Who Didn't See This Coming?: Mike Hamilton Steps Down As University of Tennessee’s AD:



The news of Mike Hamilton stepping down as UT’s AD should really not come as a surprise to those who closely monitored the situation. His tenure as AD was the most tumultuous in Tennessee’s long and storied athletic department history. He oversaw three coaching changes in Tennessee’s usually stable football program including the firing of UT legend Phil Fulmer and the hiring of Lane Kiffin (Kiffin is a curse word around these parts). Kiffin replaced Fulmer and everyone knows how that one ended. Derek Dooley is still working to get the Kiffin’s stench out of Knoxville. Hamilton also hired and fired former men’s beloved basketball coach Bruce Pearl. Pearl was Hamilton’s best hire until Pearl’s scandal and allegations led to his eventual firing amid a media firestorm. Tennessee has been charged with 12 major violations since Hamilton has taken over in 2003. There were multiple player suspensions from the likes of fighting, robbery, drug charges, gun charges and many more. Now all of this wasn’t his fault, as it was the coaches’ job to control their players. But Hamilton DID hire those coaches who were take care of that side for him. He has always been accustomed to change as AD of Tennessee, because it was the one constant he has dealt with while serving.

Furthermore, Hamilton hasn’t had the support base of the Tennessee family for some time now. His handling of the Fulmer and Pearl situation left many doubters. He always seemed a step behind when it came to having the right amount of fortitude and leniency on his coaches. Kiffin was able to get away with many violations right under Hamilton’s nose and the same can be said about Pearl. Those two were direct hires of Hamilton’s. Just listen in to one the sports shows in town and when someone mentions Hamilton the conversation immediately takes a downward spiral. There are websites dedicated to Hamilton titled “FireHamilton.com” and some other ones I can’t even mention due to vulgar language. He will join the long list of coaches who were bought out by UT including Fulmer, Pearl, former baseball coach Todd Raleigh. The sum of those parts are costing the University $3.1 million dollars annually and when you throw in Hamilton’s projected buy out at $1.3 million, your looking at a staggering amount of money for guys who are not on the sidelines.

It will be interesting to see what Hamilton’s legacy is remembered for at UT. He did hire the most successful men’s basketball coach in the school’s history in Pearl. He did fire one of the most loved coaches in UT history as well in Phil Fulmer. The school was always in the media rather it is for the right or wrong things. He wasn’t the most well like man but he had the have support of the right people at UT and that has to be one of the reasons he kept his job as long as he did. Chancellor Jimmy Cheek had to know inevitably this day was coming soon. From what he said in the press conference lets you know as much as he stated he did not force Hamilton out BUT DID NOT TRY TO CONVINCE HIM TO STAY EITHER. Wow, that about sums it up best. No one in Tennessee wanted to force him out but now that he is gone most of the Tennessee faithful are breathing a sigh of relief.

Tennessee annocues Cuzono Martin as their new men's basketball coach.

The University of Tennessee will formally introduce Cuonzo Martin as their men’s basketball head coach today. Martin of course will fill the role vacated by lightning rod Bruce Pearl. After chasing high profile names such as Villanova’s Jay Wright and Pittsburgh’s Jamie Dixon, the Vols decided that the best option left was Martin.

Cuonzo is among the most promising young coaches in the game, and we are excited about the coaching ability, toughness, and energy that he brings to our program," Tennessee Director of Athletics Mike Hamilton said. "He has a proven track record of success as a head coach at Missouri State and an assistant at Purdue as well as an outstanding career as a college basketball player. His Missouri State program improved from 11 wins to 26 in just two seasons, and they won the regular season conference championship this year." Said athletics director Mike Hamilton

Cuonzo Martin (pronounced CON-zoe) may not be the splash in the pan that most Vol fans were looking for, but upon closer inspection, he seems to be a judicious hire due to the circumstances facing the program. Under normal circumstances, UT with its facilities and deep pockets would be a coveted job for most coaches. However because of to trail left by Bruce Pearl and the possible NCAA infractions facing the program not so much at this time. Martin will inherit a program that has a due date with the NCAA infractions committee just 3 months from now and will learn their fate. Not to mention that the cupboard could be bare as Tobias Harris and Scotty Hopson could jump to the NBA and incoming freshmen Kenny Ware could look to sign elsewhere with Pearl gone.

Nevertheless, Martin has proven that he can change a programs fortune. While at Missouri State, he took the Bears to a 26-9 and a conference championship in his third season. That was a stark turnaround from a team that just two years ago was 11-20 and last in the Missouri Valley Conference. He is a another coach off the Gene Keady coaching tree as is current Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings. Martin has no history of NCAA violations which is important after the whole Bruce Pearl saga. He also received coach of the year honors in the MVC conference and is a finalist for two national coaching awards this season: the Hugh Durham National Coach of the Year Award, presented annually to the top mid-major coach in Division I college basketball, and the Ben Jobe Award, presented annually to the top minority head coach in Division I.

Martin also survived a cancel scare as he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 1997. He was last treated for the disease in 1998 and is now in full remission. The Martin era may not be what many UT fans wanted after six successful seasons by Bruce Pearl. My initial reaction to the hire was like most in saying who is this guy? The Vols had little choice really after reportedly being turned down by multiple coaches for the job. I figured it would have to be someone with strong resolve and determination to undertake such a dubious job. Martin seems to be as strong willed as they come after growing up on the mean streets of East St. Louis and surviving cancer, an NCAA infraction should be the least of his worries.

In summary, Martin should serve well in Knoxville. He wasn’t the first choice but if you remember back last time UT had an opening, neither was Bruce Pearl. His background shows that he is a man of high character and moral standards. His tenure may get off to a rocky start in rocky top but if his track record proves anything he will be able to endure the challenge of keeping UT in the top echelon of SEC basketball.

Pearl Pushed Out By Tennessee

I clearly regret having to post this article because I am a Bruce Pearl fan but his time with UT has come to an end. Pearl was gregarious and his high energy personality rubbed off on everyone around him. He embraced Tennessee culture and did things that made us Tennessean’s embrace him. Pearl finished with a record of 145-61 as UT’s head coach and also led them to six straight NCAA tournaments. His resume speaks for itself but Pearl was more than just win and losses. He put UT basketball on the map as he led them to their first ever number one ranking. Who can forget Pearl showing up at the Lady Vols game with his torso camouflaged in Vol orange? Pearl’s endearing antics surpassed those of all the coaches in the SEC. It rubbed most the wrong way but it you are a Vol fan, you loved it.

You can tell how much he meant to the program as news of his firing has dominated the sports scene here locally. People in Tennessee have a certain type of infatuation with him. He cam from the northeast but was able to adapt to Tennessee and from what I hear is not an easy thing to do. The ramifications of Pearl ouster are huge. Players such as Tobias Harris and Scotty Hopson are all but done in a UT uniform at this point. Incoming players are asking for permission to speak to other teams in wake of Pearl’s ouster. And with an NCAA sanction hanging over the UT program, how can they expect to land a good coach? The program is left with more questions then answers at this point. Mike Hamilton seems incapable to handling bad situations. His ill-advised interview before the NCAA tournament had to make other AD’s around the country cringe. Hamilton should be on shaky ground as well now as two of his hires in Pearl and Lane Kiffin both have come under fire from the NCAA are no longer at UT. If Hamilton knew he was going to fire Pearl then he should have done it immediately. There was no point of creating the circus that was UT’s men basketball season. There was no point of docking Pearl’s pay, suspending him and publicly backing him for the entire season only to dump as soon as it was over. Hamilton’s interview seemed to be nothing more than him distancing himself away from Pearl in an effort to set up the fan base for his firing.



Futhermore on Pearl, he had built a reputation as an upright and what you see is what you get coach. His persona has been that way since he blew the whistle on Illinois and their involvement with former recruit Deon Thomas. Dick Vitale called the Thomas situation career suicide but Pearl made it through that debacle. Now it does seem ironic if not prophetic that Pearl career is stalled because of NCAA violations. As much as I like Pearl, don’t get me wrong, he was wrong for the things that he did. The most stunning part of the allegations is the reported “Bumps” that the NCAA found out after they had met with Pearl in September. Pearl held a tear filled press conference soon after his meeting with the NCAA but according to reports, he and assistant Tony Jones illegally had contact with a prep athlete. Pearl disputes this and says it was a cordial greeting of the player but at this point it doesn’t matter. Once you’re the crosshairs of the NCAA, they are relentless. Pearl had a chance to come clean and he didn’t which is no one’s fault but his own. But when a coach like Jim Tressel of Ohio State does in what amounts to basically the same thing if not worse, then you begin to realize how unfair this fallout was to Pearl. Everyone knows the story now of Tressel as he knew all along about his players selling their memorabilia in exchange for tattoos but instead of turning the players in, Tressel played them and rode them to a Sugar Bowl victory. How can that not be more offensive than what Pearl did? Highly hypocritical but the NCAA has been this way for years.

Pearl became a victim of his own success. He was a diamond in the rough that finally had a big-time program at his dispense. He did what most coaches are doing at this very moment. Some say Pearl was set-up for those reasons I mentioned earlier in this article, I don’t know if I can agree with that. I do think that he became drunk with his own prosperity. They say it is only cheating if you get caught but that doesn’t even correctly objectify what is going on in college athletics these days. And when you think about coaches like John Callapari, who has took two programs (UMass and Memphis) to the final four only to have those banners taken down because of allegations, it does make one think Pearl may have been duped one way or another. Pearl’s ambition drove him to do whatever it took to stay on top. If that meant 100 calls to a recruit so be it. If that meant throwing a cookout for future players, so be it (even though I still don’t understand why he would allow anyone to take photos of the event). Pearl is just the latest casualty in the NCAA world of rules. Pearl will resurface after a year of two. He is too charismatic and too good of a coach not to. It’s just a shame that he won’t be back on the Tennessee sidelines anymore.

Universtiy of Tennesse charged by NCAA for Violations

The University of Tennessee finally was served by the NCAA for various rule violations in their men’s basketball, football and baseball teams. This comes as no surprise as most have known for months the day of reckoning was coming as the school has been investigated the last 22 months. Tennessee was citied for 12 various violations in both programs under the watch of former football coach Lane Kiffin (Insert your own bad word here UT fans) and current head basketball coach Bruce Pearl. The baseball team, although investigated was not charged with any wrongdoing.

The penalties on the football side were about as good as it could it be in this situation for the Vols. Most of the penalties levied against the program are going west to follow Lane Kiffin. Kiffin and his assistants were accused of making improper phone call to recruits after UT officials admonished Kiffin and his staff about making those types of calls. The dates of the allegations are Jan 03-09, 2010 and of course those dates came just before Kiffin resigned at UT and jetted his way to USC. The NCAA stated that Kiffin “Failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance of NCAA rules within their programs.” The happiest man in Tennessee right now should be current head football coach Derek Dooley. He can recruit now knowing with a peace of mind. The program can now begin to move on from this scandal that was brought onto from Kiffin. The light is visible at the end of tunnel for the football team.

However, as for the aforementioned Bruce Pearl and the men’s basketball team, not so much. Pearl faces a gauntlet of allegations that could possibly cause him his job. Pearl and his staff have been charged with unethical conduct after he lied to NCAA investigators in a June interview about hosting high school players at a cookout at his home in September of 2008. He also called John Craft, the father of Aaron Craft, to sway some influence onto the younger Craft’s statement to NCAA agents. Not to be forgotten in this is that UT has already docked Pearl’s salary by $1.5 million dollars as well as banning him from off-campus recruitment for a year. SEC commish Mike Slive also stepped in as he suspended Pearl for the first eight games of the conference season. It wasn’t just Pearl who was charged as his assistants Tony Jones, Steve Forbes and Jason Shay were accused of “violating the NCAA principles of honesty” for making up to 96 impermissible calls to 12 recruits.



This is a bad situation for all involved. Not only could Pearl lose his job but he also makes a huge distraction for his team. After playing their best game of the season against Vandy, they get hit with news like this. AD Mike Hamilton now has three programs including football, basketball and baseball all under investigation under his watch and has to take some heat for hiring Kiffin and Pearl. Hamilton could also possibly lose his job but from what I hear, he is safe. The scandal has marred all of UT’s athletics as it has given the entire department a bad name. Pearl still has his support and seems to be on solid footing with Hamilton. Most fans still support Pearl as he has developed Tennessee men’s basketball team into a top 10 or 15 programs nationally. The rub with me on this issue is if Pearl stays on as the coach, what kind of message does it send about UT athletics? Is it a win at all cost mentality? It must be because I know if Buzz Peterson were the coach during all these accusations, he would have been shown the door a long time ago. In the cut-throat world of the SEC, winning is the only thing that matters at most schools but sometime you can’t just go with the status quo. I am a big Pearl supporter as he is a personable guy and a damn good basketball coach but he made his mistakes and must pay for them like everyone else. The ball is in UT’s court. The decision that they make on Pearl will let us know what UT athletics is all about.

Local College Basketball Beat

Tennessee welcomed back coach Bruce Pearl this weekend with a loss to Florida. The loss stung because it drops UT to 5-5 in the SEC and a tie for fourth place in the east. Tennessee had it chances as they were up by as much as eight points in the second half and got a strong performance from sophomore Scotty Hopson who scored 22. UT shot 49 percent from the field easily their highest mark in SEC play and forced 14 turnovers. That should be enough to win the game but the gritty Gators roared back and the Vols let them by not knocking down there free-throws. The Vols have had trouble all season closing out close games as they lost to Alabama and Florida the first time in similar fashion. If the Vols (15-10) are to make a run at the NCAA tournament it has to start Wednesday against South Carolina. Pearl knows this as he tries to ease himself from his 8-game suspension, Pearl stated “Late-game offensive execution to win games is an area we have scored very poorly in,” Pearl said. “I hope that we can learn from some of those mistakes and do a better job of closing them out down the stretch.” UT also has to get better play out of starters Tobias Harris who only had 9 points and 5 rebounds. Melvin Goins, the starting point guard had 7 points with NO assists. The time is now for the Vols to get hot make their run for the tournament. The team that shows up in South Carolina will tell us all that we will need to know Wednesday night.

Vandy got a stirring performance from super sophomore Jeff Jenkins as he just assaulted the Kentucky defense from long range. Jenkins went off for 32 as the Commodores were able to hold off the Wildcats. What made the performance even more awe-inspiring was the text Jenkins got from his mother who said he needed to score at least 25 or more for Vandy. Jenkins did more than that with a dazzling array of spot up jump shots and coming off ball screens to knock down a career high six three-pointers. Vandy also got help from big man Festus Ezeli as he chipped in with 14 and Brad Tinsley added 11. The Commodores are as dangerous a team as they come when Jenkins is shooting the ball well. Jenkins is living up to the billing he had come out of high school as one the best shooters in the country. Vandy stands at 18-6 and 6-4 in the SEC good enough for second in the rugged east division. The Commodores seem to have a nice blend of athletes and shooters that play well together. When you throw in the presence of Ezeli in the middle it makes for a team that could make a run in March. Jenkins seemed to know the importance of beating perennial SEC and national power Kentucky as he stated I told Coach I must’ve been dreaming because this can’t be real. Especially being from here you see a lot of great games against Kentucky,” Jenkins said. “To be a part of that part of that legacy now is something special.” Vandy faces Georgia this Wednesday in what will be another test for the streaking Commodores.

Tennessee Lady Vols 65 vs. Vanderbilt Commodores 57: This was another classic is this epic women’s rivalry. In a game that was eerily similar to they previous meeting this season, the Commodores couldn’t have asked for a better start as UT couldn’t make anything in the first half. The Lady Vols scored a whopping 15 points in the first half on 20 percent shooting as the Commodores built an 11-point lead. But things changed in the second half for the lady Vols upon the insertion of backup point guard Lauren Avant. She seemed to spark the lady Vols as they went on a tear and scored 50 points in the second half. The slow start could be attributed to the fact that UT had played 3 games in the last 7 days. The Vandy lead was 39-28 before UT would go on a 16-3 run and never look back. Avant scored on a lay-up and added the free throw and then added a three-pointer to spark to the Vols. Jence Rhoades of the Commodores led all scorers with 15 but it wasn’t enough. The lady Vols always seem to find a way to pull out the win on the Commodores and this time wasn’t different. Vandy coach Melanie Balcomb summed it up the best as she stated "You hold somebody to 15 and then they score 50?”."I mean 20 might not have been enough at that point. The frustrating piece, until the last eight minutes we were beating them, and they're the No. 4 team in the country and there's a lot to be said for that." Both teams are in action this Thursday as the lady Vols take on the South Carolina Gamecocks and Vandy face the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs.

Local College Basketball Beat

UT Men: The Tennessee Vols men’s basketball team escaped with a win against the Georgia Bulldogs. Escaped is the best way to put it as the Vols needed a last-second shot from big man Brian Williams to seal the victory. Tennessee was down by as many as 17 before turning the game around. The Vols were led by Junior Scotty Hopson and Freshman Tobias Harris who both had 15 points. Tennessee’s roller-coaster season continues as they now are 12-6 and 2-2 in SEC play. The Vols started the season off hot at 6-0 after winning the pre-season NIT and beating Big East heavyweights Pittsburgh and Villanova but they are just 6-6 over their last 12 games. The embattled Bruce Pearl will be back on the sidelines for their next game against the eight ranked Uconn Huskies. The Vols have been successful in beating Big East teams this year but they will need Pearl and any other help as they try to stop PG Kemba Walker, as he has been on a tear this entire season. Speaking of Pearl, he is four games in to his SEC mandated suspension of eight games. Stephen Pearl was the subject of Georgia fans as they chanted “Where’s Your Daddy?” but the Vols got the last laugh with the victory. The Vols travel to Uconn this Saturday. The return of Pearl and the spectacular play of Walker should make for an entertaining game. Make sure you tune in.

Vandy’s Men: After dropping their first two SEC road games, Vandy defeated Ole Miss 84-74 at Memorial Gym. The Commodores were led by super soph John Jenkins’s 20 points and big man Festus Ezeli’s 16. Lance Gouldbourne had a career high 15 rebounds.After a hotly contested first half, Vandy opened the second half on a 12-3 run and seemed on the verge of pulling away. The Rebels would not go away though as they staged a 14-3 run also that put them ahead 66-65. Dundrecous Nelson of Ole Miss fueled the run by scoring eight straight points, hitting two-straight from 3-point land and making a pair of free throws. Vandy would not be denied this victory as Jenkins sank another one of his silky smooth 3-pointers on the Commodores next possession and they would never trail from that point. The ‘Dores are now 13-4 and 2-2 in SEC play. They face Southern Methodist this Saturday. Go Commodores

Tennessee Lady Vols and Vanderbilt Lady Commodores: The two elite women teams in Tennessee faced off with UT taking the victory 68-56. The fifth ranked Lady Vols (17-2) were just too much for Vandy (12-6) as they jumped out to a 21-5 on the strength of a 18-0 run. The Lady Vols held Vandy to a season low 18.9 percent shooting in the first half of the game. Vandy would go down by as many as 22 points before they were able find there groove and begin to mount a small comeback. The Commodores would cut to lead to 64-56 thanks to a Jasmine Lister 3-pointer but that would be as close as they would get as UT closed the game out scoring the last four points. Meighan Simmons continued her hot play and led the Vols with 17 points. Angie Bjorklund and Glory Johnson both chipped in with 14 points a piece. The lost continued Vandy’s woes at Thompson-Boling arena as they dropped to 0-26 in games played at the venue.



Both Teams will be in action this Thursday as the Lady Vols travel to Columbia to take on the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Vandy women come back to Nashville to face the Arkansas Razorbacks.