Event Details
- What: Tennessee vs. Louisiana-Lafayette
- When: Saturday, Nov. 3, 2007, time TBA
- Where: Neyland Stadium
- Cost: Not available
- Age limit: All ages
Tennessee Stat Book
Starting defensive tackle Demonte' Bolden and reserve tailback LaMarcus Coker have been suspended one game for a violation of team rules, Tennessee football coach Phillip Fulmer said Wednesday evening.
Neither will play Saturday when Tennessee play host to Louisiana-Lafayette at 4 p.m. for homecoming, however both are expected back when the Vols return to SEC play next week against Arkansas.
Fulmer declined to provide specifics regarding the suspensions, including when the violations occurred.
"That's all I'm really allowed to say about that right now," Fulmer said after announcing the suspensions following practice. "Those guys are important to us. We certainly hope to have them back and ready to go for Arkansas."
Coker, UT's leading rusher last season with 696 yards, has played in every game this season except for UT's season-opener at California, rushing for 169 yards on 45 carries with one touchdown.
Wednesday's announcement marks the third suspension for Coker since December, when the sophomore missed five practices in Knoxville leading up to the Outback Bowl.
He served a month-long suspension beginning in August for another unspecified violation of team rules before being reinstated prior to Tennessee's second game of the season against Southern Mississippi.
Coker's best performance of the season came against Arkansas State, when he rushed for 101 yards.
Senior linebacker Ryan Karl expressed disappointment when asked about his teammates' suspensions, but was not worried about any lingering effects.
"Of course you're disappointed, but you know they're going to be back next week giving their all," he said. "They're two great players. We've just got to find two guys to make plays in place of them."
Senior J.T. Mapu will start in Bolden's place opposite Dan Williams at defensive tackle.
Bolden has started all eight games this season, recording 20 tackles, four tackles for loss and a sack.
Coker's biggest impact this season has been as a kick returner, where his 26.5 yards-per-return average ranks fourth in the SEC.
True freshmen Lennon Creer and Denarius Moore are options to replace Coker on kickoffs alongside Dennis Rogan.
Creer (knee) and fellow tailback Montario Hardesty (ankle) should be ready to play behind starter Arian Foster against the Ragin' Cajuns.
"We're in pretty good shape, really," Fulmer said. "Lennon has really responded well to treatment, and Montario looks like he's going to be fine, so that's a plus for us."
Depth shouldn't be much of a problem at defensive tackle, either.
Mapu has played in all eight games, as has Walter Fisher.
"They're both great backups," Karl said. "All of them probably play the same amount of snaps every game. With his (Bolden's) physical presence on the field, we're going to miss him. But we have a whole bunch of experience there, so we won't be hurting that bad."
Coker and Bolden will spend the remainder of the week practicing with the scout team, as they did Wednesday.
Drew Edwards covers University of Tennessee football. He may be reached at 865-342-6274.
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Comments » 211
DenmarkVol_aka_Mbumburu writes:
Uh...I thought Lamarcus Coker had used up his last chance. What's up with this?
wyomingvol writes:
oooooopppssssss....
TommyJack writes:
dicipline with an iron fist
Ironcity writes:
Must be for missed classes or something coniserd minor . My guess is the penalty is a little strong for the crime but Fulmer wants to send a message.
jhenson#377512 writes:
drugs is the rumor circulating in Atlanta. I'm not big on judging people before the facts are known, but if there's any truth at all to it, then I imagine Coker for sure has exhausted his supply of "wrist slaps".
callen825#321558 writes:
Great...we do not want to look past this team, and now we have 2 players inelligible. I also feel that if there are suspensions, we should be made aware of the reason(s).
My dos centavos
Mclevenger1682 writes:
jwraymond.... Who are your sources? Can you tell me it was drugs for sure? Is he getting his drugs from you??? No???! then shut up already. Your pissing everyone off with you constant whining, My wife does not whine as much as you do. You and all your littlew cronies are jokes!!! I bet your a republican too!!! Move to Alabama and leave us True Vol Fans alone!!!!!!!!!!
kdawg001#591531 writes:
not drugs cause chocker the smoker would be gone
Mclevenger1682 writes:
No I am not a Fulmer fan, I am A fan of the Vols, hence I am a fan of their coach! We are still in contention for the SEC east. We can still get to Atlanta. This is just like 2001 except the roles are reversed, LSU is now the Fav and we are the underdogs trying to knock them from the NC game. Can you say REVENGE??? Why is it so hard to just be a fan, great teams have down years. Just look at ND, MICH, FSU, and all the Years Bama was down.
inquiry writes:
it's probably class time this time.. Coker couldn't graduate from West High School
Mclevenger1682 writes:
Raymond- If we do not make it, I will come on here and publicly call for Fulmers head on a stick. As well as appologize to you. Deal??? But If we do make it, you stop the Foolmore phooey or whatever else for at least a week????
Mclevenger1682 writes:
Raymond- If we do not make it, I will come on here and publicly call for Fulmers head on a stick. As well as appologize to you. Deal??? But If we do make it, you stop the Foolmore phooey or whatever else for at least a week????
Mclevenger1682 writes:
Raymond- If we do not make it, I will come on here and publicly call for Fulmers head on a stick. As well as appologize to you. Deal??? But If we do make it, you stop the Foolmore phooey or whatever else for at least a week????
Greg18 writes:
I suspect Coker will eventually exhaust all of his chances, but Bolden concerns me. This guy has big time potential and we are very thin on the d-line as it is. I hope he gets it together and stays out of trouble. Seems like when he signed with UT I read about how his character was as good as his football talent. Anyone from Chattanooga know about his high school days?
jhenson#377512 writes:
I'm a Republican Mclevenger 1682, wtf does that have to do with anything? I'm amazed at the manner in which some people lash out when someone else disagrees with them about "a game".
Mclevenger1682 writes:
That was just a joke. That actually had nothing to do with it. Sorry that should not have been said. Your right I do not agree with you. I think we still have a shot at a BCS bowl. I just get tired of hearing peopl blame Fulmer for everything. I have never been a fan of blaming the coach if a team does not play well. EXCEPT for Buzz Peterson. He didn't live up to his teams potential. The coaches can't tackle, throw, catch or run. If the Players do not execute then it is the players fault.
jhenson#377512 writes:
tngeoff...WELL DONE !
footballrules writes:
I have real sources...it's almost always a drug proplem...Fire Fulmer!!!
Mclevenger1682 writes:
Just to burst all of your little thoeries;
lets say i am coaching a little league baseball team. I have 4 asmatic kids two kids never before played sports and one kid who eats the outfield grass. If those kids lose every game, Is it because I am a bad coach???? or is it becasue my players aren't the best?? I do not buy the whole coaching argument one freaking bit. It is the players that are overrated. Name one starter, other than Offensive line that will start in the NFL???? Remember Meach, Swain, Smith??? How are their NFL carrers going???? Thought so? Oh or what about Clausen? Or even the Great Tee Martin. I can name the Vols playing great in the NFL on one Hand!!!! Not the Coaching, it is the Talent.
westtnvol#518878 writes:
It doesn’t matter why or what Coker did. Nor, do we need to know what team violation was violated. If Coker continues to be a problem PP needs to call him down.
Now before the hater/negative crowd starts on me, I AIN’T HAPPY with the staff either.
Discipline is one of, if not the biggest problem the football team has. Both on and off the field, there is not discipline. This is not a problem that only UT has, but lots of programs in the country are plagued with players that are in the “gang” and trying to play ball too. Priorities are out of place, and what should be the top priority, turns out to fall behind the peer-pressure of a gang, or frat house.
My children are just as bad as anyone’s. They are spoiled and don’t appreciate hard work attaining reward. The world owes them something, and all will be ok. These players came from the same mold, and a school gave them a scholarship to play ball…… now “I am special”. They don’t appreciate the things available in front of them because of the “right now”.
But when one guy is continually the problem, the man in charge of the program HAS to discipline him or it will corrupt the program, like we saw with Kelley Washington….. Any of you guys remember how he hurt our program?
Let the coach take care of discipline, the team needs it
BigManVolFan writes:
Lamarcus Coker=Reggie Cobb...But Cobb got booted on like his 3rd strike...Coker must have something on Fulmer and his cronies....Hang it high up there if you have it Coker....Strikes 9-20 will come during the offseason and through next year!
dlight writes:
kick smoker coker off team,,,8 strikes out,right?
BigManVolFan writes:
Mclevenger1862-
That was probably the dumbest post I have ever seen on here....The NFL and College are two totally different levels of play...A kid can play All-American ball during college and not make it at the Pro level...Just like a kid can be a third stringer all his college carrer and all of the sudden burst into the the NFL limelight. EX: See Willie Parker of the Pitt. Steelers. He rarely got to play at UNC and now is a starter in the NFL. Or just look back at some of the recent Heisman Trophy winners Jason White, Eric Crouch, or Troy Smith??? How many of them are on NFL rosters?
Before you go running off at the keyboard think before you type!
1volk-nowi-tall writes:
What insight we could all gain if the posters would tell us every little detail of their teen and early twenty years. Would we find any DUI's, any tokes, any disturbing the peace matters in their pasts? This thing will play out and we will all know more about it when it does. What good does posting such slanderous allegations do? Who among us is entitled to know what these problems are when these young men have some privilege of privacy in matters relating to their status as students? We can't find out anything that we are entitled to know from the present administration in D.C. Why should we worry about these matters until they are publicly aired? Which, by the way will be long before we get any answers from D.C. It is not an excuse, it is a fact, young people, you and me included, make stupid decisions and we sometimes have to pay the consequenses for them.
cphil writes:
Mclevenger1682, it's the coaches job to teach the players to use their abilities and prepare them for games. Neither of which is being done well by the coaching staff. Look at the lack of fundamental play from the UT players. Missed tackles on defense, missed routes/assignments on offense, etc.
It's the coaches job to prepare a game plan, and make adjustments accordingly during the game. Look at the last game as a prime example of that failure. The players don't just go out on the field on a given saturday and "play it by ear" like a game of flag football at the city park. (Although it does look that way a lot lately.)
It's the coaches job to get the team fired up for the games. Look at the lack of enthusiasm on the sidelines during any game this season to see how that's not happening.
We have the talent. Maybe it's not as high overall this season as in previous years, but that's part of college football. It's the coaches job, no RESPONSIBILITY, to utilize what talent is there. That's not been done as it should have been for quite some time. This situation didn't happen overnight.
westtnvol#518878 writes:
mclevenger.....
as of 5/4/07
Jason Allen Safety Miami Dolphins
Rashad Baker Safety New England Patriots
Shawn Bryson Running Back Detroit Lions
Kevin Burnett Linebacker Dallas Cowboys
Chad Clifton Offensive Tackle Green Bay Packers
Cosey Coleman Offensive Guard Cleveland Browns
Dustin Colquitt Punter Kansas City Chiefs
Shaun Ellis Defensive End New York Jets
Troy Fleming Running Back Denver Broncos
Aubrayo Franklin Defensive Tackle San Francisco 49ers
Omar Gaither Linebacker Philadelphia Eagles
Deon Grant Safety Seattle Seahawks
Jabari Greer Cornerback Buffalo Bills
Chris Hannon Wide Receiver Kansas City Chiefs
Parys Haralson Linebacker San Francisco 49ers
Justin Harrell Defensive Tackle Green Bay Packers
Albert Haynesworth Defensive Tackle Tennessee Titans
John Henderson Defensive Tackle Jacksonville Jaguars
Travis Henry Running Back Denver Broncos
Anthony Herrera Offensive Guard Minnesota Vikings
Cedric Houston Running Back New York Jets
Mark Jones Wide Receiver Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Jamal Lewis Running Back Cleveland Browns
Leonard Little Defensive End St. Louis Rams
Jesse Mahelona Defensive Tackle Tennessee Titans
Peyton Manning Quarterback Indianapolis Colts
David Martin Tight End Miami Dolphins
Turk McBride Defensive Tackle Kansas City Chiefs
Tony McDaniel Defensive Tackle Jacksonville Jaguars
Robert Meachem Wide Receiver New Orleans Saints
Marvin Mitchell Linebacker New Orleans Saints
Rashad Moore Defensive Tackle New York Jets
Eric Parker Wide Receiver San Diego Chargers
Peerless Price Wide Receiver Buffalo Bills
Arron Sears Offensive Guard Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Rob Smith Offensive Guard Cleveland Browns
Donte' Stallworth Wide Receiver New England Patriots
Trey Teague Center New York Jets
Demetrin Veal Defensive Tackle Denver Broncos
Jonathan Wade Cornerback St. Louis Rams
Darwin Walker Defensive Tackle Buffalo Bills
Kelley Washington Wide Receiver New England Patriots
Fred Weary Offensive Guard Houston Texans
Scott Wells Center Green Bay Packers
Cedrick Wilson Wide Receiver Pittsburgh Steelers
Gibril Wilson Safety New York Giants
Jason Witten Tight End Dallas Cowboys
westtnvol#518878 writes:
mc
you got a lot of fingers!
BigManVolFan writes:
Mclevenger1862-
You said you could count on your hands the number of Vols in the NFL.....You must have some really huge hands!
westtnvol#518878 writes:
Sorry, didn't mean to get in that fued, but I couldn't help it
westtnvol#518878 writes:
I'm gonna post this again, because it got lost in that pitiful exchange...
It doesn’t matter why or what Coker did. Nor, do we need to know what team violation was violated. If Coker continues to be a problem PP needs to call him down.
Now before the hater/negative crowd starts on me, I AIN’T HAPPY with the staff either.
Discipline is one of, if not the biggest problem the football team has. Both on and off the field, there is not discipline. This is not a problem that only UT has, but lots of programs in the country are plagued with players that are in the “gang” and trying to play ball too. Priorities are out of place, and what should be the top priority, turns out to fall behind the peer-pressure of a gang, or frat house.
My children are just as bad as anyone’s. They are spoiled and don’t appreciate hard work attaining reward. The world owes them something, and all will be ok. These players came from the same mold, and a school gave them a scholarship to play ball…… now “I am special”. They don’t appreciate the things available in front of them because of the “right now”.
But when one guy is continually the problem, the man in charge of the program HAS to discipline him or it will corrupt the program, like we saw with Kelley Washington….. Any of you guys remember how he hurt our program?
Let the coach take care of discipline, the team needs it
jhenson#377512 writes:
Mclevenger1682...your last entry, about the asthmatic children playing baseball...that was another joke..Right? Please tell me it was. Call it a night friend. Take what little credibility you might still have and start afresh another day. That was bad...assuming it wasn't a joke. Which, I still think it was. I'm dying to give you the benefit of the doubt.
westtnvol#518878 writes:
(This comment was removed by the site staff.)
jhenson#377512 writes:
westtnvol...Just a follow up to your fine post. As far as active NFL players, we are only behind
FSU
Miami
Michigan
Ohio State
That's impressive. Whatever the root cause of the 7 year decline may be, it most certainly can't be attributed to lack of talent.
ULTIMATEVOLUNTEER writes:
why do people think fulmer is soft?? tn is in the news a lot suspending players. you dont hear a lot about other schools because a lot of coaches let things slide. things go on at every college...i think most of you fulmer haters didn't go to college and are naive.
jhenson#377512 writes:
ALLVOL...so how is today's balloting shaping up?
jhenson#377512 writes:
ALLVOL...Mclevenger has to be the front runner so far IMHO
westtnvol#518878 writes:
thank you jhenson
I would like a different philosophy from the whole staff. Smash-mouth football is ok, if it's accompanied with the energy of a wide open passing game, a danger.....
If PP could adapt to that, he'd be my coach. But I'm still afraid that he still has too much Major's in him. The game has past the current staff, unless they adapt. Adapt and they will go forward, don't, and they need replacing.
spencer1989#206886 writes:
Maybe he got suspended for not filling oyut the charts!!!!
westtnvol#518878 writes:
Mclevenger1682 must have had to turn in, he was so busy posting before. I bet he had to get up early tomorrow.
justbware#205283 writes:
Conveniently suspended right in the middle of conference play??!
Ralph_Crampton writes:
Hey Laz: All major teams have similiar problems, the Vols can't keep it quiet.
westtnvol#518878 writes:
Laz,
Do you know how many folks were at the SC game?
105,962
We seat a little over 102,000.
Wear your shirt, 105,000 plus folks will think "What an idiot!".
paulvol writes:
Coker is a total waste of talent these days. With his 4.4-40yd speed, size, stats of the past both in high school and last year, he should be the starting running back this year. He is just throwing it all away like a lot of other players not getting into trouble but not playing to their potential
DroopyDrawers writes:
John Adams and the News-Sentinel are letting Adams and staff ruin the U-T Program. Every college team has problems but Adams and his big tongue creates problems for the Vols. I wish there was another paper in Knoxville. Adams and his staff are killing the U-T Program and WE ALL, including me, are feeding right into.
GreerVol22 writes:
See, once word gets out that the party is a Crews house...its on. Maybe the hippie Democrat Mclevenger decided to join in?
More likely to be curled up with his Bill Clinton bobble head doll and his Ted Kennedy sized pajamas.
westtnvol#518878 writes:
tngeoff
I have watched your posts for a while, how long have you been a Vol fan? It appears that you are a short-term, trouble-making poster. U sure you're not a Gator fan, or maybe Bama or Vanderbilt?
westtnvol#518878 writes:
Always amazes me, real numbers.... they check out. Phone rang, had to turn in, mama called, something...
DenmarkVol_aka_Mbumburu writes:
Ha...remember hwo many chances Reggie Cobb got? Onterrio Smith?
Another "suspension" after Coker's "last" chance does not look Fulmer look like much of a principled coach, whereas in the past he has.
westtnvol#518878 writes:
VolCR,
So you heard the conversation?
You have no credibility, shut your spewing mouth, unless you know something pertinate to the topic.....
mbrumburu,
you don't have a clue, you have no idea what the situation is, let the current (might be different soon) coach handle the situation...
Go watch tv.
westtnvol#518878 writes:
grvol,
site your source. who told you Coker was on his last chance?
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