Thank You Phil.

Ladies and Gentleman it is a new day in Tennessee football.  I will not sit here and say that I wanted Phillip Fulmer to be the head coach at the University of Tennessee after this season because I did not.  I am not numb to what Phillip Fulmer has done at Tennessee but, I am also not blind to his short comings either. Now as in every situation there are two sides to a story and many people will attack Mike Hamilton over the next few weeks with his decision.  What people must realize is that there must be a line between professionals and friends, sentiment and business, history and currency. I am a fan that realizes everything that Phillip Fulmer has done for the institution of Tennessee and I deeply appreciate it.  I respect Phillip Fulmer to the utmost and truly hope he continues to be a part of Tennessee football in some shape, form, or fashion.  Volball reflects.

Phillip Fulmer

This is a man who has given thirty years of his life to Tennessee coaching.  A man who has bled orange since before I was a thought in my mother’s head.  How do you honor such a legend?  He is a coach who will undoubtably go down in college football history.  There is no question has created a long measuring stick for his predecessor whomever that may be. 

Throughout his time at The University of Tennessee he has given Big Orange fans something to cheer about for many fall Saturdays.  One hundred and fifty wins, a feat that in my mind is simply amazing.  Who knows, maybe one day you will sit in Fulmer Stadium.  There is no doubt he has bred some amazing athletes, names like Peyton Manning, Al Davis, and Tee Martin.  There can be no value placed on what Phillip Fulmer has done for Tennessee.  

Some will go on to say that with six million dollars in his pocket he should be a happy man.  Those are the people who do not understand sports and what they give to their participants.  It was evident today that Phillip Fulmer’s passion in life was taken from him.  No amount of money can ever heal the end of your passion.  The man has given the better half of his life to Tennessee football. Most people can’t even say they have been cheering for the same team more than half of their life let alone ate, slept, and dreamt the same team.

Most importantly, what we as Tennessee FANs will never know is what Phillip Fulmer meant to the young athletes that wore the Orange and White.  We will never know the lessons, morals, and values that he instilled in his young players.  And that Big Orange fans is what you can not put a price on.  You can’t put a price on being a mentor to those young kids, being a father figure to young men, and a everlasting figure in their minds.  This was something I undoubtedly believe Phillip Fulmer brought to the Tennessee locker room. 

But as we look ahead, I personally I can not wait to walk into Neyland Stadium for both the Wyoming and Kentucky football games.  I can’t wait to hear Neyland Stadium rockin’ for Phillip Fulmer.  To think that I am going to be a part of something some monumental makes me feel truly blessed.  I respect Phillip Fulmer and I will be cheering for him harder than ever over the next month for what he has done for myself as a  fan and for Tennessee football.  And even if I have to pay the big bucks for these last two tickets I undoubtably will shell out the cash.

 

With today’s events you have to look back at Tennessee football tradition.  I consider Tennessee to be one of the most storied and tradition based football programs in the nation.  But what we should all realize is tradition didn’t always exist, there is always going to be the element of change.  Tennessee fans didn’t always walk into Neyland Stadium, the Vols once called Shields-Watkins Field their home.  General Robert Neyland never ran through the “T”. Volunteer legend Reggie White never took a stroll down the Vol Walk.  We have to realize we are entering a new era in Tennessee football, some things are going to change, and yet many will remain the same.

So today for myself is bittersweet, and although this is something everyone close to me knows that I wanted this it is still hard.  I wanted it in a different way, although I am not sure that way would have ever happened.  But, I can tell you that I don’t want to see anything but orange on coach Fulmer.  I want him to be a figure at the University of Tennessee until he walks away from sports all together.  Maybe I am being selfish but I would be upset to see otherwise.

But, through all this turmoil you can bet on one thing.  You can bet your bottom dollar this Volunteer fan will be in Neyland Stadium until the final tick over the next two home games, as I have been all season.  I am excited to give my all for Tennessee and our head coach Phillip Fulmer.  I have no doubt that the players are going to rise up and give all they have in Coach Fulmer’s remaining three games.  I have never wanted to win three games more than I do our next three.  I hope everyone will rally around such a great man and great football coach over the next month and say fairwell to a man who is no doubt a statue in Tennessee football history.

Go Vols.  Volball Out!

Thank You Phillip Fulmer!

Enough Said.

So Long Phil.

Well folks glad you could join the “sane train” this week, welcome aboard the fire Phil bandwagon.  We have been on the road for a while now and seem to be getting more crowded every week.  The trip will be bumpy but, smooth roads lie ahead!

There is no question that if you weren’t already picketing for the Phil Fire march you sure are now.  It is time to take notice folks.  Rivals.  What rivals?  Blown out by Florida and Alabama at home and barely survived against a Northern Illinois team at Neyland as well.  There is no question it is time for a new era in Tennessee football.  Hopefully after this weeks embarrassment against what used to be a bitter rival more Big Orange fans are screamin’ at the television. Volball reflects.

Again this week pregame and postgame I encountered a couple of folks and had some Tennessee football conversations.  And again I said running game, running game, running game.  If we couldn’t produce it we had no chance, and again we didn’t produce any yards on the ground.  To be exact UT only managed to post 36 yards of rushing.  And to be honest I can’t even point at the backs this week, again my finger points to a completely weak offensive line.  These boys must need to be called out every week to perform.  They simply were out worked again this Saturday.  Our inability to get push at the line of scrimmage costs us week in and week out.  And to think I thought our offensive line would be the strongest part of our offense preseason and would help inexperience at quarterback.  I look back and think of myself as a comedian.  And not only are they out worked they showed little intelligence again this week with multiple procedure and holding penalties.

Ladies and Gentleman if you weren’t aware Phillip Fulmer played offensive line at the University of Tennessee in college.  Now if your head coach can’t discipline a group of young men that played the exact position he did than what can he possibly have left in him.

Again this week I can not fault our defense all that much.  They held a extremely potent Alabama offense off for quite some time.  The fact is our inability to sustain drives and eat the clock on offense then tires our defense.  Then the defense begins to tire late in the game.  The fact is defense is about heart, and when it comes to heart the Big Orange defense have it but, with every field goal, missed field goal, and three and out they loose a bit of that heart.  The realize they are always fighting an uphill battle and they ware down.  John Chavis sits in front of the press and says I see the offense coming around, and I understand that because he has to but, the fact is they have not come around.

Daniel Lincoln, what happened to this kid?  He used to be consistent.  If the Big Orange didn’t walk away with six they almost always got the trey. Not this season, if the Vols can’t stuff it in the end zone there are more often than not going to be zero points put on the board.

The fact is Big Orange fans Tennessee football has sunk to an all-time low.  There was more Crimson in Neyland Stadium by games end Saturday than there was orange. And despite what I said earlier in the season I truly entered Neyland Stadium looking for a win, I wanted the win over the big rival.  No longer!  Until I here Phillip Fulmer say he is done after the season I will enter Neyland Stadium as a fan looking for change, and change comes with losses, so that is what I will look forward to every Saturday this fall, the loss.  If he announces his resignation I will attend every home game in his corner to say goodbye and thank you.  Until that announcement is made, change is my goal.  Volball Out.