University of Tennessee: Fulmer’s departure announcement emotional

KNOXVILLE — This was not a celebration.

The tears didn’t come from joy. The embraces weren’t congratulatory.

No one looked like he wanted to be there.

Phillip Fulmer will not be back to lead the University of Tennessee football program next season, as first reported Monday morning and confirmed hours later at an emotional news conference.

One UT player asked teammates to walk out during athletic director Mike Hamilton’s opening statement, and senior wide receiver Josh Briscoe fired an angry question at Hamilton minutes later — during the news conference.

“Why is it that now, it’s more important that we make a dollar than it is to keep the Tennessee tradition and the Tennessee family the way it’s been for years?” Briscoe asked Hamilton.

“Josh, I think the Tennessee tradition does have to remain the center of all our decisions,” Hamilton responded.

Most of the packed-in attendees were simply sad, though. Three-hundred-pound men cried on each other’s shoulders, and several longtime athletic department employees embraced like visitors at a funeral.

Fulmer, who has lived in the Knoxville area and coached or played in the UT program for 35 of his 58 years, sat on a podium and tried unsuccessfully several times to collect himself.

“This is not an easy day for me or my family. It’s not a day that I sought or accepted easily,” Fulmer said. “That field outside is where I first got my jersey dirty playing a game for Tennessee.

“It was September 27, 1969 ... and Tennessee football has been the focus of my professional life ever since.”

Fulmer returned from a six-year absence to coach UT’s offensive line in 1980. He was named offensive coordinator in 1989 and replaced head coach Johnny Majors on an interim basis in 1992.

He took the full-time position one year later and won 68 of his first 79 games, including two Southeastern Conference championships and the 1998 national title.

UT is 27-20 since the start of the 2002 season, though, and Saturday’s loss at South Carolina dropped the Vols to 3-6 (1-5 SEC) this year.

The 1977 Vols are the only team in program history to have lost seven games in one season. UT started playing organized football in 1891.

UT is 6-14 the past four seasons against ranked opponents. It is 11-16 the past nine seasons against Georgia, Florida and Alabama.

“Tennessee has high expectations for its football teams, and I’m proud that the accomplishments of the past 17 years have been part in such high expectations,” said Fulmer, whose winning percentage is behind only Florida State’s Bobby Bowden and Penn State’s Joe Paterno among active coaches with more than 10 years of experience.

“Our Tennessee family is united in its goals but divided in the right path to get there,” Fulmer added. “I love Tennessee too much to let her stay divided.”

Fulmer, the longest-tenured SEC coach, will receive a settlement of about $6 million from his alma mater, payable over 48 monthly payments, according to the seven-year contract extension he signed before this season.

Hamilton said he invited Fulmer to stay with the athletic department “in some capacity,” and Fulmer said he would consider that after the season. He also offered to help in the selection process and adjustment period of his successor, if asked.

“We’ve won more than most anyone at any school ever has; we’ve had some of UT’s greatest teams; we’ve had many of its greatest players, and we’ve done it right by NCAA rules,” Fulmer said. “I’ll remember fondly the battles we fought to get to 150 victories, and I wish nothing but the best for my alma mater in the future.

“I am not certain what the future holds for me professionally. ... It’s very difficult for me to call this an end to my career.”

Fulmer, a Winchester native, has coached or played in 422 UT games since arriving on campus.

Whether he coaches in 425 or 426 depends on whether his team can defeat Wyoming, Vanderbilt and Kentucky in November and qualify for a bowl game — which the Vols have failed to do just once since Fulmer took over the program.

Hamilton made multiple references to the “difficult” process he’s overseen the past several weeks, which several sources said ended Sunday afternoon in a one-on-one meeting between Hamilton and Fulmer.

“Our discussions leading to Coach Fulmer’s announcement today did not come without great consternation or thought,” Hamilton said. “But it’s, in my opinion, the best solution to our current circumstance.

“It’s time to treat Coach Fulmer with the appropriate class and dignity that he deserves.”

UT senior right tackle Ramon Foster thought Fulmer wasn’t given an appropriate amount of either.

“That right there wasn’t very standup by Tennessee,” Foster said. “That’s not a way for him to go out. He should be able to go out on his own terms.”

Sophomore safety Eric Berry seemed more upset than angry.

“I feel like I just lost one of my ribs, or my kidney or something,” Berry said. “ I feel like I just lost a family member.

“Nobody died, but that’s what it feels like to me right now. These last three games will be dedicated to him.”

That, Hamilton said, was reason to announce his decision before the season was finished.

“Frankly — and this is as straightforward as I can be — I thought because of what Phillip has accomplished in his career, by going ahead and doing this now, it would give our fans the opportunity to celebrate his career over the next three weeks in the Vol Walk and in Neyland Stadium,” Hamilton said. “We were fortunate enough that our one road game is at Vanderbilt, and I know that Middle Tennessee fans will want to be there to support him and the team as well.”

Former UT quarterback star Peyton Manning said in a release through the University that “this is a sad day for the Tennessee family.

“Nobody loves the University of Tennessee more than Coach Fulmer,” Manning’s statement continued. “Phillip Fulmer is the reason I chose to come to Tennessee, and it was one of the greatest decisions I ever made. I will always be indebted to him for the impact he has made on my life and my football career.

“I know I speak for hundreds of players when I say that it was an honor to have played for him. ... I am fortunate to have played four years for one of the greatest coaches in the history of college football. His legacy at Tennessee will be that he built men and won championships. He will always be my coach.”