SouthEastern Sports Blog

We're Moving!

2008-12-19T00:32:00.000-05:00

Ladies and gentlemen,

An opportunity has been presented to me that I'm very humbled by, and am excited about pursuing.

I started SouthEastern Sports Blog in June 2006 a couple weeks after moving from Knoxville to southwest Virginia. And ever since, it's been an incredible release and a great joy in my life. It's enabled me to continue to share in the same sports conversations I had with friends and family when I lived in East Tennessee, and has been a great fulfillment of my spare time living here in rural America.

In the past six months, through Bleacher Report and through an association with The Big Orange Roundtable websites, SESB has increased her traffic by picking up the same 16,000 readers we saw in the first two years combined. We've been linked to at ESPN.com, are a regular on the Knoxville News-Sentinel's blog links, I've gotten to collaborate with several people both online and on radio, and more importantly, we've expanded our community to a host of new viewers. It's been largely through the networking with a handful of the Big Orange Roundtable sites - specifically Gate 21 (and lawvol, who's responsible for the graphics on this site), Third Saturday in Blogtober, and Rocky Top Talk.

While the numbers are exciting, this has always been purely for fun and not in an attempt to gain any sort of notoriety or anything like that. As such, I appreciate so very, very much those of you who've been reading here from the very beginning.

The reality of my life is getting ready to include seminary, both online and on campus full time for the next four years. Concerns of keeping things in their proper balance and not getting burned out, or seeing the site fall apart if I got especially busy, have been on my mind.

And so weighing those concerns and, simultaneously, a new opportunity that was presented to me, I've decided to leave SouthEastern Sports Blog to join the team at Rocky Top Talk.

Rocky Top Talk has been the first Tennessee website I check each day for the last six months - the quality of not just the writing, but the entire site, is simply outstanding as you can see from their list of College Football Blogger Award nominations and wins. So I was honored to be asked and will continue to be honored to serve on the team over there. I am very, very excited about all this and can't wait to get started there.

So first - thank you. Thanks to all of you who've spent some time here, at any point over the last few years. Specifically, thanks to Kory & Amy, Webb, Coach Marsh, Justin & Caroline, Ryan, my parents and all the other people who've been continuing the conversation from Knoxville with me on here.

Thanks to my man Jeff, who's also in the balance of life between ministry and a few minutes on the keyboard, for contributing some great stuff on the site during these last few months. Outside the sports world, you can check out Jeff's personal blog here.

And thanks to the new faces I've gotten to share with, from the outstanding community at Bleacher Report, to Jay & Al at Gridiron Breakdown, to all the Big Orange Roundtable sites whose work I've enjoyed.

I hope all of you, if you're not reading there already, will join us over at Rocky Top Talk - you have to register a free account at SBNation, but then you can jump right in on any of the conversations (or the always entertaining in-game threads). The stuff you'll get from me will be the same, just with a different address. And the stuff you'll get from the other guys at RTT is already top notch. I cannot imagine a better team to work with.

I'm going on vacation from December 22 - January 3, so I won't be officially starting at Rocky Top Talk until Monday, January 5. If vacation gets boring, you might find a few brief notes from me on here between now and then, before we move over to Rocky Top Talk for good at the start of the new year. But there's still excellent stuff going on at RTT right now.

So thanks again. Please come join us. And I hope your Christmas and your New Year is full of joy and life.

Grace and Peace,

Will

Vols 80 Marquette 68 - Off the Deck

2008-12-17T00:13:00.000-05:00

We keep waiting to be disappointed by Bruce Pearl's teams, keep waiting for that fallout period...but the Vols just don't lose very often these days, and when they do, they come off the deck throwing punches.

Against a talented and experienced Marquette team with three senior guards that could've given them fits, the Vols wisely put the thin Golden Eagles in foul trouble from start to finish (taking advantage of a night where the refs clearly decided beforehand that every questionable contact call was going to be a charge), shook off a slow start to score 48 points in the second half, and continued to display that they're more than Tyler Smith to the national consciousness.

With JP Prince still out, the Vols turned to a re-inspired Wayne Chism, who went career high with 26 points and 10 rebounds, including an incredible seven-for-seven stretch in the second half capped by a h-u-g-e three. That gave the Vols a lead they would never relinquish, forcing the Marquette players who hadn't fouled out to jack threes instead of doing what they do best, and the end result was another 12 point win over a Big East team.

Last year, when the Vols were winning games by a smaller margin than I thought they should and Chris Lofton was struggling (and none of us knew about his cancer situation), I told several of my friends that I was worried we'd make the Final Four and I'd not enjoy it along the way. This year, I know we're young and expect bumps in the road (thought not quite the pothole Temple was)...but there's a level of grace with this team that makes it feel even better when the Vols pull out another big win like this.

With Chism's performance tonight, you have to put him and Prince in that group of three who can each take over a game under the right circumstances. Combine that with heady play at the point (Bobby Maze is 4-to-1 assist/turnover) and a group of shooters that, while not Lofton/JaJuan (and who would be?), must be respected. We're still growing.

The W puts Tennessee at 7-2, with Belmont and Louisiana-Lafayette in Knoxville between them and a 9-2 mark entering 2009, where they'll face the most difficult month in Tennessee basketball history: at Kansas, vs Gonzaga, at Georgia, vs Kentucky, vs South Carolina, at Vanderbilt, vs Memphis, vs LSU, vs Florida.

Welcome, once again, to bigtime college basketball.

Furcal back to the Braves?

2008-12-16T10:42:00.000-05:00

In a somewhat surprising move this morning, ESPN is announcing that Rafael Furcal, who spent six great seasons in Atlanta from 2000-2005, is ready to return to Turner Field for less money than the Oakland A's were offering him. Furcal has spent the last three seasons with the Dodgers and has continued to make a name for himself as one of the game's best leadoff hitters.

Once finalized, this move would make Atlanta shortstop Yunel Escobar one of the hottest shortstop commodities on the trade market, which should give the Braves what they need to go out and make a deal for a bigtime pitcher (read: Jake Peavy). Escobar's prowess and upside at shortstop is great, but putting Furcal back in the mix - and the Braves haven't made the playoffs since Furcal left Atlanta, for what it's worth - also puts more pop in the lineup. Adding an ace, resigning John Smoltz and putting Furcal in there makes Atlanta's chances for a postseason run in 2009 much better than they were a few weeks ago.

Random Thoughts - Monday December 15

2008-12-15T20:45:00.000-05:00

Where I've lost my third XBOX 360 to The Red Eye of Death, which also doubled as my DVD player, so we've been enjoying repeat viewings of The Dark Knight on my laptop...

"May your first child be a masculine child..."
The Family is coming together.

Monte Kiffin officially announced that he will be joining son Lane in Knoxville next fall as the Vols' defensive coordinator. The elder Kiffin has been the defensive coordinator in Tampa Bay since 1996, coinciding with Tampa's rise to football relevance and the implementation of Kiffin's Tampa 2 scheme, coming soon to SEC offenses near you. He'll inherit most of the talent from the nation's #4 defense in 2008. Good times ahead.

Monte was always a big part of the Lane hire looking good, and thanks to Gene Chizik and Charles Barkley, the Vols' hire will now be less scruntinzed everywhere but Knoxville. If there was anyway to ease the pain from John Chavis' departure, Monte Kiffin was it. I like where this can go.

Next stop - this guy. Tell 'em about it, Jo Jo!

#16 Tennessee vs. #24 Marquette in Nashville

The SEC/Big East whatever they're calling it features two teams that, at the very least, are fun to watch tomorrow night at 9:30. Check out the detailed preview from The Bruce Ball Blog.

The Vols will have to come off the deck fast after Temple reality checked them on Saturday. JP Prince is still doubtful at best with a severely sprained ankle, and the Golden Eagles use three guards at once better than just about anyone in the nation, which almost carried them deep into March last season. For the young Vols on the perimeter who just got lit up by Christmas in Philadelphia, they'll have to rebound quickly to slow Marquette in Nashville.

The Vols will leave Nashville and return to TBA for games against Belmont and the Rajun Cajuns before the non-conference madness continues. We're still not sure exactly what we've got with this team that beat Georgetown (who beat Memphis) and lost to Gonzaga (who lost to Arizona), and the last glimpse from the Temple game wasn't promising. Not that Belmont isn't capable and won't be ready to spring an upset, but the real proof will come in the three non-conference tests between now and the start of SEC play: Marquette in Nashville tomorrow night, at Kansas on January 3, and the Gonzaga rubber match in Knoxville on January 7. 2-1 in those three games would be great. If the Vols have it going well enough to win tomorrow night against this Marquette team after playing so poorly just 72 hours earlier against Temple, I'll be very impressed.

Titans: Two Weeks to the Playoffs

(Cortland Finnegan: SHORYUKEN!)

The bad news is that Al Haynesworth and Kyle Vanden Bosch are out for Sunday's AFC home field advantage showdown against Pittsburgh. The good news is, both will be back for the playoffs.

The Titans could backdoor their way to HFA if Pittsburgh beats them and then loses in Week 17 to Cleveland and the Titans beat Indianapolis in Indy...but right now neither route seems particularly desirable.

There are a few folks who are jumping off the bandwagon (and jumping on the "put Vince Young in the game!" ship, which is insanity.) Sunday's game will help decide not only home field advantage, but the real direction of this Titans team. The 10-0 start has turned into a 2-2 bump in the road in the last four weeks - and it may be only that - but the Steelers will be the best gage of that.

Sadly, the game won't be flexed to NBC's Sunday night slot, which goes to Carolina and the Giants.

The Celtics are on pace to win 75 games

Again, I'm just saying.

Since we've already mentioned several cinematic classics in this post, allow me to bring up another: Boston will be envoking Rocky IV next week by going into the belly of the beast on Christmas Day, for what is without question the first must-see Christmas TV NBA game for me, when the 22-2 Celtics travel to Los Angeles to face the 20-3 Lakers.

There's 3/4 of the season left to be played, and Cleveland is certainly hot as well - but if Boston beats Utah tonight, they'll match the all-time best NBA start of 23-2. That mark is currently held by the Jordan Bulls team that went 72-10, which is the best record in NBA history. For now.

...again, I'm just saying.

And finally...

You didn't really think we'd show one Ed Orgeron video classic and not show the other, did you?

The man. The legend. The next recruiting coordinator at the University of Tennessee.

Be afraid.

Titans lose to Houston; Haynesworth injured

2008-12-14T16:16:00.003-05:00

As Mike Keith stated as the game drew to a close, the difference between the Titans this year and last (when, remember, they were a playoff team) is that the '07 Titans kicked field goals and the '08 Titans score touchdowns. Untimely turnovers and the inability to do that today cost them in a 13-12 loss to Houston, which will now set up a home field showdown next week with Pittsburgh regardless of what the Steelers do with the Ravens today.

Playing without Kyle Vanden Bosch and struggling to slow Steve Slaton, who became only the second back this season to go for 100+ yards against Tennessee, the Titans took a potentially even bigger blow when Al Haynesworth was injured on the next to last significant play of the game - Slaton picked up a game-clinching first down on the next play.

I didn't see it because the good folks at CBS think people in southwest Virginia just love to watch the Jets and the Bills (...which was a good game), but Frank Wycheck broke a cardinal rule of announcing by speculating that Haynesworth has an MCL injury that will sideline him 4-6 weeks. So I'm breaking the cardinal rule of blogging by passing that assumption onto you.

The Steelers should be in a dogfight for sixty minutes in Baltimore this afternoon, so I'm unsure what they'll have for the Titans in Nashvegas next Sunday. But if Haynesworth is out for an extended period of time, Tennessee's chances of extending their January football just took a huge, huge blow.

With or without the loss and Haynesworth, the game with the Steelers will be the biggest game at LP Field since Steve McNair and Eddie George wore baby blue. Hopefully, the Titans will be playing it at full strength...stay tuned.

Just Kidding: Fulmer declines administrative position

2008-12-12T16:52:00.002-05:00

Apparently, this is all about retirement benefits, insurance, and the ire of a faculty and staff during a budget crisis and a hiring freeze. But Fulmer will not be an employee of the University of Tennessee; the article from the News-Sentinel claims, appropriately, that Fulmer will continue to volunteer his efforts for the university in a similar capacity.

Something big going down at Auburn?...

2008-12-12T10:36:00.002-05:00

We just don't know what it is yet.

A local affiliate in Montgomery reported that Steve Spurrier would be named Auburn's next head coach....but down in Mobile, they like their reporting with a dash of Will Muschamp.

Keep in mind that a small market Tennessee affiliate reported incorrectly that the Vols were offering their job to Mike Leach when we were going through this process last month. Obviously one of these reports is incorrect, and if they both are I wouldn't bat an eye. It is, however, fascinating to see the wildfire rumor spreading that's usually reserved for internet message boards make its way, probably in part because of them, to the affiliated mainstream media.

As always, stay tuned...

I mean, come on.

2008-12-11T22:51:00.000-05:00

- Eric Berry lost the Thorpe Award - supposedly for the nation's best defensive back - to a guy who had three interceptions all season. Berry, who apparently can only be stopped by voters (like most Tennessee players up for individual awards), had seven INTs this season, two touchdowns, 13 more tackles than Ohio State's Malcolm Jenkins, and an infinitely better highlight reel. Others have written that Berry should be a Heisman candidate, but apparently he can't even be rightfully recognized as the best DB in the nation.

- Tim Tebow won the Maxwell Award as the nation's best player. The gag reflex here really goes to anyone around him with a microphone; I'm pretty sure Tebow could've gone home with anyone wearing a press pass in the greater Orlando area tonight. His play and his life, apparently, brought grown men to tears. Look, Timmy, stop telling me how blessed you are. My personal theology doesn't support it.

- Dave Clawson, who was the catalyst of Phillip Fulmer's downfall in my humble opinion, has gone from a head coach at lower-level Richmond, to offensive coordinator at Tennessee, to new head coach at Bowling Green. We call that a promotion around these parts. Because it makes total sense to promote this guy after the offensive season we had.

- Lane Kiffin has told Tajh Boyd and now Bryce Petty that they're not for us. So does this mean we're going to be playing quarterback with one of the same three guys who tried it this year? Surely there's a better option out there...

Dan Mullen to Mississippi State

2008-12-10T15:32:00.003-05:00

Pat Forde at ESPN.com is reporting that the Bulldogs will hire Florida offensive coordinator Dan Mullen as their next head coach. It is still uncertain whether or not Mullen will remain with the Gators through the National Championship game, or if he'll leave for Starkville to hit the recruiting trail right away (as did David Cutcliffe at Ole Miss in 1998 before the Vols played for the crystal ball).

I'm not sure you call it overcorrection, but hiring the playcaller for the Gators is a good start on curing what ails your offense. And whether Mullen stays or goes, I'd say nobody likes this news more than the Sooners today.

Picking the 2008 College Football Award Winners

2008-12-09T19:31:00.001-05:00

On Thursday night at 7:30, ESPN will once again televise the College Football Awards Show, which will see a dozen awards presented plus name the Walter Camp All-American team. And since the Heisman Trophy still gets its own night and I'll be celebrating 11 years of not watching it, here's the breakdown and my picks for who should win everything else on Thursday night:

Davey O'Brien Award - Best QB
Finalists:
- Sam Bradford, Oklahoma
- Graham Harrell, Texas Tech
- Colt McCoy, Texas

It's the Big 12 South's party and Tim Tebow isn't invited. And perhaps rightfully so, because the numbers on these three guys, with each playing in an elite BCS conference, are staggering. The same round robin argument can't really be used to pick a winner here because they split against each other, and the stats also leave you with questions: Harrell threw for the most yards, Bradford the most touchdowns, and McCoy had the highest completion percentage.

In such a tight race, you need something to stand out. Harrell will continue to be somewhat overlooked, even if unfairly, because of the system he plays in. Between McCoy and Bradford, the edge has to go to McCoy not only because Texas beat OU, but for the way McCoy has made plays with his feet as well all season. In other years the seasons Bradford and Harrell have put up would've been good enough to win...but in 2008 the nod has to go to Colt McCoy.

Will's Pick: Colt McCoy

Doak Walker Award - Best RB
Finalists:
- Shonn Greene, Iowa
- Knowshon Moreno, Georgia
- Javon Ringer, Michigan State

No disrespect to the SEC pick, but Moreno doesn't have the numbers to be in the conversation between these two. It's questionable where Donald Brown from UConn is in this race, but these are the finalists so we'll play the hand we're dealt.

Again, the numbers differ: Greene has more yards, Ringer more touchdowns. When the two teams played head to head, Michigan State won the game, but Greene outgained him by sixty yards. Therefore...

Will's Pick: Shonn Greene

Fred Biletnikoff Award - Best WR
Finalists:
- Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State
- Michael Crabtree, Texas Tech
- Jeremy Maclin, Missouri

Crabtree is going to win because he's developed a better name recognition than the other two guys, even thought they've both had outstanding seasons as well; Bryant has more receiving yards than Crabtree, and Maclin has done more from an all-purpose standpoint.

But Crabtree has the definitive play of the year in college football to go along with his name value, and outplayed Bryant head to head. All great players this season, but I see no way Crabtree doesn't walk home with the trophy.

Will's Pick: Michael Crabtree

Outland Trophy - Best Interior Lineman
Finalists:
- Michael Oher, Ole Miss
- Duke Robinson, Oklahoma
- Andre Smith, Alabama

An interesting mix that features the best lineman on the best offense in college football for a team that'll play for the National Championship, the best interior lineman on an Alabama unit that just missed the same prize...and Michael Oher, who's done more with less than both of them.

All three have NFL mega-dollars in their futures, and have had accomplished seasons, but Robinson and Smith are just part of the show...Oher is the show for the Ole Miss offense. That for me helps separate him from this crowded field (plus, did you know that an Oklahoma player has won the Outland Trophy five different times already?)

Will's Pick: Michael Oher

Jim Thorpe Award - Best DB
Finalists:
- Eric Berry, Tennessee
- Malcolm Jenkins, Ohio State
- Taylor Mays, USC

The other two guys are very good players with great name recognition. Eric Berry is a great player.

Berry owns the SEC records for single season INT return yardage and career INT return yardage. He's a sophomore.

Berry recorded seven picks this season and took three back for touchdowns, and tried to kill Knowshon Moreno, an Alabama wide receiver and three guys on South Carolina's offense during an INT return.

Even if I take off my orange-tinted glasses, Berry is a Heisman Trophy candidate in 2009. This will be a nice start.

Will's Pick: Eric Berry (son)

Chuck Bednarik Award - Best Defensive Player
Finalists:
- James Laurinaitis, Ohio State
- Aaron Maybin, Penn State
- Ray Maualuga, USC

If Maualuga was healthy all season, he wins this. But you can't overlook the insane production of Maybin, another sophomore who could take hom the trophy. Laurinaitis is solid and led the Buckeye defense, no surprise. But Maybin was much more destructive with 12 sacks and almost 20 TFLs. Laurinaitis may win on the career factor, but Maybin was a bigger force on a better team in 2008.

Will's Pick: Aaron Maybin

Maxwell Award - Best Overall Player
Finalists:
- Graham Harrell, Texas Tech
- Colt McCoy, Texas
- Tim Tebow, Florida

If Tebow wasn't good enough to make the O'Brien finalist list, and McCoy was a better choice than Harrell there...you have to go with McCoy again here. Plain and simple.

Will's Pick: Colt McCoy, Texas

Home Depot Coach of the Year
There are no finalists that I can find for this award, but let me throw some names at you:
- Mark Dantonio, Michigan State
- Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern
- Brian Kelly, Cincinnati
- Mike Leach, Texas Tech
- Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech
- Houston Nutt, Ole Miss
- Joe Paterno, Penn State
- Nick Saban, Alabama
- Kyle Whittingham, Utah

Now, as much as it pains me to say it...don't we have to give this award to Saban? None of the other guys on this list went further with fewer national expectations, and I'm willing to bet that Saban does more than Paterno these days, who is the only real comparison.

Will's Pick: Nick Saban

Walter Camp All-America Team
...or we could call it my own personal All-American squad:

QB Colt McCoy, Texas
RB Donald Brown, UConn
RB Shonn Greene, Iowa
WR Michael Crabtree, Texas Tech
WR Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State
TE Chase Coffman, Missouri
OL Michael Oher, Ole Miss
OL Duke Robinson, Oklahoma
OL Andre Smith, Alabama
OL A.Q. Shipley, Penn State
OL Max Unger, Oregon

DL Aaron Maybin, Penn State
DL Gerald McCoy, Oklahoma
DL Brian Orakpo, Texas
DL Terrence Cody, Alabama
LB James Laurinaitis, Ohio State
LB Ray Maualuga, USC
LB Brandon Spikes, Florida
DB Eric Berry, Tennessee
DB Macho Harris, Virginia Tech
DB Malcolm Jenkins, Ohio State
DB Alphonso Smith, Wake Forest

K Graham Gano, Florida State
P Louie Sakoda, Utah

Agree or disagree? Feel free to leave your picks for any/all of these awards in the comments. You can also vote at ESPN.com on the awards to be presented Thursday night, where the fan vote helps determine who takes home the trophy.

I hope to be watching the Heisman presentation for the first time this decade next year when Eric Berry becomes the next Vol to be screwed out of the award. It can be a bitter time to be a Vol fan, folks, and sometimes it comes out like this...what can I say.

SESB @ Bleacher Report as Community Leader for Tennessee Football

2008-12-09T18:12:00.000-05:00

I've enjoyed posting some of the stuff from SESB over at Bleacher Report over the summer and fall, and agreed over the weekend to join Michael Shibley as the community leader for Tennessee Football on the site.

While you'll find a little bit of everything at B/R, in my opinion you'll also find some very talented writers and excellent discussion on the full spectrum of sports throughout the site. It's a great place to find good stuff about your favorite team in all sports...

And if you've been thinking "You know, I'd love to write about some of this stuff...", Bleacher Report is a great place to get started. Anybody can contribute, and we're looking to bolster the Tennessee section as we speak. As community leader I'll be filtering through all the Tennessee Football stuff to help highlight the best out there. I'll also continue to copy and paste relevant stuff from SESB to Bleacher Report (and you still won't find anything I do on B/R that didn't make its way here first), and will continue to engage in community outreach at B/R for the growth of the site and for SESB, using other writers and community leaders there in different ways down the road, hopefully much like the interview piece I did recently with LSU community leader Justin Goar (who just won a trip to the BCS National Championship Game as the best college football writer at B/R this season, so congrats to him).

So as always, thanks so much for reading here - we'll still be putting all our stuff on SESB first, but we're also looking to increase the quality of the Tennessee stuff at Bleacher Report. Come check out the community, engage in the discussion there, and feel free to contribute some writing as well. All in the name of free speech and Tennessee Football.

Still a Vol: Phillip Fulmer Accepts Administrative Position with University of Tennessee

2008-12-08T16:00:00.003-05:00

The University of Tennessee has announced today that ex-coach Phillip Fulmer will remain at Tennessee as a special assistant to the university president, John Petersen. Check out the full story from WBIR in Knoxville.

For me personally, this is great, great news. Any wounds that are still open as most of Vol Nation moves on with Lane Kiffin just got healed a little more, because we won't have to see Fulmer wearing anything other than the Power T and the right shade of orange. This certainly doesn't rule out Fulmer coaching in the future, but does keep him in the program, the family, and as anything positive he can be for Lane Kiffin. This is, to me, the best news the program has had in a long time - Fulmer detractors have their new man who's working hard on the recruiting trail, and Fulmer supporters still have him in the program. Let the healing begin...even if it's slow, the Vols are making steps in the right direction.

Vol fans will also get a chance to see Monte Kiffin's defense tonight as Tampa Bay takes on Carolina on Monday Night Football. Combined with today's news that Eric Berry was named SEC Defensive Player of the Year, this is a great day to be a Tennessee Vol.

Eric Berry vs. Case of the Mondays

2008-12-08T15:52:00.000-05:00

UPDATE: Eric Berry vs. SEC Defensive Player of the Year
The '09 Heisman campaign continues.

The real story here isn't that Berry was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year. The real story is whoever didn't vote Berry for first team All-SEC, as his selection there wasn't unanimous. This person should be hunted down and stripped of their vote. I'm sure Berry's on it as we speak.

Check out the full All-SEC teams (Anthony Parker and Robert Ayers named to the second team) and the other SEC awards from the News-Sentinel here.

In the morning hours that I've been up and enjoying my day off today, thus far I've channeled my rage into a Facebook group (Eric Berry > Charles Woodson), and have spent even more time reliving the one good thing that we've got - thought you might enjoy too:

Eric Berry vs. Knowshon Moreno & Georgia

Eric Berry vs. 360 (from Losers with Socks)

Eric Berry vs. Vanderbilt

Eric Berry vs. 2007 (via Rocky Top Talk)

SESB on Bleacher Report: Interview on John Chavis & LSU

2008-12-04T16:10:00.000-05:00

Here's a link to an interview piece I did with Justin Goar, the LSU Community Leader and lead writer at Bleacher Report. Justin's also one of the best overall college football guys at B/R, so it was my pleasure to share my ramblings - and believe me, that's what they are - on the potential of John Chavis joining the LSU staff.

AOL FanHouse: Eric Berry for Heisman NOW

2008-12-04T10:01:00.003-05:00

Thanks to Your Mom and Wilt Chamberlain for bringing this to our attention this morning - Ray Holloman at AOL FanHouse has a well written article on giving the Heisman trophy to the most outstanding player in college football (I know, right?).

His vote goes to Eric Berry. Not next year. Right now.

Check out the article...consider this the preliminary buildup for when we're talking about this award for real next year.

275 days.

Let the Bodies Hit the Floor: Tommy Tuberville Resigns at Auburn

2008-12-03T20:46:00.002-05:00

If this hasn't been the most volatile college football season I've ever seen, I'm sure all the coaches who are somehow still employed don't want to imagine it. Here's the story at ESPN.com.

Here's a resignation that, in many ways and in my humble estimation, makes even less sense than Fulmer's. If you didn't believe the Vols and Auburn were really just the same team all season, this confirmed it.

The ESPN report names Mike Leach as an early candidate, surprise surprise. Either way, this makes Mississippi State's search an even bigger grind since better jobs just keep coming open.

Set the early over/under at SEC coaches who aren't safe next year at five. But I hope the pendulum swings back towards stability for the sake of all these guys, their families, and the realistic expectations of SEC fanbases everywhere.

Random Thoughts - Wednesday December 3

2008-12-03T15:37:00.000-05:00

Where 45 degrees in Ceres is a heat wave baby!

I'm over it
I've been trying to find ways to feel good about college football this week, as we're in the beginning stages of our relationship with Coach Kiffin. I'm trying to allow interest to overcome hatred in looking towards the SEC Championship Game. I'm trying to live vicariously through Virginia Tech up here as they prepare for the ACC Championship Game.

But neither of those two things make me feel any better about Tennessee. And though I think Lane Kiffin continues to do a good job in his three days as our head coach, reading about him tearing up the state on the recruiting trail doesn't exactly fill the void.

I thought about going back through my massive Vol Network DVD collection and reliving the good times, but there's too much Fulmer there for me right now. Eventually I will make my way around to the Perfect10n DVD box set, available now just in time for the Christmas rush for the Vol fan(s) on your list. But not right now.

Even playing the 2009 season on NCAA Football 09 on my XBOX360 is ringing hollow, because I'm pretty sure those Vols are a little better than what we're going to see in real life next year.

(EDIT: Maybe now even moreso that the Vols have apparently told 4-star Hampton, VA QB Tajh Boyd, previously a firm commit, that they're going in a different direction. Lane Kiffin: testing your trust early. Story comes from Boyd's father via Mike Farrell at Rivals.)

I'm also getting ready to start seminary, both online and on campus during the summer months at Asbury Theological Seminary outside Lexington, KY (where my theory that Kentucky fans are the second most annoying in the SEC behind Georgia will certainly be put to the test). Friends of mine who are a step ahead of me in that process have told me I'd better do any pleasure reading I want to now before it's countless pages of theology that I may or may not care about on that particular day.

But since there's really nothing that jumps out and grabs me in that realm right now, last night I picked up Dixieland Delight again and went back to that old familiar feeling of the Vols being good, reading in the first chapter about Clay Travis' experiences at the Tennessee/California game in Knoxville '06. It's a similar situation, then and now, off the heels of something so terrible and yet clinging to any reason to believe that we're still Tennessee and we're still going to compete on a national level right away.

In talking about Kiffin on Monday I called for patience. Then last night I read this on page 35:

When I went to college on the East Coast I was amazed that people at George Washington University basketball games didn't fill their seats well before the ball was tipped. I remember asking another student from the Northeast where all the fans were before one game and he looked at me like I was crazy, "The game hasn't even started yet," he said. The game hasn't started yet? Please. In Knoxville, this game started over nine months ago, when the 2005 season ended. The stadium is full.

That's right. The Western Kentucky game - or UCLA if ESPN wants some Labor Day action again - has started. 276 days. Let's go.

In the meantime, we still have Bruce Pearl
I have a shirt that just says ROCKY TOP on it that I'm wearing today, because we're channeling all this football angst into something positive. So thank God for Bruce Pearl, who's giving us a reason to beat our chests as Vol Nation even when the best the football program can do right now is Lane Kiffin's wife and a Saturday nine months away.

The Vols take on UNC-Asheville tonight (7:00 PM - SportSouth), who are playing without that gigantic dude and just got beat by North Carolina by 68 points. You can check out the game preview from The Bruce Ball Blog right here.

I will say that it was nice to see the voters in the college basketball AP poll actually do pay attention - my assumption was that the Vols were going to drop after losing to Gonzaga, but instead the voters rewarded them for the 2-1 weekend in Orlando by jumping the Vols two spots to #10. The Zags soar to #5 and perhaps rightfully so; we'll see them again for the rubber match in Knoxville on January 7.

This may be asking for it, but right now the Vols are clearly the best team in the SEC - every game I've watched our competition play, I've been unimpressed. I've seen Kentucky get owned by North Carolina, Florida lose to Syracuse, Alabama lose to Oregon...and even Memphis stumbled against Xavier.

This goes together with the following SEC losses:

- College of Charleston over South Carolina, 82-80
- Loyola-Illinois over Georgia, 74-53
- VMI over Kentucky, 111-103
- Missouri State over Arkansas, 62-57
- Mercer over Alabama, 72-69
- Mercer, Dayton and Northern Iowa all beating Auburn

The conference as a whole is down, and even if the Vols are retooling, they're the best team right now and that shouldn't change between December and March.

After tonight's test, they'll take a ten day break for finals before two tests in four days away from Knoxville: at Temple on December 13, and against #25 Marquette in Nashville for the SEC/Big East Challenge on December 16. From there, it's back to Knoxville for two lightweights (Belmont and Louisiana-Lafayette) around Christmas, before January strikes with Kansas, Gonzaga and the SEC opener.

The Vols were a bad half away from winning the Old Spice Classic, and hopefully the performance against Georgetown will continue to look good as the season plays on. Scotty Hopson needs to play with a little more confidence, and Wayne Chism continues to not quite be all that he should be in my opinion. Still, I've liked Maze, Negedu, Woolridge and Tatum much more thru six games than I thought I would. They're going to have some lapses along the way, but I still believe this Tennessee team can be very competitive in March. Hopefully the growth process continues tonight against Asheville.

Giving more attention to the in-state football team that deserves it:
No, not Alcoa High School.

The Titans took about two seconds to get over the Jets game last Thursday, demolishing the hapless Lions 47-10 to move to 11-1 on the year. This means only an 0-4 finish for the Titans combined with a 4-0 run for the Colts would keep Tennessee from winning the AFC South for the first time since 2002. Beyond that, the Titans have two games on Pittsburgh for the best record in the AFC (though they'll play each other in Nashville in Week 16) - home field advantage would obviously be great and should be attainable, but just getting the first round bye is the matter of first importance, and like the division it would take an almost total collapse to prevent that from happening.

I say that in part because the schedule brings Cleveland to Nashville this week followed by a trip to Houston, two teams with nothing to play for. The Browns are on their third option at quarterback (Ken Dorsey, ladies and gentlemen!) and may have quit on their coach. So the Titans should have the bye locked up in the next two weeks, and then play the Steelers with home field on the line. Then maybe we'll get to return the favor by resting our starters in Week 17 and letting Indy slide in the playoffs this year.

The makeup of this team, especially on offense, continues to amaze me. Kerry Collins is just coming to work every week, completing around 60% of his passes with a 9-4 TD/INT ratio. He's doing this in a lineup where the top two pass catchers are still the tight end and the tailback.

That tailback, Chris Johnson, will get to 1,000 yards rushing this week while continuing to make every single one of us look stupid. If you find a Titans fan who liked this kid when they drafted him in the first round back in April, you've found a liar.

And the defense continues to be the weekly high scorer on my 5-8 fantasy team: Cortland Finnegan has five picks while Chris Hope and Michael Griffin have four each. And Al Haynesworth has 8.5 sacks and is on pace to have the most destructive season as a DT since La'Roi Glover set the NFL record with 17 sacks back in 2000. The only better defense than the Titans when you crunch the numbers this season?

Pittsburgh, again: thru 12 games the Steelers have given up 170 points, the Titans 175.

Two old AFC Central rivals appear on a collision course for the AFC's best record.

You want no part of the Indiana Pacers
A complete afterthought who was given no mention of playoff contention by neither Jeff nor I in our NBA Preview is 5-10 against the rest of the league...and 2-0 against the Celtics and Lakers.

Last night they laughed off a 15 point 4th quarter hole, held Michael Jordan to three points in the second half, then capped it off with South Bend's finest, Troy Murphy, who tipped in a shot as time expired to give Indiana the upset win.

A tip of the cap to Larry Legend and Jim O'Brien, but the real story here continues to be the Celtics and Lakers. The loss last night drops the Lakers to merely 14-2, and LA is still outscoring the opposition by a dozen points a night on average. Meanwhile the C's are 17-2 and continue to dispose of the Eastern Conference's challengers on a weekly basis, humbling Orlando most recently. 17-2 is a 73-9 pace, which would make the Celtics the best regular season team of all time. I mean, these guys have to have something to play for the 80 times they're not playing the Lakers.

Actually, we make that point to say this: not so quietly, Cleveland is also off to a torrid 14-3 start (they lost to the Celtics on opening night). All anyone wants to talk about is where LBJ is going to end up, but don't sleep on the Cavs right now. I still think you're not being rational if you think this season is going to end up with anything different than the Finals matchup we saw last season, at least until we see how the trade deadline plays out, but LeBron's story will continue to be interesting from a number of angles throughout the year.

Oh yeah: Celtics and Pacers, tonight at the New Garden, 7:30. They play again Sunday in Indy. Look out...

The Braves fill a spot in the rotation
Because it's always nice when all five of my teams are relevant at the same time.

An Atlanta rotation that right now looks like Jair Jurrjens, Jorge Campillo and lots of prayer will now add Javier Vazquez to the mix after a six player trade with the White Sox. In the last ten years Vazquez ranks second in strikeouts and third in innings pitched, and I'm sure he'll enjoy the more comfortable confines of the National League.

This isn't the ace Atlanta wanted when they almost got Jake Peavy a few weeks ago, which suggests to me that they're still out there. If not Peavy, AJ Burnett's name has popped up in conversation, who would also be a welcome addition at Turner Field.

So far the Braves have managed to keep their lineup intact without selling the future for a big name like Peavy. They still are in need of an outfielder, and are continuing to work out the situation with John Smoltz and Tom Glavine. Mike Hampton signed with the Astros this week, and I wish him all the best. Tim Hudson may be able to be counted on around September next season, which would be a nice bonus if the Braves were still in contention then.

The Vazquez deal isn't overly flashy, but I like it for Atlanta and so far Frank Wren has kept it together for an organization that would very much like to be playing in October again. Stay tuned...

From the Big Orange Roundtable: Helping a Child in Need

2008-12-02T15:13:00.000-05:00

Third Saturday in Blogtober is raising money and awareness for seven year old Caleb Gill, a little boy from south-central Tennessee who's battling a brain tumor. You can read more about Caleb, his family and his story at Third Saturday's site, where you can also make a donation to assist them with their medical expenses. They include a link to his Caring Bridge site where you can hear even more about what's going on.

Please take some time to check out his story, and support this family with your prayers and anything else you're able to give. We trust that God is with Caleb and all of us each step of the way, and hope you'll join in the journey with them.

Moving Forward: Lane Kiffin

2008-12-01T17:26:00.000-05:00

One of the most true things I know in life is that people will see what they want to see.

If you want to be negative today, you can use numbers like 33 or 5-15.

If you want to be positive, you see that 33 a little differently, and tack the word "experience" onto the 5-15 mark in Oakland.

Either way, as the 2008 season is officially put to bed and all Vol fans turn towards 2009 with literally the longest offseason in program history in front of us, we have to realize a couple of things.

One - putting Lane Kiffin over to the side for a moment, wasn't 2008 as bad as it's ever going to get in many ways to be a Tennessee Vol?

A team with championship expectations went 5-7. The games they won were against UAB, Northern Illinois, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and Kentucky - nothing you'd write home about. The Vols fielded the worst offense in the modern history of the program that was literally unwatchable for many who just stopped coming to Neyland Stadium.

A Tennessee legend was painfully forced out after 35 years of service to his university, and a head coaching career that included a National Championship.

And Saturday night, one year after we were there in the Georgia Dome, the SEC Championship Game will feature #1 Alabama vs. #2 Florida, winner goes to the BCS National Championship Game.

This season has been in the depths of despair.

Three weeks ago the downward spiral stopped, at some point during the off week between the loss to Wyoming and the season ending wins over Vanderbilt and Kentucky. Beating our annual whipping posts doesn't signal that everything's going to be alright, but it certainly didn't make it worse.

And seeing Phillip Fulmer exit the field victorious - and with a smile on his face - helped me things more okay, at least for me.

We can all agree that 2008 was a disaster. And I will probably go my whole life without seeing a more difficult season on a holistic level than this one for the University of Tennessee. I certainly hope so.

But two - understand that this makes life very much easier for Lane Kiffin.

You'll see what you want to see. If you loved watching Kiffin channel Jim Tressel in the press conference today by talking about beating Florida next year (and astute fans will remember that Tressel's Buckeyes went 6-6 in his first season...but did beat Michigan. And then won the National Championship the next year. I'm just saying.) - if you enjoyed the press conference, if you wanna get all "There's gonna be CHANGE!" crazy the way many have experience in doing from early November, if you're already talking yourself into an instant turnaround whether you hated Phillip Fulmer or not...

...remember that Dave Clawson and Buzz Peterson won the press conference too. Then remember that the Clawfense was built up from that day until it hit the field in Los Angeles. Then remember where we are now.

The press conference is meaningless in September. And September is what counts.

The only thing I remember about Bruce Pearl's press conference was him saying that a number of guys had walked thru that door in the last few years and walked out 3-4 years later because they didn't get it done, and that if he didn't get it done he'd be walking out that way too.

Bruce Pearl didn't win us in the press conference. He won us in Austin, Texas. And he's been winning us ever since.

So whether you're already talking smack on the message boards, or if you're still clutching your autographed Phillip Fulmer picture close to your heart (mine's on my bedroom wall in my parents' house) - don't get pulled too hard towards love or hate based on what you know in 36 hours about Lane Kiffin.

If you're not sold on/talking yourself into Kiffin yet, that's okay. If we win, we'll all be on board. If we don't, we won't.

But no matter your personal feelings on Kiffin at this point, do understand that this is a very good time to be the new head coach at Tennessee.

Literally speaking, if the Vols go 6-6 next year, it will be an improvement.

The expectations we've built here and the bar that Kiffin referenced still exist. But don't let the pseudo-joy you might be feeling right now overshadow how bad it felt to go 5-7 this year. And don't let your disagreement with this hire get in the way of understanding that we have lots of room to improve.

If Kiffin goes 6-6 three times, he'll be walking thru that door too. But we don't know the full direction this program is going in. Right now, all we know is that we've just been through the most difficult football season of my lifetime, and we've got a young new head coach who can't possibly take us through something more difficult next time around.

There is plenty of room for this to get better.

And we'll see. I personally like to be positive. So when Pete Carroll was on SportsTalk today and called Monte Kiffin "the best defensive coordinator of any lifetime", I liked that. The fact that Steve Spurrier is already complaining about Kiffin's recruiting...I like that.

I like that Kiffin is straightforward. I think he's funny - especially when he pulled a Chandler Bing non-smile every time they tried to take his picture - and I think that 100% of the returning players on offense will be more bought into his system than they were Dave Clawson's.

Competition is good for everybody. So I think an open competition across the board makes the necessary effor to put the best players on the field. I liked that.

And I liked the respect he paid to Phillip Fulmer.

Ultimately, we'll see. Right now, I'm on board with this guy because he's our head coach. And every single other Vol fan should do likewise. This includes the ones who jumped off the ship just because they didn't like Fulmer.

We've woken up from a nightmare, no doubt. We're nine full months -and then some - away from tasting the proof no matter how your pudding looks right now.

We got a glimpse today. We'll continue to do so in recruiting, in filling out the staff and in spring practice. And as the passionate football fans we are at Tennessee, we'll enjoy the build up of that whole process.

Time will tell if this nightmare turns into a dream. But right now, no matter how you feel about Lane Kiffin, he deserves our support.

It's a new day for the University of Tennessee. You might be dancing in the streets. You might be cursing Mike Hamilton.

Wherever you are, remember what we've just been through, and then realize that this is a great opportunity, both for Kiffin and for Tennessee.

And realize we'll spend the next nine months seeing what we want to see...before the on-field result tells us everything we need to know.

It's going to continue to be interesting, that's for sure.

For what it's worth, he's got my support.

Go Vols.

Thanks, Phil

2008-11-28T01:12:00.000-05:00

It's after midnight and I'm sitting in front of this computer screen, full of turkey and trying to appreciate the moment.

I know what's coming. But now that it can be counted in hours and not days, it's catching up fast and I don't know how to handle it. It's approaching like Christmas, and likewise it too will be gone in a hurry. And I know that I want to say something and I wish I had more time to say it.

Because I also know that tomorrow afternoon our basketball team will play its first really big game of the season, and after today's win over Siena we're all looking forward to Georgetown even more. And then I know that Saturday will be Kentucky, and we'll watch and feel the emotions all day long.

It's Phillip Fulmer Appreciation Day. But Saturday will turn into Sunday, where Fulmer will chime in one last time on his television show. And then Sunday will turn into Monday.

And Monday, odds seem favorable that we'll have a new head coach.

And Monday will be about the new guy, about his age and his father and how quickly we can all get a certain YouTube video up on our blogs if he brings one particular ex-Ole Miss coach with him. Monday will be December, and since we're not going bowling it'll turn full steam towards recruiting and basketball. December will lead to 2009, which promises the fresh start that we all want.

Which means that in less than 48 hours, Phillip Fulmer won't be our football coach anymore. And in less than 72 hours, we'll have to start talking about something - and someone - else.

Fulmer gets one day on Saturday, and then he's gone. And there won't be any time for fond remembrances or anything else special afterwards, we'll move on with the new guy the way that life and football do each off-season.

So as I sit here and try to figure out how to write about Fulmer for the last time as our head football coach, and as I continue to realize that next time I'll be writing about someone new and a new season with no time left to look back...there's so much to say and so little left to say it in.

I was 11 years old when Johnny Majors had heart surgery. Being from Knoxville the Vols were always my team and thus they always had my support. And when you're a kid, it's different.

I loved Coach Majors simply because he was our coach. When the Vols started 0-6 in 1988, which was really the first year I went to every single home game with my Dad, my grandparents mailed Johnny a card with some words of encouragement and some small bit about how much their grandson loved going to the games. Coach Majors wrote back with a personal note that said "Tell your grandson he's my kind of guy" and a t-shirt. We still have it somewhere.

Phillip Fulmer was just a couple years older than I am now when he started coaching at Tennessee. And it's been an interesting experience to think about someone in their early 30s as the new head coach at Tennessee - I trusted Johnny because I was a kid. I trusted Phil because he earned it. This new kid...

I remember the still-young Fulmer getting praise for calling a screen pass in the 4th quarter in South Bend in 1991. I remember Coach Majors going down and Fulmer's authentic smile on television when he was going to be the man to lead the Vols thru the T as the interim coach.

I remember two spectacularly surprising weekends in September that year, where the Vols first went to Athens and upset Georgia's best team of the 90s, then came home in the downpour and slaughtered Spurrier's Gators. We wouldn't enjoy that pleasure again for six years.

I remember as a child watching the whole Majors/Fulmer saga unfold, still feeling the heartbreak from the three straight losses to Arkansas, Alabama and South Carolina. I trusted Johnny Majors because he was our head coach. And when the mantle was passed to Fulmer, I trusted him for the same reasons.

I became a teenager, then a college student, and finally a man during Fulmer's tenure. As I got older, the blind faith in the head coach faded away (contrary to what you may still believe if you read here regularly). But it wasn't replaced with cynicism - it was replaced with an even deeper trust. Not just because he was our coach. But because he earned it.

Every Thanksgiving my family sits around the table and we go around and say what we're thankful for (except for tonight, because 2/5 of my family are too sick to be thankful right now...gotta love the stomach flu at Thanksgiving).

I remember September of '93, with Heath Shuler. I remember just totally destroying Georgia 38-6, and thinking for the very first time as someone barely old enough to understand, that Tennessee might have something special working. Thanks for that.

Thanks, Phil, for winning a living room in Louisiana later that year. For making the best of Jerry Colquitt's bad situation and turning it into four years of a guy who was so good, more than half of the people in Knoxville blindly followed him to his NFL team instead of staying true to the in-state one.

Thanks for giving John Chavis the job as defensive coordinator, even when he gave up 62 points in his first big game against Florida. Thanks for sticking with him for 13 years, no matter what others might say. The fact that The Chief will go off into some sunset almost totally uncelebrated is perhaps the greatest tragedy of this whole mess. And I'm fully prepared to defend that statement, so bring it on.

Thanks for setting us free from Alabama.

Thanks for October 1995 in Birmingham. Thanks for the next fall in Knoxville and letting all of us who didn't see it with our own eyes the year before enjoy one of the best nights in Neyland Stadium history when Jay Graham went racing down the sideline. Thanks for letting me walk down the concourse at Bryant-Denney Stadium in 1999 with all five fingers of my right hand held high. No matter how things have gone at the end, you leave Bama on the losing end of your reign, definitively.

Thanks for the way you handled yourself when we couldn't beat Florida. For every time you went to the podium and took the blame for a loss, from the Gators in the mid-90s to UCLA this year.

And thanks for finally beating Florida - because once was all it took.

Thanks for the way you recruited and coached up well enough to allow two untested sophomores to carry our offense to a National Championship in 1998, and two true freshmen and an LSU reject to carry us to Atlanta in 2004.

Thanks for keeping our program off probation during a span that many others can't say the same.

Thanks for Orlando in January '96. Tempe in January '99.

Thanks for beating Michigan senseless, because we all know you wanted to.

Thanks for sending Steve Spurrier out of Gainesville with a loss, even if he got to return the favor a little bit this year.

Thanks for that time on the Vol Walk in 1998, before the Florida game, when you walked past me and I said "Coach!", and you turned towards me, and the total seriousness in your eyes both scared the hell out of me, and let me believe that we might actually have a chance against these guys.

Thanks for letting John Ward go out on top.

Thanks for every Sunday morning you sat next to Ward and then Kesling when it was hard because we didn't play well. For every phone call you took on Vol Calls from people who wanted you fired, even when it was justified.

And thanks for last year, when you helped us appreciate each win a little more, and showed us some of that old backs-to-the-wall magic one more time. Thanks for letting me spend five December Saturdays in the Georgia Dome, and for letting me walk out with some new merchandise twice.

Thanks for 1998. For helping my senior year of high school be that much more special. For letting me and my Dad go to all the games together one more year before I went to college and his back betrayed him, and letting us see you come home a winner every single time. For that moment in Tempe when some guy I barely knew grabbed me and told me through tears that he'd been waiting his whole life for this, and that I was only 17 and I'd better appreciate it.

Thanks for making Tennessee good enough that I can lay here at 12:49 AM and write about them, and that enough people care enough about them to read it.

Thanks for giving your all for Tennessee today...even now, when we've decided that your all won't be enough anymore.

This is it.

Nobody loves writing about the last 20 years of Tennessee Football more than me. I incorporate modern era history into almost everything I write about the Vols. Because for me, after suffering through that first year as a kid at 5-6, Tennessee was great just about every single year afterwards. The Vols being great is just about all I know.

This year has been terrible. Next year, we'll wait and see what happens. Maybe it'll get worse, maybe it'll hover in mediocrity, or maybe the new guy will help turn it around.

But no matter what...for me that whole era is now over.

I can't go back and talk about how this reminds me of something from the 90s, or how a defense plays like a Chavis unit of old...not in the same way, not anymore. We're turning the page on Fulmer...but we're also turning the page in Vol history. We've celebrated ten years since our National Championship, and it's been great...but now there will be a disconnect between what happens next and what's come before. Because Phillip Fulmer's fingerprints won't be the dominant image on the next Vol teams.

It's exciting, turning the page. No one believes that what we've seen this season is acceptable, and we've made the change accordingly. And come Monday, we'll all be ready to talk about the new guy and where this thing could go. Hey, I'm ready for tipoff of the Georgetown game right now.

It's a forward moving business and a forward moving life. The now thing leads to the next thing. And we understand that.

And so right now, for one last time, we raise our best to Coach Fulmer. There'll be no more working like heck, no more hand clapping, no more grimacing. A new page is turned as the old chapter ends.

Many of us will be there Saturday. Some can't make it in town but will see him off from their couches. Others have chosen to stay away for their own reasons.

For me, I can't be anywhere else.

I'll be at the Vol Walk for the first time in years. I'll stay 'til the end regardless the score. I have to see him go - it's all I know to do.

And he'll go, and we'll go on. And in a few years, hopefully when things are going well, they can release a Best of Johnny Majors DVD, so they can then release a Best of Phillip Fulmer edition. And time heals.

I'm excited about the future. I'm still upset this season turned out as inexplicably bad as it did.

But right now, I'm thankful for our head coach. Phillip Fulmer deserves our thanks.

For all the wins. For all the players. For all the memories.

And for doing it the right way. Fulmer himself would probably tell you he has a greater desire to be remembered as a man than as a football coach. Phillip Fulmer the coach and Phillip Fulmer the man did it right at the University of Tennessee. When the Alabama fans say otherwise...it's because they're Alabama fans.

Fulmer took us to the promised land and brought home the prize as his greatest on-field accomplishment. There are more great wins and great memories for the Vols under Fulmer's tenure than most programs see in a lifetime. The 50 Best Vol Games feature we did here in 2006 and update annually bears witness to that. Fulmer was a winner, and we loved every single one of them.

But most importantly, both on and off the field, Phillip Fulmer was someone for this university, its fans, and the people of Tennessee to be proud of.

And he still is. And he always will be.

Thanks, Phil...for making it great to be a Tennessee Vol.

Mike Hamilton: "We have not offered the job to anybody."

2008-11-26T17:52:00.002-05:00

And round and round we go.

John Pennington: Lane Kiffin offered the job

2008-11-26T15:03:00.002-05:00

MrSEC.com, reported by John Pennington, is saying this afternoon that ex-Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin has been offered the job. This certainly goes along with all the chatter I've heard just about everywhere for the last 72 hours, and if true, is a hire that will bring with it questions and names like Ed Orgeron and Monte Kiffin, Lane's father who's currently at Tampa Bay.

Most believe the validity of this report, but I'm sure Tennessee has been/is working very hard to make the rest of this week about Phillip Fulmer, and deservedly so, while also having someone in place bright and early Monday morning to get this recruiting class back under control, and to move the program forward as soon as possible. So you still may not hear anything official until Monday, and I hope nothing takes away from Fulmer on Saturday. But right now, this appears to be the direction we're moving in at Tennessee.

Pearl to the Wizards? Not Buying It.

2008-11-25T17:42:00.005-05:00

Speaking of UT Basketball, check out this little nugget from the Charlotte Observer today:

I heard an interesting name Monday as a potential candidate for the Wizards job down the road: Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl. Grunfeld is a Tennessee alumnus and was also around Pearl when he coached Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Grunfeld was running the Milwaukee Bucks.

Come on. The Wizards? This reads like pseudo-journalism; my suspicion is that the author thought "Hey, the Wiz have a front office guy with ties to UT!" and made a story out of it. I just don't see the hardest working coach in NCAA basketball enjoying a hook up with today's pro athlete.

Anyway, false alarm. No go back to reading Will's preview of the Old Spice Classic.

Old Spice Classic Preview

2008-11-25T13:51:00.000-05:00

Thursday, Friday and Sunday from Orlando, eight teams will compete in one of the better early season tournaments college basketball has to offer this year, including four ranked teams and plenty of big name talent.

Here's a look at the teams and Thursday's opening round matchups (all first round games on ESPN2):

#12 Tennessee vs. Siena - 12:00 PM
The Vols are off to a 3-0 start with impressive wins over in-state foes who are all picked to contend for their conference championships. Even without Chris Lofton and several other contributors from last season's SEC Championship team, Tennessee has looked good by mixing their returning experience with new blood.

The Vols are getting what they needed and then some from returning big men Tyler Smith (averaging 19 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists per game) and Wayne Chism (averaging nearly a double-double with 11 points and almost 10 boards per game). The new faces have worked well at both ends of the floor in Bruce Pearl's controlled chaos system, led by juco transfer Bobby Maze at the point (9 points, 7 assists per game) and freshman Scotty Hopson (11 points per game). JP Prince continues to shine as the Vols' sixth man, and several other young faces have made key contributions. Sophomore center Brian Williams had 21 points and 12 rebounds against Tennessee-Martin.

Siena is best known around SEC country for dismantling a good Vanderbilt team in the opening round of last year's NCAA Tournament as a 13 seed. The Saints (as in Bernard) return all five starters from that team and are again favored to win the MAAC. They're 2-0 and receiving votes in the AP Poll after soundly beating Boise State and Cornell.

The Saints may not appear to have the size to challenge Chism and Tyler Smith, but they more than make up for it with experience and scoring: Kenny Hasbrouck, Edwin Ubiles and Alex Franklin are scoring 49.2 points per game between them from the guard/wing positions. Aside from the obvious experience questions in this matchup, a big question will be tempo: the Vols love to run and are built to do so, but Siena can also score in bunches that way. Teams that have tried to run with Bruce Pearl's Vols over the last three years have usually paid for it - if Siena can disrupt the pace just enough while still finding quality scoring opportunities for themselves, the Saints can easily make it two straight over ranked SEC foes. The tournament will be a great experience for the young Vols, but you have to hope that experience comes with some wins this weekend along the way too. A great opening round game.

#21 Georgetown vs. Wichita State - 2:00 PM
The Hoyas lost Roy Hibbert but replaced him with 6'11" freshman Greg Monroe, who put up 20 points and 8 rebounds in a big win over Drexel. Georgetown also won a closer-than-expected game against Jacksonville 71-62. Sophomores Chris Wright and Austin Freeman at guard also pace Georgetown's scoring, and they've been playing the same stingy defense they're known for so far this season.

Wichita State is 2-1 with wins over Florida A&M and Centenary around a three point loss to Missouri-Kansas City. The Shockers were a sub-.500 team last year that lost a lot of close games, and the opening round date with the Hoyas will be a big test.

#5 Michigan State vs. Maryland - 7:00 PM
They're largely untested, having faced Idaho and IUPU-Ft. Wayne, but the Spartans are the favorites in the Big Ten. This is an experienced team led by junior forward Raymar Morgan at 6'8", and the one-two punch at guard of Kalin Lucas and Chris Allen.

Maryland is 3-0 and has really drilled Bucknell, Youngstown State and Vermont by a combined 68 points. Junior guard Greivis Vasquez paces Maryland, currently averaging 22 points and almost 8 rebounds per game. The Spartans may be the highest ranked team in the field, but they may also face the stiffest opening test.

#9 Gonzaga vs. Oklahoma State - 9:00 PM
The Zags are here to stay, no doubt, and you know these names: Jeremy Pargo, Steven Gray, Austin Daye and Josh Heytvelt have led the way early for the Bulldogs in a 2-0 start. Even without a singular superstar or a true post player, this might be the best Gonzaga team we've ever seen. The versatility of Heytvelt and Daye combined with the overall experience and the savvy play of Pargo at the point (avering 9 assists thru two games) makes Gonzaga a Cinderella no more, but a team to be feared and respected regardless of the competition.

The competition in this case is Oklahoma State, 4-0 with wins over Texas-San Antonio, North Texas, Tulsa and Grambling State. The Cowboys have scored 90+ in their last three games and have five players averaging double figures, with three players (James Anderson, Terrel Harris and Byron Eaton) scoring more than 17 per game. The opponents will get much more challenging for the Cowboys this weekend, but they've shown the horsepower to keep up on the stat sheet.

Each team is guaranteed three games in four days, playing Thursday, Friday and Sunday. The loser's bracket games Friday and Sunday will be shown on ESPNU; the semifinals on Friday will be on ESPN, with the third place game and the championship back on ESPN2 Sunday night.

Who's gonna win? ESPN would love the chalk, I'm sure, with the bigtime semifinal matchups between Tennessee/Georgetown and Michigan State/Gonzaga. Wichita State seems the most overmatched in the opening round, and Siena is clearly the most dangerous darkhorse, but Oklahoma State and Maryland won't be gimmies either.

If Tennessee survives against Siena, they'll face an entirely different sort of challenge in dealing with Georgetown's pace and size with Monroe. This would be a great learning experience for the young Vols, win or lose. Gonzaga comes to Knoxville in January so I'd love to avoid them in Orlando this week, but even though Michigan State is ranked higher I'm not sure you don't consider the Zags the favorites in that half of the bracket to make the finals.

For all of these teams, who operate on the outside of that super-elite group in college basketball right now (which is really North Carolina, then UConn and Louisville, then everybody else), these games will provide experience and a bump in the RPI when spring rolls around. Any of the four ranked teams, plus Siena if they get hot, are good enough to win it.

For the Vols, beating Siena would make the weekend a win to me. It's good experience even if they go 0-3, though let's hope that's not the case. If you get to the semifinals, you'll face probably a good Georgetown team, and then even if you lose there you'll face another good team in the third place game - this young team needs to work through its growing pains here, much the way they did against Butler and North Carolina two years ago, and again versus Texas last season in November tournaments.

The Vols haven't won a tournament of any kind since the 2000 Rainbow Classic, so it would be something new if they did, aside from the huge accomplishment of beating good teams along the way. We've believed thus far that this is a team that's got to come together and grow, and they'll be battle-tested and ready by March. If that's true, they may take some lumps this weekend, but it's for the greater good. Focus on beating Siena, and then we'll go from there. No matter the outcome, we'll learn a lot more about this basketball team in the next few days.

Holy crap, we're linked at ESPN.com

2008-11-24T22:38:00.000-05:00

Says the amateur blogger who can't act like he's been there before because he hasn't.

ESPN The Magazine online has a story today on Donovan McNabb, discussing the potential end of an era in Philadelphia after he was benched on Sunday against the Ravens. In their story, they list McNabb's all-time greatest performances and mention the 1998 game between the Vols and Syracuse, and then link to my feature here at SESB as an "excellent recap" of that game, from the ten year anniversary piece we did earlier this year on the 98 Vols.

Cheers, all.