Former University of Richmond director of football operations Kevin VanDerzee has been hired as Tennessee's director of high school relations, UT announced Monday.
VanDerzee, 30, served two seasons as Richmond's director of football operations under Dave Clawson, who left the Spiders last month to become Tennessee's offensive coordinator.
"It's a great opportunity for me and something I didn't forsee happening," VanDerzee said. "Dave (Calwson) took this job and we were in scramble mode at Richmond, and to be honest had put together a pretty good recruiting class. We were just getting settled when the phone call came that this might be an opportunity and it happened quick."
VanDerzee, a Ravena, N.Y., native, spent time as director of football operations at Central Connecticut State, where he also was fund raising executive director.
He also coached defensive ends at Albany, was gameday operations director for the Wilmington (N.C.) Sharks baseball team and was twice an intern in the NFL's New York Giants' player personnel department.
VanDerzee replaces Gerald Harrison, who left to become former UT offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe's director of football operations at Duke.
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Comments » 200
BluetickBlues writes:
This guy will get the job done. Has good ties to the Northeast and can bring in some good talent from an area we don't normally get recruits. I look forward to having him.
GOVOLS!
VOLnATL writes:
I am hoping some of you regular posters can help me understand something. I do not dislike any of the new hires and I am sure they can do a wonderful job. My concerns is this...there is no real diversity with these new hires. They are all from the same program, same thought process, etc. Seems to be the same ole trend at UT...inbreeding. Soon, CPF will be gone and the entire staff will be from Richmond. They will only have ties to the East and no real D-1 SEC experience. Why wouldn't we want fresh coaches from across the country for a variety of ideas? Is this smart hiring all of them from the same school?
Anyway, just an observation and an added concern for the future.
EDis4UT writes:
WHO?
"Director of high school relations"?
Is this a new position in the football coaching staff? Are is this the new PC way to say "Recruiting coordinator"? Who did this guy replace.. Matt Luke? I guess I'm confused.
rabidvol1998 writes:
Not a new position. I can't remember the name of the person he is replacing, but it's not Luke. This is a non-coaching staff position.
VOLnATL - I wouldn't worry about diversity. We have Rhichmond and Florida and proven coaches. They will either be good or not.
Ironcity writes:
Non story. No one new who Harrison was until he left the team and know will know who this guy when he leaves.
TommyJack writes:
IronCity: Harrison? The do-nut caddy? The head-set holder? Is that who you mean?
garyfmtn writes:
He replaced Gerald Harrison at UT.....Harrison was the fellow that was with Fulmer on the sidelines carrying the cord of his headsets.....Harrison went to Duke with Coach Cut....
Gary
Knoxville
TommyJack writes:
Gary: thnx. Sounds like good work if you can get it.
redneckerson writes:
Go (Spider)Vols. Let's see how it plays out come September.
EDis4UT writes:
LOL! So this "Director" and "other duties as described" job is to pick up the cords and wires so ol' Phil want trip over them. That is a great gig! You would think in this day and age of wireless commutation, this director's job should be reviewed.
Sure hope this is not front page in the KNS in the morning!
andy112382#209793 writes:
Non story? Ah, how something that not many people know the details of automatically makes it something not very importnat.....
Good point, BluetickBlues, hopefully he will provide new ties to a region we usually don't get a significant number of recruits from!
GO VOLS!!!
chrisw2967 writes:
Tenn will take the field this year with orange and white uniforms and a white helmet with a black spider on it. we will be known as the volunteerspiders
DenmarkVol_aka_Mbumburu writes:
VOLnATL, Vol in Marieta here..you make a good point. Would be great if we could have built a staff from all over the country.
But that doesn't seem to be the modus operandus for coaches as least when I've paid attention. They tend to hire their own guys from their own staffs when they take new gigs, don't they? Just seems to be the way they do things.
Cut did it when he came to UT and when he left for Duke. But thinking about it, did Spurrier do it when he went to SC? Did Saban do it at Alabama? What about the new Nebraska coach? The new Michigan coach? The new Arkansas coach?
Good question.
tenuscvol writes:
Welcome Kevin!...you will love the great state of Tennessee and the great University of Tennessee.
Couchdummy writes:
Plastic, I totally agree with your post!
GiveHimSix1387 writes:
http://www.sportsline.com/columns/sto...
Have fun reading this.
movol77 writes:
EDis4UT said, "Who did this guy replace.. Matt Luke? I guess I'm confused."
rabidvol1998 said, "Not a new position. I can't remember the name of the person he is replacing, but it's not Luke."
You might want to read the article before you post and save yourself some embarrassment.
GreerVol22 writes:
If the coaches are all on the same page it makes it easier to teach a new system. Otherwise it will be game 6 before they figure out how to and what to teach.
movol77 writes:
GiveHimSix1387, Mike Freeman's article is lunacy. How can you compare hundreds of rules violations by the head coach of one U. with the disciplinary actions of another U. head coach on its players? Freeman is a flame thrower.
If that's not enough, he likens UT to "Tony Soprano crime family" and then warns in his own bio "no jokes about the Garden State. Or he will sic Tony Soprano on you." I guess that's the way you think when you worked as a journalist in FL for much of your career. :)
TommyJack writes:
I think this hiring is evidence of Clawson's juice.
GiveHimSix1387 writes:
Totally agree movoll77.
I have never read a more ridiculous article in my life. I understand Tennessee has been on the bad end of some ugly player violations but how can Fulmer be the scapegoat in this situation. Why should Fulmer be fired for the bad decisions that these young men are making? I have never in my life seen a man with such great class get reemed day in and day out. I can't believe CBS allowed Freeman to release that article. I wonder if him and John Adams had dinner together tonight.
utchris writes:
Givehim6:
I bet that Freeman is a buddy of good ole John Adams. After taking some heat, he supplies Freeman with the arrest timetable (it says he got it from the KNS) and boom, the guy fires off a column. Wonder if we can get our resident columnist and UT fan Clay Travis to fire one back at him...if you have not read the Clay Travis blog at cbssportsline, it is worth your attention.
movol77 writes:
GiveHimSix1387,
Did you notice how Mike "Tony Soprano" Freeman says that the UT players are guilty of more than "just low-level misdemeanors. It's bad stuff."
With his analogy to the Soprano's you would think that people were "whacked." Freeman is not much of a journalist anyway. Since he has apparently been dismissed from other jobs for plagiarism, perhaps he now turns to creating incendiary tabloid fiction.
GiveHimSix1387 writes:
I admire CPF for making it this far. It would be easy for him to step down on everyone else's terms. On the other hand, it looks like this new hire is bringing in a whole new family at UT. If these new coaches can pull it off these next few years and get some wins then I think it will be very easy for CPF to step down and leave it to Clawson in company.
GiveHimSix1387 writes:
This is the first time I have ever read one of his articles and it will be my last. I laughed that some idiot would reach that far to hammer CPF. Anyone that has no idea what is going on at the University of Tennessee(including Freeman) would think Fulmers house contains the following:
Assault Rifles, Hand Grenades, 9mms, and a list of the next person he is ready to whack along with which player on the team he will choose to do the job.
I'm positive John Adams and this idiot are GREAT BUDDIES!
EDis4UT writes:
movol:
Sorry, I skipped the last two lines.
If Gerald Harrison walked in my house right now I would not know who he was. Unless he showed me some Coach Fulmer sideline footage on TV.
I live in Middle TN, I don't get to know the entire staff on a first name basis like you guys in Knoxville. LOL!
I always thought that person carrying the cords around was just some student intern.
gwvolfan1#234788 writes:
NO worries about Diversity. Peyton will replace Fulmer as HC in a couple of years. Reason for leaving NFL.He wants to say he won a NC at Tennessee and a Super Bowl. Get ready to pay the BIG Bucks!!!
andy112382#209793 writes:
rabidvolfan is probally John Adams screen name on this site.....so just ignore him and his bed buddy Freeman.
Whats the deal with homing in on Fulmer by these two? I believe there is a QB at LSU that has been in trouble several times yet still remains on the team.....why not go after Miles? Urban Meyer has had some questionable tactics in punishing players, I recall a specific DT that failed a drug test before the season, and sat out games on and off, somehow the games he sat out were only ones the gators were favored by 20+ points but got to play against us and other SEC foes.......you could surely find cases like this all around the nation. Was Peter Warrick kicked off the team at FSU with that whole shoe scandal I believe it was? Noooo.....but not a problem, the media loves Bowden.
dowdpat#654244 writes:
Let me reference this coaching position for you. You remember the kid in grade school who was put in charge of the class while the teacher had to talk to someone in the hallway and would report anyone who was bad, that is the exact description of this job. At least that's what Gerald did when I was in school in the late 90's (Glory years). Oh and on Saturdays he gets to carry Phil's headphones. So anyone suggesting that this guy will have any impact on recruiting or actual coaching is clueless.
UTvols12342000 writes:
fire John Adams!
jsc1973#233920 writes:
Go Tennessee Spiders! ;-)
VOLnATL writes:
mbumburu, rabid: thx for responding to the post.
khelton657 writes:
Just read the Freeman CBS article..nothing but one sided sensationalist BS. Freeman had some sort of self serving agenda. Fulmer is way too soft but he does not have a character problem. I'm not a Fulmer fan but this BS article just made me one.
rockytopjeff writes:
When are you guys going to realize that Coach Fulmer will be here until he is ready to step down. He is making some pretty significant changes to the staff and I beleive we will be fine. We have the same off field problems that all big time programs have.If you look,you'll see that Georgia, Florida, Bama, LSU, S. Carolina have all had ugly off field problems this year, The Britton incident was given special consideration because of the family history with the program. I have no problem with the way that was handled,If he kicked him off the team, he could just quit school, take the rest of the year off, party his ass off, and them get a job in the NFL. Fulmer is forcing him to face the music by staying in school, dealing with the embarassment, and growing from this. We are hiring people who evidently did well at Richmond and will do well at UT. Let's see what happens during the spring, and for now, give Fulmer the benefit of the doubt, I feel quite certain he's earned that much.
pdhuff#552644 writes:
TommyJack- would you have the nads to be fritter carrier for the Great One? You would have to coordinate the 2.4" aerials and be responsible for the two-finger (oops) flash. Big shoes. Pls consider. Large step for a would-be Boerne Wal-mart greeter.
Get in front of the mirror and say Stay the course 50 times. Ol' Freeman (CBS) is a ripper, is he not!
pdhuff#552644 writes:
Good article at sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story
Seen any of this on the Hill lately? Or even seen an article about what we're planning on defense? Any changes? Even from John Adams.
Might change the 10th in SEC, maybe not.
D_in_Iraq writes:
Great hire... This guy has roots to the Northeast, and is very familiar with the Central and talent rich Norfolk/VA Beach area just like Clawson.
For people that believe Gerald Harrison only carried around head sets, well, lets just say you are severely misguided. It was a bigger loss then people can imagine, and his/family ties to South Carolina were huge for the Vols in the past. Hopefully the new gent can assist us in similar fashion, albeit in a different part of the U.S.///
movol77 writes:
andy11282, did you hear the faint echo of a poser calling your name? Nah, I think it was just a little gas.
losvolsganan writes:
I hope this new hire helps us with our recruiting next year. We need it!
As far as the CBS Free(with-the-facts)man article, well... it IS CBS, as in...
CBS = consistently bull splat
C-BS and hear it too...
They are just fanning the flames lit by Adams, to try to keep it alive. The best fire extinguisher Fulmer can use will be a BCS bowl win next January.
Too busy today to bother bashing the FDS trolls with facts. Y'all enjoy...
losvolsganan writes:
OK, I can't resist.
Rabies affects your perception.
Had a rabid skunk in my back property last year, ran towards me as I pumped a shell into my shotgun, instead of away from me. Costly mistake for him.
'nuff said...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEdBnd...
jobrando#216494 writes:
Posted by GiveHimSix1387 on February 25, 2008 at 9:50 p.m. (Suggest removal)
http://www.sportsline.com/columns/sto....
Have fun reading this.
I see his reputation is nation wide. Things will fall in place one way or another after the 2008 season
pdhuff#552644 writes:
sjt18 - have to agree with you that the references to Vols screwing up post-Tenn s lame. Don't know if any of them had problems while at Tenn, but once they leave. Gone. No one wins tilting against the Fifth Column, however. Bad PR move on Phil's part. Don't let them put you on the defensive. He fell into Adam's trap. Thus CBS sports piling on.
Believe more pressing problems is defense. Good articles on web about intensity of Mack Brown's new defensive coordinator (Van Gorder ?). One player said , many of afraid of him. i.e. respect. Believe we could use a dose of motivation on D like that this fall. Maybe a super-large dose.
TommyJack writes:
D_in_iraq: Many would say the loss of Gerald Harrison is minimal. I doubt the future of the program rests with that staffing.
PD: At one point I would have loved to caddy fritters for Dr. Fulmer. Knees too bad now to carry the load.
CoverOrange writes:
Seems Mr. Freeman has either never heard of the criminal justice system we have in this country or has no faith in it. Either way, that is where his beef should lie. Fulmer is not judge, jury and executioner when laws are broken.
Is that all you have to do to be a columnist? Have an opinion? Non-fact based, unresearched, illogical opinion? Sign us all up.
hueypilot writes:
Postings on this site, after Fulmer's response were running 15-1 pro Fulmer, and the anti Fulmer's included the same tired old Fulmer haters with multiple postings. I think among Orange fans, Fulmer won that one.
Mike Freeman took over as sports editor of the Florida Times Union several years ago replacing Mike Bianchi who went to the Orlando News Sentinel and Bianchi, altho an avowed Gator homer, was very funny and talented. Freeman, not so much so, and virtually 50% of his columns had some sort of racial angle. He eventually left for other opportunities, that is he got canned. His sarcastic style, was not appreciated here. Reading the article you would think the offenses were involving robbery, battery, rape, while virtually everyone of them involved substance abuse. Looks like the Vols need a good substance abuse counselor.
PennVol writes:
Our new strategy is to outrun the Bruins, Gators, Tide, Bulldogs and Knoxville police with our new "8-legged" team.
bigbluevol writes:
Rabid...do a little research before you post that Fulmer has lost 4 games every year this decade. 2001, they lost 2. In 2003 and 2004, they lost 3. You're like the people who jump on Wayne Chism. You don't really know why, you just hear other people do it and go along. Meanwhile, you don't realize that he's shutting down guys on defense, scoring well and rebounding well. You just keep beating the drum.
thesavageorange writes:
http://www.sportsline.com/collegefoot...
Don't know if everybody heard or not, but another Bama player was arrested.I didn't have a problem w/ Adams article ,but why hasn't he wrote an article on Saban needing to be canned?This is arrest #8 on his watch.(1 yr)Not incidents,arrests'.
thesavageorange writes:
Boy, a number one recruiting class , and a recent NC changes perception an awfull lot.Untill Tom Abraham brought it up yesterday on the radio,I had no idea.Plus these his guys are getting arrested for things like armed robbery,ass
thesavageorange writes:
I meant to say,armed robbery, assaulting an officer etc....Sorry.
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