The Bruce Pearl Thread

Would you be for Bruce Pearl's return if Martin is fired after next year?

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#2,951
#2,951
zjcvols said:
Did Ray Mears exist or is utsports.com lying to me?
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Mears did many great things for UT, but the 6 year period under Bruce was the best time for UT basketball. To be fair, it was tougher to make the tourney back in the days of Mears.
 
#2,952
#2,952
gunner said:
I'm in no way discrediting Mears, he too is Tennessee Basketball, a lot of Bruce Pearl's gimmicks came from Mears. I'm just comparing their accomplishments, and IMHO, Pearl accomplished more than Mears, but that in no way is a knock on Mears.
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You cannot accurately compare accomplishments between Mears and Pearl. They coached in different eras with different circumstances. Mears had many great accomplishments of his own as a coach and he made TN Basketball significant in a time when it had not been so before. So, to try and say Pearl's accomplishments were greater is something that cannot be accurately measured, like measuring apples vs oranges. In fact, there would be no "Big Orange Country" without Coach Mears. Mears coached in an era when only 16 teams made the tournament which kept many of his teams which would have been deserving by today's standards out of the tourney. Mears broke even with UK, no other coach here could claim that. He beat teams ranked at #1 and #2 on more than one occasion. He made home games at Stokely a happening. It was the place to be. He is the reason that we have TBA. I know that arenas are often named for the donors, but I always felt it should have been called Ray Mears Arena, because without his accomplishments it would never have been built.

I don't mean to take away from CBP's accomplishments here. They stand on their own merit. He took us to some heights previously not attained by our program, but they cannot be measured against Mear's accomplishments.

Although I only joined VolNation a year or two ago, I posted on Gridscape's Hoopsville for several years. I have been following Vol Basketball for about 50 years and even attended a couple of games in the old Armory Fieldhouse before it became Stokely. That doesn't make me an expert, but I do know some of the history of this program at least back to the mid 1960s.
 
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#2,953
#2,953
GAVol said:
What's the point of even discussing Pearl's greatness vs. anybody else? Whether he's the greatest, 2nd greatest or run of the mill, he's not coming back.
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Have you read the opening topic in this thread? If you have I guess you are in the minority.
 
#2,954
#2,954
vols 30 said:
Mears did many great things for UT, but the 6 year period under Bruce was the best time for UT basketball. To be fair, it was tougher to make the tourney back in the days of Mears.
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I agree with both of your points, but at least three of Pearl's teams would have made the tourney in those days. It was a significantly different era of college basketball.
 
#2,955
#2,955
nunshalpass said:
You cannot accurately compare accomplishments between Mears and Pearl. They coached in different eras with different circumstances. Mears had many great accomplishments of his own as a coach and he made TN Basketball significant in a time when it had not been so before. So, to try and say Pearl's accomplishments were greater is something that cannot be accurately measured, like measuring apples vs oranges. In fact, there would be no "Big Orange Country" without Coach Mears. Mears coached in an era when only 16 teams made the tournament which kept many of his teams which would have been deserving by today's standards out of the tourney. Mears broke even with UK, no other coach here could claim that. He beat teams ranked at #1 and #2 on more than one occasion. He made home games at Stokely a happening. It was the place to be. He is the reason that we have TBA. I know that arenas are often named for the donors, but I always felt it should have been called Ray Mears Arena, because without his accomplishments it would never have been built.

I don't mean to take away from CBP's accomplishments here. They stand on their own merit. He took us to some heights previously not attained by our program, but they cannot be measured against Mear's accomplishments.

Although I only joined VolNation a year or two ago, I posted on Gridscape's Hoopsville for several years. I have been following Vol Basketball for about 50 years and even attended a couple of games in the old Armory Fieldhouse before it became Stokely. That doesn't make me an expert, but I do know some of the history of this program at least back to the mid 1960s.
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I agree it's a difficult comparison to make. I appreciate your opinion and perspective, it's nice to know that some on here having been following this program for more that a few years.
 
#2,958
#2,958
bleedingTNorange said:
By saying Pearl is Tennessee basketball, and making it sound as though he built the program, you are indeed discrediting Mears. Now maybe that isn't how you meant it to read, but I believe that's how everyone took it.
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Tennessee basketball was here before Mears. Do you know without googling where we played at before we played at Stokely?
 
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#2,960
#2,960
bleedingTNorange said:
By saying Pearl is Tennessee basketball, and making it sound as though he built the program, you are indeed discrediting Mears. Now maybe that isn't how you meant it to read, but I believe that's how everyone took it.
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I regret if you understood it that waybut that's not what I meant. What I meant by it is Tennessee Basketball was at its best under Pearl.

Can another coach come to UT and win, maybe, but the pressing question for me is can any coach other than Pearl fill TBA, by making UT basketball relevant and fun?
 
#2,964
#2,964
Freak said:
Ignorant? Lol. Many on this board probably weren't alive during the Mears era. You weren't. And I was too young to remember it.
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Nice Freak, I barely recall Mears as the HC. I can't even remember why he was fired. I bet there is less than one percent on this board that can.
 
#2,965
#2,965
gunner said:
Nice Freak, I barely recall Mears as the HC. I can't even remember why he was fired. I bet there is less than one percent on this board that can.
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Seems like he retired, for health reasons maybe? I can't say for sure.
 
#2,969
#2,969
My early memories of Tennessee basketball date back to the DeVoe days. Those wee some fun teams with the likes of Dale Ellis and Reggie Johnson. One of my favorites as a kid was "The Wizard", Tony White. He was the one I idolized while shooting on my Nerf hoop. His 51-point performance against Auburn is something I'll never forget. I must have watched that replay 100 times and the John Ward call when he broke the record gave me chills every time.
 
#2,971
#2,971
Freak said:
Seems like he retired, for health reasons maybe? I can't say for sure.
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Well at least he went out on top, according to wikipedia his last team finished 22-6 and tied for 1st in the SEC with a 16-2 record, and a first round tourney loss. I'm sure he wasn't fired after a season like that. So it must have be health reasons.
 
#2,974
#2,974
bleedingTNorange said:
I'm sure most weren't alive for Neyland, but how foolish would it sound to say Fulmer built Tennessee football?
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It would be foolish. Tennessee was a solid program under Majors.

Pearl didn't build Tennessee basketball but he certainly resurrected it from the dead.

I don't understand the need to try and belittle what he accomplished. Pearl had a great run and I wish he hadn't screwed up and was still here. His tenure was the most fun I've had watching the Vols since the childhood memories I posted above. I don't hold any contempt for him like some do.
 
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#2,975
#2,975
gunner said:
Well at least he went out on top, according to wikipedia his last team finished 22-6 and tied for 1st in the SEC with a 16-2 record, and a first round tourney loss. I'm sure he wasn't fired after a season like that. So it must have be health reasons.
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Mears couldn't win the big one. :p

I think a book on Mears, similar to "Football as a War Game", would be an outstanding read.
 
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