Related videos
Recruiting season was the reason.
That's why Tennessee's usually patient athletic director, Mike Hamilton, spent just about 72 hours to hire Tennessee's next football coach - and next head recruiter.
Derek Dooley has been the latter before, having spent five seasons as LSU's recruiting coordinator and landing the nation's top recruiting classes in 2001 and 2003. He'll be at it again in the 18 days before National Signing Day.
Dooley said he learned plenty from mentor Nick Saban, then the coach at LSU, and still bases his organizational structure around the two-time national championship winning coach. But as for the actual recruiter, that's more about Dooley than anybody else.
"My personal style in recruiting, it's me," said the former coach at Louisiana Tech on Friday evening during his introductory press conference in Neyland Stadium. "It's my personality."
With some orange thrown in, given his surroundings.
"What's important is you sell the program and sell the university, not sell one guy," Dooley said. "I think those are the kind of student athletes that come in and bleed orange, and they come in and play their hearts out for the program because they're coming to a school for the right reasons."
Dooley mentioned that recruiting around East Tennessee will be important to him, a vast departure from UT's previous staff under Lane Kiffin, who left UT for Southern California on Tuesday.
Dooley said he's comfortable in Louisiana, Georgia and Florida thanks to previous coaching stops at LSU, Louisiana Tech, Georgia and with the Miami Dolphins.
Dooley's first order of business is to ensure that two mid-term prospects return to Knoxville, one of whom happens to be from the state where his father, former Georgia coaching legend Vince Dooley, once reigned.
According to a source close to the situation, offensive lineman JaWuan James from North Gwinnett High School in Suwanee, Ga., is set to return to Knoxville on Sunday. Dooley will surely phone to make sure.
The highly rated prospect was enrolled at UT and living on campus last week before Kiffin bolted. If James doesn't return and transfers, he'd likely have to sit out a season before he can play, pending an NCAA appeal.
The same holds true for Jacques Smith from Ooltewah. The highly rated defensive end returned home Wednesday.
"I never decommitted," Smith said. "I just came home."
Both prospects will need to be on campus by Tuesday, the last day to drop and add classes, or face academic jeopardy.
Dooley won't have much time to work in phone calls to James and Smith; he has face-to-face recruiting to do.
The Vols are scheduled to host six official visitors this weekend:
n Markeith Ambles: Ambles has been committed to UT since July, but has expressed in interest in other schools this week. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound receiver from Henry County High in McDonough, Ga., is considered one of the top 100 prospects in the nation.
n J.C. Copeland: Another longtime UT commitment, Copeland has been a declared Vol since May. The 6-2, 240-pound defensive end is from Troup High in La Grange, Ga.
n Marcques Dixon: Dixon, a 5-10, 185-pound athlete from Southwest Dekalb High in Decatur, Ga., has been committed to UT, but has expressed concern over the coaching change.
n Corey Nelson: Nelson has been committed to Texas A&M since July, but has continued to give the Vols a look. Now, the 6-foot, 210-pound linebacker from Skyline High in Dallas will give UT a look up close.
n Eddrick Loften: The 5-11, 195-pound safety from Nimitz High School in Irving, Texas, decommitted from Oklahoma in December. Loften is also considering Kansas, Texas A&M and Utah.
n Ralph Williams: A 6-1, 225-pound linebacker from Southridge High in Miami, Williams has been committed to UT since May.
Yet wooing UT's visitors is a small part of the job. Dooley is in charge of salvaging a once highly rated recruiting class that has taken its lumps because of the coaching change.
The Vols have lost at least five commitments and have 17 verbal pledges. More turnover seems likely.
Just hours after Kiffin left, athletic director Mike Hamilton said it was imperative to get a coach hired by this weekend. Friday was a bonus.
"To have it done tonight, to be able to maximize his time around here this weekend I though would be important," Hamilton said.
Over time, Dooley must prove he can recruit against some of the best recruiters in the nation as a head coach. How much of LSU's recruiting success was Dooley's and how much was Saban's?
In Dooley's two full recruiting seasons at Louisiana Tech, the Bulldogs finished in the bottom half of Football Bowl Subdivision Schools.
Louisiana Tech's 2008 recruiting class ranked 74th and 96th according to Rivals and Scout, respectively. Its 2009 class ranked 76th and 80th by Rivals and Scout, respectively.
Quarterback Nick Stephens said Dooley reminded him of former UT coach David Cutcliffe, who convinced Stephens to sign with UT despite two younger quarterbacks on the roster.
"That's something I felt coach Cut had when he recruited me," the senior said. "When he looked you in your eyes, you could believe what he said.
"From what (Dooley) said to us, you could see that in him. That's something that a lot of people respect."
Said Dooley, "It takes years to really develop a style. It takes a tremendous work ethic, but I think more than anything it really takes a true genuine connection with the player."
Tennessee's signing class for 2012
Tennessee defeats Georgia 3-2 in…
Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group
Comments » 44
kwvolsfan writes:
Welcome aboard Coach Dooley. Looking forward to seeing the team next year.
golfballs03 writes:
We're going to have to start beating Alabama in order for Dooley to start stealing recruits from his former boss. I hope we comes out with a bang and wins some big ball games, otherwise it could be a few years before he makes a name for himself here.
rockytopatl writes:
Supposedly, nine midterms were at school before Monte's Punk bolted. Did all nine stay long enough to be enrolled? How about the kid who left Knoxville and went to UNC? We need a lot of questions answered.
Gator_Hater (Inactive) writes:
Willis hadn't enrolled in his classes, so he was free to leave. Of the other eight, James and Smith left, but James will be back on Sunday. I think Smith might come back too, but that's just my opinion. Good news is that Palardy is still coming. Also, I heard Meline didn't go to class Wednesday.
richvol writes:
Everybody is just going to have to give Dooley time to get this recruiting issue back up to speed. We are not going to have the class this year we thought we were so it will most likely be next year before we see Dooley's effectiveness.
From the little I have seen of Dooley he should be a great recruiter as the moms and grandmothers should like him a lot. He brought in two great classes for Saban at LSU so I'm convinced he can do it here.
Kiffin's timing really screwed us this year so don't expect Dooley to waive a magic wand and fix it overnight...this will turn out to be a blessing in disquise just like the basketball suspensions.
we3vols#281863 writes:
I pay you are correct. After sleeping on this decision, hearing the presser and just thinking about CDD recruiting 2 #1 classes in 01 and 03, I am ALL in. Good Lord, No SUPERSTAR would have become a superstar with a chance. We know where right now. This is not and was not a quick fix. Finally, perhaps we can ALL come together as Vol Fans behind this Southern Gentleman (His belly is FULL of FIRE). Go Vols!
Hounddog writes:
What a good looking family and impressive press conference. I'm convinced The VOLS are in good hands, and he will restore stability and class to an already tradition rich program. Mrs Dooley, I mean Mrs. DR. Dooley and the kids most likely will not look down at living on Rocky Top, as the last group.
Going in to the conference, as I have stated on other post...Hounddog was looking for and hoping to see a "character upgrade" with the new coaching version. Mission accomplished.
Fleas never lie. (sorry WD)
Let's play football, again. Hounddog
Ringside writes:
Agree hounddog, I do not think we have to worry about this coach's character or embarrassing the university. Welcome Coach. It even smells different.
skip22 writes:
Good press conference. let's see if he can recruit this weekend.
NJVolFan writes:
As I learned about Dooley I became more comfortable with him and now after his introduction I am very impressed; regardless of the path I think we got ourselves a top-notch coach in the making and a first-class person to boot! I'm not concerned with the recruiting he did at La. Tech because, well, its La. Tech! That's not meant as a put down to that university its just that they can't compete with the majors for recruits. I feel much better today. Go VOLS!
spacehistorian writes:
t looks like we have hired a man with integrity, intelligence and who wants to make his mark on Tennessee football by hard work, respecting our traditions and focusing on the players rather than his own ego. While the past few days have been tumultuous things are looking better on Rocky Top than we have seen in some time. Maybe we will make sports & regular news by what we do on the field rather than all of the BS off the field we have recently experienced. Coach Dooley still sounds strange since I grew up during his father's run at Georgia but if he has that same level of success in his genetics I will learn to get used to it. Coach Dooley has a tough road ahead given the circumstances surrounding his hiring but he seems to have the complete tool kit to handle such adversity. He may well field a better team this fall and still go 3-4 or 2-5 in the first 7 games. We never know, he could pull off a surprise like the men's basketball program did and have a "team" come out ready to play the heavyweights on our schedule. They don't count as wins or losses until we play the game. I like our odds with Coach Dooley's philosophy that embraces our proud football traditions rather than trying to replace them with alien ones that obviously do not belong on the Hill. Good luck Coach Dooley & welcome to the Big Orange Nation. Now go & recruit like crazy as we need some talented young men who want to play for Tennessee rather than a certain coach. Those who give their all for Tennessee will succeed. Now how long until our first football game? GBO!!!
give_him_6 writes:
Bless this guys heart, he has some mess to clean up. But I think he seems up to the task. None of this west coast mumbo jumbo. He is southern. Speaks southern. And really knows, understands and most importantly..APPRECIATES southern football. I think Hamilton got a good. Good luck Coach Dooley.
VolInIndy writes:
I would attend to agree, NJ, with the "its La. Tech" comment but a fair comparison would be to compare Tech's class rankings before Dooley to after.
Any of you recruitaholics know where to get that info and maybe where this year'sclass was ranked with commitments?
NJVolFan writes:
Here you go my friend!
http://rivals100.rivals.com/commitlis...
VolInIndy writes:
Thanks, it looks like he was making progress and getting a lot more Texas recruits than previous coaches.
DooleysOrangePants writes:
keep they current staff in place too let the recruits know that there are at least a few loyal people in the world and that Kiffin and co are just a bunch of jerks looking for the next "best" thing. hello nfl, bye usc. after probation that is.
kd45music writes:
Next order of business: Book USC on the schedule before that lying punk weasel leaves there for someplace else.
kd45music writes:
That smell is all the Pine Sol used to clean up the piles of phooey Kiffin and his "boy" Orgeron left in their wake. they'd make great cellmates.
VOLsince68 writes:
It is extremely refreshing to see a coach put the school and his players in front of himself. I believe we just found a diamond in the ruff. We definitely are rid of that last chunk of coal.
Please be patient everyone. I believe in time, this could be a great hire.
GO VOLS!!!!
Rockytop98 writes:
I'm in, GO BIG ORANGE!!
fiji66 writes:
All,
We have "lost five commitments". I know of Brandon Willis, Delvin Jones, Calvin Smith and Mike Taylor. Who is the fifth?
Fiji66
kdaff51 writes:
Smith will have to come back or sit a year somewhere else. He was on campus with a class schedule @ 12:01 the day classes started.
coach75 writes:
move reaves to assisstant recruiting coordinator and thompson head recruiting coordinator, bring in al wilson as lb coach and tee martin as qb coach.
VOLsince68 writes:
I think John Brown.
SavTnVol writes:
I'm on board with CDD too....Great introductory press conference...
VOLsince68 writes:
Actually, Rivals has us @ 17 and Scouts has us @ 15.
Supposedly, Thompkins left too, but I thought he had signed a Letter of Intent.
BrassMonkey writes:
Tennessee fans will like him until they figure out it is spelled Dooley and not Dually, like the truck.
6MillionDollarPumpkin writes:
Ahmad Dixon, the safety from Texas is now off our board. Hopefully with the ties that CDD has in Texas, we can get him back on board. The kid is an athlete and would be a great compliment to Janzen Jackson in the secondary.
cooper65#432178 writes:
You sound impatient which I understand. This year's recruiting class is not going to be what we thought it was and the cupboard is close to bare. Coach Dooley is going to need 2 to 4 years to make a real impact. Let's give him time.
ATLVOL55 writes:
Do you notice how in the last few days, this site has averaged probably 1500 to 2000 posts when speculating about the new coach. All of the articles about the new coach have 100 posts. The silence is deafening....I'm all Vol, but I doubt many in the Big Orange nation are really excited this morning.
Do you truly believe this guy can out recruit and out coach Saban, Meyer, Richt, Miles,.....I didn't think so...Man, I hope I am wrong
rockytopatl writes:
Thanks, G-H. Good info.
jack_2222#231746 writes:
Like that he will recruit East Tennessee. I don't care if the local kids may not be NFL prospects, just that their hearts bleed orange. UT needs that.
Also, Reaves is still here? To monitor the recruiting for lil Lane? Or is Reaves such a dog his brother-in-law doesn't even want him?
volnsc51 writes:
You bet.
It will probably be a few years before we can play. Maybe USC will be off probation by then.
BTW- What does USC do if the NCAA proves Kiffin was directly involved in the violations they are investigating?
volatil writes:
From all the wild rumors out there Reaves might not be his Bro.-in-law much longer. Kif loves his co-eds.
VOLS_SEC_RULES writes:
Reaves will be a recruiting mole for Kiffen. Give him a job digging ditches so he will quit. If UT fires him, they'll have to pay his contract.
TommyJack writes:
Hope Double D gets his office fumigated.
BAMAHATER1 writes:
Has anyone heard if any current players are planning on transfering? I thought that some of "the former coach" recruits from last year might bolt. Like Bryce Brown, Jansen Jackson or some of the others.
vols2#227315 writes:
Get some coaches that played at UT for once;then the fans will come back.
steelgator01 writes:
I for one don't understand you UT fans.You wanted a Snake oil salesman to get you recruits and try to win at all costs.You partly got what you paid for.
Now you all Talk about the dirty program he was running and how your glad he is gone.Kiffen was nothing but Mediocre and you all were singing his praises
You Backed him up with every dirty move he was making,Unfounded accusations against other coaches,Sending interns to recruit among other violations. What did you expect from him? Now he is doing it for USC who will get a black eye on their program for hiring a scummy coach while all ready under investigation.
Fulmer had Integrity and he was a Good Coach you ran him out of town.Johny Majors was another good coach you ran out of town.
So which is it you want a good coach with class or a snake??
Dooley seems like an honest good coach .I hope he works out for you a good UT is Better for All the SEC.
BigOrangeinCharge writes:
So does anyone think that the Vol Nation will be patient and give DD the 5-6 years it'll really take to clean up the mess that <name redacted> left behind?
Beyond this recruiting class, <name redacted> ran off a lot of other talented players too. B.J. Coleman, Ahmad Paige, Lennon Creer, etc. were all told they weren't "good enough" to play for him. We should remember that. He signed one good class, but he ran off a lot of talent too.
Now we're sure to lose some guys to early entry in the NFL draft because they're fed up and another round of players who don't mesh well with the new staff leaving, too. I expect us to head into next season with only about 60-70 legit SEC scholarship players on the roster. DD will probably be forced to sign a bunch of Jucos and borderline prospects just to fill out his first class.
A H.S. coach I know has a kid on the Vols team (not sure which). He pointed out that this will be the 3rd coach, and 3rd coaching staff, the kid has played for in 3 years. It's really sobering to think of it like that.
BigOrangeinCharge writes:
Fulmer wasn't regarded as such a great man outside of Tennessee. He mostly stayed in his office on campus, wasn't very friendly to HS coaches, and was still regarded a backstabber in the coaching field for what he did to Johnny Majors. The man was loyal to UT and did good things here, but he's not a saint and never won phooey without David Cutcliffe.
<Name redacted> was a snake oil salesman. I never trusted him--I was VERY opposed to his hiring from before it happened--but I supported him because I supported the team. As it became increasingly clear that he was a classless embarrassment who was about to get the program in all sorts of trouble, I really hated having him around. I'm glad he's gone now, but he left our whole program in a world of hurt.
Now I just hope that DD can coach as well as he can hold a press conference. Saban likes him... as his TEs coach.
NJVolFan writes:
I agree; if Dooley can recruit Texas along with Louisiana, Tennessee and Georgia we will do very well. I'll be honest, I'm not that worried if some of Kiffins recruits bolt because he did bring in some headcases already and it looks like he had at least another (Ambles) on-deck for this year. I say blow all the stink from the Kiffin's and Coach O out for good...
steelgator01 writes:
Well you got me with Fulmer he did Railroad Johnny Majors.But he was a decent coach...your right about Cutcliffe ..I think you would of done better with keeping recruits with him.He also is a very good offensive coach and in the past recruiter.
volfaninohio writes:
I know signing day is on Feb. 3 but isn't there a secondary recruiting period as well after that date? If so is it possible for CDD to atleast put together a respectable recruiting class to fill in some of the positions. That way 2010 season isn't a total loss. Either way good hire!! GO VOLS!!!
Share your thoughts
Comments are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.