Phillip Fulmer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Phillip Fulmer | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Title | Head coach | |
| Sport | Football | |
| Born | September 1, 1950 | |
| Place of birth | Winchester, Tennessee | |
| Career highlights | ||
| Overall | 152–52 | |
| Bowls | 8–7 | |
| Coaching stats | ||
| College Football DataWarehouse | ||
| Championships | ||
| 1 National Championship (1998) 2 SEC Championships (1997-1998) 6 SEC Eastern Division Titles (1997-1998, 2001, 2003-2004, 2007) |
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| Awards | ||
| Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year (1998) Home Depot Coach of the Year Award (1998) AFCA Coach of the Year (1998) SEC Coach of the Year (1998) |
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| Playing career | ||
| 1968–1971 | Tennessee | |
| Position | Guard | |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | ||
| 1974-1978 1979 1980-1988 1989-1992 1992-2008 |
Wichita State (OL/LB) Vanderbilt (AC) Tennessee (AC) Tennessee (OC) Tennessee |
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Phillip Fulmer (born September 1, 1950) is the former head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers football team, who compiled a 152-52 record from 1992-2008 as head coach, but was fired following a 5-7 season in 2008. He is best known for coaching the Volunteers in the first ever BCS National Championship Game in 1998, defeating Florida State University. Fulmer was the school's 20th head football coach. On Oct. 22, 2009 Phillip Fulmer made a public announcement stating that he would love to re-enter college football and maybe coach another SEC team.
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[edit] Before coaching
Fulmer was born in Winchester, Tennessee where he attended Franklin County High School. Fulmer enrolled at the University of Tennessee as a student in 1968. He promptly joined the football team as an offensive guard. Fulmer helped Tennessee to a 30–5 record from 1969–71, where he played for coaches Doug Dickey (who returned to UT as athletic director and hired Fulmer as the Volunteers' coach) and Bill Battle. The Volunteers captured the SEC championship with a 9–2 record in 1969, went 11–1 and won the Sugar Bowl in 1970, and finished as Liberty Bowl champions with a 10–2 record in 1971.
[edit] Early coaching career
Fulmer served as linebacker coach and defensive coordinator for the Vols freshman team in 1973 before moving to Wichita State University the following season. He spent five years at Wichita State, where he coached the offensive line in 1974 and 1977-78 and served as linebacker coach in 1975-76. He followed those years with a one-season stint at Vanderbilt, serving as an aide to Commodores head coach George MacIntyre.
[edit] University of Tennessee
Fulmer served 13 years as a Vols assistant coach beginning in 1980 before becoming the 20th head football coach at Tennessee, after a controversial decision to replace then-coach Johnny Majors, who had been ill.[1]
In Fulmer's early career Tennessee won two Southeastern Conference championships, in 1997 and 1998, and a national championship in 1998. The Vols made three other SEC Championship game appearances in 2001, 2004, and 2007 losing all three. Despite the decline over the past several years, Fulmer's winning percentage is still among the top in the country for coaches who have over ten years' experience.
Fulmer helped return Tennessee to national prominence from 1993 to 1998, when he won the first ever BCS National Championship Game. The Vols appeared in three consecutive Bowl Alliance or BCS games from 1997 to 1999. They posted 10 or more wins from 1995 to 1998, with Peyton Manning at quarterback for from 1995 through 1997. The senior class of the 1998 team compiled a record of 45–5, losing only to Florida (3 times), Nebraska and Memphis.
Fulmer had a reputation as an ace recruiter, leading many analysts to praise him as one of the game's top head coach recruiters.[2] Until 2008, Fulmer had only had one losing season at Tennessee: in 2005, Fulmer's pre-season third-ranked Volunteers went 5-6, losing to in-state SEC rival Vanderbilt for the first time in his 14-year tenure. The losing season also kept Tennessee out of a bowl game for the first time since 1988, a streak of 16 years which was the third-longest in the NCAA. Fulmer never lost to the University of Kentucky, winning 17 straight games.[3] After a slow start in 2008, Fulmer came under increased scrutiny from Tennessee fans,[4][5] leaving skepticism about how long he would remain Tennessee's head football coach despite having just received a contract extension after the 2007 season.[6][7] UT athletic director Mike Hamilton finally notified Fulmer of his dismissal on November 2, 2008. The next day, he agreed to step down as head coach following the season. That week the Vols suffered an embarrassing loss at the hands of Wyoming, a 26 point underdog.[8] Fulmer completed his long tenure at the University of Tennessee with a 28-10 win over Kentucky on November 29, 2008.[9][10]
Lane Kiffin succeeded Fulmer as the head coach of the Tennessee Vols.
[edit] After Tennessee
Fulmer can currently be found as a sports analyst on CBS's SEC Postgame Show. Fulmer also believes he will coach again in the future. He is looking to establish himself at a well-established school. "Somebody that's committed to winning championships and being the best that they can be, with a chance to compete in a conference that's nationally recognized. I'm not going to go walk into a door somewhere that you have no chance to be successful."[11] Fulmer is a strong canidate for the University of Louisville head coaching job. He has stated in many interviews that he is interested in the job, and also has had a phone interview with Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich. Fulmer subsequently met with the Louisville AD and was told they were not interested in his services.
[edit] Family
Fulmer and his wife Vicky have three daughters: Courtney, Brittany, and Allison. Son Phillip Jr. is from a previous marriage. Fulmer is also a new grandfather. Phillip's first grandchild (from his second child Courtney and her husband, former Tennessee linebacker Robert Peace) made his first appearance at the "Vol Walk" at Neyland Stadium on September 13, 2008.
[edit] Head coaching record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl | Coaches# | AP° | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee Volunteers (SEC) (1992–present) | |||||||||
| 1992 | Tennessee | 4–0* | 2–0* | 3rd (East)* | W Hall of Fame | 12 | 12 | ||
| 1993 | Tennessee | 10–2 | 7–1 | 2nd (East) | L Florida Citrus | 11 | 12 | ||
| 1994 | Tennessee | 8–4 | 5–3 | 2nd (East) | W Gator | 18 | 22 | ||
| 1995 | Tennessee | 11–1 | 7–1 | 2nd (East) | W Florida Citrus | 2 | 3 | ||
| 1996 | Tennessee | 10–2 | 7–1 | 2nd (East) | W Florida Citrus | 9 | 9 | ||
| 1997 | Tennessee | 11–2 | 7–1 | 1st (East) | L Orange | 8 | 7 | ||
| 1998 | Tennessee | 13–0 | 8–0 | 1st (East) | W Fiesta † | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1999 | Tennessee | 9–3 | 6–2 | 2nd (East) | L Fiesta † | 9 | 9 | ||
| 2000 | Tennessee | 8–4 | 5–3 | 2nd (East) | L Cotton | 25 | |||
| 2001 | Tennessee | 11–2 | 7–1 | 1st (East) | W Florida Citrus | 4 | 4 | ||
| 2002 | Tennessee | 8–5 | 5–3 | 3rd (East) | L Peach | ||||
| 2003 | Tennessee | 10–3 | 6–2 | T-1st (East) | L Peach | 16 | 15 | ||
| 2004 | Tennessee | 10–3 | 7–1 | 1st (East) | W Cotton | 15 | 13 | ||
| 2005 | Tennessee | 5–6 | 4–4 | 4th (East) | |||||
| 2006 | Tennessee | 9–4 | 5–3 | 2nd (East) | L Outback | 23 | 25 | ||
| 2007 | Tennessee | 10–4 | 6–2 | T-1st (East) | W Outback | 12 | 12 | ||
| 2008 | Tennessee | 5–7 | 3–5 | 5th (East) | |||||
| Tennessee: | 152–52 | 98–34 |
*The first three games of the season and the 1993 Hall of Fame Bowl are credited to Fulmer. |
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| Total: | 152–52 | ||||||||
| National Championship Conference Title Conference Division Title | |||||||||
| †Indicates BCS bowl game. #Rankings from final Coaches Poll. °Rankings from final AP Poll. |
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[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Marvin West, Tales of Tennessee Vols: Volunteer Legends, Landmarks, Laughs and Lies, 2002, pp. 88-92.
- ^ "1999 Tennessean of the Year: Phillip Fulmer". Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame. http://www.tshf.net/honorees/fulmer.html. Retrieved 2009-04-22.
- ^ Cosby, Chip (November 25, 2008). "Fulmer upstaging The Streak for UK-UT". Lexington Herald-Leader. http://www.kentucky.com/978/story/604424.html.
- ^ Rucker, Beth (October 8, 2008). "Tennessee fans volunteering to ‘boycott’ lackluster games". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Associated Press). http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/printedition/2008/10/08/tennessee.html.
- ^ Glier, Ray (October 16, 2008). "SEC Notebook: The Fulmer Watch". The New York Times. http://thequad.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/16/sec-notebook-the-philip-fulmer-watch/.
- ^ Parrish, Gary (September 20, 2008). "Clock is ticking: Fulmer's time to leave is approaching". CBS Sports. http://www.sportsline.com/collegefootball/story/10987581.
- ^ Haney, Travis (October 16, 2008). "Vols faithful fed up with Fulmer". The Post and Courier. http://www.charleston.net/news/2008/oct/16/vols_faithful_fed_up_fulmer58096/.
- ^ Low, Chris (November 3rd, 2008). "Fulmer agrees to step down as Vols coach". ESPN Sources. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3679810.
- ^ Moorehouse, John (November 29, 2008). "Fulmer ends career at Tennessee on a winning note as Vols beat Wildcats". Kingsport Times-News. http://www.timesnews.net/article.php?id=9009250.
- ^ Strange, Mike (November 29, 2008). "A fond farewell: Fulmer goes out a winner". Knoxville News-Sentinel. http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2008/nov/29/vols-take-kentucky-28-10/.
- ^ [1]
[edit] External links
| Sporting positions | ||
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| Preceded by Johnny Majors |
University of Tennessee Head Football Coach 1992–2008 |
Succeeded by Lane Kiffin |
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