By Tom Mattingly
In the wide, wide world of college athletics, a Tennessee player or coach can be a part of the Volunteer family on one day (“us”), and, yet on another day can become a part of some rival program (“them”).
In the heat of the moment during Saturday afternoon warfare, fans often make snap judgments about players and coaches on both teams. The players on the Tennessee side, “us,” were always the “good guys.” The players on opposing teams, “them,” were not. There were similar comments made about the coaches.
Here are some examples.
Bobby Dodd was a Tennessee All-American quarterback in 1930. He was the Dodd of “Hack, Mack and Dodd” and a fan favorite. Yet when he was head coach at Georgia Tech, he took great delight in beating Tennessee. After the Yellow Jackets defeated Tennessee 30-13 in 1949, Dodd said, “My season is a success if I don’t win another game.”
Corryton’s Ken Donahue was a Tennessee tackle in 1949 and 1950. Before long, he was an assistant coach elsewhere, working to help beat Tennessee, first at Mississippi State, then at Alabama. He did a pretty good job at both places, too. John Majors also coached on the wrong sideline the years he was an assistant at Mississippi State, teaming with Donahue to help defeat the Vols in 1962 and 1963.
Donahue’s homecoming had some really good moments, especially in 1985, when his defensive unit played a major role in the Vols defeating Alabama 16-14 on Legion Field. Vol defenders also played an integral part of the famous 1986 Sugar Bowl game, when the Vols knocked off a heavily favored Miami team, 35-7. That night, Donahue earned the Tennessean’s David Climer’s vote as game MVP citing the Vols’ defensive prowess against the Hurricanes.
Consider Nov. 15, 1952, when Dickey was the quarterback at Florida, coached by former Vol Bob Woodruff. The Vols won 27-12, and 11 years and a few weeks later, Woodruff hired Dickey as head coach at Tennessee. In 1985, Woodruff reached out to Dickey again, hiring him as his successor as athletic director.
Consider Oct. 15, 1960, and Oct. 20, 1962, when the Vols and Crimson Tide battled on Shields-Watkins Field. Bill Battle was an end at Alabama, who played in a 20-7 loss in 1960 and a 27-7 win in 1962. Who would have guessed that eight years later, Battle would be head coach at Tennessee, walking those same sidelines?
You might also consider Nov. 16, 1968, the Tennessee-Ole Miss game in Knoxville, and Nov. 15, 1969, in Jackson. Archie Manning, who endured seven interceptions in a 31-0 loss in 1968, would lead the Rebels flawlessly to a 38-0 win over the No. 3 Vols in 1969.
Twenty-five years later, Archie’s son, Peyton, arrived in Knoxville, causing a major stir in the state of Mississippi. Former Vol fullback Curt Watson was talking to Archie on the phone one day in the mid-1990s and asked Archie point-blank if anybody would have believed any son of Archie Manning might end up playing quarterback for the Vols.
Those Vol fans who were in Jackson that November day in 1969 wouldn’t have believed it then. Many of them still don’t believe it today.
Consider the 1970 Florida game. The Vols laid a 38-7 whipping on Florida, with Dickey returning to Knoxville and coaching this time from the visitor’s sideline. After the game, he received a standing ovation from fans in the South end zone as the Gators left the field.
In 1987, Mark Bradley was an assistant coach at Vanderbilt, the day the Commodores streaked to a 28-3 lead, eventually losing 38-36. He later coached at Tennessee. Someone once asked him how hard it was to coach in Neyland Stadium. He said it depended on which side of the field you were standing on. If you were on the visitor’s side, it was hard, very hard. If you were on the home side, it was much better.
When Tennessee defeated Ole Miss in 2005 at Neyland Stadium, Ed Orgeron was the Rebels head coach. He had made some brash statements about putting a red and blue fence around the city of Memphis and said so in his media conference after the game. Those comments did not endear him to the Tennessee faithful.
When he came to Knoxville as an assistant coach under Lane Kiffin, Orgeron was then greeted with open arms. When Lane left after one season, with Orgeron in tow, Vol fans were not impressed in the least by what had happened.
The passage of time has proven to be a great equalizer, overcoming whatever might have happened on a particular Saturday afternoon or evening in past seasons. The player or coach you might be booing as part of “them” might come back in a different capacity in 10 or 20 years and become part of “us.”
You just never know, but it happens more often than you think, not only at Tennessee, but also across the expanse of college football.
