The Times They Are A Changin'

In my 38 years I have not seen many press conferences at Tennessee in which a new head football coach was introduced, and this is the first time I felt that it was the result of a true nationwide search.

Athletic Director Mike Hamilton traversed the county in his effort to find the man that would occupy the newly vacated head coaching position.  

Tennessee fans are taught from a very young age that tradition and history mean everything in Big Orange Country. Neyland Stadium, the Vol walk, running through the T, and singing Rocky Top are mainstays of Vol football that will be around for a long time.   

As Vol fans we can count on the Vol Network to continue it’s coverage of Vol football, we can be sure that Haywood Harris and Gus Manning will be in the press box for each game, and that Bobby Campbell will keep Shields-Watkins field looking pristine.  

There was one other ingredient that you could always count on as well, that Tennessee would look within the family first for its man to lead the football program. Not anymore, if there ever was a time for Tennessee to go in another direction in my opinion, it was now.  

Don’t get me wrong, coach Fulmer accomplished much on Rocky Top, but few would deny that the program seems to have gotten rather stagnant over the past five years. Despite three different offensive coordinators, the Vol offense still looks similar to the one it ran back in the 80’s with Walt Harris calling the plays.  

One of the most common complaints from Vol fans was that the Tennessee offense was predictable. Even the Georgia Bulldog defenders mentioned earlier this year that the UT offense tipped its hand regularly with certain formations and the inability to go away from its tendencies.  

Personally, I can’t find too much to complain about at this time. While watching the press conference, I was impressed with Kiffin’s determined demeanor and he certainly displayed maturity beyond his years in answering the questions posed to him by the media members in attendance.  

I was glad to see that Kiffin first reached out to the current players and showed respect to the coach that recruited them to Knoxville. I also took notice of the fact that the current players were told that they will have to earn their starting positions.  

Tennessee football is about tradition and history, but it is also about winning. The Vols have had a storied history with some great coaches patrolling the sidelines, but none of them were bigger than the program, not even Phillip Fulmer.  

Only time will tell if this hire is a good one. Mike Hamilton mentioned that his decision to hire Kiffin “just felt right” Mike made a great hire in Bruce Pearl, and hopefully his gut feeling this time is just as accurate in assessing the needs of the football program. No one can predict the future, but I like what I see so far.