Condolences to his family. Coached before my time but talked with some of his players who thought the world of him and always seemed to be a man of good character
All in all, he was a good football coach. Recruiting was his ultimate undoing, which lead to his resigning. He had a very successful business career after coaching and also had a brief stint as AD for Alabama. Very sad to hear about his passing.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Bill Battle, a member of Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant's first National Title team at Alabama, former Athletic Director at director of athletics
abc3340.com
Despite it all, his .723 win percentage puts him among the elites of Head Vols with more than four seasons, behind only The Genrul, Fulmer and Dickey.
He did an interview once, reflecting on his success with the branding company, and said that being fired by Tennessee was the best thing that ever happened to him!