I think the comparison of Kiffin's "brash personality" to winners like Spurrier and Meyer is ridiculous. Just what has Kiffin won?
Does he think that talking like an idiot is going to bring him victories? And did Spurrier or Meyer ever misfire the way idiot Kiffin just did? When Steve called out Blobby Bowden for coaching players to hit well after the QB released the ball, he had the video evidence to back it up. Hell, Blowden tacitly admitted that it was true, when he said something like "well, maybe we coach to hit until the echo of the whistle." And when Steve privately called out Mike Dubose for recruiting violations, it was true, not a lot of garbage. What this says about the Vol fans is that they are so craving to be noticed, and perceived as important, that they don't care how false, unfair, or idiotic their coach's statements are, or how idiotic the statements make him look. They just want attention. They know they have become insignificant in the SEC. How pathetic is that? They can't get attention by winning, so they'll take it any way they can get it. (At risk of treading too close to THFGT territory, it kind of reminds me of the French). So this is what happens to weak minds when they get beat down year after year. At first, every loss was due to something unfair, like the officials. Or they'd say that they could beat us, if only we played them in November. They can't really say that anymore. I think what we are witnessing here is the final stages of Volsheimers. The patient is terminal. I don't think there is any way back to health and sanity for them. The compassionate thing to do at this point is simply to put them out of their misery as quickly and painlessly as possible. Yes, let's hang a century on them. Go Gators!!!! Ken B. (NYC Gator) _____ From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Gatornet Admin Sent: 02/07/2009 10:01 AM To: GatorTalk Subject: [gatortalk] Hargis: Kiffin clearly not trying to be congenial I'm posting this to Gatortalk instead of Gatornews because it is NOT "Gator" news, and it's more discussion material than news anyway. This article was written by one of my local (Chattanooga) sports guys, and it pretty much echoes the opinions of the vols in this area of TN. They don't care that Kiffin was wrong. They are just glad that he is showing some backbone, which is something Fulmer never did. Randy _____ Hargis: Kiffin clearly not trying to be congenial Saturday, February 7, 2009 By: Stephen Hargis <http://www.timesfreepress.com/staff/stephen-harqis/> (Contact <http://www.timesfreepress.com/staff/stephen-harqis/contact/> ) In his first three months as the head football coach at the University of Tennessee, Lane Kiffin has already managed something Phillip Fulmer didn't do in his 17 years. Whether because of his bravado or the fact he has raided rival SEC teams' coaching staffs as well as a few high-profile recruits, Kiffin has united the rest of the Southeastern Conference against Tennessee. >From the time he was introduced and said he looked forward to singing "'Rocky Top' all night long after we beat Florida next year," Kiffin has made it clear to the rest of the league that he couldn't care less about harmonizing with his coaching peers. He understands that SEC football isn't a congeniality contest. When South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier wondered aloud if Kiffin had passed the NCAA mandated recruiting certification test before he began contacting prospects, Kiffin did something his UT predecessor avoided: He fired back. Noting that he had gotten 39 of 40 questions right on the test, he then added, "I'd like to see what Steve scored." I guess now we know the question Kiffin missed on the exam was whether coaches are allowed to call or text recruits while they're visiting rival campuses. There is no defending Kiffin's comments made during Thursday's breakfast with a large group of UT fans. His first mistake was calling Florida coach Urban Meyer's actions a violation of NCAA rules. What he should have said was that UT didn't have to stoop to harassing Nu'Keese Richardson to get the recruit and left it at that. The fact he was speaking to a group of supporters and not the media doesn't excuse his blunder. No matter how effective it was in energizing the fans, Kiffin forgot that in an age when so many people have Internet blogs and camera phones, his comments were going to spread instantly. Michael Phelps would do well to remember that also. But while it was a stupid thing for Kiffin to say, you have to like the moxie behind it and every other verbal grenade he has tossed at the rest of the SEC. Typically a guy who has exactly zero wins as a college coach should just keep his mouth shut. But how much did it benefit Fulmer to stay quiet and absorb insults? Although he was one of the nation's most successful coaches, Fulmer withstood barbs about everything from his number of Citrus Bowl appearances to his weight without responding. Add to that the fact that his teams often looked uptight and hesitant in big games, and it's easy to understand how Vol Nation developed an inferiority complex in recent years. Tennessee has been hammered by Florida and Alabama by an average of 40-12 the last two years, and the program hasn't won a league title since 1998. Kiffin has injected an adrenaline shot directly into the heart of Vols fans and, just as importantly, recruits and current players. It's not by coincidence that Kiffin has gone after Meyer, Spurrier and Alabama's Nick Saban, who have a combined 10 SEC titles and four national championships. The type recruits UT needs to compete with those programs are likely to gravitate to Kiffin's brash personality. You think a few cocky high school kids don't take notice when Kiffin says things like, "The message to the whole country is that it doesn't matter where (recruits) are, it doesn't matter who they like or where we are on their list, we are going to get them." He's not picking on Kentucky and Vanderbilt. He's taking swings at the biggest bullies on the SEC block. But with as much venom as he has already spewed, Kiffin's biggest concern now is to make sure the program's recruiting practices are squeaky clean. As much as rival teams want to beat him on the field, they would take just as much satisfaction in catching UT coaches even slightly bending an NCAA rule to land a recruit. And every team on the Vols' schedule already wanted to crush them on the field, regardless of how much class or crass Kiffin displays. His comments won't matter once the teams take the field, but it just might bring in the type players who can once again make Tennessee relevant on the national scene. If the players can match their coach's swagger and the Vols adopt the slogan of his previous employer and "just win, baby," the rest of the league better be ready for a lot more trash talk. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
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