After 201 games as head coach in which time he put out a record of 150-51, won a consensus national title in 1998 with an undefeated team, won back-to-back SEC titles in 1997-1998, and became the second winningest coach in Tennessee football history, Fulmer will finish out the 2008 season and move on.
Increasing pressure was put on Fulmer and the Tennessee football team with Urban Meyer and Les Miles coming in and winning national titles, and Nick Saban possibly taking Alabama to the BCS championship game in just his second year on the job. The boosters and the student body expected to see their team do the same.The Tennessee job is a great situation if you look at the fan support, the recruiting base and the athletic facilities. No one understood that more than Fulmer. He is a Tennessee lifer, a man who played for the team and ultimately went on to coach them.
I think the problem began with the offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe. In the best years under Fulmer, Cutcliffe was the man running the offense. Once he left the first time, (to head coach at Ole Miss) the offense struggled mightily. When Cutclifffe returned after he was fired, things turned around again for the program. Now that he left again to take over the Duke program, a 3-7 record is to show for it. Other people will point to the lack of quality recruiting, and the rise in competion in the SEC as the main determining factors, but i believe that the constant turn around with his staff played a key role.
In the end, Fulmer did what was best for the university. Instead of going through a power struggle or throwing his credentials into the mix, Fulmer just stepped aside. Now come the final three games of an era.
bout damn time