Phillip Fulmer's Record at Tennessee

What we see here is an excellent record.  He had an .859 winning percentage, just three home losses, and a sparkling record against the top two tiers.  Basically, he won the games he should have won and did pretty well against the best teams.

Here are the same charts post-championship:

The record suddenly went from great to just plain above average.  The winning percentage dipped to .702, it became easier for opponents to win on Rocky Top, and the performance against the top tiers took a big turn to the south.

You'll notice the defensive numbers are roughly the same, except for a five-point increase in points surrendered to the second tier.  That probably wouldn't have made a difference if the offense still scored 34 a game against that tier, but it fell by a touchdown to just 28.  Suddenly a lot of those comfortable wins became a bit more exciting.

The record improved against the third tier somehow, but Tennessee couldn't manage to put up even 30 a game against foes that finished under .500 on the year.  Sure, most people think of a boring running game and a defense-first philosophy when they think of the Vols, but their offenses could score with the best of them in the '90s under David Cutcliffe.

It only took Cutcliffe two seasons to get the scoring back up to around where it had been before.  Since Chavis' defense will likely still be great with Rico McCoy and Eric Berry leading it, the burden has been rightly put on Dave Clawson to keep up the offensive gains realized under Cutcliffe.  He must bring the declining running game back to a high level and make things less predictable.

Fulmer's contract extension essentially ends any speculation of him being let go, providing another 2005 disaster doesn't occur.  The offseason chatter I've seen from the folks in orange has been cautiously optimistic, with high hopes for the Jonathan Crompton/Clawson combo.

At this point, Fulmer is what he is.  Bringing in the relatively unknown Clawson was unexpected, but it could be the breath of fresh air the program needs to put it back over the top in the conference.

Will Clawson make Tennessee's offense dynamic again, or will he have as little influence as Jimbo Fisher did in year one at FSU?  It’s just one of the many interesting subplots that will make the 2008 college football season great.

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