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Tennessee football: 5 OC changes that worked out for Vols

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 08: Tennessee mascot Davy Crockett carries the flag across the end zone during a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the East Tennessee State University Buccaneers at Neyland Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennesee won the game 59-3. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 08: Tennessee mascot Davy Crockett carries the flag across the end zone during a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the East Tennessee State University Buccaneers at Neyland Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennesee won the game 59-3. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images /

3. 1992-93: David Cutcliffe

The first hire of David Cutcliffe was the one that propelled Tennessee football to the national stage in the mid-1990s. And he replaced the guy who hired him in Phillip Fulmer, who went on to become head coach. We say 1992-1993 because he was interim in 1992.

Fulmer filled in for Johnny Majors, and Cutcliffe stepped in as OC for the first three games with Heath Shuler at quarterback. The Vols scored over 30 points in all three games with huge wins over the Georgia Bulldogs and Boston College Eagles.

When he took over full time after the regular season following the Fulmer-Majors drama, Cutcliffe again put up over 30 in the bowl game. Keep in mind the offense averaged 28.9 points a game all year and only 29 points the previous year with a senior quarterback.

Anyway, Cutcliffe’s offense took off and broke records the next year. In 1993, they averaged over 480 yards and 40 points a game. Then he got Peyton Manning to come to Knoxville in 1994. And that set in motion a historical run, where the Vols averaged over 30 points for each of the next five years, four with Manning and one with Tee Martin.

Cutcliffe’s offenses helped orchestrate the most successful period in the modern era of Tennessee football history. While he was offensive coordinator, the Vols went 65-11-1, or 66-11 if you want to give them that Alabama win in 1993, with two SEC Championships and a national championship. Simply put, he was one of the best coordinator hires ever made on Rocky Top. And his hire was a promotion after a decade on staff and three years of coaching quarterbacks.

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