sportsfanatic

It did not take long for this question to grow. Even before the press conference where Philip Fulmer could barely get his words out, the question of “Who will replace Fulmer?” was swirling around. The names that have surfaced are very interesting to say the least. From the players point of view, they want no one other than Philip Fulmer. For all the players and fans that thought that the decision was a “cheap shot” or that Fulmer was “blind sided”, you need to wake up. The path has been laid out for the last 2 season. And as everyone states, College Football is a business and has to be ran as one. So, lets look at the potential candidates and my thoughts on the subject.

The first name that sticks out to all is Steve Spurrier who did not take any time to throw a sucker punch to Philip. As an avid SEC fan, Steve is the type of coach that you love to hate. His return to college football after failing in the NFL 4 years ago showed his vulnerability. As much as Spurrier says that he has made his last stop, let’s face it, money talks. Not to mention the fact that Spurrier is Tennessee blood as he was raised in Johnson City. With all that said, I really do not think that they can come to an agreement.

Another name that is starting to circulate is Bill Cowher. When I think of the possibilities that this guy could bring to the University of Tennessee Volunteers Football program, a certain chill runs over me. Bill is a respected head coach that brings with him the discipline that this UT team is missing. One fact is it is going to cost this school a lot of money to turn this football program and get it back to where it was. In my book, this is a guy that can do it. With that said, I do not think that this is the gig that he frankly wants.

A name that I am surprised that has yet to circulate would be that of Jimmy Johnson. Having been on the sidelines for as many years that he has, I am not sure that he wants to get back into the mix again. However, if he did, that could very well be the change that they need.

Another name that has been rumored every time that someone goes to the urinal is that of Jon Gruden. For those of you that might remember, Gruden started his coaching career at the University of Tennessee as a graduate Assistant in 1986. His wife is a graduate of UT and a former cheerleader here. Also, he has property in East Tennessee. However, I can not see the Vols being able to win “Chuckie” away from Tampa Bay. I think that this is more smoke than reality.

David Cutcliffe is a name that has been thrown around in the Knoxville area. David was a coordinator with the 98 National Champion Vols. After that season, David moved on and the Vols started slowly digressing. David took a job at Ole Miss and turned that school around. After a 6 year stint, he was fired after his only losing season. In 2005, he spent time with Notre Dame as an Assistant Head Coach and QB coach until health issues forced him to resign. In 2006, he returned to Tennessee to once again carry the reigns as the Offensive Coordinator. David once again left UT for a Head Coaching position at Duke.

Now, this list could potentially go on and on. There are numbers of names swirling around from Houston Nutt to Will Mushcamp to Chris Peterson to Kyle Whittingham. Many of these names would be great inputs in the UT scheme. However, the biggest problem is that Tennessee is not looking for a down year. They need to be able to keep what they have in recruits and get even more. Can you image the impact to recruiting that Cohwer, Johnson, or Gruden could make standing in someone’s home with their “bling” giving that speech of “Come join me”. Problem is, I do not think that any of the 3 have the ability to step in and pick the program up and have it perform next season.

With that said, there is one name out in this mix that can truly do that. That is David Cutcliffe.

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