Been sort of out of pocket for the last several days during the whole sifting of the Tennessee Volunteer coaching staff. This post should serve as a record of me catching up.

Of course, it all started Sunday with head coach Phillip Fulmer announcing the firing of offensive line coach Jimmy Ray Stephens and receivers Coach Pat Washington.

“I appreciate everything Jimmy Ray and Pat have done for Tennessee over the years,” Fulmer said. “This was a difficult decision to make, but I feel it is in the best interest for the future of our football program.”

On Monday, the Vols officially announced the re-hiring of David Cutcliffe as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator to take the place of former offensive coordinator Randy Sanders, who fell on his sword on October 31, 2005.

Some key info about Cutcliffe:

Under Cutcliffe’s tutelage as offensive coordinator from 1993-98, Tennessee twice led the Southeastern Conference in total offense and three times was the league’s rushing leader. The Vols finished no worse than fifth in scoring offense, including leading the SEC in 1993 and placing second nationally with an average of 42.8 points per game.

The Vols were 63-11 during that span with three SEC Eastern Division crowns, two league championships and the 1998 national title. Cutcliffe received the Frank Broyles Award in 1998 as the nation’s top assistant coach and was a finalist for the honor in 1997.

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. . . Cutcliffe supervised the development of future NFL first-round draft picks Heath Shuler and Peyton Manning as they rewrote the Tennessee records book. Before them, Cutcliffe mentored Andy Kelly, who has gone on to a long and noteworthy career in arena football.

All told, Cutcliffe has coached eight players who became first-round NFL draft picks, including Ole Miss quarterback Eli Manning and running back Deuce McAllister. The Manning brothers both were overall No. 1 draft picks.

The early reaction has been generally positive. SportsAnimal99 host Dave Hooker said on his radio show that he went to the press conference thinking Cutcliffe was a “very good hire” but left thinking he was a “fantastic hire.”

I hear what he’s talking about, and I think it’s because Cutcliffe is saying all the right things. Have a listen to Hooker’s interview with Coach Cutcliffe (subscription required), especially Cutcliffe’s response to the question about whether the team will change its run-blocking scheme, which begins the 6:55 mark. The key comment concerns the aggression (or lack thereof) of the former scheme: “It is very difficult to be on defense offensively.” Music to fans’ ears.

John Pennington has more on the David Cutcliffe Love Parade and Cutcliffe’s quarterback knack, including this insightful bit:

I also think it’s important to remember that Cutcliffe had a knack for putting his QBs in good situations for THEM. Heath Shuler wasn’t asked to be the Check-Machine that Peyton Manning was. Manning wasn’t asked to run draws like Shuler and Tee Martin were.

Pennington cautions Volunteer fans not to get too excited, though:

Smart move? Yes.

Guaranteed success? No. But what move would have been?

Tennessee Volunteer Head Coach Phillip Fulmer has penned a letter to Vol fans about the disappointing 2005 season. The letter was apparently emailed to season ticket holders.

Special thanks to Voluminous , who has posted the letter in its entirety.

Fanblogs has posted a story referring to a New York Times piece about a diploma mill in South Florida. One of the players mentioned in the story as having benefitted from the mill is Tennessee Volunteer true freshman Demetrice Morley.

Ugh. Can it get any worse?

Don’t answer that.

UPDATE: The Final Animated BCS Race to the Rose Bowl is up and running on its own static page.

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Only one week left, and it’s still looking like the Trojans and the Longhorns will finish Nos. 1 and 2:

Pesky Texas A&M couldn’t keep pace with the Longhorns, and the only real change in the line up this week is that everyone is one week closer to their final position.

The final two big games before the bowls are this Saturday: Texas plays Colorado for the Big XII Championship, and USC hosts No. 12 UCLA.

ABC has both games, Texas-Colorado at 1:00 and UCLA-USC at 4:30. If both the ‘horns and the Trojans win, they’ll meet in the Rose Bowl for the National Championship.

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If you have any questions at all about the BCS, check out Fanblogs’ excellent Primer to the 2005-2006 BCS Championship.

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See the Race to the Rose Bowl from the beginning:

• Week Twelve
• Week Eleven
• Week Ten
• Week Nine
• Week Eight
• Week Seven
• Week Six
• Week Five
• Week Four
• Week Three
• Week Two
• Week One
• Preseason

I’m traveling today, so I won’t have time to read the coverage of yesterday’s Volunteer victory over the Kentucky Wildcats, but I did notice that GoVolsXtra’s headline for its coverage is End of an Error, which was so good I had to pass it along before I got in the car.

John Pennington has some advice for Coach Phillip Fulmer:

Run, Forest Foster, run!

And don’t let Ainge throw the ball unless absolutely necessary. When it’s necessary, don’t roll him out, and make him throw quick and short until he gets his confidence. Oh, and pray the receivers catch the thing.

Pennington’s gut is telling him the Vols will win today, but his head is no longer listening.

The Tennessee Volunteers must beat the Kentucky Wildcats today to avoid last place in the SEC East:

Everyone knows how dark and eerie it can be down there.

When you’re 8 years old, a trip to the depths of grandma’s cellar was about as welcome as ringworm.

When you’re 22, and a senior football player at the University of Tennessee, a trip to the SEC East cellar is just as frightening. It means “Rocky Top” has truly found “Rock Bottom.”

That’s what lies at stake today.

Tennessee (4-6, 2-5 SEC) travels to Kentucky (3-7, 2-5) at 12:30 p.m. (TV: WVLT) with the loser a guaranteed cellar-dweller in the East Division.

The Vols have lost to the Gators. Lost to the Bulldogs. Lost to South Carolina. Lost to Vanderbilt.

Kentucky?

Tennessee Volunteer offensive lineman Rob Smith is treating this Saturday’s game at Kentucky as more of a bowl game than the last day of class:

UT offensive guard Rob Smith may be the only Vol treating Saturday’s game at Kentucky like a bowl game. Smith is from Fort Thomas, Ky., which is less than 90 miles from Lexington.

“If we lose, I can’t go home,” Smith said with a chuckle. “We’re not in a bowl this year so I’ll be home for awhile. Everybody in my town are big Kentucky supporters.

“I’ll be driving around with Tennessee stuff all over my truck. It would be bad if we lost to them. Usually I can beep and wave at them. This time they’ll be waving at me with big smiles on their face if we lose.”

Go Vol!

John Pennington has thoughts on Tennessee basketball, the Beer Barrel, the Cutcliffe hype, Erik Ainge’s earrings, Coach Fulmer’s tenure, and the odds of Tennessee beating Kentucky this weekend.

The Tennessee Volunteers play their final game of the season this Saturday against the Kentucky Wildcats. The measuring stick for this game is, believe it or not, Vanderbilt.

The Volunteer offense scored 24 points against the Vandy defense.

The Wildcats, just one week earlier, put 48 up on Vandy.

The Kentucky offense appears to be twice as efficient as the Vols’.

Uh-oh.