Poll: Do you approve of how Mike Hamilton handled the hiring of Derek Dooley?
| Response | Percent | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 55% | 4182 | |
| No | 27% | 2071 | |
| Not sure | 16% | 1236 | |
| total votes: 7489 | |||
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Comments » 59
Maverickman writes:
RODNEY GARNER PLZ
AZ_Vol writes:
Well, since we weren't exactly privy to what actually happened during the process we are just speculating, yes?
I think he did well despite the timing, the numerous turndowns, and such, and with a nervous fanbase that needed a steady hand on the tiller of the football program.
I think he did well with Dooley.
vol94 writes:
rodney gardner for what?
GreeneVol_TN writes:
Under the circumstances I believe it was a nice hire, although I have one request. Please schedule USC in the near future. I think that would be a well attended game.
ohnovol writes:
17-20, very poor choice.....should have kept Kippy for a year. Hope we didn't give this guy over a year contract as we will win 4 games
xxeman#277723 writes:
Kippy Brown was treated very poorly. And not just that he was not hired. The timeline Friday proves his interview was a sham. This to the man that stepped up & held things together. Would like to know Hammy's reasoning here.
movol77 writes:
Reasoning...KB's head coaching record is 0-0.
newportvol writes:
actualy its 5-5 Memphis Maniax of the xfl
BigOrange_supporter writes:
You can't go by win-loss records,look at Lame Kittens record before he came.
Madkels writes:
The only way I want that punk back in Knoxville is if the player get to beat the phooey out of him after running through the T. I would pay huge dollars to see that. Otherwise, don't ever allow that garbage back in the great state of Tennessee.
VolAlum2003 (Inactive) writes:
The question should have been worded:
"Do you approve of your Athletics Director flying around the country looking like a desperate teenager without a date three days before prom and finally hiring the first person that didn't turn him down?"
VolAlum2003 (Inactive) writes:
Ummm...what point are you trying to make? That we shouldn't discount Dooley because his record is similar to Lane Kiffin's? And that is reassuring...how?
movol77 writes:
Forgot about that semi-pro stint.
Reasoning #2...KB has been out of college fb for over a decade...hasn't recruited a player since Peerless Price.
AWOLVol writes:
While I think we may have ultimately made a nice catch with a very bright young coach, this situation exposed some real weaknesses in the handling of our Men's Athletic Department. We made a panicked, rushed decision that left us looking like we were offering a second tier opportunity to a third tier coach.
Now let's be clear, we are NOT a second tier school, and I do NOT think Coach Dooley will prove to be a third tier hire. The reality of it is, however, that when CLK bolted we were ill positioned to go after our top choices. My understanding is that this was not just due to the timing - although that didn't help. We were tied to remaining current assistant coaches due to contract structure. This was a huge barrier to our top choices coming in as it would make it difficult for them to build their own staffs.
Contracts are the AD's bailiwick and we were caught over a barrel. This, plus the atrophy of the program prior to CLK's arrival and CLK's antics while he was here are all signs of a lack of strong leadership. ADMH might be a great guy, but he strikes me as a top-flight assistant AD more than the captain of the ship who has a steady hand on the wheel.
The reality is that Coach Dooley will probably end up being a perfect fit and a great hire. But in light of how things are being managed from the business end, I can't say that I'm happy with ADMH or how he's handled our football program since he's been our AD.
duncanvol writes:
is it true that ncaa rules require a university to interview atleast one minority for coaching position?someone told me that and i dont know if its true. if it is that would explain interviewing brown after mike already knew who he would hire. if that is true then i dont blame brown for wanting to leave. but again just wondering if that is a rule.
newportvol writes:
Thats the rule in the NFL but not college.
Hounddog writes:
We should all hope Mike Hamilton did a good job. It seems to me the character of the program improved.
I like the coach so far and hope for his success. Go VOLS!
Let's play football. Hounddog
rockytop47 writes:
No rule in college about interviewing minorities. Besides Hammy was in Chicago and allegedly offered Lovie Smith.
TommyJack writes:
Was it handled poorly? Yes. Should the R word be in play? Very doubtful.
duncanvol writes:
i just dont understand why he left unless he was fired. he said he wanted to stay at tenn. even if he didnt get head coaching job.
roloyo writes:
Given the timing and the availability in this situation, I think he made a great choice. Besides Bill Battle already has a job........... Seriously, time will tell as with a new hire in any situation. Just hope for the best and expect the worse.
GBO
skyhawk836 writes:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010...
Been posted before but a good read.
Not that it will change your mind because you've been hyperventilating for 2 days.
TennHillbilly writes:
He left because he thought he got a bad deal. Thing is, he said he would stay even if he didn't get the HC position, but when it was clear he didn't get it, he made a call to Lane or Pete Carroll and left. This makes three times he has left UT.
BilltheBuilder writes:
I do not have a problem with Derek Dooley's hiring; however, if the accounts of Kippy Brown's interview are true, I do have a a problem with that. If Kippy was promised an interview, he should ahve been the first not the last while the plane was picking up Coach Dooley.
xxeman#277723 writes:
The poll question was "Poll: Do you approve of how Mike Hamilton handled the hiring of Derek Dooley?" ie: how handled
My opinion is Hammy HANDLED it very poorly, was rude & dismissive to the man here in Knoxville that had his back. That is obvious regardless how anyone feels about Dooley. And it's not on Dooley , it's on Hammy. Hammy flew at least 4 places, interviewed & was turned down and actually decided before he gave Kippy the time of day.
By the way, Will Muschamp appeared to be the 1st choice. What is his HC record?
Again my response is to the question of Hammy's conduct. THUMBS DOWN!
eutefan#213401 writes:
For the first time in a couple of years I feel good about the football program at UT. Hope it stays that way.
BillyVol writes:
Lets see, he had what about 56 hours. I would rather have Coach Dooley and what he brings to the table for the future. The process that brought our new coach is as good as you are going to get for the time frame. The future will prove that it was a great hire. Next year may not, but Lame was going to have a hard time winning 6 games.
Caspian writes:
Actually, Dooley reminds me a little of Bill Battle in the looks department.
vols2#227315 writes:
Mike Hamilton should be fired now.....
dwolfcreek#397971 writes:
AND PUT YOU IN CHARGE ?
Mtnbiker writes:
Ok i've seen his record repeated as if it's a detriment. Ok sure it doesnt "Look" good, and last season he went 4-8. Wow horrible lookign numbers. But, WAIT, lets take a look at last seasons opponents. Of the 8 losses 7 of those team went to Bowl games THIS year. Of those 7 teams 5 of them WON thier BOWL game.
So yes the record looks about as bad as a QB who threw for 5ints. But many times if you watched the game you'd seen how poorly the WR performed adn how badly the OL blocked. QB can only do so much, just like a HC can only do so much with the talent at hand.
tedstryker1980 writes:
We have a no-name with a 5 yr contract paying 2.4 mill a year. The recruits are gone. For that kind of money we could have gotten a known commodity snag Tubberville from TT or Butch Davis from UNC... if you want to take a chance hire Gus Malzahn or Kirby Smart... and pay them half of what we are paying Dooley. This is a disaster. Fire Hamilton! Go Vols! FWIW I hope I am wrong and Dooley is a genius.
Razor784 writes:
I can't believe Malzahn's name wasn't mentioned, he's a bit of a loose cannon, but the guy's been successful everywhere he's been
WestTennVol writes:
I'm so tired of this 17-20 phooey from you people. It's like the only reason to get married is, "if she has big tits!" Come on, get real. There must be 100 reasons to hire a head coach outside of a 3 year record at La Tech!
mytrifecta writes:
I don't like the the fact that Hamilton put the program in a position to lose the last coach as easily as he did. However, it's clear now that Kiffin is a complete tool that didn't want to be here. So, under the circumstances I believe Hamilton handle the hiring process as good as it could have been handled...and given the options I believe he made the right hire.
CarlChilders writes:
Lane's disapproval rating in the LA Times is 52%. Disapproval rating for coach Dooley at the time I write this is 26%. Interesting... I think he's a great person and will be a great coach. Will the Vol Nation give him time to get it in place? I dunno. Don't expect any miracles with this recruiting class. A lot depends on the staff he hires which will hopefully come soon. (BTW, I've changed my name to a coach neutral name.)
volfan7 writes:
Kippy is too old at age 55 (I think). With the hires of Kiffin and now Dooley, it is obvious that UT was looking for a much younger man.
Is it just me but does Kippy have the largest head for a man? I have never seen such a large head on a human being.
VolAlum2003 (Inactive) writes:
Thanks! That was a pretty good read. I've written to Staples twice (with BCS questions...I wouldn't bother him with Kiffin stuff) and he's always written me back.
As for hyperventilating...that's true too. I really wish Hamilton had produced the cajones necessary to tell the boosters and the Board of Regents that, instead of making a quick hire, UT would take it's time and look for the right coach (which is what Florida did). I'm just really disappointed by the way UT Athletics panicked. I mean...I like Dooley, he seems like a great guy and he has the POTENTIAL to be a great coach...BUT...that is exactly the same thing that everyone on these message boards was saying about Kiffin a year ago. They say that "the proof is in the pudding," well Mike Hamilton keeps hiring coaches with no pudding.
I just think that if UT is going to get a premiere coach, then the change is going to have to come within the fan base. We can't keep rewarding Hamilton by throwing our unabashed support behind whomever he chooses. I know that that goes against the natural reaction of most UT fans (which is to give 110% support to every new coach; an admiral quality), but if something is going to change, then UT fans need to stop seeing the bright side to every hiring decision and start DEMANDING excellence (which I don't think is unreasonable with the multi-millions of dollars we are paying these people).
elmoe writes:
Mike "zero tolerence" Hamilton hires coach away from no name school days before recruits due to sign. ?????? How can one approve of that?
elmoe writes:
How old was the guy who turned us down before we finally found someone willing to leave their school right before recruits are ready to sign?
537081 writes:
I'll tell you my answer in about 3 years we will know if he did good
volsfaithful writes:
I believe Dooley has enough credentials to be plausible, and I don't think integrity will be a problem with him. That being said, we panicked. Now that we are here, i don't see enough urgency in getting a DC. I expect Hamilton will not be the person looking for the next head coach - the whole Lame Kiffin deal is a really sour spot in everyone's stomach, and there should have been better contracts in place to at least compensate us for the losses.
In the book "Good to Great" the idea is to start at the top assembling a team of excellent leaders who are willing to play in the same sandbox, and then putting them in positions to succeed. Fulmer didn't lose his job because he hired a crappy OC, he lost it through years of mediocracy that finally caught up with him. We need to build a great staff (again...) and stop looking at the buddy system or only UT grads. There are plenty of great coaches looking for positions at a top notch schools, and if our situtation looks bad, I would see it as my opportunity to prove myself. Start with DC - that is the most pressing need and will help stop the bleeding of recurts....
Go Vols!
the58vol writes:
Solid decision on the hire in that Dooley seems genuine with integrity and passionate about his profession.
The process followed was a bit checkered though, but clearly a difficult circumstance for Hammy...
Only thing I would have done differently is to interview Kippy first and if you didn't believe he was the guy, go ahead and let that be known, vs. waiting till the end.
UTKfootball67 writes:
I think we made the right choice. Back in 1964 Georgia hired an unknown at the time Vince Dooley who is now in the college football hall of fame with an impressive record for UGA. Maybe he can do the same for us as his dad did for them. Check out his impressive record below.
http://www.collegefootball.org/famers...
Gravitys_Gone writes:
Hamilton's real failure was not the end resulting hire. It was his method for handling the entire situation. He has just presided over a complete public relations disaster, but he has already demonstrated his prowess in that arena through his history of dealing with off the field incidents.
ms_allvol writes:
I like what I hear from Coach Dooley and believe that Tennessee will be better off in the long run, but still don't understand why it was so hard to find a good coach willing to take the job! If we are one of the top programs in the country why were we turned down by so many coaches at programs that will never be a Tennessee?
rebelgirl0612 writes:
As a huge Vol fan as well as UGA graduate who cheered the Dawgs on under Vince Dooley, I'm ecstatic!!! We've got the best of both worlds and we aren't having to trust some left-coast spoiled brat who only cares about his resume. GO VOLS!!!!!!!!!!!! 2010 is the year to start the climb to the top. With fan support and enthusiasm, the orange and white will be unstoppable! Kiffen's gonna learn that's it's not smart to tick off a bunch of Southerners! LOL
VolFanFtl writes:
Do you know those details as fact?
txsvol#372416 writes:
Good take! SAVol
johnlg00#206211 writes:
I still think it is funny how GVX has one comment thread on the TITLE page of a poll and another on the RESULTS page, as if there were no connection to the two. It also annoys me that, after linking to some site provided by a poster or responding to a comment, when you hit the return arrow after reading another link or the "go back" icon after responding to a comment, the site just throws you back SOMEWHERE on the thread. It wastes a LOT of time trying to find where you left off, especially on the longer threads. It used to be, in either case, that you would return to the comment you were on before you left. Not every change is an improvement, guys!
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