Randy Smith
The honeymoon between Tennessee coach Butch Jones and the Volunteer fan base is over. I'm sure that comes as no surprise to anyone following the Vols' second loss of the season after having a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter. Just a few weeks ago, Butch could have been elected governor in our state. Now, if Tennessee doesn't win this week at home against Arkansas, he may need secret service protection to get to and from work each day. That's how it goes today in the world of college football.
The legions of the miserable are now coming out of the woodwork.
They are still spewing poison on Facebook and other social media sites. Here's an example:
" Let's bring in Chip Kelly. He's probably going to be fired in Philadelphia."
" Let's bring back Fulmer. He could win the SEC with this talent."
" Butch Jones doesn't know how to win at this level. Maybe he needs to go back to Cincinnati."
" We're paying this clown $3 million a year for this?"
" The Butch Zook era is alive and well at Tennessee." (referring to former Florida coach Ron Zook who recruited very well, but was an average at best game coach.)
The criticism is not just coming from fans. It's also coming from the many analysts on radio and television: Paul Finebaum has had a field day with the Florida debacle. " Butch Jones needs to go to finishing school." Even the guests on Finebaum's show are taking shots at Butch. "Pee Wee coaches could have done a better job than Tennessee's coaches." I can't believe the stupidity of Butch Jones."
Wow.....If the Vols can't turn things around, he may not last until the season is over. In other words, the tide of opinion can turn quickly in college football and it has definitely turned on Butch Jones.
Coach Jones has been called arrogant because he hasn't really acknowledged that he and his staff made a mistake or two; not only against Florida but also against Oklahoma three weeks ago. Oh, we could all have forgiven him for the Sooners' double-overtime loss if his team hadn't squandered a 27-14 lead with 10:24 left in the game against the Gators. There were so many opportunities to have won this game but the Vols couldn't take advantage of any of them.
So, Tennessee is 2-2 and 0-1 in the SEC with Arkansas coming to Neyland Stadium on Saturday night. The Razorbacks lost in OT to a really good Texas A&M squad last weekend, so this one is not a sure thing. The Volunteers must play very, very well to win this one. If they do post a victory, it will likely shut up a few of the dissenters, but after the date with the Hogs, it's a three game stretch of SEC terror against Georgia, Alabama and an improved Kentucky team. If Butch can survive that stretch with two wins out of three games, he may be able to keep the wolves away from his door. Two losses will force UT Athletic Director Dave Hart to make a decision about giving Jones and his staff a fourth year.
As far as Tennessee football goes, I have always been a "glass half full" kind of guy. I say Butch should be back regardless of whether UT finishes 9-3 or 5-7 . His recruiting prowess has earned him a fourth year, but he has to prove he can finish big games against good teams. His biggest mistake so far is not making himself personally accountable for the Florida loss. If he had just said, "We need to coach better.......I need to coach better. Our kids played their hearts out and we as coaches let them down." The criticism would still be there but the hate and poison would be much less.
It's like the coach whose team was 2-10 one year and off to a bad start the following year. He asked his athletic director, "If we go 2-10 again will you still love me?" The AD replied, "Yeah I'll still love you. I'll miss you, but I'll still love you."
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Randy Smith has been covering sports on radio, television and print for the past 45 years. After leaving WRCB-TV in 2009, he has written two books, and has continued to free-lance as a play-by-play announcer. He is currently teaching Broadcasting at Coahulla Creek High School near Dalton, Ga.
His career has included a 17-year stretch as host of the Kickoff Call In Show on the University of Tennessee’s prestigious Vol Network. He has been a member of the Vol Network staff for thirty years.
He has done play-by-play on ESPN, ESPN II, CSS, and Fox SportSouth, totaling more than 500 games, and served as a well-known sports anchor on Chattanooga Television for more than a quarter-century.
In 2003, he became the first television broadcaster to be inducted into the Greater Chattanooga Area Sports Hall of Fame. Randy and his wife Shelia reside in Hixson. They have two married children, (Christi and Chris Perry; Davey and Alison Smith.) They have four grandchildren, Coleman, Boone, DellaMae and CoraLee.