Is Tennessee really an "eroding football program"?

by Daw77

I left work early last Monday morning, and after failing to find anything appealing on FM radio, I begrudgingly tuned into The Herd on ESPN Radio for my ride home. In the one segment I listened to, he was going on about his underrated teams for the year; UCLA, Iowa, and Georgia. He ran over Georgia’s schedule and said their only losses would be to Florida and at Alabama, and the rest of the schedule was completely workable. While going over some of UGA’s opponents, he neglected to mention the Vols. However, by the end of the segment he referenced them only by saying: “Tennessee is an eroding football program, let’s cut to the chase on that.”

I was mildly annoyed when he said that, but to me, it was just a typical statement from ESPN’s resident blowhard. Even though he seems to consider all of his opinions as gospel, with no room for debate, I have to take his comments in jest to avoid getting fumed over the things he says and the way he says them. So, I merely shrugged it off; but towards the end of the week, it popped in my mind again. Except this time, I began to wonder how valid his statement really was.

My first reaction was that “eroding” was a ridiculous label of the program. Yes, the team has had its share of disappointments; but before looking at any records or stats, those disappointments didn’t seem too major to me. Then I referenced some of the Win/Loss records since 1998. Other than the 5-6 debacle of 2005, there were records of 9-4(2006), 8-4(2000), and 8-5(2002), and in all three of those years, one of the losses was from the bowl game. Those years are down years in most Tennessee fan’s minds, but when you throw in records of 10-3 (2003, 2004), 11-2 (2001), and 9-3(1999), and an 84% winning percentage over those eight seasons, it is a very good stretch by most reasonable standards.

On the other hand, there were two things that support the opinion that Tennessee is on the downslide. Tennessee has become a team that finishes very poorly. They have lost in their only two SEC Championship games in that same time span. They have an atrocious bowl record (2-5), and they have finished the season out of the AP poll 3 different times. The second thing that comes into play is Fulmer’s subpar record against the coaching elite. Face it, the SEC is the toughest conference in football, and there are always 4 or 5 teams that can legitimately compete for the SEC crown. Fulmer has noticeably struggled against Spurrier, Richt, Saban, Tuberville, and Meyer. While there is debate about whether or not Saban and Spurrier will bring their teams to prominence, those coaches will be licking their chops if they line up decent talent against the Vols.

After assessing everything from both sides of the argument, I think it is a little too early to write off Tennessee. They have had some rough times, but they always seem to bounce back. After 2005, it looked like the Vols were destined to fall off the national radar, but they came back strong. However, with the talent that has come in this year, these next 3 years will be make it or break it time for Fulmer and his team. Teams like Alabama and South Carolina should be on the rise, and if Phil isn’t careful he could easily find himself on the outside looking in at the SEC powerhouses. On the other hand, if he can pull off an SEC Championship in one of these next few seasons, or at least receive a BCS at-large bid, he could probably solidify Tennessee’s place in the cream of the crop of the Southeastern Conference. Only time will tell…

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8 responses to “Is Tennessee really an "eroding football program"?”

  1. if you havent noticed fulmer is on the outside looking in. this program is on the brink of disaster.fulmer wont be there 3 more years to turn things around,if he doesnt win the sec east this year the phat man is long gone.my prediction for this year 7-5 , so long phil,thanks for the memories.

  2. I don’t think it’s erosion as much as it is our competitors upgrading. UG finally found the right guy as did UF. Thdy are our primary competition in the east. Other programs seem to have upgraded including UK (after giving Brooks a lot of time), VU, AU both upgraded and doing well after dry spells, LSU has apparently and surprisingly lost nothing after Saban left and in fact may be better now than when he was there. Arky is up even with all the scandals. The SEC is overall a stronger conference right now than in the last decade of the 20th century.

    Also keep in mind that all programs have gone through cycles. Look at the long dry spells encountered by such power houses as USC, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, TX, and others. We continue to win and be competitive. We had one horrible season which even Fulmer takes the blame for.

    If you look back at the history of our program, we’ve always been the brides made except for about 4 seasons (out of over 100 seasons). I think the MNC of ’98 may have raised our expectations to a level that is artificial given the history of our program. I think the younger fans are caught in the middle of the expectation controversy as they haven’t been around long enough to get a sense of what our program has produced over the past century plus.

    Personally, I lust after the likes of Jessica Biel, Jessica Alba, Christy Brinkley and the like. However, I was smart enough to realize that a 10 was way over my head . I think we need to realize that we will not ever be a dynasty, it’s just not in the cards. On the other hand there’s nothing more fun for me than a weekend at Neyland Stadium with 100,000 UT fans pulling for the team. Win or lose, that’s who I am and I’m going to enjoy the hell out of it regardless of the W/L record or the complainers.

  3. If for some reason the program does not produce this season, I know of a coach down in SC that may have an interest in the job and he would be a good one!

  4. I am not sure about the program, but it sounds like fan support is eroding. I am a volunteer fan from Memphis, and the Tigers went 2-10 last year, but their excitement level is high.
    Either support the team and the coach you have, or get off of the wagon, and find another ride.
    GO BIG ORANGE!!!!

  5. I LIKE BROWNIE’S REPLY….I HAVE BEEN A BIG ORANGE FAN FOR A LONG TIME. I LIVE IN TUSCALOOSA AND LOVE AND SUPPORT THE VOLS, MY ALABAMA CAR TAG IS PERSONALIZED……
    VOLS 07………AND I WEAR MY TENNESSEE SWEATS TO THE GYM, ETC, EVERYONE THAT KNOWS ME, KNOWS I AM A VOL !!!
    HOWEVER….OUR NEW AD…MIKE HAMILTON HAS SHOWN HE WILL NOT ACCEPT ANYTHING LESS THAN A CHAMPIONSHIP, AS MUCH AS I HATE TO SAY IT, IF COACH FULMER DOESN’T GET TO AND WIN AN SEC TITLE THIS YEAR OR NEXT..HE WILL BE RETIRED TO ANOTHER POSITION IN THE ATHLETIC DEPT.

  6. The bottom line is that Fulmer is a bad coach. Now I didnt say he couldnt recruit, but the man couldnt out coach a five year old. I would personally like to see David Cutcliff as coach, at least he wouldnt clap when were getting beat.

  7. Well, In my opinion, Fulmer is not a bad coach. Fulmer is just an “old school” coach. Face it, times are changing in college football. You now have to have a qauterback who can also run a 4.6 forty yard dash. A runnig back who can also catch and run routes as good a a reciever. Honestly, I say we are going to win the SEC championship every year, but I know how nervous I get when I look at our upcoming games and worry over the likes of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and now even Vandy and Kentucky. I just don’t understand how Fulmer can recruit in the top 5 every year and finish the season in the 20’s. I just sometimes feel like it is time for a change on Rocky Top. It’s not the same ol` “smash mouth” football it was when Phil was givin the job. But…. as a man that bleeds orange, I will sing Rocky Top at the top of my lungs everytime the band plays because I love Tennessee football!!! GO BIG ORANGE!!

  8. I agree with some of these comments, but strongly disagreee with some. Why can’t UT be a dynasty and compete for the national title, we have the facilities, the fan base, the money, the recruits, etc. Also you don’t need a qb who can run a 4.6 look at USC, UF I know they have tebow, but leak was the primary qb. I personally liked Fulmer and thought he should have gotten the job after Majors, and pre 1998 i still felt that way, our program was on the rise we were a powerhouse every year, vying for a title then we finally broke through and it was heaven on earth, now here we are a decade later and no sec champs, the bowl record is atrocious, we have lost ground in the east and in the country. I think it’s time for Fulmer to go I’ve felt that way for years, but he’s still there. I’ll still pull as hard as I can and yell as loud as I can, but if the ad is only going to settle for championships then he better start looking for another coach. We get the recruits in Knoxville, we just don’t do anything with the talent when it gets there.

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