KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — When Tennessee hired John Currie as its athletic director Feb. 28, replacing Dave Hart, uncertainty lingered over the department.

The uncertainty was due to a long overdue and continuously delayed search process that lasted months.

Phillip Fulmer, former UT player, assistant coach and national championship and Hall of Fame head coach, was in the mix to land the job.

Even Fulmer’s former offensive coordinator, David Cutcliffe, shared his thoughts on the handling of the search and endorsed his former boss. The current Duke head coach even asked for the Tennessee family to come together.

When Fulmer didn’t get the job, alumni and fans wondered why it went to someone else in a long, drawn-out search.

Fulmer played the political side of throwing his name in the mix for the job by attending Lady Vol and men’s basketball games. But looking back on it, it’s evident he mostly attended the games out of the love he has for the university.

Hiring Currie, who was Kansas State’s AD, did not seem like the proper fit to many. Currie was returning to Tennessee, where he worked under then-athletics director Mike Hamilton – who fired Fulmer as head coach and began the downward spiral of Volunteer athletics in the past ten years.

But on June 20, perhaps the healing began as Fulmer was named as the special advisor to the president for community, athletics and university relations.

Fulmer will serve as an ambassador for the University system at community and athletics events, support the intercollegiate athletic programs at UT campuses in Knoxville, Chattanooga and Martin, and work with UT government relations and alumni affairs leadership to advocate for the statewide system with elected officials and UT alumni.

The hiring is a win-win for the UT and the athletic department.

Bad blood for a long period of time could have been the outcome from Fulmer not getting the AD position, but once again, he handled a situation that did not go his way with class, much like his departure as head coach.

Credit Currie and others for acknowledging Fulmer’s importance to the UT and athletics and to welcome the Hall-of-Famer back, something that needed to take place, especially after how his firing was handled in 2008.

“As a native Tennessean who has given his all for the Vols throughout his life, both as a student-athlete on the field and during a Hall of Fame coaching career leading our program to its most dominant and successful era in modern history, Coach Fulmer is a perfect ambassador for our University and athletics program,” Currie said.

“I’ve appreciated and enjoyed numerous visits with coach Fulmer since I returned to Knoxville, and I am honored to work with him in support of President (Joe) DiPietro and Chancellor (Beverly) Davenport as we serve the University of Tennessee, our students and student-athletes.”

The coming together for Fulmer, Currie and UT months after the AD search, is a sign to positive things to come for an athletics program that has been in shambles since Hamilton played politics in Fulmer’s departure.

According to a Gridiron Now report, Fulmer got a call from a search committee member late in the search process, leading him to believe that he had the job. Also, not all search committee members knew Currie played a role in having Fulmer fired in 2008 or how that strained their relationship. Gridiron Now wrote that their relationship led Fulmer to push for the AD so that Currie would not get it.

But any animosity appears to be in the rear-view mirror and should lead to a turning point in getting Tennessee athletics competing for championships in all sports, like they were when Fulmer was head coach and Currie worked at UT in his first stint, eventually rising to Executive Associate AD.

Fulmer even addressed the issue in his press conference when being named to his new position. “I have absolutely no animosity for not being named athletic director,” he said. “I simply felt compelled to try for that position because of my love and passion for the university.”

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