Why is Cheek so reviled/hated by fans?

#1
UTProf

UTProf

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#1
I don't have a high opinion of Cheek because of the Bruce Pearl debacle that mostly stems from his utter cluelessness that he'd be backtracking soon (he should've had enough brain cells to see that coming) so he's turned into a bumbling fool in my eyes even though I never wanted to see Pearl go and feel that Pearl was on the receiving end of being too big for his britches by the NCAA -- what was Bruce thinking, thinking he could coach perennial whipping boy UT to greatness and stepping on Calipari's gangrenous but winning toes? Or at least that's how I read the NCAA's disproportionate response especially in light of how they handled the Newton case and exposed them for the hypocrites they were even further (along with soo many other cases).

But the Pearl debacle, stripped Cheek of any cred both within and without the AD imo. He's the last guy anyone actually puts faith in and I have a strong feeling he has made few sports based decisions since then other than singing off on what coaches and big money tell him too (jmo).

So since he's so reviled around here, to the point of obsession (he's like Darth Vader to our Rebel Alliance) -- big, scary, but ultimately breathes through a respirator just to stay alive and does a bigger badder guy's bidding. Yet he makes for a good bad guy for us to rally around in his own right.

What I don't understand is why? What is it that he's done to earn the constant blame/hate he receives? Is it just because he's the last guy standing since Hammy is no longer here? What is it?

Yes the booger thing was weird and embarrassing but it's also brand new.

To me Cheek is just a neutered yes-man.

All opinions welcome.
 
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#6
#6
Volsbackto1998 said:
Need someone to hate. Dooley is gone.
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For the most part, I think you're right. with Hamilton and Dooley gone, Cheek is the last man left to blame. There are legitimate issues, but I think few people really fully understand them.
 
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#7
#7
I think Hart is the bigger idiot. Cheek I really don't have a problem with. Most president's across the country don't care about athletics. So they have good smart AD's Tennessee don't.
 
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#9
#9
vols1707 said:
I think Hart is the bigger idiot. Cheek I really don't have a problem with. Most president's across the country don't care about athletics. So they have good smart AD's Tennessee don't.
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You do realize its Cheek thats sticking his nose in Hart's business and making poor decisions.
 
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#10
#10
Maybe because he is the 1 sticking his nose in the recruiting business to require higher standards than the SEC or NCAA to get into UT to play football
 
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#11
#11
Well, first off, he's from Florduh. That's enough to end the conversation right there.

Additionally, he's set up a reporting structure and academic requirements for our athletes that makes it very difficult for us to compete against other SEC schools. We're not competing on a level playing field with the like of bama, florduh, uscjr, etc.

He signed off on the contract Hamilton gave Dooley which effectively screwed us for years. Even before that, he ok'd the Fulmer firing. Again, that alone could get him tarred and feathered by most.

And yes, most recently, the freakin moron got caught picking his freaking nose and eating it. Christ Almighty, this guy is our freakin Chancellor??? It's no wonder the whole world thinks we're a joke.

Personally, in addition to the above mentioned strikes against him, my other problem lies with our national ranking as a quality school. Cheek has severely undercut our athletic progress so we could have a "Top 25" school. Well, guess what, we're lucky if we're in the top 100, depending on the ranking service you look at. He's helped kill our athletic status and actually dropped our ranking as an institution of education all while continually raising tuition and fees.

Need any other reasons? Can't say I hate the guy, I don't go that far. But I can certainly understand the perspective of those who do. :thumbsup:
 
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#12
#12
There's going to be a whole lot of "he's killing athletics for academics" in this thread but almost no specifics on exactly what he's supposed to have done. I would guess I follow it more closely than 98 percent of Vol fans and I don't know the details myself. All most Vol fans know is that he's a Gator and he's an academic so they hate him.
 
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#13
#13
Volfanj1398 said:
Maybe because he is the 1 sticking his nose in the recruiting business to require higher standards than the SEC or NCAA to get into UT to play football
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I don't buy these 'academic' rumors for a bit. We're not Stanford, ND, or even Vandy. IMHO, they're just an excuse and an inconsequential one at that. Besides, I've not heard anyone go on record and say exactly what the change was from and where the standards are now and how our standards actually compare to other schools.

Given some of the guys in our current line-up it doesn't seem they provide evidence for an overly high bar. And just because there's a slight boost doesn't mean that it's a disadvantageous one in terms of recruiting.

I have a feeling this is just more excuse making for losing. I'd like to see some actual proof since this flies in the face of what we know. If I'm wrong about it I'm wrong but so far I haven't seen any compelling evidence.
 
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#14
#14
Everyone who talks about how we're at a competitive disadvantage due to academics seems to have forgotten that Dante Phillips had no trouble getting into UT after UF wouldn't admit him.

I think there are probably some issues with the way UT handles transfer credits from junior colleges that could be addressed, but talking about how we can't win because Cheek has made it too hard to get players admitted is just dumb.
 
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#15
#15
vols1707 said:
Dude ate a booger at the press conference. Is that not enough?
Click to expand...

o7BuU.gif
 
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#17
#17
Vol2424 said:
o7BuU.gif
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Speechless!! First time I've seen that. I thought everyone was making it up. He tried to act like he wasn't going to eat it but he did. How embarrassing and that's our President. On a side note I also get the feeling Cheeks and Hart dress up in women's clothing in their down time.

Blackburn for AD anyone?
 
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#19
#19
Typically chancellors of schools concern themselves with better things than wrecking a football program. Not to mention he's a gator and booger eater. But I think those two things go hand in hand gators and eating boogers.
 
#21
#21
He and those aligned with him have done a number of things that have created an uneven playing field for athletics. They implemented standards above and beyond those required by the SEC to get into UT as a athlete. They also implemented requirements above those required by the SEC on amount of credits required toward the athlete's major in each year of study. Hurts anyone who changes majors particularly hard. Also eliminated a bunch of majors favored by athletes. You can't major in phys ed for example. An athlete might want to be a phys ed teacher or coach if the don't make it to the NFL? That is a crazy idea to Cheek.

There are other items as well but those 3 make it harder to get an athlete into UT and harder to keep them eligible once they are here.

As an engineering alumnus I am all for improving academics at my Alma Mater. I don't think you have to hurt athletics to improve academics. A strong athletic program attracts academic students and can also help fund academics. Cheek doesn't seem to "get it" - time to replace him with someone who does understand how to achieve excellence on both fronts.
 
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#22
#22
I'll give you a reason, he continually accepts raises on what seems to be a regular basis, even though students' tuition continues to rise. Completely immoral in my opinion.... Also, he is just a complete screw-up in every way.
 
#23
#23
volstuckinNC said:
He and those aligned with him have done a number of things that have created an uneven playing field for athletics. They implemented standards above and beyond those required by the SEC to get into UT as a athlete. They also implemented requirements above those required by the SEC on amount of credits required toward the athlete's major in each year of study. Hurts anyone who changes majors particularly hard. Also eliminated a bunch of majors favored by athletes. You can't major in phys ed for example. An athlete might want to be a phys ed teacher or coach if the don't make it to the NFL? That is a crazy idea to Cheek.

There are other items as well but those 3 make it harder to get an athlete into UT and harder to keep them eligible once they are here.

As an engineering alumnus I am all for improving academics at my Alma Mater. I don't think you have to hurt athletics to improve academics. A strong athletic program attracts academic students and can also help fund academics. Cheek doesn't seem to "get it" - time to replace him with someone who does understand how to achieve excellence on both fronts.
Click to expand...

well that and someone that doesn't eat boogers
 
#25
#25
vavolunteer said:
Well, first off, he's from Florduh. That's enough to end the conversation right there.

Additionally, he's set up a reporting structure and academic requirements for our athletes that makes it very difficult for us to compete against other SEC schools. We're not competing on a level playing field with the like of bama, florduh, uscjr, etc.

He signed off on the contract Hamilton gave Dooley which effectively screwed us for years. Even before that, he ok'd the Fulmer firing. Again, that alone could get him tarred and feathered by most.

And yes, most recently, the freakin moron got caught picking his freaking nose and eating it. Christ Almighty, this guy is our freakin Chancellor??? It's no wonder the whole world thinks we're a joke.

Personally, in addition to the above mentioned strikes against him, my other problem lies with our national ranking as a quality school. Cheek has severely undercut our athletic progress so we could have a "Top 25" school. Well, guess what, we're lucky if we're in the top 100, depending on the ranking service you look at. He's helped kill our athletic status and actually dropped our ranking as an institution of education all while continually raising tuition and fees.

Need any other reasons? Can't say I hate the guy, I don't go that far. But I can certainly understand the perspective of those who do. :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

Amen on most of this. But a few things -

The goal is to be a top 25 public school, which is probably not going to happen. Being a top 25 school overall is essentially impossible and would be a nonsensical goal for UT. Anyways, UT has climbed from 52 to 46 in the last 3 year, if I'm remembering correctly. If they can keep that up and get us to around 35 I'd consider it a success. Based on a combination of factors (population, number of major schools per state, endowments, research opportunities etc) UT should be the 4th to 6th best school in the SEC and I think 35 (public) would get us there.

All that being said, the administration needs to 1) clearly communicate their philosophy on admitting athletes with darn good rationale for being picky, or more preferably 2) use the NCAA clearinghouse rules and be done with it.
 
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