The University of Tennessee campus teemed with a sea of pre-game revelers Saturday well before the early evening start of the 2010 season opener against UT Martin at Neyland Stadium.
It was a familiar scene and business as usual for the enthusiastic legion of Orange-clad fans, who spilled into their favorite eateries, watering holes and tailgate venues from Cumberland Avenue to Circle Park to the Old City.
But there was something unusual adrift in this era of instant gratification.
Patience - hardly a virtue among college football fanatics these days - was the consensus message of UT fans as they eagerly awaited the debut of new head coach Derek Dooley.
Given the tumultuous last couple of seasons that included the ouster of longtime head coach Phillip Fulmer and the departure of controversial coach Lane Kiffin after only 14 months on the job, fans almost unanimously agreed that they're willing to give Dooley time to rebuild the program.
If that means a couple of seasons of the Vols taking their lumps, then so be it.
Barret Albritton of Chattanooga said expectations are on the backburner as he tended to his grill atop the G-10 parking garage.
"I think he (Dooley) gets a free pass this year," said Albritton.
"Obviously, I want to see some improvement, but I'm excited about Dooley. I guess I'm a lot more patient than some. I think we need to give Dooley three to four years with all of the turmoil that has surrounded the program. Optimistically, I'd like them to go 7-5 this year. Realistically, it's 5-7."
Albritton's wife, Ali, said fans were shell-shocked by Kiffin's sudden departure to the University of Southern California after just one year in Knoxville.
"We need to give (Dooley) a couple of years - as long as he doesn't do us like Kiffin," she said.
"We want him to make this his home and love it here as much as we do."
Darren Amador of Knoxville, another G-10 tailgater, also preached patience.
"I don't expect immediate results," said Amador.
"Obviously, he has to build a team and recruit well. Two or three years is a good (timetable). It's almost like he has a couple of warm-ups."
Brothers Chad and Chris Johnson, who make the trip from Chattanooga for every UT home game, sipped beers as they sat outside the Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant on Cumberland Avenue.
Both said they're willing to give Dooley ample time to right the ship.
"We've been let down, and we want Dooley to show he's here for the people," said Chris Johnson.
"(I don't care) if we lose every game if we get a loyal coach. Right now, that's what we need. This school is about tradition. We could lose to Chattanooga State and we'd still be here."
Chad Johnson also said Dooley needs to be able to put his own stamp on the program.
"We need to give him time to get his own recruits and see what happens," he said.
"Since he coached at a small school like Louisiana Tech, everybody is interested to see what he does at a big-time college."
Ticket broker Mark Diemer hawked his ducats at the corner of 17th Street and Cumberland, just like he has for the last 15 years.
Diemer, who wrangles with dozens of UT fans during a football Saturday, said most Vol backers he has talked to are willing to give Dooley as much time as possible to turn the program around.
"The general feeling I've heard is two to three years," said Diemer.
"I'd say 80 to 90 percent of people say 'Yes, we're willing to give him the benefit of a doubt because of what he inherited from Mr. Kiffin.'"
Still, Diemer said he talks to some fans who expect Dooley to win big immediately.
"Some diehard fans want that good feeling and want it now."
Diemer said he's in the camp of fans who are willing to give Dooley time - to a point.
After all, he has a business that ebbs and flows with UT's success.
"Any reasonable person would expect to see results in two or three years. But, if they go 1-11 this year, I can start putting ketchup on these (tickets) or use them as toilet paper."
Mike Blackerby is a freelance contributor to the News Sentinel.
Tennessee 69, South Carolina 57 men's…
Tennessee 73, Georgia 62 men's…
Tennessee 60, Connecticut 57 men's…
Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group
Comments » 42
utclassof1992 writes:
He gets absolutely no break from me. Win this year, or go back to Ruston. He will get about as much patience from part of this fan base as Phillip Fulmer got one year after a SEC championship game appearance. FIRE MIKE HAMILTON.
utclassof1992 writes:
All this patience would not be necessary if Mike Hamilton had not panicked and set CPF afloat just one year removed from a SEC championship game appearance. Phil would have righted the ship, hired a new OC, and went 8-4 or 9-3 in 2009, and we would be reloading, not rebuilding. Instead, we have been through 3 coaches in three years, NCAA knocking at the door, begging to sell tickets, 4,000 empty seats for the season opener, 20 players short, and a split fanbase. I am really enjoying this change, Mike Hamilton. Aren't you?
volnbig11land writes:
Go look at your bank account Vicki.
VolFanFtl writes:
What a truly ignorant, uninformed and bitter comment.
I guess if he gets no break from you, that's the final word. What an egotistical comment and opinion of yourself.
I guess you need to be reminded of a fact; Phil Fulmer was a great coach and the fan base gave him a lot of patience. 10 years of patience.
I guess it bears repeating - 10 years of patience. So if you are not going to give CDD "absolutely no break," then you are setting yourself up for even more bitterness.
If you want to take your bitterness out on Mike Hamilton, fine! CDD had nothing to do with this whole mess except accepting a tough job, made tougher by Phil's terrible recruiting his last couple of years.
Using your logic, why should any one have supported Fulmer after the way Johnny Majors was fired? You can't have it both ways.
VolFanFtl writes:
Give it up!
You don't think Johnny Majors wouldn't have "righted the ship?" It's time for you to grow up and move on.
Unless Fulmer could have hired Dave Cutcliff as OC who knows if he would have "righted the ship." He wasn't able to win big without Cutcliff. Further, it was Fulmer himself that hired that last offensive coordinator, not Mike Hamilton. Do you honestly think Fulmer would have fired his own OC after only one year?
I am no fan of Hamilton and he should be fired. That said, my dislike of Hamilton does not translate into a dislike of CDD.
BigOrangeFreak writes:
You must be a sore-arse Ole Miss fan on here trolling to burn off some rage (or a rampaging, menopausal gal having another "private summer").
Anywho, get a life and enough with the Fulmer/Hamilton bit@#ching.
Way to go Vols!
volsfannsc writes:
You really need to stay at home and watch The Blind Side for the tweny-first time. I really liked Fulmer, but his last three years showed he had lost control of the program and had few answers for the rest of our division. Great coach, good record, but his time had passed and it was time for him to move on. The Vol nation gave him three years of lack-luster football, player arrests, and hap-hazard recruiting. I find it amusing that 'fans' such as yourself expect Dooley to right this thing immediately and blame everything on Mike Hamilton. Kiffin sold Hamilton a bill of goods- but we all bought into it as well. I can't blame Hamilton for not seeing it coming. I suggest if you have so much hatred for this program, sell the UT paraphenalia and jump on the Bama or Florida winning train. I for one won't miss 'fans' such as yourself.
utclassof1992 writes:
Well, explain to me how anything improved. We are in worse shape now than in 2008 as far as talent, a 1AA coach with a losing record in 2009 is in charge, we cant run up the middle against UT Martin, and there were 4000 empty seats on opening night. Great change we got going on here. What change is coming next. More black unis? Moral victories? 3-9 seasons? NCAA probation? Ticket giveaways? This change is lookin'real good bout right now (snicker).
utclassof1992 writes:
Abuse me if you like. All you people that ran off a winner and bought into the Lane Train and whatever Hammy dreams up next will get a daily reminder of how you screwed over the best head coach UT will see in our lifetimes.
utclassof1992 writes:
Last time I checked, he won 10, 9, and had one bad season, not 3. Oh, and dont forget that SECCG appearance in 2007, which was less than 12 months before he was fired. This fanbase needs a few 4-8 seasons to teach them some patience and humility. They would deserve every bit of it.
BigOrangeFreak writes:
Get your facts straight. LA Tech is not a "1AA" program, and Dooley left them in good enough shape to contend in the WAC this year.
As for the 4000 empty seats, I've been to games in the Fulmer era where there were twice as many empty seats, or worse, the stadium was full of ALABAMA FANS!
Grow up and let go of the Dooley hating.
utclassof1992 writes:
(This comment was removed by the site staff.)
utclassof1992 writes:
I have not seen UT have to advertise tickets since 1988. Opening night was sold out from 1989 to 2008. First time I ever saw empty seats on opening night. Remember, change is good!
BigOrangeFreak writes:
I just don't get you, man. You say "change is good" but are still obviously bitter about letting Fulmer go. Are you implying that "change" as in, getting rid of Hamilton is good? If so, don't hold your breath. The man has certainly not done himself any favors lately, but he is not going anywhere in the forseeable future.
We need the consistency (in all areas) right now, so let's get behind Hamilton, the coaching staff, and this team.
ellerbee123 writes:
Thank God Fulmer is NOT our coach. Our lack of depth is not Lane Kiffin's fault, not Derek Dooley's fault, yes, it is Phil Fulmer's fault. These people that talk about giving him a year to right his ship make me SICK. The FACT is his ship should never have been out of shape.....That is the FACT. I wish all the Fulmer lovers would just find another team and leave us Tennessee fans the heck alone.
BufordTJustice writes:
the depressing thing is that in his 3rd year in the W.A.C., he went 4-8.
CCLC writes:
Next up....Oregon, ---> Floriduh, ----> UAB
LSU--->Georgia----> Alabubba. Now thats a meat grinder right there! Lucky UAB is stuck in the middle for some relief.
BigOrangeFreak writes:
Good point, ellerbee. All the Fulmerites seem to forget that Coach Fulmer had some top-notch recruiting classes, and did "less with more" than any coach I can think of (except maybe Ron Zook at Florida.) I got really tired of having stellar athletes come into UT and getting whipped on an annual basis by teams we were supposedly "equal to."
spacehistorian writes:
The Oregon game is going to be a bear but hopefully we can make it respectable in front of a national ESPN2 audience. Watching the Florida game yesterday does give me some hope as Brantley & the Gator offense looked totally out of sync. They still have a lot of talent but hopefully they will come to Neyland way overconfident & we can surprise them. Let's hope UAB is the easy win we expect as the next week we travel to Death Valley. I wonder which LSU team will show up, the one that was up on UNC 31-10 or the one that desperately held on to a 30-24 win. The local media here in Louisiana has already penciled in our game as a "W" for LSU as they see us as being lost in a rebuilding year. Georgia will be interesting as we hve whipped them in years when we were underdogs to these Dawgs. The Alabama game will be rough as they look to have reloaded from last year. If we can bring the game down to a last second kick I think Big Orange Nation will be thrilled. Meat grinder might be too generous a description as this is a murderer's row of games with the one UAB breather. All we can do is line up & play as hard & smart as possible & see where the chips fall. GBO!
BigOrangeFreak writes:
Two pea-heads in a pod. You two were made for each other. Tell you what. When this team loses badly, or plays badly in a win, THEN you can start bit@chin. Til then, SHUT YOUR PIE HOLES!
nepperso#220348 writes:
I'm glad that Derek Dooley has forgotten more about football than some of the posters on here. It's going to take some time to rebuild a struggling program to "elite" status, but at the end of the day if the team is competitive and more importantly NOT USING DRUGS, ROBBING, AND BEATING PEOPLE then I'm happy. Fulmer got lazy, Kiffin did a great job and moved on to his dream job, and all of that is in the PAST! Who cares! Go Vols!
atlanta_Vol writes:
At least give CDD a chance...his first game as a vol we won 50-0 and we did it with class...we only had 5 penalties which shows that he has focused on the fundementals...I am a little worried about the special teams, but I think we could get to 7 wins this year...GBO
FWBVol writes:
Those that can coach are making millions of dollars doing it, as are some that really can't coach. And then there are some soreheads that have never sniffed the inside of a locker room complaining about a coach after a 50-0 win in his first game at Tennessee.
Whether it is Phillip Fulmer's fault, Lame's fault, Mike Hamilton's fault or a combination of the above, one thing is certain, the circumstances with the Volunteer football program are not Derek Dooley's fault.
His record at La. Tech means nothing now because that is the past, just as Fulmer and Lame are at UT.
Derek Dooley is doing things the right way as he lays the foundation of rebuilding Tennessee's football program.
Having watched Les Miles bumble things at LSU the last few years, and the Mississippi meltdown against Jacksonville State yesterday, I'm glad CDD is our head coach rather than those two so-called proven SEC coaches.
There are three new head coaches in the SEC this year in CDD, Joker Phillips at UK and Robbie Caldwell at Vandy, and I think we have the best of the three.
After yesterday I would say Memphis is a win, UAB is another win, Vandy is a win, Ole Miss is a win, Kentucky will be tough, but we will beat them as well. Florida will be better by the time we see them in two weeks, but the Gators will be bringing a lot of kids into Neyland for the first time and this Gator team MIGHT be beatable.
LSU is a winnable game as well. Oregon is going to be tough, but despite the 70 points the Ducks put on New Mexico State yesterday, I think our DC, Justin Wilcox will have a plan as he has faced the Oregon offense several times while at Boise State.
Dooley may or may not end up winning big this year, but after yesterday's games I'm convinced that a seven or eight win season is very possible.
TommyJack writes:
With respect, sir, you are delusional. Seriously.
Cardinal54 writes:
He most certainly didn't have 1 bad season. Remember losing records in 2006 and 2008? How about the 2001 SECCG where he was clearly out coached by LSU? Whenever you have top 10 recruiting classes every year you should be at least around the top 20 every year. Fulmer seemed to get very complacent after 1998 and I think most people could see it.
With that being said, I always loved Fulmer and thought he was a great ambassador for our school, but it was his time to go. Did Mike Hamilton handle his firing the right way? Maybe not, but it was time for Fulmer to go. Fulmer is gone, can't we as a fanbase support our new coach and team? I guess the question you need to ask yourself is quite simple. Do you support Tennessee? Or do you support Fulmer? I'm supporting the VOLS regardless of who is the coach or AD...
utclassof1992 writes:
Make us!
VOLliven2it writes:
All the bickering back and forth from utnoclass1992 and others is meaningless! Naffy, your agreement means nothing! Derek Dooley is the head coach of UT. Very few of us are happy with the way Philip Fulmer went out. He is respected. Reality is we are rebuilding and all the thises and thats and coulda shoulda needs to be put aside while we support our new coaches and team. My goodness, stop living in the past for crying out loud. We are now. We are going forward. Continually bickering about what we gave up helps nothing! I guess I will have to create a real UT sight where people will get on board instead of on a soapbox all the time.
We have two very TOUGH GAMES coming up. Let's give support to the guys who can make a difference in what happens on the field because they will be on the field.
utclassof1992 writes:
Last time I checked, we finished 12-2 in 2001. We finished in the top 20 15 out of 17 years during CPF's reign. Averaged 8 wins a years during the "bad times", which are going to seem sweet after the screw job Hammy has laid on us. I support Fulmer, because when the going got tough, Tennessee did not support him. When Phil is AD, we will get back to being Tennessee.
utclassof1992 writes:
The Fulmer lovers are just pointing out that you people that get SICK at the mention of CPF need to be reminded of exactly what you did to a man that put a crystal football in the UT trophy case. The depth problems started when Hammy needed to get his man in the fold and the players started transferring out. Two first rounders, and people like Nick Reveiz came in under Fulmer, not Lame.
jcp201 writes:
I support Dooley 100%, but I don't disagree with the Fulmer lovers either. I think Fulmer was a great coach, and I hate that he was treated poorly in not being allowed to go out with dignity.
That said--GO VOLS. I was at the game yesterday and I had a great time. I am patient and like Dooley's energy and attitude.
utclassof1992 writes:
You make a good point, and maybe I should be a little more supportive of Dooley. He does seem to get the ambassador side of the UT job, and he is not a bad guy. I guess the reason I am bitter is that I watched most of the UT faithful hop hard on the Lane Train last year, take a long collective piddle on a guy that gave everything to his alma mater, and turn a blind eye to the shenanigans of Lane and the merry band of mercenaries. Every time Lane opened his mouth and made a fool of himself, there were our fans right with him. Felt like I was watching the antics of the Miami Hurricanes of the 1980s, which also ended badly. I knew what the word "Orgeron recruiting" meant, but took tons of abuse for pointing it out. Dooley does not seem so bad, but he did have a losing record his last year in the WAC, so until he does something here, I am not getting my hopes up. I just like to point out that Hammy created most of this mess in the race to be "hot and sexy" in this Twitter, Facebook dominated world, and that loyalty and tradition mean nothing to him. That is hard for some of the older guys to swallow.
jcp201 writes:
Fulmer was a wonderful coach that deserves our respect and love. Yeah, I despise the way Hamilton handled the Fulmer situation, but what can you do? We are either Vols fans or we aren't. Dooley respects the Vols traditions and has brought class back to the program. I think he started off pretty well with a very inexperienced team.
I'm going to give this coach a real chance. He deserves it. While Lane and the last years of Phil polarized some of the Vols fan base, I am hoping that Dooley can bring us all back together and heal some of those wounds.
hueypilot writes:
Living in Florida I can't make all the games, but will be there for the next two.
Couldn't really tell on TV. How many empty seats would you guess????
I figure the good showing and the quality opponents the next two weeks should get the attendance back up to a sellout or nearly so
BigBadVol writes:
No one could have said it better.
smyrnavol writes:
Ticket giveaways? Sounds great to me! Where do i sign up? GO VOLS!!!
utclassof1992 writes:
There are still singles available for Florida at uttix.com. According to my old roommate, there were 4-5k empty seats. Attendance was announced at 99k or so.
ellerbee123 writes:
FYI, when TN played Bama two years ago there were twice as many Bama fans with the "good" seats like we have than TN fans. I was not there. For lots of people the economy has been an issue. Perhaps not you but for others who are trying to feed families, etc. and are unemployed. They just can't afford to pay $200-300 for a weekend trip to a game. I was there last night as I plan to be all year and it was amazing, truly amazing. The "real" TN fans are fired up and ready to put the past behind us. FYI - Bruce Pearl was a D-2 coach.
ellerbee123 writes:
AND, dear God in heaven - - you sound just like my bi-polar brother..........
ellerbee123 writes:
I am presently living in 2010 not 1998.........
ellerbee123 writes:
GREAT POST. My sentiments exactly...
RandRams writes:
True, yet I remain optimistic.
Oregon = W <Like our chances.>
Florida = W <ditto>
UAB = W
@ LSU = ?? <Unimpressed w/ NC gm. Toss up ONLY because it is an away gm.>
@ Georgia = *Check w/ me after you play the C*cks.
Alabama = L <I'm ALL orange BUT too I'm realistic. Too well coached and too talented.>
jarvol writes:
Dooley inherits UT at a bad time due to Fulmer's complacency and staying on the job a few years too long not what Kiffin did or didn't do in one year.
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.