Negotiated a contract with Pruitt that guaranteed him 60% of his remaining contract with no mitigation clause.
Extended Holly Warlick in August of 2018, only to turn around and fire her in March of 2019.
Couldn't orchestrate the funding to keep Rick Barnes, forcing then interim president Boyd to step in with 9 other boosters to come up with the $3 million to keep him.
Extended Pruitt to an 8-year contract before his 3rd season, and raising his salary to $4.2 million a year, doubling the buyout on his contract.

He's incompetent as an AD, which is not at all surprising, since he is utterly unqualified to hold the position.

"After establishing a culture of toughness, a bowl appearance following a six-game winning streak and a top-10 recruiting class in just two seasons at the helm of the Tennessee football program, head coach Jeremy Pruitt has agreed to a contract extension through the 2025 season, Director of Athletics Phillip Fulmer announced Thursday [September 24]".

The 2 YEAR EXTENSION terms includes compensation of $3.8 million in 2020, with an increase to $4.2 million starting in 2021. With two seasons expired, it was just an extension equal to his initial contract term. Had his contract not been extended, it would have been used to recruit against him. The extension was prudent at the time. In hindsight, maybe not.

I think you and most other Vol fans wanted to keep Pruitt after the 2019 campaign, so it was a logical move. And, we kept Barnes. If you don't think Fulmer was instrumental in that, I think you are badly mistaken. Fulmer has been one of the best fundraisers we've ever had. I think your unfounded hate for Fulmer and frustration over years of losing is clouding your judgement. Hart and Hamilton destroyed the football program and Fulmer is trying to revive it. It's still on life support. There is no one I would rather have over our football program.

 

[DownNDirty]

You may can write but your reading comprehension leaves a little to be desired. I NEVER called you a Classless Idiot. I said WE as in many of the current VolNation posters. I suspect some of the posts are by people that don't even watch Vols football. There are a bunch of miserable people in this world that ONLY look for any reason to spew negative crap. Just in case no one noticed, we played an ALL SEC schedule. We lost a couple of games we should have won. But, to say this team is worse then when Pruitt got here makes many look stupid. This team has NO quit in it. Even when we lose they are fighting to the very end. That was not the case Butch's last year. If you can't see that you need to start watching golf. The point I was trying to make when we stoop to acting like idiots and start the personal attacks on our current coach, I don't think it makes us appealing to an ELITE coach we may want and need. I mean if someone is truly trying to decide if this is where they want to coach, a bunch of rabid, clueless, and classless fans could enter in to the decision. I know I have turned down a job in the past due to the reputation of the company. It was more money than I was making but I just didn't want to get mixed up in that mess.

Ok I just misread what you said then I thought you were lumping me into that same category. Which, even if you thought I was a classless idiot, you would be entitled to that opinion. No skin off my back. I was a Special Assets Manager as my primary job for a regional bank for many years which meant I had to deal with repos, foreclosures, evictions, etc. on a daily basis. So maybe I don't see things from the same perspective in that I had to have a very, very thick skin for that type of job. You get used to it after awhile.

So, I believe that elite coaches that would want to come here wouldn't be afraid of the job no matter the fanbase. I hold a firm belief that nearly every fanbase is basically the same when things aren't going right. Just take a gander at some of these other message boards for teams like Michigan, Texas, etc. SEC fans - especially football fans - may be the most passionate overall but there's still a lot of similarities. I just feel an elite coach wouldn't be afraid of what the fans are saying now because those guys are a different breed and have enough cockiness and belief in themselves that they will win big and they won't be dealing with frustrated fans.

I will apologize for not reading what you said correctly. I was just of the assumption you were calling me one of those classless idiots also and I was just trying to defend my position.

 

[BeardedVol]

"After establishing a culture of toughness, a bowl appearance following a six-game winning streak and a top-10 recruiting class in just two seasons at the helm of the Tennessee football program, head coach Jeremy Pruitt has agreed to a contract extension through the 2025 season, Director of Athletics Phillip Fulmer announced Thursday [September 24]".

The 2 YEAR EXTENSION terms includes compensation of $3.8 million in 2020, with an increase to $4.2 million starting in 2021. With two seasons expired, it was just an extension equal to his initial contract term. Had his contract not been extended, it would have been used to recruit against him. The extension was prudent at the time. In hindsight, maybe not.

I think you and most other Vol fans wanted to keep Pruitt after the 2019 campaign, so it was a logical move. And, we kept Barnes. If you don't think Fulmer was instrumental in that, I think you are badly mistaken. Fulmer has been one of the best fundraisers we've ever had. I think your unfounded hate for Fulmer and frustration over years of losing is clouding your judgement. Hart and Hamilton destroyed the football program and Fulmer is trying to revive it. It's still on life support. There is no one I would rather have over our football program.

He hadn't even coached season 3 of a 6-year contract, and it was August. There was zero chance of any other school poaching him before the season, and even less chance of that given the way the season progressed.

There was zero need to extend his contract to 8-years. I don't hate Fulmer. I just recognize that he is not cut out to be the AD, and his decisions are taking bad situations and making them worse.

 

[LAVol1]

I'm not sure what makes me a classless idiot for wanting the coach at UT to perform better than the trumpet blower we ran off before him. He's regressing and showing signs that he can't get the job done. I'm not sure what kind of personal attack I have made on him other than to call a spade a spade and to call him Gomer. I would assume that all of us have been called much worse names in our lifetimes.

He's the head football coach at UT which comes with scrutiny when things are going like they are right now. When in the world did it become such a big deal to express displeasure with mediocrity. Heck, at this point the team isn't even mediocre. And whoever they bring in behind him should be held to the same level of accountability that being the coach at the University of Tennessee comes with.

ALL I ask for in a coach over his first few years is to show upward trajectory. Show improvement - don't make really stupid mistakes. Don't get blown out by rivals like we have been getting blown out. And really don't get blown out by a bad team like Kentucky at home in year three. I gave him mulligans last year in Georgia State and BYU even though I felt like I knew where it was heading. That Georgia State loss was one of the worst losses in program history but I was perfectly willing to give him a pass and hope he learned from that loss.

The eyeball test rarely lies - and this team has taken several steps backward despite being one of the most experienced teams in the SEC this year. I know I'm not going to change your mind or opinion and that's fine. But I still don't know what makes me a classless idiot for expecting more out of this head coach and wishing him well in his future endeavors when he goes back where he likely belongs in being a nice defensive coordinator for someone. It's not personal - this is a multi-billion dollar industry that is totally performance based.

I respect your viewpoint. Can't disagree with any of your statements. The OL has underperformed. The D has underperformed. The WR corp has underperformed. The QB position has been a disaster. I have not seen the team quit, like they did under Dooley and Butch, and they play with more toughness, which is to Pruitt's credit. We're probably stuck with Pruitt for another year. Who knows, with a competent QB, maybe he can turn it around.

 

[hog88]

"After establishing a culture of toughness, a bowl appearance following a six-game winning streak and a top-10 recruiting class in just two seasons at the helm of the Tennessee football program, head coach Jeremy Pruitt has agreed to a contract extension through the 2025 season, Director of Athletics Phillip Fulmer announced Thursday [September 24]".

The 2 YEAR EXTENSION terms includes compensation of $3.8 million in 2020, with an increase to $4.2 million starting in 2021. With two seasons expired, it was just an extension equal to his initial contract term. Had his contract not been extended, it would have been used to recruit against him. The extension was prudent at the time. In hindsight, maybe not.

I think you and most other Vol fans wanted to keep Pruitt after the 2019 campaign, so it was a logical move. And, we kept Barnes. If you don't think Fulmer was instrumental in that, I think you are badly mistaken. Fulmer has been one of the best fundraisers we've ever had. I think your unfounded hate for Fulmer and frustration over years of losing is clouding your judgement. Hart and Hamilton destroyed the football program and Fulmer is trying to revive it. It's still on life support. There is no one I would rather have over our football program.

Pruitt wasn't going anywhere after last season, Fulmer could have waited until after this season to extend him.

 

[PulaskiVolFan]

What has Leach done to instill confidence that he's going to get the job done at Miss St?

Nothing

 

[LAVol1]

He hadn't even coached season 3 of a 6-year contract, and it was August. There was zero chance of any other school poaching him before the season, and even less chance of that given the way the season progressed.

There was zero need to be extend his contract to 8-years. I don't hate Fulmer. I just recognize that he is not cut out to be the AD, and his decisions are taking bad situations and making them worse.

Pruitt has a contract thru 2025. Your statement would mis-lead people to believe he has an 8 year contract. He does not. It was prudent to extend Pruitt's contact after last season. it appeared we were headed in the right direction. In hindsight, it might have been a mistake. We'll know for sure after next season. All these head coach contracts are a calculated risk. If you don't extend it and the coach has a great season, his contract gets bid up and you might end up paying more than you would have otherwise. If he flops, you're stuck paying him more than he's worth.

 

[DownNDirty]

Pruitt wasn't going anywhere after last season, Fulmer could have waited until after this season to extend him.

Say it louder for the people in the back. That's the truth. Where was he going? If he wanted to play a game of chicken they should have played and said OK good luck to you.

 

[BeardedVol]

Pruitt has a contract thru 2025. Your statement would mis-lead people to believe he has an 8 year contract. He does not. It was prudent to extend Pruitt's contact after last season. it appeared we were headed in the right direction. In hindsight, it might have been a mistake. We'll know for sure after next season. All these head coach contracts are a calculated risk. If you don't extend it and the coach has a great season, his contract gets bid up and you might end up paying more than you would have otherwise. If he flops, you're stuck paying him more than he's worth.

What are you talking about? His original contract, was a 6-year contract. The 2-year extension makes it an 8-year contract; 2018-2025.

Again, a raise and a 2-year extension, before he'd even coached his third season, was wholly unwarranted given his body of work.

 

[Vol524]

I agree that Fulmer jumped the gun on the extension.

 

[PeerlessVol]

You may can write but your reading comprehension leaves a little to be desired. I NEVER called you a Classless Idiot. I said WE as in many of the current VolNation posters. I suspect some of the posts are by people that don't even watch Vols football. There are a bunch of miserable people in this world that ONLY look for any reason to spew negative crap. Just in case no one noticed, we played an ALL SEC schedule. We lost a couple of games we should have won. But, to say this team is worse then when Pruitt got here makes many look stupid. This team has NO quit in it. Even when we lose they are fighting to the very end. That was not the case Butch's last year. If you can't see that you need to start watching golf. The point I was trying to make when we stoop to acting like idiots and start the personal attacks on our current coach, I don't think it makes us appealing to an ELITE coach we may want and need. I mean if someone is truly trying to decide if this is where they want to coach, a bunch of rabid, clueless, and classless fans could enter in to the decision. I know I have turned down a job in the past due to the reputation of the company. It was more money than I was making but I just didn't want to get mixed up in that mess.

I think being outscored 71-155 in the second half of every game this year (including our wins) qualifies as either A: quitting or B: unable to play a full game at a competitive level. Both of which are bad. And to add, yes this group is worse than when Pruitt was hired. Look at Lyle’s record at his best, a few points shy of a 11 win season regular season (2015). This also includes a win against Georgia. Now yes, regression hit hard however Lyle inherited 0 talent from Dooley and accomplished this in YEAR 3. Stop acting high and mighty with BS regarding your opinions about our fan base. People can believe whatever they want, we don’t need a life coach with half baked opinions and a superiority complex lecturing about how to properly be a fan. Bye Felicia.

 

[Vol524]

I think being outscored 71-155 qualifies as either A: quitting or B: unable to play a full game at a competitive level. Both of which are bad. And to add, yes this group is worse than when Pruitt was hired. Look at Lyle’s record at his best, a few points shy of a 11 win season regular season (2015). This also includes a win against Georgia. Now yes, regression hit hard however Lyle inherited 0 talent from Dooley and accomplished this in YEAR 3. Stop acting high and mighty with your BS regarding your opinions about the fan base. People can believe whatever they want, we don’t need a life coach with half baked opinions and a superiority complex.

I don't know what you need but you need something. SMH I hope you are drunk. Maybe you drink while watching the game, if you even watch the game. I never said fans do have a right to believe what they believe. I simply said show some class. If you think many of the recent posts have class then you are a lost cause. I can't understand it for you.

 

[PeerlessVol]

I don't know what you need but you need something. SMH I hope you are drunk. Maybe you drink while watching the game, if you even watch the game. I never said fans do have a right to believe what they believe. I simply said show some class. If you think many of the recent posts have class then you are a lost cause. I can't understand it for you.

Wow, I guess we are watching different channels. Good thing google can provide me with scores in case I blackout. I think being outscored by more than double in the second half pretty much negates your argument. Numbers don’t lie. And yes, generalizing volnation posters as classless idiots for having opinions that differ from what you consider proper etiquette qualifies for my above statements

 

[VolArmy74]

What has Leach done to instill confidence that he's going to get the job done at Miss St?

Set records for wins in a season at each school where he has coached?

 

[Vol Main]

Pruitt's early signees are looking good, way above the last groups signed by the last head coaches on their way down. This does not look like any giving up I've ever seen.

 

[Cartervol]

Signed only 1 of the top 10 players in our own state. Get boat raced 6 straight times. Recruiting fell off sharply after the season long shatshow. Act like a d--k in interviews. That's how you end up with a lack of support.

 

[Squatch_Vol]

He interviewed Mel Tucker and Kevin Steele twice as well as Pruitt. Don't know that either would have been successfully better than Pruitt but I am doubting they would be worse.

Report: Kevin Steele interviews twice for Tennessee job

Sure. I suppose I see those as lateral hires.

 

[Squatch_Vol]

Leach has taken over two other dumpster fires and won there. Texas tech and Washington state. I think he would’ve won here with a solid defensive coordinator. The man deserved an interview at the very least.

You might be right. I have serious doubts about him being able to win in the SEC. I could be wrong for sure. I agree he's won at places where no one else has, but the Pac 12 ain't what it once was.

 

[BeardedVol]

He interviewed Mel Tucker and Kevin Steele twice as well as Pruitt. Don't know that either would have been successfully better than Pruitt but I am doubting they would be worse.

Report: Kevin Steele interviews twice for Tennessee job

Michigan State's offense under Mel Tucker is one of the few worse than Tennessee's under Pruitt, and Steele's only stint as HC was a disaster at Baylor. I'd say either of them would be a wash in comparison to Pruitt unless Steele manages to get the Auburn job and proves otherwise.

 

[Squatch_Vol]

Set records for wins in a season at each school where he has coached?

Sure. I think we can all agree that the Big-12 and Pac-12 aren't the SEC. I would also argue both of those conferences were down when Leach was in them. I agree that he is at least a proven winner. Pruitt was not (and likely won't ever be). I just have serious doubts that he'll ever get something done at Miss. St. like he did at Wash St and Texas Tech.

 

[sjt18]

He hadn't even coached season 3 of a 6-year contract, and it was August. There was zero chance of any other school poaching him before the season, and even less chance of that given the way the season progressed.

There was zero need to extend his contract to 8-years. I don't hate Fulmer. I just recognize that he is not cut out to be the AD, and his decisions are taking bad situations and making them worse.

I actually like Fulmer as an AD but this was a poor decision for the reasons you give. I think they did it because Pruitt's agent convinced them its the "way it is done." It actually is but as you indicate... someone should actually think those things through.

The question the AD has to ask himself is, "Am I OK losing this guy if he builds the program and is successful enough to get an offer I'm not ready to match?" To me... that answer is almost always "yes". Worst case is you have a guy who has built the program to a point that helps the next guy succeed.