Strange: Sweet 16 parties work better

There's a new vision, a new direction, a new guy in a borrowed orange tie.

The queasiness of the press conference to get rid of the old guy - two weeks and one hour ago in this case - has been expunged by the adrenaline of the search to find the new guy.

Sure enough, there were good vibes emanating from Tennessee's introduction of Bruce Pearl on Monday.

But this is, ultimately, a hollow way to boost morale for your basketball program.

A better way would be to gather around the TV on Selection Sunday and cheer when Tennessee's name appears in a bracket.

More bracket parties. Fewer press conferences introducing new coaches.

No one knows this better than Mike Hamilton and Bruce Pearl.

In searching for a new coach - his first gut check as UT's athletic director - Hamilton set a premium on landing a candidate who could stabilize a program that is cross-eyed from five changes of vision in 16 years.

Pearl stuck with Division II Southern Indiana for nine years. He was genuinely torn this weekend over the decision to leave Wisconsin-Milwaukee after four years.

"He really gets connected to a place,'' said Hamilton. "That's good to have in a coach.''

But you only want coaches connected to your place if they're winning. Otherwise, you disconnect them.

Pearl has never been disconnected. He's won 79 percent of his games in 13 seasons as a head coach.

Before he said yes to the Vols, he had questions for Hamilton about why Tennessee keeps having these press conferences so often.

He wanted to know why Jerry Green was run off after four consecutive NCAA tournament seasons. He wanted to know why Buzz Peterson, a good man who considered UT his destination job, was cut loose.

"But maybe they've found somebody who wants to be here just as much as Buzz,'' Pearl said.

An oft-cited (though bogus) explanation for the low profile of men's basketball here is that it is dwarfed by the success of football and women's basketball.

Pearl not only isn't buying, he turned the theory around to convert those two alleged obstacles into inspiration.

Pat Summitt virtually created the Lady Vols and is gunning for win No. 882 tonight. Period. Phillip Fulmer is going stronger than ever after 12 seasons.

"Now I've got to win first, then I can be here for a while,'' Pearl said. "That's been the key to the success here, their longevity.

"That I knew they were looking for. They're not looking to do this every four or five years. I can tell you that.''

And so it goes. A new guy in a borrowed orange tie is rolling up his sleeves and digging in.

He promises an aggressive style of play that will make Tennesseans proud and be a pain in the rear end for opponents.

I've got admit, it sounds appealing.

"I told Bruce," Hamilton said, " 'you can be a hero here. You can be an absolute freaking hero.'

"There's no doubt in my mind.''

Tennessee's fans are by now a jaded lot. They might harbor one or two doubts, no matter how impressive Pearl's persona or credentials.

But they do want a hero.

Just give them some bracket parties to feel good about. Better yet, a run to the Sweet 16.

And maybe, just maybe, four years from now UT won't have to resort to another fresh-start press conference to boost morale.

Mike Strange may be reached at 865-342-6276 or strange2@knews.com.