Cutcliffe to Tenn? Any Demetrious Jones angle?

[Guest SirJohn]

Coach Cut does have the playbook (Just not Charlies imaginative use.)

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Cutcliffe's rehiring is nearly complete

 

KNOXVILLE - David Cutcliffe's return to Tennessee is close to being a done deal.

 

If all the final details are worked out, Cutcliffe could be named the Vols' new offensive coordinator as early as this week, two sources close to the situation told The Tennessean.

 

 

There's also a chance coach Phillip Fulmer might wait and announce Cutcliffe's hiring on Sunday, the day after the Vols' season finale against Kentucky.

 

Cutcliffe, who was at Tennessee for 17 years before taking the Ole Miss head job at the end of the 1998 season, was unavailable for comment.

Fulmer indicated on his weekly teleconference that he was close to having an announcement.

 

"I've been working hard on that in the last days and hope to have some conclusion to it in short order," Fulmer said.

 

Cutcliffe, 51, was Tennessee's offensive coordinator under Fulmer from 1992-98. The Vols haven't won an SEC championship since he left.

 

Tennessee (4-6) is coming off its first loss to Vanderbilt in 23 years and is assured of its first losing season in 17 years.

 

Fulmer, under the kind of heat from fans that he's never experienced in his 13 full seasons at Tennessee, said righting the ship starts with him.

 

"I've got a lot invested in this football program and have won a lot of games here," he said. "We've got to look at why we're not getting the job done this year and do what we've got to do to get it done.

 

"I'm 100 percent committed to getting this program where it's supposed to be. Whether it be schedule or injuries or chemistry or making plays or whatever it is, it starts with me, and we'll get that fixed like it's supposed to be."

 

Barring any late snags, Cutcliffe's financial deal would place him somewhere in the $300,000 range annually. Currently, six assistants in the Southeastern Conference make more than $300,000, and none of them have head-coaching experience, which Cutcliffe does.

 

Defensive coordinator John Chavis would also receive a considerable bump. Chavis, the Vols' associate head coach, made $250,756 this year.

 

Sources told The Tennessean that Cutcliffe would have considerable input on the makeup of the Vols' offensive staff and would be involved in any forthcoming changes.

 

Randy Sanders resigned as offensive coordinator following the loss to South Carolina and agreed to remain through season's end.

 

There are no plans for Sanders to be retained on Cutcliffe's staff in an assistant's role, sources told The Tennessean. Sanders made $162,813 as the Vols' offensive coordinator and will be paid through June.

 

Cutcliffe moved back to Knoxville after resigning as assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach at Notre Dame in June. He underwent heart bypass surgery in March and took this year off from coaching.

 

He says he's been given a clean bill of health from his doctors. His son, Chris, is a student at UT and works as a manager on the football team. His wife, Karen, has family in the Knoxville area.

 

Fulmer and Cutcliffe have known each other since Cutcliffe was coaching at Banks High in Birmingham back in the early 1980s.

 

Cutcliffe was fired as Ole Miss head coach following last season, when the Rebels finished 4-7. But the year before, Ole Miss was 10-3 and won a share of the Western Division title. Cutcliffe was 44-29 in six seasons at Ole Miss.

 

His history of developing quarterbacks and attention to detail on the practice field made him a natural choice for Fulmer, whose Vols have plummeted to embarrassing lows on offense this season.

 

Chris Low covers UT athletics for The Tennessean. Reach him at clow@tennessean.com

 

Originally published November 22, 2005