The situation in Tennessee has gotten uglier by the day as the Vols search for a new head coach, and it has become clear that the Greg Schiano fiasco was only the tip of the iceberg.
On Friday, Tennessee decided to fire athletic director John Currie after just eight months on the job. The decision came on the heels of reports that the Vols were closing in on a deal with Mike Leach. According to college football reporter Brett McMurphy, Curry tried to hire Leach but university officials blocked the move. But that’s not all — McMurphy was also told that former Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer has been sabotaging the coaching search in hopes of being named the school’s new athletic director.
Sources: John Currie was prepared to hire Mike Leach but university officials wouldn’t allow him to do so. Phillip Fulmer has been sabotaging search process in hopes to become Tennessee’s AD
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 1, 2017
Another source: Tennessee’s own people have been ambushing (John) Currie’s (coaching search). They shoot themselves in the foot, cock the gun & shoot themselves in the other foot. It’s been going on for a week"
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 1, 2017
For a program that was once considered one of the best in the country, its unfathomable how out of hand things have gotten in Tennessee.
Since the Vols pulled their offer from Schiano due to public backlash, they have been turned down by numerous big-name coaches. Leach was the latest person Tennessee was supposedly closing in on, but the timing of Currie’s firing makes it seem like the Washington State coach isn’t coming to Knoxville, either.
When Currie was named Tennessee’s AD earlier in the year, there was a report that Fulmer was led to believe he was going to get the job. The 67-year-old was the head coach at Tennessee from 1992-2008, compiling a record of 152-52 and winning a national championship in 1998.
What will happen next at Tennessee is anyone’s guess, but the drama is far from finished.
