KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee coach Butch Jones believes he knows what it takes to revitalize a program that has fallen upon hard times, even though he didn't face that challenge at either of his two previous stops.
"The big thing is learning how to win," Jones said. "Losing is a disease. You have to stop losing before you can start winning."
Jones is just over a week away from starting his first spring practice session at Tennessee, which fired Derek Dooley last November after he went 15-21 in three years. The Volunteers finished 5-7 last fall for its third consecutive losing season, the first time that's happened at Tennessee since 1909-11.
After going 50-27 and winning at least a share of four conference titles in six seasons at Central Michigan (2007-09) and Cincinnati (2010-12), Jones has one of the toughest job of any new coach in college football this year.
Tennessee has won just one league game each of the last two seasons while playing in the Southeastern Conference, which has produced the last seven national champions. The Vols must find a new starting quarterback and replace potential first-round NFL draft picks Cordarrelle Patterson and Justin Hunter in the receiving corps.
Jones also needs to fill a vacancy on his staff following the Monday announcement that former running backs coach Jay Graham was leaving for Florida State. Tennessee begins spring practice March 9.
The loss of Graham leaves Tennessee with no holdovers from Dooley's staff and only one African-American (linebackers coach Tommy Thigpen) on Jones' main staff. Jones notes that Antone Davis remains as Vol For Life coordinator and quality control assistant Terry Fair and graduate assistant Anthony Parker have come aboard since his arrival. All three are African-Americans and former Tennessee players.
"Do I foresee having a coach in place for spring football? Absolutely," Jones said. "But I'm not going to stop (looking) until I find the right individual for Tennessee football."
The Vols' problems on the field have had an impact in the stands.
Tennessee's average announced attendance of 89,965 last season was its lowest since 1979. Even Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam recently mentioned the need to fill the stadium to boost an athletic department that posted a $3.98 million budget deficit in the 2011-12 fiscal year.
"I don't think it's pressure," Jones said. "I think it's passion. It's passion and energy toward Tennessee football. I love it. The fan base has very high standards and expectations. That's the way you want it. No matter how high they get, they will never be as high as my or my coaching staff's expectations. The most pressure we feel is the pressure we put on ourselves."
Jones inherited winning teams at Central Michigan and Cincinnati from Brian Kelly, who preceded Jones at each school and now coaches Notre Dame. Jones pointed out neither of those schools had Tennessee's tradition, yet he continued to win at both places.
The majority of his Tennessee staff worked with him at Cincinnati or Central Michigan. He believes they've developed a system that can succeed at Tennessee as well once he establishes a winning culture.
"You look at this program, I think the biggest thing is it needs consistency," said Jones, the third man to take over Tennessee's program since the firing of Phillip Fulmer in 2009. "It needs stability. It needs one vision. It takes time. Winning doesn't just happen overnight. You've got to win the little things. The little things become the big things."
Jones has come up with a creative way to make sure his team is taking care of "the little things." He established the "VOLympics," a project in which the players held a draft and divided into 10 teams. Each team will earn or lose points all spring based on such criteria as classroom performance, community service and on-field production as well as team-building activities.
Jones said the idea originated when he was an assistant at West Virginia from 2005-06. He has conducted similar versions of this project at each of his previous head coaching stops.
"It's the backbone of our program in the offseason," Jones said. "It teaches accountability. It teaches leadership."
On the field, Jones must improve a defense that statistically ranked among the worst in school history last year while giving up the most points and yards per game of any SEC team. Tennessee returns four starters from an offensive line that allowed only eight sacks last year, but the offense lacks proven skill-position performers following the departures of Patterson, Hunter and quarterback Tyler Bray.
The Vols don't get any favors from a schedule that includes five teams that were ranked ninth or higher at the end of last season: No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Oregon, No. 5 Georgia, No. 8 South Carolina and No. 9 Florida. Tennessee fans once again need patience, a quality in short supply after all the recent struggles.
Jones has done his best to energize that fan base.
After Tennessee signed its 2013 recruiting class, Jones spent the next day meeting fans and discussing the recruits at three separate functions in Memphis, Nashville and Knoxville. He spoke in front of thousands of fans Saturday at a Nashville sports exposition. It's part of his strategy to win back the state.
The Vols' 2012 recruiting class included only one of Rivals' 25 prospects in the state of Tennessee. This year, Jones signed only one of the top six recruits in the state according to the 247 Composite, which averages the rankings of all the major recruiting services.
"It's important that we're visible," Jones said. "We want to build back that affinity that when a young man grows up in Tennessee, he dreams of wearing the 'Power T.' He dreams of the orange checkerboards."
A few more wins would make that much easier. Jones believes it's only a matter of time before that happens.
"There are no quick fixes," Jones said. "The only way we get things back is to roll our sleeves up and work. If it means working around the clock, we're going to work around the clock."
Oregon sends Lady Vols home from…
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Comments » 41
antonio14313 writes:
i think that we should make the checkerboarded endzones from the goal line to the back of the endzone, like in years' past. go vols!
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jack4444 writes:
Butch is a blue collar grinder. That should be appreciated by East Tennesseeans. Been awhile.
EastTnVols962 writes:
If Butch can coach half as good as he can talk, then I say he gets this program back up to UT standards within 2-3 seasons. Everytime I hear or read his comments I get very excited. I love what he's done so far, and what he expects from his players and staff. Even to go as far as to dock points in the VOLympics for players dressing unprofessional or wearing sideways hats says a lot about the type of program he expects. The Vol nation really needs him to back up his talk. Another disappointment at the helm of head coach would be absolutely devastating. I for one can't wait for fall. Very excited to see what Butch brings to the field. Go Vols!
PUL4VOLS writes:
Big Job ahead but this man is not ducking any of it. Let's give him a chance and see what he can do. This first year will likely be brutal. But that is not the final word.
OrangePride writes:
In many ways I feel the same kind of passion, energy, and winning messages that I heard when a little known guy from the midwest, Bruce Pearl arrived. Also, not an SEC guy, but with a confidence in his system and the Tennessee tradition. True, easier to assemble 15 than 85, but hey......look at Mississippi, Mississippi State, and Vandy. Those were all just awful teams in the not distant past. How about South Carolina? Not so long ago they were a bad joke in football. So, we love what we hear, and if we can get this turned around with a few good wins next year, can our passion for traditional Tennessee football be far behind? Can't wait for the spring ball and O/W game. It's gonna be interesting! GO VOLS!!
NashvillePreds writes:
I look forward to the day the AP assigns Steve Megargee a new beat.
Not that any AP writer is going to be able to provide legitimate insight, but this guy never reports anything that is not dated by three or four days. With the addition of his glass-half-empty writing style, I already look forward the author's exit.
Megargee's writing/effort/insight is the equivalent of reading an article prepared by a public defender. No heart, just checking a box.
billyvolsfan writes:
"The loss of Graham leaves Tennessee with no holdovers from Dooley's staff and only one African-American (linebackers coach Tommy Thigpen) on Jones' main staff."....WHO CARES??? STOP MAKING EVERYTHING ABOUT RACE
billyvolsfan writes:
I am not worried about Butch Jones and his ability to Coach. I believe 100 percent that he is a good Coach but he is going have to learn to recruit in the South if we plan on competing for championships in the future
billyvolsfan writes:
"No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Oregon, No. 5 Georgia, No. 8 South Carolina and No. 9 Florida." The only for sure lost is Bama IMO. After that I can see 2 wins out of the other 4. I would not be surprised to win the other 4 if that happened. No matter what, Butch needs to win 1 of those 4 games to get some confidence that the Vols can compete with the elite
johnlg00 writes:
My take on this is that he is a writer for the AP, so his pieces are intended for wide distribution to outlets which may not cover the Vols on a regular basis. Many AP articles, including news articles, include much back-fill information that may not be necessary to people who have followed a particular story longer and in more detail.
johnlg00 writes:
From what I have been able to gather over the last goodly number of years, most of the great players in the South these days are African-Americans, so....
whatthe84 writes:
I don't see a win against any of those teams. To think they will win would be to dismiss or ignore all the obvious things that UT has and the others have. They all have experience QB's with momentum coming off last year. We don't have anything going for us except being fired up before the game. New staff, new QB, new offense, new defense, new special teams coaches. Man you are the kind of fan that CBJ has to cringe about. The fan who lives in the clouds and expects to be in the hunt for the SEC east in his first year. Let's face it guys we have got at least two more years of hard times and thats best case scenerio. Lets give him time and don't expect the moon too soon that is just plain dumb. Wake up dude.
VFLVFLVFL writes:
hmmm... you listed 5 teams.. yet you said win one in four.. your welcome - correction police
woodwr#217203 writes:
Exactly!
voloffaith writes:
Tongue in cheek no doubt.......your next tune needs to be the "Pied Piper". No not "Stairway to Heaven". Schedule no big deal Oregon and chompers back to back. Schedule hard , but is every year in the SEC.
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
Butch will get it done..GBO!!
wigmeister writes:
I agree with the poster who is tired of looking at or hearing the race card being continually brought up. I don't care if his skin is yellow, purple, red, gold, or whatever. Just hire an excellent coach that can do the job.
wilk58 writes:
2 SEC wins last 2 seasons and you can see 2 wins out of those four. No defense, offense and new coaching staff. Well, at least your optimistic.
One question. Will you be screaming for CBJ's job when he goes winless against those 5 teams.
Go Vols
NashvillePreds writes:
I agree with your assessment.
Living in Nashville, most of the stories run by The Tennessean are full of regurgitated information that is written by our AP writer, Steven. If something goes wrong in Ktown, I then usually have to hear abou it two to three days later from VU, bama, fill in the blank, fans whom think they are on the cusp of Volunteer information.
6972 writes:
I agree BB. I think he's our man. I must admit that next years schedule against so many ranked teams gives me the creeps. Go Orange!
volscantball writes:
Good grief.... this is what is wrong with Tenn fans. Give the guy a chance to build his team first.
billyvolsfan writes:
I said the only sure lost is Bama so that left 4 remaining teams left
billyvolsfan writes:
what is your point?
billyvolsfan writes:
It was all that screaming that got us in this position. Good news is that UT will not be in a position to buy out anymore contracts so at least this Coach will be given the proper time to evaluate what kind of job he can or can not do
billyvolsfan writes:
I did not say i expect any wins but could see UGA and SC as a chance. Oregon has a new Coach so maybe a chance. I can see that recruiting 20 something is decent but that will get you last place in the SEC recruiting classes. Things will change. I hope the players are not beat before they step onto the field like some of you fans are.
Orange_Beach writes:
No the Correct statement would have been that there is five built in losses and let's hope we can win two of the games against Vandy, Ky and The Barn so we can get back to Nashville or Birmingham for a bowl.
Bark_at_the_Moon writes:
It will defintely not happen in year 1 no matter who is coach. This team has too much youth at skill positions and the entire team is learning a new system. Be patient.
Bark_at_the_Moon writes:
You and I could coach all that talent at Oregon to a W over Tennessee this season. Be realistic.
pcorange writes:
We competed against Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida last year. If we'd had any semblance of a defense at all, we would have won all three. Now, I understand that Tyler Bray is gone. I still think we have enough talent on the team to compete with everybody on the schedule. Coaching is what was lacking last season. I don't expect an SEC title run this year, but I do expect to be above .500. We have to finish above .500 this season, no excuses. Go Butch and Go Big Orange!
laraccoon writes:
nothing wrong with being optimistic dude and i believe good coaching can go along way towards making up for what we might or might not lack in talent . we were in most of the games we lost last year and i honestly believe most of the difference was in coaching .i think with Jones coaching it will no longer be a disadvantage but will now be an advantage .
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
Those are just numbers..Remember bama was ranked #2 in the country when they played UT in 1982 (the World's Fair year) and the streak was ended. Though I'm not thinking UT is ready to represent the East in ATL, I do believe they will win some games they choked away last year..GBO!!
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
Man, you're singing in my Chorus!! This team should win more than they lose regardless who the qb is..Worley (or my choice Peterman) can get it done..And next year our favorite rocket scientist should be ready..GBO!!!
GeneralNeylandsReturn writes:
it might give you some wins but it doesn't rebuild a program...not the direction you go...play the best to be the best, evn if you are already playing the best in-conference. Pat Head Summit was 30 year testimony to that.
DC82_Vol writes:
Amen on the race card. Just hire a qualified coach. This is the 21st century correct? Time to move on. Hire the most qualified coaching candidate regardless of skin tone.
johnlg00 writes:
If you have to ask, you wouldn't understand the full answer if I gave it to you.
johnlg00 writes:
All right, billyvolsfan, that was a little harsh of me and I apologize. Let me try to put it together for you. Further up this thread, you wondered why everybody wants to make everything about race. Someone on another thread gave the numbers of all the African-American coaches for each team in the SEC and UT had the fewest. Then you said that it was less important what kind of coach Jones was than how well he could recruit in the South. I can't deny that point, since everybody knows the other schools have been out-recruiting us for several years now. I then pointed out that most of the good athletes in the South these days are African-Americans. I implied that there just may a relationship between the number of African-American coaches at a school and how successful they are at recruiting African-American players from the South. Make sense now?
brandon4au writes:
Unfortunately, my first post on this sight will be a response to your stupid comment. With that said, what exactly was the outcome for the last TWO meetings between Auburn and Tennessee? I seem to remember Tennessee coming into Jordan Hare and only scoring 7 points against a team that would finish 5-7 and fire its coach in 2008. I also remember Gene Chizik...yes, Gene Chizik...bringing a mediocre Auburn team into Neyland Stadium in 2009 that proceeded to systematically kick Tennessee up and down the field for the majority of a game that was so boring that my wife and I decided to go into another room and conceive our almost-three-year-old-son. Tennessee and Auburn are going through coaching transitions, but there is SO much more talent at Auburn than UT, talent coached by someone with a 2 year old national championship ring on his hand. The point is, while Auburn is indeed not back at the top of the mountaintop yet, don't try to ever compare Auburn with Vanderbilt and UK while trying to count your "sure wins". If Auburn doesn't walk out of a 3/4 empty Neyland Stadium and win by 3 TD's, I'll actually be surprised. The losing at Auburn lasted for one season and was corrected. Losing has become "business as usual" for Tennessee over the past 6 years. Looking down your noses at Auburn won't change that...
Shake_Bake writes:
We need to steal one of those five games! I believe our best chance is against either Georgia or South Carolina. Who ever decided to put Oregon and Florida, back to back...and both road games, should be shot! LOL!
VolGrad writes:
+1
Hiring anyone based on race / color of skin is the very definition of racism.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mh8mUi...
Let's just hire the best "coach" available for the job.
Go Vols!
SeaBassHauling writes:
No wonder your precious little trees have been poisoned....! The BS flying from your mouth only deserves the shiart that only true Alabammers conceive....! Sooooo with that said the whole state of AlaLosserS deserve one another...! When the NCAA comes to your door...Look our way because we will be smiling at your BS....! :-)
grandtad#1402265 writes:
I agree B at the M..I think we won't be able to tell until that 3rd year depending on his recruiting talents!
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