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Former Tennessee Vols head coach Phillip Fulmer named special adviser to UT president

By Caleb Calhoun

Jan 3, 2017; Knoxville, TN, USA; Fans take a picture with former Tennessee Volunteers head football coach Phillip Fulmer during the second half of the basketball game between the Tennessee Volunteers and against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Thompson-Boling Arena. Arkansas won 82 to 78. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 3, 2017; Knoxville, TN, USA; Fans take a picture with former Tennessee Volunteers head football coach Phillip Fulmer during the second half of the basketball game between the Tennessee Volunteers and against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Thompson-Boling Arena. Arkansas won 82 to 78. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /
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Former Tennessee football coach Phillip Fulmer now has a new role with the Volunteers as special adviser to the school president.

We are approaching four months since UT selected John Currie as Athletic Director over Phillip Fulmer and against the former Tennessee football coach’s wishes. But he now has a new role with the Vols and is back with the university.

Fulmer has been named special adviser to the Tennessee president for community, athletics and university relations.

School president Joe DiPietro announced the hiring Tuesday, according to a report on UTSports online.

"In this role, Fulmer will serve as an ambassador for the University system at community and athletics events, support the intercollegiate athletic programs at UT campuses in Knoxville, Chattanooga and Martin, and work with UT government relations and alumni affairs leadership to advocate for the statewide system with elected officials and UT alumni.“Phillip has been a tremendous asset to the University of Tennessee both on and off the field for more than 40 years,” DiPietro said. “I have enjoyed the opportunity to work with him on the UT President’s Council, and I look forward to working with him in a broader sense to advocate for the University with our key stakeholders.”"

Fulmer was head coach at Tennessee from 1992 to 2008 and amassed a 152-52 record. He  called the the role a “special opportunity” and expressed excitement about the chance to work with DiPietro.

Athletic Director John Currie noted his track record as a native Tennessean whose bloodline is pure Vols. After all, he was an assistant coach for 12 years with Tennessee football before becoming a head coach.

Also, he played for the university in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

As great as all of this is for Phillip Fulmer, it oddly seems like a unity tour. Think of what Tom Perez and Bernie Sanders are doing with the DNC. Or Perez giving Keith Ellison a new role.

Simply put, it seems like a way to unify the fan base.

After all, there was clear tension when John Currie took over as athletic director. Currie and Fulmer appeared to have tension with each other, and Fulmer was also a candidate for the job.

So this position is likely an attempt to smooth things over.

However, congratulations are still in order for Phillip Fulmer. He has a passion for the university that nobody can touch. As a result, it’s hard to debate that he will do a great job with outreach.

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