It's time for Butch Jones to pull a Derek Dooley

I feel a bit like a New York Post headline writer seeking page clicks with the sensational title of this blog post.  On the surface, the title/headline of "It's time for Butch Jones to pull a Derek Dooley" makes absolutely no sense, but it has an element of truth and validity that I plan on justifying in the next few paragraphs.

All University of Tennessee Volunteer fans know that the Derek Dooley era was an unmitigated disaster.  In fact, it has been mused by many pundits, fans and talking heads that Derek Dooley was perhaps the worst SEC head coaching hire in the history of the storied conference.  That notwithstanding, there were a handful of positive blips within the otherwise dreadful Dooley era.

Dooley's first season in 2010 was a tale of ebbs and flows within the season.  The Vols opened the season with a 50-0 blanking of the University of Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks before before losing two games in Neyland to Oregon and Florida.  The Vols then defeated UAB before dropping four straight at LSU, at Georgia, home versus Alabama and at South Carolina.  Those four games, three of which were on the road, were quite the gauntlet.  I don't need to remind any Volunteer fans about the misery of the chaotic ending in Baton Rouge; it was what would come to be known as "Dooley-esque."

After the gauntlet of four oppressive games, the Vols stood at 2-6 going into the stretch run of the season.  The University of Tennessee HAS NEVER won fewer than five football games in a season so obviously that streak was in jeopardy.  The final four games of at Memphis, home versus Ole Miss, at Vanderbilt and home versus Kentucky were just what the doctor ordered.  UT blasted a pitiful Memphis bunch 50-14 before defeating Ole Miss 52-14.  The Vols then won two competitive games against Vandy and Kentucky to reach 6-6 and a Music City Bowl berth.  I was at that Music City Bowl game with my lovely wife and a buddy.  I need not remind them or any Volunteer fan reading this post that the ending was reminiscent of the LSU game - very "Dooley-esque."

Even though the Dooley era was a horrendous period in Volunteer football history, those four games against Memphis, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt and Kentucky were a bright spot.  Obviously, all four Volunteer opponents were bottom-feeder type teams and programs (at the time), but when a football team is 2-6, four wins in succession are impressive and inspiring no matter the opponents.

That leads me to the 2014 Butch Jones led University of Tennessee Volunteers who currently sit at 3-5 on the season (winless in SEC play).  Just like the 2010 Vols, the 2014 Vols have played a tremendously challenging schedule versus stalwarts teams such as Oklahoma, Georgia, Ole Miss and Alabama.  That being said, the gauntlet is over.  The Vols next four games are at South Carolina, home versus Kentucky and Missouri and at Vanderbilt which will be a virtual home game with more orange and white in the stands than black and gold.  Butch Jones needs to pull a 2010 Derek Dooley by winning the last four games of the regular season to springboard into a bowl game.  The Vols have not played in a bowl game since that Music City Bowl against North Carolina.  Thus, virtually this entire roster has never been to a bowl game.  Think about that; there's a possibility that A.J. Johnson may never play in a bowl game while donning the Big Orange.  For such an elite defensive talent, that is a sad possibility to consider.

If the Vols can win the next four, they will ASSURE themselves a winning record of at least 7-6 with a bowl loss or 8-5 with a bowl win.  That would be huge for recruiting and huge for this current group of Vols with the extra weeks of bowl practice and camaraderie that comes from the bonding experience of a bowl game.  Also, as I have gotten older and more seasoned in life experiences, I have learned that finishing strong is the lifeblood of success.  For instance, August college classes are brimming with eager students with visions of 4.0 GPAs dancing in their heads.  However, as the semester begins to age, the days become colder and those initial feelings of excitement subside, class attendance begins to suffer.  Those who fall to the wayside either drop classes or simply fail them.  However, those who are steadfast and "work like heck" (Fulmer-ism) are the ones who taste the glory of good grades in the end.  Another example is the Atlanta Braves during their 14 division title run.  They only finished strong ONCE during that 14 division title run; thus, they only nabbed a single WS title during that time period.  The Yankees were the ones who finished strong during that era, and they have the WS rings to show for it.  This is not the first time I have written about the virtues and positive effects of "finishing strong."  (I would link one of those old stories, but the old Checkerboard Chatter links are hard to find).  Finishing strong is what the 2014 Vols need to do!

There are differences between the 2010 stretch run and the 2014 stretch run.  For openers, the final four teams are more quality opponents than the final four from 2010.  South Carolina has had a very disappointing 2014, but they are capable of playing a great ballgame.  Missouri is not an excellent team, but they are capable of winning ballgames; just ask the Gators.  Kentucky is much improved as well.  Hence, these four games are not automatic (other than Vanderbilt; they suck).  All of this being said, if Butch Jones is the real deal (as I believe him to be), the Vols must win all four of these games or at a bare minimum three of four.  Anything less is unacceptable at this point.  The Vols have heavily documented depth problems, but they also have a hard-nosed, athletic defense; great crop of skill guys and an emerging dual-threat quarterback in Joshua Dobbs.  Dobbs provided a spark against the Crimson Tide, and I personally believe he HAS to be the guy in these last four games, no matter Worley's health situation.  I am eager to watch the Vols play against opponents that aren't world beaters to see how they respond.  While the 4-0 stretch run in 2010 under Dooley did not lead to bigger and better things under his watch, I truly believe a 4-0 run under Jones in 2014 would catapult the Vols to much more than a winning overall record in 2014, it would springboard them into being in the mix for the SEC East in 2015.  After the last few years of wandering in the wilderness like the Israelites, I believe all UT fans would welcome being relevant as a SEC contender.  So here's to Butch Jones pulling a Derek Dooley and winning these next four games.

Go Vols!

- Eric L. Taylor

Coach Derek Mason and the Peter Principle

Early September or late summer (yes, I typed summer; it's not officially fall yet) is my favorite time time of the year for sports.  It's like an explosion of goodness: U.S. Open tennis, college football, NFL, MLB playoffs looming and almost time for NBA and NHL training camps to begin.  It's a true horn of plenty!  This cornucopia of sporting goodness always gets my juices flowing and hence, I am motivated to dust off my personal blog.

Over the past year and a half, the different faces of manhood/adulthood have eroded almost all of my personal blogging time.  As a husband and father with busy career and school (MBA) endeavors, my personal blogging time has been almost zilch.  That being said, there's nothing like this time of year to change all of that, albeit for only a respite.

My favorite team, the University of Tennessee Volunteers, features a very young roster under second year head coach Butch Jones.  The youthful Vols are incredibly athletic, confident and really fun to watch. Their upcoming schedule is brutal (next game is in Norman, Oklahoma), but it's nice to see them beat two genuinely quality opponents in Utah State and Arkansas State to kickoff the season.

While I have been pleased with my Volunteers, I have been utterly stunned by the level of ineptitude exhibited by the Vanderbilt Commodores.  The previous three seasons under now-departed head coach James Franklin were historically excellent for the Dores.  A 6-7 season and two 9-4 seasons culminated with two bowl wins in two seasons had Vanderbilt fans believing that the days of being a SEC doormat were over.

Over the past week in my MBA studies, I read numerous academic articles about the Peter Principle (and subsequently wrote about it).  The principle is named after Laurence J. Peter, and it basically states that managers/candidates/employees are promoted on the merits of what they have accomplished in their current role(s) instead of valid and accurate projections of how they will fare in their new and advanced roles.  The principle sadly concludes that managers often rise to a level of incompetence.  Typically, the principle applies to managers who work and subsequently rise to their new perches all within the same organization.  For the purposes of this blog post, I am applying the principle to coaches being promoted from coordinator at one school to head coach at a different school.

When the Peter Principle is framed in a college football coaching context, it sometimes comes to fruition, and sometimes it doesn't.  When a coach spends his years working his way up the ranks as a position coach and coordinator, many of the attributes are transferable to the role of head coach.  However, there are a myriad of tasks a HC much execute and hats he must wear that are not measurable until the coach is thrown into the fire.  Unfortunately for Vanderbilt, it appears the Peter Principle is being played out in the Derek Mason era.

Mason played his college football as a defensive back at Northern Arizona from 1989-1992.  He has been coaching since 1994 at a number of stops and in a wide range of capacities.  He has coached wide receivers, defensive backs and running backs.  He has worked for small colleges, big-time programs and even in the NFL (Vikings DB coach 2007-2009).  Most recently, Mason was the associate head coach and defensive coordinator at Stanford where he had a bevy of successes.  Vanderbilt hired Mason due to his successes at Stanford as a coordinator and associate head coach, and thus far, it has not translated to successes as a head coach.  Vanderbilt has been throttled by Temple and Ole Miss by an overall tally of 78-10 AT HOME!  Through two dreadful games, Vanderbilt has played an assortment of quarterbacks, and they have not scored a single offensive touchdown.  It's been turrible (Sir Charles).

The Peter Principle is not a hard and fast rule.  The fact that someone is given a chance to be successful in his or her chosen field is what makes American elitism possible.  Conversely, in many nations, blue collar workers are stuck at that level for their entire working lives without much hope for upward mobility.  In the United States, there certainly exists roadblocks and glass ceilings (in some instances), but in theory, upward mobility is possible for everyone who works hard and makes their own breaks.  That's exactly what James Franklin did.  Franklin has a similar coaching background as Mason, and Franklin's first head coaching opportunity was at Vanderbilt.  Unlike Mason, Franklin was not promoted to a level of incompetence.  Rather, he was promoted to a role in which he thrived, and he will continue to thrive at Penn State.  Sure, he rubbed a lot of people the wrong way while at Vandy (UT fans and Todd Grantham), but he was highly successful at a place that hasn't experienced a ton of wins over the years.  Franklin is the antithesis of the Peter Principle.

Coach Mason seems like a real stand up guy, and he has been very successful in his past roles.  I don't doubt whatsoever that is a quality man, but it seems he has been promoted way over his head in a Derek Dooley-esque fashion.  It's only been two games; maybe he can turn it around.  Vandy just looks so putrid, and their fan base seems to have been zapped of all the positive energy that Franklin infused into the program.  It's hard to believe it has fallen so fast.

Knicks take a flier on Derek Fisher

My first exposure to newly minted New York Knicks head coach Derek Fisher came in the summer of 1996.  I was hanging out at the home of my best friend and classmate, Justin Woods.  Justin, who now coaches Rossview HS girls basketball in Clarksville, Tennessee, was a prolific high school basketball scorer.  As we were hanging out in the kitchen (a common occurrence due to its obvious close proximity to food), he handed me a letter he had gotten that day in the mail.  As I opened the envelope, I noticed the letter was on high quality paper with an official letterhead adorning the top of the page.  It was an official recruitment letter from the basketball program at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

Obviously Justin was excited to be receiving a recruiting letter, and after reading the letter, I noticed there was a flier included as well.  "Oh yeah, they just had a point guard get drafted by the Lakers," chimed Justin.  "Oh really, that's nice," I responded.  The flier wasn't on the same letterhead, and it seemed to be something the SID hurriedly put together.  I recall a grainy image of a player named Derek Fisher who enjoyed a stellar yet under the national radar career at the University of Arkansas-Little Rock.  Derek Fisher was the 24th player taken in the 1996 NBA draft by the Los Angeles Lakers.  The flier noted his draft achievement, his college stats and the fact he was Sun Belt Conference player of the year in 1996 in brief paragraph form.  The flier underscored that the Trojans now had a very enticing nugget to utilize when trying to lure talented young men to Little Rock to play college hoops.  I recall thinking, "That's cool this small college point guard is getting a shot.  Maybe he'll stick around a couple of years in the NBA."

Fast forward from 1996 to 2014, and Fisher's resume boasts 18 years as a NBA player, 5 NBA championships, a players' union presidency, a bevy of big shots and the most playoff games played in NBA history.  Now roughly 10 days after participating in his last playoff game as a player in the Western Conference Finals, he has inked a 5 year $25 million dollar deal to coach one of the highest profile teams in the NBA.  If someone had told me on that summer day back in 1996 that Derek Fisher would generate such longevity and excellence, I would haven't believed it.

Was it wise for Phil Jackson to hire his former point guard who has no coaching experience?  Will my favorite NBA team finally win a championship during my lifetime?  Those questions can't be answered at this juncture, but we do know that Derek Fisher is well respected, smart and a leader among men.  His playing career far exceeded expectations, and here's hoping his coaching career reaches similar mountaintops.

Here are some good reads on Fisher the man and on his marriage to Jackson and the Knicks:

Derek Fisher, Knicks Agree to Deal

A Veteran Becomes a Rookie

Knicks' Hiring Fisher a Calculated Risk

In NBA boom times, Derek Fisher knows how to follow the money

Derek Fisher: Faith, Family and Hard Work

In closing, I wonder what ever happened to that recruitment letter and Derek Fisher flier.  Since Justin isn't a hoarder by any stretch, it likely found its way to a trash can many years ago.  Maybe, however, it's stashed away with his Cindy Crawford and Alonzo Mourning posters or in his Paula Abdul Trapper Keeper.

Go Knicks!

"Herb"

Tim Duncan has aged like a Prime ribeye

**UPDATE: I am updating this post on 06/05 at 5:25 PM CST prior to game one of The Finals tipping off.  When I initially authored this post, I was all fired up about the Spurs due to Tim Duncan nostalgia.  I picked them in seven.  After pondering this series over the last two days, I am changing my pick to Heat in six for a myriad of reasons.  The most glaring reason is LeBron James being in the peak of his prime.  He won't be denied.

My last update thought is in regards to Charles Barkley.  By retiring at 36, he didn't hold onto his playing career to the point of not being able to go out on his own terms.  He certainly had diminished skills when he hung it up, but his numbers in his last season were respectable.

Original post:

If you've ever eaten USDA Prime beef, you know the supreme taste and tenderness components of Prime versus Choice or Select.  USDA Prime beef has the highest percentage of fat marbling, and such beef is typically available at high-end steakhouses from sea to shining sea.  According to meat purveyors such as Pat La Frieda, fresh beef is roughly 72 percent water.  Dry-aging Prime beef allows much of the water to evaporate, enabling enzymes to partially break down the proteins.  The process bolsters the flavor and leads to a tenderness that makes grown men cry.  It is common for Prime beef to age 30, 50 or even 70 days.

During the Spurs clinching win over the OKC Thunder last Saturday, I tweeted out "Tim Duncan has aged like a Prime ribeye."  The 38 year old future first ballot Hall-of-Fame power forward/center played 39 minutes, pouring in 19 points and snaring 15 rebounds.  With Tony Parker out of the second half lineup with a hobbled ankle, "Old Man River Walk" (as Reggie Miller referred to Duncan on TNT) took a trip down memory lane by putting his beloved Spurs on his back and leading them back to The Finals a full 15 years after he led them there for the first time in 1999.

Tim Duncan's greatness and consistency at an advanced age with diminished athleticism is astonishing.  I have always felt that guards and small forwards have the ability to age gracefully on a basketball court.  Their skills may decline, but it is a gradual process.  For instance, Ray Allen is not nearly the all-around player he once was in his youth, but he is a major contributor for the Miami Heat.  In fact, without Allen's deft shooting touch, Tim Duncan would have won his fifth ring last postseason.  Allen is an older player, but he doesn't look hobbled or out of sorts on the court.  Another example is Derek Fisher.  Fish just completed his 18th season in the NBA, and he found himself playing down the stretch versus the Spurs last Saturday.  Again, he's not the player he once was in Los Angeles, but he is certainly not embarrassing himself by playing.

It doesn't always work out so well for post guys.  I have always contended that power forwards and centers get to a certain age, and it is if their production just falls off a cliff.  During this free fall, all-time greats can look as if they don't even belong on a NBA court.  Think Hakeem Olajuwon in Toronto or Patrick Ewing in Orlando.  Maybe it's their size or the position itself.  Who knows?  I really don't have anything to back up my theory other than the eye test.

After watching Duncan dismantle the Kevin Durant-led Thunder last Saturday, I began to wonder how Duncan's stats as a 37/38 year old (he was 37 during the season, turned 38 on April 25th) stack up against other HOF caliber power forwards and centers.  I have no desire to compare his numbers to guys like Wilt Chamberlain or Bill Russell because that was a different era.  I want to keep the comparison to guys of Duncan's era or guys he at least caught at the end of their careers (Malone, Barkley, Ewing, Dream).  I believe it is proper to include both power forwards and centers in this study because Duncan is truly both, a hybrid depending on the lineup Pop rolls out there.

Player	Age	Year	MP	PPG	RPG	PER
Tim Duncan	37	17	29.2	15.1	9.7	21.3
Kevin Garnett	37	19	20.5	6.5	6.6	13.3
Shaq	37	18	23.4	12	6.7	17.9
David Robinson	37	14	26.2	8.5	7.9	17.8
Karl Malone	37	16	35.7	23.2	8.3	24.7
Charles Barkley	36	16	31	14.5	10.5	19.8
Patrick Ewing	37	15	32.8	15	9.7	16.9
Hakeem Olajuwon	37	16	23.8	10.3	6.2	16.7

I decided to go with minutes per game, points per game, rebounds per game and PER (player efficiency rating) for the regular season only.  The year category is the number of years in the league in the season in which the player was 37 years old.  Charles Barkley's last season came when he was 36.  Here are some observations on the numbers (not in order of how players are listed above):

• Karl Malone was an absolute freak!  The Mailman was well over 20 PPG and posted a 24.7 PER at the ripe old age of 37.  Malone remained a 20 PPG plus scorer for two more seasons at ages 38 and 39.  He "fell off the cliff" during year 19 in the league at age 40 in Los Angeles when his PER dipped to 17.8.  Malone was known for his intense training regiment during his playing days.  It obviously helped lengthen his career.
• Kevin Garnett's production plummeted this season, his 19th in the league.  KG put up only 6.5 PPG and 6.6 RPG and a PER of 13.3.  He is statistically the worst age 37 player on the chart.
• Shaq only played one more season after the age of 37, an injury-plagued year with the Celtics in which he averaged only 9.2 PPG, 4.8 RPG with a PER of 17.4.
• David Robinson retired a two-time champion after his 14th season in the league.  The Spurs won the NBA championship in 2002-03.  D-Rob averaged 7.8 PPG and 6.6 RPG in the playoffs with a PER of 17.7.  Tim Duncan was the primary player for the Spurs during that postseason averaging 24.7 PPG, 15.4 RPG with a 28.4 PER.
• Patrick Ewing was 37 during his last season with the New York Knicks.  He was a productive player that season, but it went downhill from there.  He spent year 16 (age 38) of his career in Seattle averaging 9.6 PPG, 7.4 RPG with a lowly 12.9 PER.  His last season was spent in Orlando averaging 6.0 PPG, 4.0 RPG with a slightly improved PER (from the previous season) of 14.4.
• Hakeem Olajuwon played two more seasons after the age of 37, one in Houston and his final year in Toronto.  He closed out his career averaging 7.1 PPG, 6.0 RPG and a 14.4 PER, the same PER as Ewing during Pat's last stanza.  
• The PPG, RPG and PER show that Tim Duncan is the second best player statistically at age 37 on this list behind only Karl Malone.  That being said, Karl Malone didn't have the stellar post season that Tim Duncan is enjoying this year.  The 2000-01 Jazz went up two games to none versus the Mavs in the first round (best of five) before the Mavs came roaring back to win three straight, taking the series.  

My statistical analysis shows that Tim Duncan, while still great, is on borrowed time.  His check engine light is due to come on, but he is still plugging away as a very effective player.  The Hall-of-Fame caliber players listed in this exercise show that Duncan likely has one more productive season left in the tank (if any).  If Parker's ankle is healthy and the Spurs find a way to upend Miami in The Finals, I wouldn't be shocked if Old Man River Walk waltzes off into the sunset.  Prime beef can hit what is called in the steakhouse world "its aging threshold" in which the meat is aged to a point that most palates find it to be too rich and not appetizing.  At some point very soon, Duncan will hit his aging threshold and "fall off a cliff" production wise.  Until then, let's all enjoy Mr. Fundamental even when he cries to the officials.  I'm taking the Spurs in seven.

Eric L. Taylor

Don Meyer - Evening of Excellence

I wrote the piece below back in 2009 after the first annual Don Meyer - Evening of Excellence at Lipscomb University.  Today I saw on Twitter that Coach Meyer has been put under hospice care so I thought it appropriate to repost my summary of that night five years ago.  Here y'all go:

As a college basketball junkie; allow me to rephrase.  As a basketball junkie in general (If you are keeping up with the Bulls vs. Celtics series and saw the triple overtime game 6, you would understand), I was thrilled to be able to work in a freelance role with my wife, Shay, at the Don Meyer - Evening of Excellence on the campus of Lipscomb University on Tuesday, April 28th.

Coach Meyer has been coaching college basketball since 1972, and he spent 24 years at Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN. Twice NAIA Coach of the Year during his tenure coaching the Bisons, he led them to the 1986 NAIA National Championship. Coach Meyer has been in the trenches on the hardwood, involved in many tough athletic battles. However, his most difficult battle began off the court on September 5, 2008, when a horrific car crash almost cost the famed coach his earthly life. Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated tells the story quite well; here's the link below:

http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1149630/index.htm

Always the witty speaker, Coach Meyer states the following 3 things as "what he learned from his wreck most of all":

1. You should wear a seatbelt.
2. Don't fall asleep while driving.
3. If you do fall asleep, don't run a Prius into a semi.

Obviously, these statements drew a laugh.

Shay and I shot 2 hours of footage at the event which included the following:

An excellent dinner; there were multiple eating sites. Each NCAA Atlantic Sun Team had a room set up where the athletes were in attendance, and a highlight DVD was playing honoring the ‘08- ’09 season (for each respective sport). The men's basketball team was in the old gym - McQuiddy - where many of the past and present Bisons were in attendance. There was also a main seating area in Allen Arena where Coach Meyer offered up a very entertaining Q & A session with former all-time leading scorer in college basketball and current Athletic Director at LU - Philip Hutcheson.

After the dinners, the main address began at 7:30, and this event was introduced by ESPN Senior Writer - Buster Olney. Since we were both working the event (although in obviously different capacities), and Buster is such a great baseball writer/reporter, I took the opportunity to pick his brain on the Brian McCann eye infection situation that is hurting the lineup of my beloved Braves. True to form, Buster was a super nice guy who loved talking the National Pastime with me. Olney has done an ESPN E60 feature story on Coach Meyer, and he is well qualified to speak on the topic. One of Olney's first gigs was working under Joe Biddle at The Nashville Banner (beginning in 1988 - during a great span for DLU). While writing in Nashville, he was a beat writer for college basketball in the city, and he had a great story line in the mighty Bisons.

 

A video presentation preceded the keynote address by Coach Meyer, and it was a very well done piece. Lipscomb Alum, Jimmy Chaffin, is a partner at Dye, Van Mol & Lawrence Public Relations & Advertising, and he served as the mastermind/editor for this wonderful video which featured many highlights on and off the court during the 24 year span Coach Meyer roamed the sidelines for the Bisons. (In fact, this is the advertising firm that Shay and I were shooting footage for during the event. She had a camera shot in the video for Coach Meyer too.) The video was great.  It pulled some tears from the crowd.

 

Dr. Don Meyer was the Keynote Speaker, and he stood several times throughout the night, but "Little Buddy" (as he colorfully refers to his "nub" where a leg used to be) confines him to a wheel chair for much of his waking hours. As he made his way to the podium, however, the entire crowd stood to welcome a popular figure back to the Nashville campus. The speech was excellent with both funny and serious moments; here's a sampling:

 

Coach Meyer has 3 rules during his very famous and heavily attended basketball camps: 1.) Pick up trash. (Leave a place better than you found it. He referred to how his teams would oftentimes leave the visitor's locker room in better shape than they found it during road games.) 2.) Please & Thank You & Yes Sir  &Yes Mam. (In basketball, the classroom, business world & life, the little things matter.) 3. Everyone takes notes. (Continual improvement or Kaizen). These rules made me think of my best friends, Andy Woods and Justin Woods, who tell great stories of weeks at camp on the Nashville campus which consisted of "sitting on the wall" and "push-ups" to the point of bodily failure and soreness like you've never felt before. While the "steely eyes" of Coach Meyer could be intimidating, the camps also greatly improved the basketball games for each one of them.

 

A great quote from the address: "Competitors don't have time to complain. They're too busy getting things done."

 

"F Words" learned during the immediate recovery from his wreck: Faith: Coach stated he "lost 7% of his body mass each week he was bed ridden after the wreck.” During this time, he created a prayer list of people to pray for because, "You have to pray for other people before you pray for yourself.”  Peace isn't the absence of storms or trials. Peace is the calm you have in the middle of the storm.” Coach Meyer stated the most intense pain he has ever felt is when the bandage covering "Little Buddy" was changed in the hospital. In fact, he stated that the bandage would "attach to his open would and be peeled off.”  Not a good image, huh? During these times, he would scream/sing the following hymn all Evangelical Christians should know by heart: "Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Let the earth hear His voice. Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Let the people rejoice. Oh, come to the Father through Jesus the Son, and give Him the glory, great things He hath done." Family - "Carmen did it all. She kept on top of my medical info and sometimes knew more than the doctors about my condition." (This reminded me of my mom who kept copious notes during my dad's many bouts with cancer and would set out for the best options possible.) Coach made mention of his kids, grandkids, etc. Friends: Coach Meyer made mention of many who made the trip to see him in the hospital and the tons of letters, etc. Fitness - "The first time I had to walk 120 feet, it was very tough. I had to have the discipline to do the little things every day."

 

Coach Meyer gave a great lesson that really hit home with me because of my job as a Project Manager for Franke Foodservice, managing New Store, Rebuild and Remodel Projects for McDonald's. The very first McDonald's was in Illinois, and Coach Meyer said that this store used Pepsi products: (paraphrase): "During a very busy Saturday, the only McDonald's at that time ran out of Pepsi, and they made a phone call to Pepsi requesting they bring them some of the cola to the restaurant so they could quench the thirst of the customers. The person who answered the phone after hearing the plea, simply stated: “It's Saturday, and we don't deliver Pepsi to nobody on Saturday.” That very next Monday, McDonald's signed an exclusive contract with Coke. If Coke were to lose every account but hold onto McDonald's, they would be just fine.” Sounds like another company I am familiar with.  Coach Meyer went on to say, "People make/form their opinions of a company or organization based off the particular individual they deal with. That one rude representative of Pepsi cost the company millions and millions of dollars." I found this to be food for thought.

 

An autograph session was next where I was able to tell Coach Meyer how much I enjoyed watching him coach in my hometown at my Alma Mater Freed-Hardeman University in Bader Gymnasium. The two schools were fierce rivals, both being Church of Christ institutions. FHU usually came out on the "short end of the stick,” but the games were highly competitive and fun between the teams and crowds. He mentioned how hot it would get in Bader, and that's the truth a real "sweat box" as he called it.

 

After signing autographs for over one hour, the night concluded in McQuiddy where it was only the former players, Coach Meyer and a handful of people (including Shay and me getting the video evidence). Coach gathered the team around him for a huddle, photo and private pep talk. This was special to witness, and several successful coaches and others were surrounding the legendary coach including Union University women's coach Mark Campbell, Freed - Hardeman University's men's coach Jason Shelton, the founder of Rivals.com, John Pierce and three point bomber Andy McQueen.  The list goes on and on.

 

In conclusion, this was a wonderful fund raising event for the Athletic Department at Lipscomb University, and it allowed a school to reconnect with the glory years of its basketball program and the head coach who brought them that success.

Eric

Vols bulldoze their way into the Sweet 16

I am typing this only a hour or so after the Vols thoroughly dominated Mercer (especially on the glass) to bulldoze their way into the NCAA Sweet 16.  The Vols are simply rolling right now in all facets of the game.  The contributors are many, but it all starts with Stokes in the post scoring and pulling down rebounds like an extra pissed off Charles Oakley.  Jarnell scored 17 points and hauled in 18 boards tonight.  Josh Richardson has likely been the Vols best overall player on both ends.  He scored a career high 26 points tonight, and he is clamping down defensively on scorers throughout this hot stretch for UT.  Barton, Maymon, McRae and others are playing lights out too.  The final score of 83-63 could have been worse.  It felt worse at times.

It is obvious listening to comments from Stokes and others that the Vols have a massive chip on their collective shoulder right now because of the heat that Coach Cuonzo Martin took earlier this year when the Vols were losing games they had no business losing.  For instance, there's no way this team should have lost TWICE to Texas A&M.  I think it was fair for UT fans to question this team and whether or not Martin was the long term answer.  However, I think that it clearly went too far when sensationalism was introduced via a Clay Travis blog post in which he broached the topic of a petition to get Coach Pearl back into the fold.  Of course Clay made a compelling case, and he has enough zealot followers that petitions starting popping up immediately.

Any fan base is susceptible to group think, and that is what kicked in with the petitions gaining steam.  Group think is a powerful force that has done much worse than put a coach on the hot seat.  Group think allowed the Bay of Pigs debacle to occur, and it caused the Challenger launch/explosion.  It almost caused the Volunteer fan base to explode as well, but fan group think did the exact opposite to the UT basketball team.  It caused them to galvanize together and play for their coach with fearless abandon.  Had UT fans not gone down a silly path, would the Vols have hit that extra gear?  Would they be in the Sweet 16?  Those are legit questions in my opinion.

I fell victim to group think in this instance as I had a very brief stretch in which I was even clamoring for Pearl.  However, I soon realized that it was simply foolishness to even think that Coach Martin who was 20 games over .500 at UT was on the hot seat, and I returned to sane thinking.  I should have never allowed the Pearl talk to even penetrate my mind because it was foolish to even consider that might happen.  I should have taken my own advice from January 2012 when I encouraged Volunteer fans to "go all in" with Coach Cuonzo Martin.  It's been more than two years since I wrote that blog post, but I think Volunteer fans finally went all in with Martin tonight.  Let's just hope that his players don't find out.  I like them better with a Big Orange chip on their shoulder.