Rebuilding with Integrity and Loyalty

The last 16 months in Knoxville have taken us on a wild roller coaster ride. We've seen a hero fall, a young virile up and comer try to rebuild the team to its' powerful ways only to disappear like a thief in the middle of the night and leave many wondering if we would ever be able to be great again. For 14 months , many of the Orange faithful watched Kiffin literally weave his way through the SEC with verbal jabs, and clever soundbytes only to win them over with his keen sense of football knowledge. Along the way Kiffin made very few friends in his profession. However, the most important thing he accomplished was to earn the trust of his team members and his staff at Tennessee. Loyalty was the major card he played as he entered the homes of many promising recruits and won over the hearts of the parents who would one day send their boys off  into the world to become Men. After all , he only had the best staff in the world in his corner to ensure that these kids would one day live out their dreams of becoming NFL players. Kiffin surprised many when he pulled in a top ten recruiting class in the very short period of time he was here. Things were starting to come together again for the great University and its' football program. Or so it seemed.


Kiffin never made good on his promises of beating Florida and getting to sing Rocky Top all night, but he did however, remain competitive against the top two teams in the nation. This was very promising to those who were willing to get on the "Lane Train" and I admit I was one of the passengers on that ride. Even though we had a cocky young coach who sometimes slipped up, we were willing to forgive as the picture was beginning to become clear on the Hill. Little did we know, the vision we had was not through our own eyes. It seemed as if Kiffin had his own agenda of sorts. One that would weaken our trust and cause us to question Integrity in every sense of the word.

Enter Derek Dooley. The Southern Boy who indeed has his own agenda. Don't believe me ask his Father Vince, who led Georgia to the promised land in 1980, including six SEC championship titles. Derek was a walk on at the University of Virginia and was a starter during his time there at Wide receiver. Although his path led him to become a lawyer, Dooley never strayed too far from his passion which was Football. Football was a way of life in the Dooley Household and X's and O's were second nature. One of Dooleys' high school teammates once said that "Derek was ahead of everyone else when it came to X's and O's". The biggest traits Dooley learned in his upbringing was the Loyalty and integrity which resides in the entity which is SEC football. Derek understands that Traditions are born with the passion that eats, sleeps, and breaths Southern Football. Above all else tradition breeds Integrity and Loyalty.

Tennesse Football traditions have molded the program into one of the most fiercest presences on the gridiron. These traditions began with the two most undervalued qualities in the game today. Integrity and Loyalty, which Dooley promises to bring back to the program in time, will aid us in our quest to heal our way of life that has been broken and abused. It is these values that made us Tennessee. It is these values which will return our program to the top of the sports world , and it is these values which will restore our Tradition.

Yes, The University of Tennesse will prevail, and it shall be done with Integrity,Loyalty, and the determination to choose its' own path in life. Much Like our Head Coach Dooley. We are Tennessee!