Dooley calmly moving from one fire to next at Tennessee
Derek Dooley, son of the former Georgia coach, is still smiling despite facing a difficult job in turning around the Tennessee program.
HOOVER, Ala. – The first question was about his mother. The second question was about his father. The third question was about the bar fight.
At some point, Derek Dooley might become just a football coach but for now he’s a novelty.
His mother, Barbara, has all but started the first Athens-based Tennessee fan club (“She made no bones about it in Atlanta at a ‘Big Orange’ caravan event, walking in with an orange boa.”).
His father, Vince, the Georgia icon, views orange as the color of the walls in Hades.
The bar fight? It defines the mess Dooley has stepped into. He left a law practice to coach football, not the typical career transition. He left Louisiana Tech, where he went 4-8 last season, to take the head coaching job at Tennessee. Whether that’s a step up right now is a matter of debate. A once-proud program slid under Phil Fulmer, morphed into a cartoon under Lane Kiffin, and then became a target of scorn and a source of embarrassment two weeks ago with a late night bar fight that left an off-duty police officer on the ground after allegedly being kicked by Volunteer players.
When news of “Vol Brawl” broke July 9, Dooley was vacationing with family and friends at Lake Burton. He had seen his parents during the July 4 weekend, but Vince and Barbara then returned to Athens. When Derek began the drive home, he phoned his father.
“He called me when he was driving back to Knoxville,” Vince Dooley said by phone Friday. “I got angry, and I think he thought I was mad at him. I wasn’t, but he preferred talking to his mother. He thought I was chewing him out.”
It’s easy to project Derek Dooley as a great football coach one day. He is football smart, street smart, book smart. He has been a player, a coach and an administrator. He has a law degree, leading him to crack at SEC media days: “I’m able to read the NCAA manual and understand it the first time.”
A byproduct of the law background means he’s also equipped to interrogate players, which has become an unfortunate part of his profession.
But his coaching potential notwithstanding, even his father projects “it will take three or four years” to turn around the Volunteers. This being the SEC, there’s no guarantee he’ll be extended a long lifeline.
Tennessee doesn’t just have a football problem, it has an image problem. Imagine taking the top MBA from a Wharton graduating class, putting him in charge of Enron and saying: “Fix it.”
“I wish I could snap my fingers, but it just doesn’t work that way,” Dooley said. “It takes time.”
Referring to Tennessee’s image, he said, “It’s not where we want it to be now. Whether you have two incidents, four, five — you don’t want any in your program.”
It’s believed up to a dozen Tennessee players were at a Knoxville bar on the night in question. Details remain fuzzy because while the university police have issued their report, Knoxville police are still investigating. Darren Myles Jr., a safety from Atlanta, has been kicked off the team. Two other players were suspended indefinitely. The fate of freshman Da’Rick Rogers from Calhoun remains uncertain because Dooley isn’t certain of his role, even though he’s facing disorderly conduct and resisting arrest charges.
Sound like the big career break every coach wants?
When Dooley returned to Knoxville, he questioned every player involved and tried to sort out the details. He also reamed out the team. Everybody on the team.
“He told us what we’ve done, how we’ve embarrassed not just the university but our whole state, and I agree with him,” linebacker Nick Reveiz said.
Here’s the kicker: Reveiz wasn’t even there that night.
Dooley is trying to find the balance between good cop and bad cop.
“I’ve made plenty of bad decisions,” he said. “We’re human. There are bad things out there. It’s been that way since the Bible.”
He added, with remarkable candor: “We put so much emphasis on football and so much emphasis on academic support, which we should. But there’s a little area out there that sometimes we neglect. We talk about it, but what are we doing structurally to really emphasize what we’re saying? That’s your personal growth as a man.”
He has moved from trying to put out one fire to the next, presumably with little sleep in between. Recruiting, staffing, planning, coaching, counseling, selling. He impressed a roomful of cynical media members Friday, expressing his vision and sharing anecdotes about his parents.
Asked later off stage if this has been overwhelming, he said: “It is if you allow it to be. But if you go in knowing there’s going to be crisis, there’s going to be exposure and you’re going to get scrutinized, you can manage it pretty well.”
The games may seem like a welcome relief.
♦
Previous SEC/Georgia posts
♦ SEC media days: Tennessee and Dooley take center stage
♦ Spurrier’s lament: Team is better academically than on field
♦ Richt’s words, actions haven’t changed ugliness at Georgia
♦ SEC media days: Waiting on Richt as NCAA hovers at Georgia
♦ NCAA inquiry is the last thing Georgia and Mark Richt need
♦ It’s no coincidence Saban suddenly is concerned about agents
♦ SEC media days: Hey, who let the BCS in here?
♦ We’re LIVE at SEC media days (with no shortage of storylines)
♦ NCAA reportedly investigating Florida (but temper excitement)
♦ Can Dogs end Alabama-Florida monopoly in SEC title game?
♦ Listen up, Ole Miss: I’ve got Colonel Reb’s replacement
♦
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134 comments Add your comment
Boogers are Salty
July 23rd, 2010
3:13 pm
Good for him!
Stef
July 23rd, 2010
3:21 pm
He definitely has some serious work cut out for him. GO VOLS!!!!
Pi$$onaDawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:24 pm
HAHAHA Jeff you used my line from the earlier blog about the questions. I think Dooley is ready to TRY to fix the VOLS, but I don’t know if he can. The players will have to buy in and the fans will have to back the coach for a few years.
82Dawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:26 pm
Is Reveiz a kicker or a linebacker? You call him both
Pi$$onaDawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:31 pm
82dawg are you stupid? THE KICKER is he was not there. THE KICKER you know the thing is Reveiz was not at the bar. THE KICKER is Reveiz felt bad of no fault of his own doing.
Pi$$onaDawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:32 pm
82dawg can you read your diploma?
GT Alum
July 23rd, 2010
3:34 pm
Well, sounds like Tennessee took a major step up in the intelligence and integrity categories with this coach compared to the last. We’ll see how that works out on the football field, but it sounds like Tennessee under Dooley will be a lot harder to hate.
Boogers are Salty
July 23rd, 2010
3:35 pm
Oh First too!!! My one free wish if for Pi$$ to get a life, and a job!!!
GeoffDawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:36 pm
Good luck to Coach Dooley, Esq. Except when they play you know who of course.
JB
July 23rd, 2010
3:37 pm
He’ll either win them over or lose them and we’ll know by the middle of next season……Nobody knows what the Chemistry is on that team right now, and what the leadership is……If he has a good “core” of 10-15 guys who can lead the others, he’ll be fine….if that core is rotten, Tennessee will be down for a while……
Put on notice
July 23rd, 2010
3:37 pm
Like UGA and Richt did with Montez Robinson ………. Coach Dooley will put Mr DaRick Rogers on notice that if “there is one more infraction at this level ………….son, you are gone.” Now, it is up to Mr. Rogers. That is all. His choice ………a degree and possible NFL career or thugery. His choice.
That is all …………red, yellow, black and white ………….put them on notice once and if it happens again ……………..Houston We Have A Problem. DUMP EM.
If all big time schools embark on this program, it will stop it right now.
Go Dogs. Go SEC.
Damon Good Dawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:38 pm
I smell a rat or is that red panties I smell?
Old Dawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:39 pm
Nice piece, Jeff. Can’t wait to read your weekly picks column, it always keeps me laughing throughout the weekend.
Pi$$onaDawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:39 pm
Its odd that for the first time in many years the Vols coach sounds smarter than the Vandy coach.
Pi$$onaDawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:42 pm
But salty I like spending your tax dollars that give me $312 a week in unemployement.
GeoffDawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:47 pm
I was thinking about making a kicker/LB joke about Reveiz but it fell flat in my head so I thought better of it. I also considered writing something along the lines of “He’s the kicker? But he wasn’t even at the bar.” That seemed in poor taste also.
Tweets that mention Dooley calmly moving from one fire to next at Tennessee | Jeff Schultz -- Topsy.com
July 23rd, 2010
3:47 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Robert Morgan, Jeff Schultz. Jeff Schultz said: Dooley calmly moving from one fire to next at Tennessee http://bit.ly/dgHEVG [...]
Tosh.No
July 23rd, 2010
3:49 pm
Wow this guy can say “pi$$ on your a$$ you f@g” and they let him comment. Yet I have never said anything remotely innappropriate and like half the sports writers on here won’t let me comment. Stay Classy AJC… Anyway, give Dooley some time, and he’ll be fine. And just like all the people on here trashing things that UGA has no control over, just let these Universities handle their business. Its getting old all the dirt being thrown around by ALL the schools. Not one of your schools are perfect. Fact.
dap01
July 23rd, 2010
3:49 pm
Jeff, this article is certainly written with a different tone than ANY article written by you about UGA.
If this was about Georgia, the headlines would have read,
“Dooley desperately tries to remain calm despite bar fights, defections and total chaos!”
Be objective, be consistant.
BravesFan79
July 23rd, 2010
3:49 pm
its a shame the charges against Da Rodgers were dropped. His criminal history will be long i predict, and hopefully more time in jail (from charges not being dropped in the future) will keep him from spreading more fatherless kids as he goes thru out his life. Last thing we need is more Travis Henry’s: 11 kids by 11 women, then spent all his money on “ice” so now he cant support any of them. Tenn must be proud of their African football players. Especially after the tragedy of Channon Christenson/ Christopher Newsom.
GeoffDawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:50 pm
Damon Good Dawg – panties are more likely to smell like fish than rat.
Tosh.No
July 23rd, 2010
3:50 pm
Or Shove it up your a$$ you f@g. Whatever. Still what gives AJC.
BravesFan79
July 23rd, 2010
3:51 pm
BTW… im a UGA fan.. but if 4 players attacked me and my girl in a cab, at least one of them is getting a hollow point bt the eyes. Watch out thugs, not all of us whites are liberal pansies.
GeoffDawg
July 23rd, 2010
3:53 pm
BravesFan79, those weren’t Georgia players responsible for that incident. The only player there was trying to act as the peacemaker according to the police.
Jeff
July 23rd, 2010
3:56 pm
Nick Reveiz is a LB…his father and uncle were kickers for UT (Fuad and Carlos).
Tosh.No
July 23rd, 2010
3:59 pm
“at least one of them is getting a hollow point bt the eyes”
LOL I love internet gangsters. They are always so funny. And yeah check your facts there buddy.
Damon Evans
July 23rd, 2010
4:03 pm
I be damned, say it ain’t so jeff. why are you slobbering all over law degrees, lawyers, etc.
it’s just a fancy degree for professional liars, who can read and write.
Sven Ottke
July 23rd, 2010
4:05 pm
It would go something like this:
Derek Dooley: “Daddy, what do I do?”
Vince Dooley: “Do as I did, son. Cheat like crazy. Why do you think every 4.16 years we landed on probation when I was at the helm?”
Jack was really a jester...
July 23rd, 2010
4:07 pm
Yeah…some peacemaker…he picks great friends too. Isn’t he in more trouble?
William
July 23rd, 2010
4:08 pm
Will he be like his dad and bring more golf etiquette to football.
...who held is one good eye on the Queen
July 23rd, 2010
4:10 pm
Sounds like Derek has deep seated issues with ol’ Vince…”put mommy on the phone”
HonestDawg
July 23rd, 2010
4:10 pm
I hate Tennessee worse than Florida.
Drunkyard Dawg
July 23rd, 2010
4:11 pm
“He left Louisiana Tech, where he went 4-8 last season, to take the head coaching job at Tennessee. Whether that’s a step up right now is a matter of debate.”—come on Jeff, lets not be ridiculous here. No matter where ut is currently as program, its one of the most tradition rich programs of all time. Hell, vandy is a step up from la tech, so to question whether or not ut is a step up is simply put…dumb.
also, ut really clobbered us last year. they still have good players on their roster, they’re not as far away from being good as youre implying.
Heath
July 23rd, 2010
4:12 pm
Dooley will never be around long enough to right the ship which is a shame. But then again, he’d never have gotten the job in the first place without his last name, so I guess it evens out.
All I'm Saying...
July 23rd, 2010
4:15 pm
Why does he need three or four years to turn Tennessee around? Did I miss something? Are they on probation? They were 7 and 6 and 4 and 4 in their division so its not like they stunk up the joint last year.
It's a shame what he did to that dog
July 23rd, 2010
4:15 pm
So what did Chizek say?
Vol4ever
July 23rd, 2010
4:17 pm
After the past year we have had in Knoxville, Coach Dooley is a breath of fresh air. I know we are picked fifth in the east but we will be ok in the future. I’d rather have Coach Dooley and some losses in the near future for long term gain. I think every fan wants their team on top and no problems, but we know all programs go through hard times.
Go Vols! Go SEC!
Russ, the Temporary Mascot
July 23rd, 2010
4:20 pm
Derek Dooley seems like a pretty nice man – a man who would understand the consequences of painting a little dog’s a$$. I may just ask Derek Dooley if I can catch on with the Tennessee program.
GeoffDawg
July 23rd, 2010
4:21 pm
At UT, they set your a$$ on fire. That’s why they call him Smokey.
82Dawg
July 23rd, 2010
4:23 pm
GeoffDawg …too funny
Bolt
July 23rd, 2010
4:25 pm
What a boring week. Not a single UGA athlete arrested all week.
But now for the weekend!
Russ, the Temporary Mascot
July 23rd, 2010
4:26 pm
You can call me Smokey, just don’t call me temporary. I want the job full time. What can a dog with a pure white a$$ do that I can’t do? Besides, those dogs are so inbred that they can hardly walk and the last two had exploding hearts. I say go with a proven winner – Russ, the Full Time Mascot.
tim mcnally
July 23rd, 2010
4:32 pm
Money changes people. Money changes the rules. Money changes football. Alumni with money. The NFL with money. Television with money. There is very little scandal in D-3 (now connect the dotes) because there is no money, no TV, few scouts. Why is this so complex? Do away with the term Student-Athlete.
Here’s where NCAA D-1 & 2 are going: 1) high school seniors are drafted by an NFL team 2) the draftee picks a college and the school pays him to play for 1 or 2 years 3) the draftee doesn’t have to go to class, get grades or dress nice.4) he follows the special rules drafted by the NFL & NCAA 5) his monthly salary while playing for the NCAA is based on the football revenue of the school 6) at the end of the year the NFL can purchase his “option” and move him up to the big league or he can play for the school another year. 7) Oh, one more thing, he can’t kill, maim or rape any students at the school.
Pi$$onaDawg
July 23rd, 2010
4:33 pm
Russ if you are on the sidelines and the dawgs lose to So. Carolina you will lose the job for sure.
Dawg'88
July 23rd, 2010
4:34 pm
Why am I not surprised?
Schultz siding with Dooley but slams CMR. Here is a parody of the stupid scathing article by Schultz about CMR….only thing?…should and could put Dooley’s name in the story because its the same as CMR’s story really!
Enjoy the stupidity of the original author:
Bottomline…just like Richt…Dooley has had a “tumultuous summer also.
Given that several of his players were illegally in a bar drinking (as those UGA players who were arrested…only difference here…VOL players didn’t get caught or charged) , a few players kicked out of the program, and two beating the hell out of a police officer.
Just how low does Schultz set the bar before its a tumultuous summer for Dooley also?
Dooley has had just as bad a summer. Just after all the hype about what he was doing in the spring…changing the culture at Ufk. Well you can’t just change it at Ufk or UGA as CMR has tried…its the culture at large that has caused this…not coaches. Punishment, words, actions aer not going to do it. The culture at large says its cool to drink and go to bars. Just watch the commercials. According to them, you’ll also have several half naked women all over you. Its called enticement. Dooley should be have just become used to this sort of thing
“It’s like, you know [something is] gonna happen,” Dooley says to himself as (CMR admitted to doing. “It’s just like a ballgame. You know there’s going to be a penalty or a turnover, even though you don’t want there to be. Now you have to decide: How are you going to react to that? You can lose your cool and start spouting things you wish you didn’t say. Or you can just take care of the issue and move forward. That’s what I try to do.”
Problem being: It’s not working at UFK either.
We can go round and round about how players are individuals who make individual choices (sometimes dumb ones). We can talk about how a coach, who has given a thousand speeches and made a thousand threats, may be on a talking to Mommy and Daddy while almost entire Vol team is in a small-town bar. But does it really matter?
Whether Dooley is saying the right or wrong things, or recruiting the right or wrong players, or setting the right or wrong tone, this is his program. He knows that. Anything that happens, whether it’s a stirring win or an ugly arrest in Knoxville, reflects on him.
Right now, the ugliness reflects on Derek Dooley.
When he met with a small group of media members , prior to his main news conference at SEC media days, Dooley was calm and cordial, even as a storm swirled around the program. Some would say that’s one of his strengths, not seeming like he’s going to put his fist through a wall every time something goes wrong.
The downside to that is it gives others the perception, whether accurate or not, that Dooley’s either bringing in the wrong players or he’s not a strong enough disciplinarian when they get here.
Question: Do you get a sense that when Nick Saban walks into a locker room that every one of their players is just a little bit intimidated. If so, do you get that same sense with Dooley? Hell no. But then, intimidating your players means that you hate them and you’re only worried about your ego not about their well being.
“I’ve got a process of handling these situations and I think I do a good job of it,” Dooley says, calmly.
He was asked if he has tightened restrictions on player, in light of the arrests this summer. Dooley should use this example as an answer:
“In the end, we’re still in process of educating young people: How to handle adversity and rebound from that,” Richt said. “[Former UGA linebacker] Dannell Ellerbe. He had an issue early in his career: a DUI and a car wreck. I said, ‘Look, what you did damaged your reputation and Georgia’s reputation. But it didn’t destroy it. It only destroys it if you let it destroy it. If you allow this to put you in the tank, then you’re probably not going to make it.’ He was on his last leg at Georgia. But he got his act together.”
He will have success stories. But arrests and losses have a cumulative effect. To use the following words, they can damage the reputation of a man and a school. I (Schultz) would have just kicked every player who does anything wrong off the team…no questions asked. And then I would resign because it is the coach’s fault for what 100 guys do. 93 out of 100 do the right thing but the coach should be hanged when only a few do wrong. Minor offenses (except one) but no mind…these players are heathens. I (Schultz) never drank beer under age…yeah right!
layinlow
July 23rd, 2010
4:37 pm
If he doesn’t suspend Roger’s at some point I will lose respect for Dooley. Is he afraid to suspend the “crown jewel” ( being from calhoun I had a laugh while writing that) of their recruiting class because he knows that will already be strike one? I read that the guy in the bar claimed it was Roger’s who hit him but refused to press charges. What is Dooley waiting on? Roger’s at best has two charges against him and is probably guilty of assault as well.
Shug
July 23rd, 2010
4:43 pm
Coach Dooley will rue the day he decided against bringing Tom Spangler as his defensive coordinator to Tennessee!!!! All his other problems pale in comparison.
layinlow
July 23rd, 2010
4:43 pm
Tim, good idea. lol. Sure we need a bunch of these immature trouble making kids running around a college campus with a big wad of money in their pockets. Boy that would solve everything! Do you really think the NFL would agree to draft players out of high school? Football players develop in college and it’s harder to identify which ones will be able to play at the next level until they are older. It is a much different concept than basketball or baseball.
Pi$$onaDawg
July 23rd, 2010
4:47 pm
Mama dont touch me there!
What's Important
July 23rd, 2010
4:47 pm
Jeff, do you have a little man crush on DD?
Army vet
July 23rd, 2010
4:53 pm
Don’t worry about ol’ Da’rick. He’s a usless thug….always has been, always will be. There’s plenty of future arrests and mugshots for the POS! He would have fit in nicely at thUGA. I guess winning means everything in college sports.
VolForLife
July 23rd, 2010
5:08 pm
The Vols image……what do you think a drunk, cheating, athletic director does to reflect his (former) school’s image ….worry about your own backyard dawghouse mess.
Drunkyard Dawg
July 23rd, 2010
5:13 pm
“He left Louisiana Tech, where he went 4-8 last season, to take the head coaching job at Tennessee. Whether that’s a step up right now is a matter of debate.”—jeff, that is one of the most ridiculous things you have ever written. vandy is a step up from la tech. even as a uga fan i can admit, that ut is one of the top 10 programs of all time, its a great job in the best division of the best conference in the country. to debate whether or not it’s a step up from la tech is just plain dumb.
also, it pains me to say this, but ut drubbed us last year 51-33. they’re still ut and have good players on their roster, even when theyre down. i expect dooley to have them turned around very quickly.
Bama man
July 23rd, 2010
5:15 pm
That’s what UT gets for firing my childhood hero, Johnny Mamors.
Steve "The King" Spurrier
July 23rd, 2010
5:15 pm
The Bulldawgs are the STATE champions. Georgia is a mighty big state too. Wow
Steve 'Washed Up' Spurrier
July 23rd, 2010
5:22 pm
The Gamecocks are the STATE champions. South Carolina is a total dump too, aren’t we all impressed.
Delbert D.
July 23rd, 2010
5:42 pm
This man sounds intelligent, expresses himself clearly, is strong-willed and acts like he is a leader. Every team would be fortunate to have a coach like that.
Bulldog
July 23rd, 2010
5:58 pm
I wish he were coaching at UGA!!!
sec fan
July 23rd, 2010
6:11 pm
Yeah Bulldog, if he were at UGA, players would never be punished for gang banging, etc.. Underage drinking, no problem. Gang banging? Guess they only do that stuff at UT, but still he could do nothing and blame it on the school administration just like he is doing now at UT. So far he has done a great job of demonstrating he is spinless. One could see why you would wish he was anywhere other than UT.
sec fan
July 23rd, 2010
6:14 pm
Spelled it so UT folks could understand. Correct is SPINELESS.
indianman
July 23rd, 2010
6:28 pm
derek orange is not good red and black get that
Jaydawg
July 23rd, 2010
6:32 pm
My God, a man ends up in the hospital because of a beating!2 players are arrested,1 is dismissed from the team,and the coach absolutely refuses to address or even bring up the name of the other!I have a lot of respect for the Dooley family but this is very disappointing on Derek’s part.He suspends a couple of players that were NOT ARRESTED but has to wait on the police investigation before deciding his punishment on the 1 that was?Something is VERY wrong here.
Bubba
July 23rd, 2010
7:35 pm
Hey Jeff-
Did Dooley’s words do anything to help the ugliness of his Tenn program and the players allegedly beating a cop until he’s unconscious, and leaving him for dead, do you think his words changed that tarnished image for the better?
Bubba
July 23rd, 2010
7:36 pm
One can only imagine the feeding frenzy by Georgia media on Mark Richt had the Tenn incident happened to Richt instead of Dooley. I guess since it’s a non-Georgia team, they get a pass.
Jesse James
July 23rd, 2010
7:38 pm
Best of Luck Coach Derek Dooley! Except against your Dad’s Dawgs!
clickdawg
July 23rd, 2010
7:38 pm
bravesfan79, you’re no dawg fan, and no school needs a fan such as you, racist loser, and by the way stop calling the kids thugs, just say what you really wanna say _issy. Wanna know some thugs? I can surely get you in touch with some.
Jam
July 23rd, 2010
7:50 pm
DDooley is a .450 winning percentage.
MRicht got a .770 winning percentage.
People being sweet to the lovable loser, and tearin down the relentless winner.
Please.
Jesse James
July 23rd, 2010
8:14 pm
Jam – I am a Coach Richt man and I hope he is in Athens as long as he wants to be. He was a great hire by Coach Vince Dooley. But don’t let Coach Derek Dooley’s winning percentage fool you. He was outmanned in many games, but his opposing coaches will tell you his schemes are solid and his preparation is well thought out. He will be successful. Good luck to Coach Richt and the Dawgs!
Tennessee players turned to Google to get to know Derek Dooley – Monroe News Star — Baton Rouge Real Estate
July 23rd, 2010
8:27 pm
[...] Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog) [...]
Bull
July 23rd, 2010
9:46 pm
Schultz and Bradley please quit writing about sports….ANY sports… go join Terrance Moore or fly a kite. We need to usher you guys out of this state and back to wherever you came from. Just leave! Go Dawgs
Dawg '88
July 23rd, 2010
9:51 pm
Lousy biased article again.
Coach Richt doesn’t like you because of your childish rantings and stupid questions. Now I can see why. Plus its the reason that you continue to put little dings in his armor but you will never produce a dent. Your treatment of CMR is shameful and a disgrace. You are not and never will be even half the man that CMR is. You’re to immature to do what he does. You wouldn’t be able to handle the situtations that have arisen for CMR any better. If anything, you would be so scattered brained that you wouldn’t have a clue as to what to do. Keep hammer at CMR…it only raises him up and makes you look petty and vengeful little man.
BTW what happened to your prediction of a dynasty at Yech or at least the thought that Yech had become better than UGA? No what happened… it got trashed in Nov.
30-24!!! WE RUN THIS STATE!!! And don’t you forget it!!!
goatD
July 23rd, 2010
9:54 pm
Man, are you guys boring………….
jimmymack
July 23rd, 2010
9:57 pm
with all due respct i believe that your ill conceived article yesterday should serve as notice that you might have to the way to go the way your friend terrance
meme
July 23rd, 2010
10:05 pm
Since Vince is really an Auburn turkey buzzard what can he say. Me, next to the Bulldawgs I am a big T fan. In fact at one GA TN game in Athens I sat in the Tennessee end zone seats (before we had season tickets between the hedges) and had a Georgia flag in one hand and a Tennessee flag in the other and pulled for whomever had the ball. The TN fans couldn’t believe it. One of the most fun games I ever attended. The one thing that took a lot of the fun out of Saturday in Athens is when the student center took away our parking.If Georgia can’t find a replacement for Erk I may just pull for the Vols. Bulldawg strength used to be DEFENSE – DEFENSE – DEFENSE Where did it go??
Dr.Phil
July 23rd, 2010
10:14 pm
Big mistake in taking the Vols job! He will never be given a chance to put together his own team!! Gone in two years!!! “Hang down your head young Dooley”!
thunderbull56
July 23rd, 2010
10:35 pm
Vince’s boy no doubt.Pure Cane Sugar.Oh silly me, Tennessee.
Another silly AJC blog
July 23rd, 2010
10:53 pm
Barbara wearing orange is terrible, but Vince wearing orange would be worse than red panties.
northcyde
July 23rd, 2010
11:17 pm
As long as nothing drastic happens next season . . ( get blown out by Oregon at home, lose to Vandy, etc ) Coach Dooley will get the benefit of the doubt for at least one season, if we post a .500 or better record. Win one big game, and he’ll definitely get the benefit of the doubt.
But he only gets one year. By year 2, we in the Big Orange nation will have to see improvement. Georgia ties or not, just improve the squad and get us back to where we belong . . at the top of the SEC.
I will say this
The Vols WILL WIN A SEC CHAMPIONSHIP in the future, before Georgia will. You can take that to the dang bank !!!
bitter larry munson
July 23rd, 2010
11:55 pm
in my day a good ole hob nail boot for DA’slick rogers 900–100 yard sprints and a half gallon of moon shine would put him on the right path, run linsee run
BobVol
July 24th, 2010
12:27 am
“Here’s the kicker” is form of expression, it doesn’t mean a linebacker is a kicker!
RHB
July 24th, 2010
12:33 am
I love this article particularly because it follows the Richt skewer job from yesterday.
In the mid ’90’s as a married man Derek was a Buckhead bar hound trying to pick up single women ( he was married). This guy is the “man” Schultz prefers over Richt who I assure you has never tried to pick up a woman in Buckhead.
Whopper Dawg
July 24th, 2010
12:48 am
When he was hired, I thought what a stretch, man, they could have done better.
After watching him at media day, not so sure. I thought he handled that situation great, TN may have gotten themselves a good one, of course I don’t know if he can coach or not, but I suspect he can, he certainly believes in what he is doing.
MyPatooti
July 24th, 2010
1:02 am
DD lost a lot of his credibility right off the bat by protecting “his boy” he stole from GA, Duh’Rick Rogers. Apparently he knows somebody in the court system too as his hearing date has been pushed back to Sept. 14. I do believe the season has already started by then. Well I’ll be darn, how convenient!
Dooley calmly moving from one fire to next at Tennessee
July 24th, 2010
1:12 am
[...] [...]
Red Dog 77
July 24th, 2010
1:18 am
Jeff………Sure sounds like you have a “girl” crush on ‘ol Doley Jr………Wow, if this had been about Mark Richt, the story would have been a whole lot different………..Time to come out of the closet, Mr. Jeff Shultz, and admit, you hate UGA………..but just love GT and Tenn……….With warmest Best Regards, RED
Hunker Down
July 24th, 2010
1:41 am
I am first and foremost a Dawg fan. Secondly, I am a SEC fan. Thirdly, I am a Dooley fan, especially since he comes from a pedigree of Vince and Barbara. But for the life of me I do not understand the bar room brawl incident. While Myles was kicked off the team and rightfully so, still adeqate punishment has not been admonished in my estimation from the UT coaching staff. No one to date has been charged with the cop who was unmercifully beaten who tried in vain to intervene. My understanding from what I have read is that some high dollar lawyers are representing players. Still no charges have been filed against anyone of the cop beating. Is the Knowville PD so inep that in this length of time they can not come up with any suspects of one of their own beaten unconscious? Is there some reason that charges have not been filed in a town that happens to be the same as the UT campus? If Derreck Dooley is a good lawyer how come he can’t seem to get to the bottom of the issue find out the guilty parties and remove them from the program?
Bulldog
July 24th, 2010
2:10 am
@ sec fan:
Are you drunk or…never mind.
Whatever you say…
Bulldog
July 24th, 2010
2:16 am
@ jam:
Richt a “relentless winner”? Really?
Maybe. He relentlessly held on to Martinez. How that qualifies him as a “winner” I’ll never know.
» SEC: Kadji leaving Florida; Dooley on spot at Media Days John Clay’s Sidelines
July 24th, 2010
8:56 am
[...] Derek Dooley calmly moving from one fire to another at Tennessee, writes Jeff Schultz of the AJC. [...]
balismith
July 24th, 2010
9:01 am
…hope ut will be patient and give him time to turn the program around..
Pi$$onaDawg's Top
July 24th, 2010
9:36 am
Don’t mind him I was rough on him last night. He doesn’t even like football. He is just mad at me and is taking it out on people here. I will make him pay tonight in pound town
TommyJack
July 24th, 2010
9:51 am
Bull (9:46) Lay off these two. They make the AJC readable.
To all the whiny TN bashing GA fans, I’ll refer you to our dysfunctional, limited talent team of last year. Whooped the dogs azzez with apparent ease.
GBO
Spike
July 24th, 2010
10:01 am
Dooley seems like a class act and a nice addition to UT. Certainly a lot better than that idiot they had who could not wear a shirt with the shirttail in. But forget his name is Dooley. UT hired the LA. Tech coach with a 4-8 record. Wow.
superDawg
July 24th, 2010
10:25 am
The good thing is “good ole rocky top will not be in the top forty parade this year.”
Buddy El
July 24th, 2010
10:56 am
Pi$$onaDawg: Can you read this?????????????? How many fingers am I holding up???????? Yup, just one . The middle one…………..Idiot!
Jesse James
July 24th, 2010
10:58 am
Derek Dooley is a class act. He is the son of a coach that was a class act. Look at the leadership that UGA has now and we realize how much we miss Coach Dooley as AD. Hell I wish he was President. It is not just in college, but your best administrators in high school are former coaches. You see less and less of them and that is why Education is in the shape it is.
Jesse James
July 24th, 2010
11:00 am
Don’t worry about Pi$$onaDawg! He has to squat to piss!
joe
July 24th, 2010
11:01 am
@honestdawg…guess you hate UF and UT cause they both regularly beat your fleabag a$$. 41-17 and 45-19…very impressive.
Buddy El
July 24th, 2010
11:06 am
Bulldawg: Averaging 10 wins per year while coaching in the SEC definitely qualifies CMR as a winner. Also, there are obviously many things you’ll “never know”…. IF you were sober when writing to this blog @2:16 am.
Buddy El
July 24th, 2010
11:10 am
Joe: Who do you hate??? Obviously you don’t have a decent team of your own to talk about(probably a Bunglebee). Who did you anemic little team lose to?
Buddy El
July 24th, 2010
11:13 am
Pi$$onaDawg’s sister(yep, that sister) told me that when he’s not squatting to pee that he has to pump it out by hand.
dap01
July 24th, 2010
12:12 pm
Jeff: Have you wondered who paid for Da Rick’s lawyer? Why was Da Rick not suspended? Dooley is a class act compared to Kiffin and Vince was very classy but no one can match CMR record.
Why not write about that?
Hillbilly Deluxe
July 24th, 2010
12:14 pm
All these players need to learn one simple thing, if you want to stay out of trouble, stay out of places where trouble occurs.
wxwax
July 24th, 2010
12:19 pm
Dooley’s problem isn’t the state of the Tennessee program.
His problem is that there’s no evidence that he’ll ever be a successful football coach in the SEC. He sounds like a fine man. But I think he’s out of his depth. I hope I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure I’m not.
I think USC’s troubles and the hiring of Pat Haden might be the best thing to happen to Lane Kiffin in a while. I believe that Kiffin is talented. But I’m not sure he knew where the line was between promoting a program and excessive showmanship. He was already planning a more sober approach than at Tennessee. Now he’ll really have to buckle down and do it the old fashioned way. I think he can recruit and coach. If he can run a program efficiently I think he’ll be successful and silence the haters.
Songbird
July 24th, 2010
1:07 pm
Dooley may have inherited the same kind of thugs who play at UGA, but at least he doesn’t have…
RED PANTIES FALLING FROM THE SKY!!!
Pi$$onaDawg
July 24th, 2010
1:13 pm
HAHAHAHAH you butt sniffing ball lickers are so funny. Can any of you replying to me read your diplomas even the latin parts? If I remember all the UGAs squat to pee cause thay can’t lift their leg. Who gets to paint RUSS’ butt for the first game? MURRY want first sniff before the kickoff.
Gen Neyland
July 24th, 2010
1:27 pm
HC’s of todays college football game have more weight upon their shoulders and more eyes upon them than back in CVD’s day. Steps made to fix programs on the edge can take a tip from one Nick saban. The key to begin the process comes in the form of discipline first, wins second. All SEC programs from Gainesville to Lexington, Fayetteville to Columbia have struggled with the discipline thing and if one thinks their program is the exception, read police blotters sometime. Tennessee is also no exception. As any of us who thought we were bigger than our britches at some point in our lives found out, life can be altered, for better or worse, by one good kick in the arse. Here’s to hoping CDD and his players with a measure of ethics and loyalty to the University of Tennessee will provide the
‘encouragement’ necessary to those that need it. If they don’t get it, then get them the heck out of there (Myles to date under CDD). Simple choices…
Read it and weep
July 24th, 2010
1:59 pm
BravesFan79 What’s a shame is people walking around with a mentality like yours. You are an absolute disgrace!
Large Orange
July 24th, 2010
4:01 pm
Schultz…..last year I thought it was just Lame Kiffin you were jealous of and thats why you trashed UT at every turn. I thought journalists, and I use the term loosely with you, were supposed to be non-biased. However, you must just hate anything UT. Yes, UT has had more than its share of off field problems. But last time I checked, Mike Hamilton, had not been arrested for DUI with a skank in his car while wearing a pair of red panties on his head. Put a sock in it Schultz. Your hate for the Big Orange shines through your veil. UT will take down the puny Pups in Sanford & Son stadium come October and I cannot wait to read your excuse article then. Rocky Top Tennessee…..wooooooooooooo!
Matt the Brave
July 24th, 2010
4:12 pm
What’s the old saying? Stay out of dark places after dark? These kids need to realize that if they go to bars, stupid drunks are going to be like “Hey, you might be on the football team, but I’ll break your dang skull”. If you’re going to drink, do it in your apartment and keep fools away!
Bob from Cobb
July 24th, 2010
4:26 pm
OK…I am g o i n g t o t y p e v e r y s l o w l y so all you UGA fans can keep up. Regarding the bar fight in Knoxville involving UT players. The cop in question was not beaten unmercifully until he lost consciousness. He jumped into the fray and fell down striking his head on the pavement WHICH IS WHY HE WAS UNCONSCIOUS. Yes, supposedly someone kicked him while on the ground and fled. There were a lot more people at the bar besides UT players. It is also reported the cop did not identify himself and he had been at the bar drinking prior to the incident. Several people (not all UT players) have given statements that DaRick Rogers was trying to break up the fight. A cop grabbed him and he pulled away. Magically you have a “Resisting Arrest” charge against you. Don’t you know cops can make up any charge they want to and slap that on you? Of course, it you are driving drunk with a hoochie-mama in your car while holding her red panties, a cop really does not need to make up any charges. Derek Dooley will do the right thing. Worry about the dogpoop in Athens before you start slinging turds UT’s way. Get the facts before you run off at the mouth. But then again….thats what redneck UGA fans do best. Goooo Vols!!!
Calhoundawg
July 24th, 2010
7:52 pm
The morons at the AJC could write the same about Mark Richt if they had [1/2] a mind to …morons, oh, I already said that ….
oldfart
July 24th, 2010
8:37 pm
the kid has pedigree. he will do well at Tennessee. he knows what he’s doing … but if he falters … his mom is only a phone call away.
MD
July 24th, 2010
10:44 pm
I bet UT still beats UGA.
I hear there is already a hit out on Green.
Fail
July 25th, 2010
7:47 am
So the “cartoon” of last year demolished UGA last year. What does that make UGA? And seriously, thUGA has just as much of an image problem that Mark Richt has not changed and he has been there long enough!
Clay
July 25th, 2010
9:16 am
Let me get this right wxwax, you think Dooley is “out of his depth.” And you think “Kiffin is talented?”
Somebody call 911! This man has obviously overdosed!
Spike
July 25th, 2010
9:49 am
“Irony”.. UT fans calling anybody “rednecks”. Your new head coach was 4-8 at La. Tech.
Best of Atlanta
July 25th, 2010
12:20 pm
————————–
Nesbitt for Heisman
————————–
But can he recruit?
July 25th, 2010
1:02 pm
NO!
UT = university thug
July 25th, 2010
1:04 pm
Watch out they will rob you or beat you, but they can’t win games.
UT = university thug
July 25th, 2010
1:05 pm
How can anyone from hickstown knoxville call anyone a redneck? I guess it takes one to know one.
Better than best of Atlanta
July 25th, 2010
1:07 pm
The only way a GT will see the Heisman is if they make the drive to Athens or Wal-marts in Alabama.
Pi$$onaDawg
July 25th, 2010
1:38 pm
Better than Best: you do know the GIVE ME HEISMAN to Bama’s Ingram was the first ever Heisman winner they ever had. Never say Never. TECH had the ORIGINAL HEISMAN or are you too stupid to know that? UGA has 2 winners and Sinkwich was in 42 the WEAK WAR YEARS. Every hates the War Years because real men went to WAR. 1940 Minnesota, 41 Minnesota, 42 Ohio State, 43 Norte Dame, 44 Army, 45 Army. Sinkwich played in the South were more MEN went to war than played football and went to college.
Davis McCollum
July 25th, 2010
2:07 pm
Class act… Finally Tennessee has some class!
Ranking the SEC, from Bama to Vandy (and Georgia No. 4) | Jeff Schultz
July 25th, 2010
2:33 pm
[...] 9. TENNESSEE: Derek Dooley inherited a mess, on and off the field. Dooley has all the makings to be a great head coach but he might be overmatched at this [...]
SECFan
July 25th, 2010
2:48 pm
Nice article but a little exaggerated in my opinion. People seem to overreact to discipline problems when a team is struggling. It happens everywhere and it’s not good anywhere but the Vols have had some down years so the off the field problems are magnified. I think winning some games will take care of a lot. And The Vols may not be as bad on the field as some think. I seem to remember them playing Florida close last year and they should have beat Alabama. They also destroyed the Dawgs.
When Saban took over as coach of Alabama, they had problems too. There was the player committing armed robbery of a student on campus. Another was selling Crack Cocaine on the fieldhouse steps to students and selling Pit Bulls for dog fighting via the internet.
Florida had a player using a dead girls credit card. Some gun issues with their players. Lots of drug violations. And a player picking up a beer keg at a party and swinging it at a student’s head. But they got past their issues as well.
My point is that you can be hitting rock bottom one year and get to the top of the world quickly in this conference. I think the Vols are down this year but wouldn’t be surprised to see them in a bowl and back competing for championships in two years. Things can change fast, just ask Florida and Alabama!
Doug the Jacket
July 25th, 2010
3:01 pm
A good man who will become a great coach if they give him time to straighten things out.
bilbo
July 25th, 2010
3:28 pm
Everything I’ve read and heard about Derek suggests that he (1) was an average student; (2) an average lawyer; (3) a below average coach (4-8) at a small-time football program. I don’t have anything against him, but what makes people think he’ll be a “great coach” or that he’s taking UT in the right direction? He’s done nothing before or during his coaching career to suggest that…He seems AVERAGE.
Hunker Down
July 25th, 2010
6:23 pm
Hey Bob from Cobb,
How can the knoxville PD get in touch with you to get your eyewitness report? You obviously have so much insight you must of been there.
ONLY
July 25th, 2010
7:19 pm
Just how tall or short is Muarry?
ONLY
July 25th, 2010
7:39 pm
Enter your comments here
Hunker Down
July 25th, 2010
11:09 pm
Murray is 6′1″ about 200 lbs
With Oswalt trade looming, should Braves worry about Philly? | Jeff Schultz
July 26th, 2010
10:23 am
[...] ♦ Dooley calmly moving from one fire to next at Tennessee [...]
Doyne Allison
July 28th, 2010
5:18 pm
I know that character and academic excellence won’t win ball games. But if you find a young man with those attributes, PLUS athletic ability, he’ll win a lot more for you than the player with just super talent, no matter how much talent we’re talking about. Coaches who show no concern over non-athletic traits have no one to blame but themselves when they have to boot people off the team for misconduct.