All for Tennessee
Fansided

Tennessee football: Remembering four previous times Vols rehired a coach

By Caleb Calhoun

CLEMSON, SOUTH CAROLINA - NOVEMBER 17: Head coach David Cutcliffe of the Duke Blue Devils looks on as his team warms up for their football game against the Clemson Tigers at Clemson Memorial Stadium on November 17, 2018 in Clemson, South Carolina. (Photo by Mike Comer/Getty Images)
CLEMSON, SOUTH CAROLINA - NOVEMBER 17: Head coach David Cutcliffe of the Duke Blue Devils looks on as his team warms up for their football game against the Clemson Tigers at Clemson Memorial Stadium on November 17, 2018 in Clemson, South Carolina. (Photo by Mike Comer/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 5
Next
Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images /

Tennessee football’s last rehire of an offensive coordinator was 13 years ago, and it was the splash move of the year. David Cutcliffe is credited with building the offenses to shape the most successful period in the Vols’ modern era. He had been an assistant with the program from 1982 to 1992, and in 1992 spent four games as an interim offensive coordinator before being named the full-time coordinator the next year as Phillip Fulmer replaced Johnny Majors as head coach.

From 1993 to 1998, Cutcliffe lured Peyton Manning to Rocky Top and also helped deliver the Vols five Top 10 finishes, two Top 5 finishes, two SEC Championships and, while not coaching in it himself, a national championship. He then left to take the head coaching job for the Ole Miss Rebels, which helped them land Eli Manning.

But after five straight winning seasons and an SEC West title in 2003, his team stumbled to 4-7 in 2004, and he was fired. In 2005, he accepted an assistant head coach position with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish under new head coach Charlie Weis, but health reasons forced him to step down, and he was then on the open market living in Knoxville.

That same year, the Vols suffered their worst season since 1988 with a 5-6 record and arguably their worst offense in history, so Randy Sanders stepped down. And all the stars aligned for Phillip Fulmer to bring back Cutcliffe.

In one year, Cutcliffe turned around the offense and specifically Erik Ainge, who was erratic at quarterback splitting time with Rick Clausen in 2005 but became one of the most efficient passers in the nation in 2006, setting a school record for completion percentage on Rocky Top. He also helped Robert Meachem set a school record for receiving yards in a season.

The overall turnaround was insane, as the Vols went from averaging 326 yards and 18.6 points a game to averaging over 372 yards and just under 28 points a game. They took another huge step in 2007, winning the SEC East and averaging over 400 yards and 32 points a game.

The year after Cutcliffe left to take the head coaching job with the Duke Blue Devils, the Vols stumbled to 5-7 with another horrendous offense, and Fulmer was fired. As a result, he was an incredibly successful rehire.

Home/Vols Football