Posted by VOLstuckINky on February 18, 2008 at 9:51 p.m. (Suggest removal)

we got a scholarship for you .... you'll fit right in.

Posted by mtnvol on February 18, 2008 at 10:04 p.m. (Suggest removal)

How can this be? According to many "experts" on this site, problems ONLY occur in Knoxville!

Posted by vol1994 on February 18, 2008 at 10:10 p.m. (Suggest removal)

and of course he will probably just be suspended for spring practice.. what a joke...

Not sure if this is correct but he has probably been hitting that wacky weed.

Posted by DekanGator on February 18, 2008 at 11:29 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Good one VOLstuckinky lol

Posted by Volfan1 on February 18, 2008 at 11:50 p.m. (Suggest removal)

It's Fulmer's fault. That's what John Adams said.

Posted by Pullingguard on February 18, 2008 at 11:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Stupid post Volstuckinky.. Lot of teams in SEC having similiar problems as UT with player discipline. Most are taking a softer approach than UT even with more serious charges...

Posted by nicksjuzunk on February 19, 2008 at 12:20 a.m. (Suggest removal)

It's true. There are problems in many programs. It is a sign of the times and for those who say "don't sign those types of players.", you are the same ones who will call for the coaches head when "those type of players" are running rampant on us.

Posted by Cleve on February 19, 2008 at 12:41 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Gee, John Adams, is this Fulmer's fault, too? Let's see isn't counterfeiting a felony?

Posted by bamacheats on February 19, 2008 at 2:20 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Stay the course!

Posted by D_in_Iraq on February 19, 2008 at 7:11 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Damn Fulmer...!

Oh wait, Perrilloux and Elder aren't Vols...

Oh well, I thought I would beat the naysayers on here to the punch and blame Fulmer. I am sure someone will say that it's a carry over effect because Fulmer recruited these guys.

If the aforementioned above get off with little or no suspension, not one damn person should say anything about Fulmer.... Besides, if it is true and Elder is charged with 1st Degree Robbery, then there is no possible way Saban can keep him, is there? And isn't this like the 3rd or 4th time Perriloux has been in trouble...?

Go Vols...!

Posted by pdhuff on February 19, 2008 at 7:14 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Pointing fingers at other schools doen't address what's got to be done at Tenn. Its interesting to be aware of other's trangressions but doesn't make ours any more correct. Lemmings willingly follow each other off an ice cliff, but they all perish in the end.

The time comes when one must stop mopping and fix the leak.

Posted by mparker on February 19, 2008 at 7:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)

NICK is correct. IMHO, you've seen nothing compared to what you will see in the next 5-10 years.

-coaches have to win, or be in the hunt, for NC's every year. 2 subpar years, and your program is in trouble.

-this is possibly the most spoiled, self-centered generation in history, even worse than the current 55-65 boomer bunch. The athletes are even worse. These kids are growing up with ZERO faith in authority, as authoricty seems to spend most of its time being hypocritical.

-these kids pick and choose their rules and lawas to live by, just as they see the adults of the world doing.

-the criminal justice system in this country is simply exploding in terms of capabilities and numbers. More people than ever are being caught, even though the percentages of people doiing 'bad deeds' most likely hasn't changed

-more and more teen unfriendly laws hit the books every year

-the media, now mostly the eqquivalent of yellow journalists on steroids, report every indescertion with great glee

-and, finally, us fans can't get enough of the trash on other people. we are like a bunch of damn old women gossiping.

So, there you go, the perfect receipe for some unhappy times in college sports.

Posted by johnlg00 on February 19, 2008 at 7:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Food for thought, mparker. The sense of entitlement that demands rewards without sacrifice and celebrates the appearance of success no matter the methods used to achieve it has permeated our society. Impatient fans who demand perfection in their teams and coaches and athletes who think they can do no wrong are two sides of the same coin. It gets harder to be an unashamed fan of college sports.

Posted by andefromtn on February 19, 2008 at 7:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Nope, young stupidity is a wide spread problem these days. Young people, men and women, piss away scholarships and opportunities without thinking. We have elevate the status of athlete to point that 18 to 22 year old folks think they can do what they want without consequences. It isn't solely a UT problem.

Posted by D_in_Iraq on February 19, 2008 at 7:58 a.m. (Suggest removal)

No one disagrees that work needs to be done at UT, but the point of my post was:

1) Other schools do have issues, and often time pale in comparison to what our student athletes are doing.

2) Some have indicated that the punishment Fulmer doles out is extremely light... Maybe, but my other point was Richt, Saban, Miles, and Meyer have had players comit criminal offenses rivaling or worse then UT, and they either take no action, make them do community service, or suspend them for the ever important games like Georgia Southern, Western Kentucky, etc... For Gosh sake, Perriloux has had 4-5 chances and suspended at least 3 times! Point being is that ALL of these coaches dole out similar punishments less then what You or I would do... But then again, I/we are not part of the 2-5 million $$ club (Uh, at least I'm not seeing it with military pay)... and who knows how we would act if we were used to a particular lifestyle.

3) Finally, it will be interesting to see how Saban handles the Elder case (if found to be true), for isn't 1st Degree Robbery a felony? Then again, if the young man goes to jail, Saban can kick him off the team and look great.

In closing, does UT have significant issues...? YES... Am I concerned... YES... Does Fulmer need to reel in the players? Absolutely! But for some on here to say that it is confined to UT, and that Fulmer takes the least action of any Coach is completely false. It is my opinion that the entire NCAA needs to get its act together, for this stuff seems to be the daily norm across campuses in the U.S. But then again, this is the way of todays media and the internet...

Hope ALL these schools reign in their Coaches and Players!

Posted by marc_ash on February 19, 2008 at 10:06 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Can't throw stones at this idiot since we have our own idiots to worry about.

Posted by marc_ash on February 19, 2008 at 10:14 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Listen people, stop saying "other schools have similar issues"...that line is tired and worn out. That almost sounds as stupid as a parent saying "Well, other peoples kids have similar behavior problems as my kids and....well, my kids behavior isn't as bad as other kids".

Do you folks really believe that mentality? Look, it doesn't matter what happens at other schools any more than it matters to most parents how others raise their kids. What is important is how if affects our own children. And, in this case, how if affects UT.

The first key is to quit placing a sense of normality on the issue. These offenses are wrong. Period. I don't care how Fl State, Miami, LSU, etc does it. That is there problem to deal with. These issues are wrong for the University of Tennessee, and it doesn't matter to me what other schools are having issues. Wrong is wrong.

UT also needs to start stepping up and reflecting they believe wrong behavior should be addressed. If that could somehow happen in our society, we may actually not have the largest crime rate in the world. Wow, what a concept.

Posted by D_in_Iraq on February 19, 2008 at 11:12 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Mark: Sorry some statements might sounds "stupid", but other schools do have the same issues. However, I will agree that we need to enforce penalties for improper behavior, and I believe Fulmer has done so. I agree there have been a rash of incidents, and too bad Fulmer cant watch these kids 24 hours a day. Sad part is that Fulmer has dismissed 2, suspended 2 others for games, made others do community service, set curfews, made them do extra work etc, just in the last month alone! Now I can promise you that if he would have dismissed them all, some on here would be blasting him for not having more sympathy for young kids coming from varying backgrounds, etc.

Finally, no one is painting a sense of normalcy on the issue, however, most people on the Fulmer side agree things need correcting and hope to see it to fruition, we just tend to take the glass half full approach rather then saying the end of time is near...

We'll see how this all turns out...

Posted by murrayvol on February 19, 2008 at 11:21 a.m. (Suggest removal)

pd, mparker,& marc_ash: Well said.

Sports at every level reflect cultural values. Our values revolve around money, power, and stuff. The more you have of those three (regardless of how attained) the more value you have in the eyes of far too many people.

There's a tipping point out there somewhere. We may be getting close.