Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer kept dropping hints about his freshmen quarterbacks. About their talent and potential. About how advanced they were for guys who have never played a down of college football.

He dropped enough hints to make you believe, "He's going to start a true-freshman quarterback." Then you caught yourself, considered the track record and wondered ...

The wondering ended Thursday evening. And Fulmer's track record took a beating.

He announced freshmen Erik Ainge and Brent Schaeffer were his co-No. 1 quarterbacks. Feel free to applaud.

Applaud the fact that Fulmer can recruit under pressure. In dire need of quarterbacks, he didn't sign just one talented prospect; he signed two.

Applaud the fact that seniority didn't prevail over talent. Ainge, with his strong arm and quick release, and Schaeffer, with his speed and elusiveness, clearly had more playmaking ability than veterans C.J. Leak and Rick Clausen. And this offense needs playmakers more than caretakers.

You also might applaud the fact that Fulmer didn't play it safe, that he was willing to gamble on a freshman. But that's a stretch. Leak, a senior, and Clausen, a junior, have so little game experience, you couldn't be sure they would handle being the No. 1 quarterback at UT any better than the freshmen.

Bottom line: If the freshmen are this competitive this soon, imagine how far along they could be by Oct. 9 in Athens, Ga., when the SEC East title likely will be on the line.

Fulmer could have delayed the decision. The Vols could beat UNLV in the season opener with any one of their top four quarterbacks or with the four of them alternating by the quarter, series or play.

This wasn't about UNLV. It was about the SEC. It was about Florida on Sept. 18, Auburn on Oct. 2 and Georgia on Oct. 9.

There wasn't enough time to prepare three or four quarterbacks -- none of whom has significant game experience -- for a schedule that's loaded on the front end. Now, the two freshmen can get that precious practice repetition.

The only thing wrong with Fulmer's decision is that he had to say "no" to Leak.

One reader accused me of being a "C.J. Leak hater" after one quarterback-related column. In fact, I admire Leak for his perseverance and poise in the midst of adversity.

Leak suffered a season-ending injury at Wake Forest; transferred to UT; sat on the bench for a couple of years; successfully petitioned the NCAA for another year of eligibility; and finally, as a sixth-year senior, had one last shot at starting.

The injury was bad enough. There also was the endless speculation surrounding the recruitment of his quarterbacking brother, Chris, who seemed destined for UT before opting for arch-rival Florida, where he quickly became a full-fledged star.

Through it all, C.J. kept plugging away -- working hard to improve, taking criticism in stride. And when told that Ainge and Schaeffer were the top quarterbacks, Leak volunteered to try linebacker or safety.

Fulmer's decision-making won't get any easier. The next choice is Schaeffer, Ainge or both.

A two-quarterback system is rarely successful, but there are exceptions. Florida State's Bobby Bowden has won with it. So has former Florida coach Steve Spurrier.

What makes the Ainge-Schaeffer combination so intriguing is the difference in styles. The 6-foot-6 Ainge looks like the prototypical NFL dropback passer. Schaeffer looks like a defensive coordinator's worst nightmare.

A defense can do everything right and end up all wrong against a quarterback as elusive and fast as Schaeffer, who looks as difficult to tackle in the open field as wide receiver Peter Warrick once was for Florida State. Remember how then-freshman quarterback James Banks scared SEC champion Georgia with his open-field running two years ago. It's easy to imagine Schaeffer, a more-accomplished passer, in the same role.

The key to making a two-quarterback system work is knowing when to play whom. But that's a decision for another day.

John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knews.com.