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http://www.reddit.com/r/CFB/comments/s41iq/was_asked_i_played_at_tennessee_under_lane_kiffin/

Very interesting about Douglas.  I was always under the impression he was one of Kiffin's boys.

I had the same thought. I remember at the time that it was theorized that he never liked Kiff because of Fulmer being fired, but then when he flipped out and left we all assumed he was trying to follow Kiffin.

There was good insight into what happened with "Black Iron" too.

Thanks for posting this, one of the most interesting reads I've seen in an long time! 

A UT professor had a student who 'payed' attention. Hmmmm

Fascinating read, thanks for posting. 

He seems to have a similar attitude towards DD as many of us.  Likes him, wants him to succeed, says he did the best he could.

Unlike the seemingly typical fan though, he seems to think Dooley will do better this fall.

Then again, his standard of success is 7-5, which won't fly with most fans.

I have thought about this though....my personal expectations are that 8-4 will be acceptable.  Many of you think 9-3.

7-5, if it occurs, will be interesting.  While the great majority of the fan base will be disappointed, is that bad enough to end Dooley?   I think from an AD perspective it might be a tossup.  It probably will come down to who we lost to, how, and whether we ended the season on an upward trajectory.

I will be disappointed with 7-5 though.  Given our much easier schedule, it won't represent much of an improvement over last year.

Okay...back to sleep.  Wake me up in late August.   :biggrin:

My personal expectation is 9 wins.  But I think 8 will be enough to save his job.  This is the season we pointed to back when he first took the job.  We have the talent, the experience, the depth, and the schedule is about as easy as any SEC team (besides UGA) could expect.  It's time to stop making excuses and start winning.

A friend and I argue often about whether this will be Dooley's last year in Knoxville. He says Dave Hart will not bow to public demand and fanbase apathy and fire Dooley if the Vols make it to a bowl game this season because Hart recognizes that this rebuilding process can't possibly be completed in three seasons. I say that Hart has made it pretty clear already that there are certain expectations to be upheld and if Dooley has another lackluster season, he's toast. I don't think you can necessarily put an absolute to it. For example, what if Tennessee beats Florida and Alabama but crashes and burns against weaker opponents and winds up 6-6 or 7-5? Is Dooley still fired? But if we take the safe bet and assume that Alabama is a loss and Florida is a tossup, I agree that anything less than 8-4 is big trouble for Dooley. The talent is too great and the schedule is too easy. I don't expect a league championship caliber team this fall, but there's only one team on this schedule that I would consider absolutely unbeatable for this team, and only three or four others that I would consider on even footing with us (or ahead of us) in the talent department. If you can't beat any of them in your third year on the job, that's an issue.

Well said and I believe on the money. I agree with last 2 statements 100%.

Yeah, I think that's not far from what I believe either.  It just struck me as a bit funny that the player in the blog has lower expectations, and as a former player, he might have a better feel for the situation than the average fan.   Then again, there is such a thing as being too deep in it and losing perspective.

I did a bit of research on last year recently, and our D was 36th in the country in scoring D (not great but very respectable), which IYAM is about all that really matters defensively anyway (or at any rate is the top stat).  Conversely were were 106th in scoring and almost dead last in rushing yards.  Which is funny, because going in we all expected the opposite....that the offense would be pretty good and the D would be a challenge.  Of course, injuries were a huge part of the offensive struggles, but that would seem to put even more of a strain on the D.

So going into the fall, if the D can at least equal last year's performance and the offense recovers fully from the injuries then 9-3 or 8-4 are very realistic expectations.

Obviously the D has to deal with a few key losses, and a complete turnover on the coaching staff, but they did okay last year, and we get a lot back plus Gaithers is healthy,