Tennessee football’s 10 coaches who inherited biggest mess

The mess Jim McDonald inherited when he took over for Bowden Wyatt doubled after McDonald left. Tennessee football had already sunk to irrelevancy under Wyatt, and McDonald being there for one year to only go 5-5 had the program hanging by a thread in 1964. As a result, UT needed to make a splash to return to relevance.

That splash was hiring Florida Gators graduate Doug Dickey. At the time, the Vols had no flashy traditions to draw in the younger recruits, as the first baby boomers were entering college. They were also running an antiquated offense, stuck in the single-wing dating all the way back to the 1920s. A major overhaul was necessary.

Dickey installed the T-formation to make UT more fashionable to the younger crowds. It was also a more fitting system when coaches had an expanded group of talent to pick from, and that was about to happen with integration right around the corner. He also established major Vol traditions like Running through the T.

Nobody was ready for this in 1964, however. Remember, UT hadn’t had a winning season in three years and hadn’t reached a bowl in seven years at that time. As a result, they suffered through one more losing season. Once Dickey got his guys in there, though, he ushered in an elite 10-year run, the latter half of which was led by Bill Battle, that became the renaissance era for the Vols.