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During his tenure as head man of the Vols, Fulmer was 11-5 against the Crimson Tide, including a stretch where he won of nine out of 10. It’s no wonder “few coaches fired up the Alabama fan base the way Fulmer did.”
In regard to the significance of the Tennessee–Alabama rivlary, Fulmer said to AL.com this week:
“If you are 40 and over, you have a great appreciation for what this rivalry is,” Fulmer said. “Since divisional play and the younger Tennessee people might say Florida, we have to beat Florida because of the division. And Alabama may have their own other team.”
“But to me, it’s like Michigan-Michigan State, Southern Cal-UCLA or Texas-Oklahoma, there’s just a few around the country that are really, really special. This one because of its history is special. I enjoyed being part of it as a player, certainly enjoyed being part of it as an assistant and head coach.”
Tennessee fans enjoyed you being a part of it too, coach. The Vols haven’t won a game in the series since a 16-13 win in Neyland Stadium back in 2006.
Fulmer has been spotted hanging around the Vol football program recently. The Vols current coaching staff has welcomed him, as well as other former coaches and players.
“(Butch Jones) has done a really good job of reaching out and make me feel welcome,” he told AL.com. “Early on not even the former players felt welcome. It was pretty silly, really. But Butch has done a great job of reaching out and making everybody welcome.”
Who knows, maybe some of Fulmer’s Alabama mojo will rub off on Team #119 and beyond.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]