Dave Hart has been trouble from the day he arrived in Knoxville from Alabama. He made a brilliant move by terminating 35-year Lady Vols Media Director Debby Jennings and rightly so - she is suing Hart and his "good ole boys".
Hart also forced Coach Summit out as she testified so in a court case against the university. Hart then removed Coach Summit's name from the Arena's floor.
One state Hart has not ventured into is Idaho, where football coach Peterson has a record of 83-8 - a winning percentage of .912. This year Boise State lost to Michigan State 17-13 away. Boise State lost to San Diego State 21-19. Boise State ended the season with a BSC ranking of #19, Louisville ranked below Boise State at #21 and Hart tried to hire the Louisville coach and got rebuffed.
Dave Hart has managed to anger the Lady Vols supporters. Dave Hart has managed to strip the athletic department of much-needed cash paying off terminated previous coaches. If anyone needs to go, it's Dave Hart and his "good ole boys " mentality he has fostered at UTK.
Chuck Mehan
East Ridge
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I hate to confuse Chuck Mehan with the facts about Dave Hart but he did not "force" Pat Summitt out as Lady Vols coach. Here is Pat's statement:
"It was entirely my decision to step down from my position as the head coach of women's basketball at the University of Tennessee," Summitt, who has been diagnosed with early-onset dementia, said in the three-paragraph statement.
Hart inherited a huge mess left by Mike Hamilton and is working through it. He also is combining the men's and women's Athletic Departments from a decision that was made long before he became AD. As for Boise coach Chris Petersen, he has made it pretty clear he is happy in Boise and has rejected many offers over the years.
This morning it was announced that we have hired Butch Jones from Cincinnati as our new HC. Here is an original thought, why don't we give him a chance before we criticize Hart for the hire?
Douglas Jones