Lane Kiffin should be lauded for bringing football legend Johnny Majors back into the Tennessee fold. Majors was one of the classiest men ever to coach in the SEC, and suffered a horrible exile into the wilderness during Phil Fulmer’s days in Knoxville.
That has changed, and is earning the young Tennessee coach praise. Roy Exum wrote in the Chattanoogan that it was Kiffin’s greatest moment. “I am so excited about Lane Kiffin right now I can hardly stand it. He might not have won his first game, but when he won Johnny’s heart, he went a long way towards winning mine, too,” Exum wrote.
I won’t say I’m ready to embrace Kiffin; I won’t say his treatment of Majors makes up for all his foolishness, but he finally did something right and I wanted to make note of it.
20 thoughts on “Kiffin Watch: Lane’s finest moment”
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After Phil Fulmer stabbed him in the back, anyone would look good to Johnny Majors. Kiffin is a buffoon and Majors will soon find that out.
Yeah, we’re glad to have Coach Majors back in the fold.
Coach Majors was on Paul Finebaum’s show back in October. I remember him telling a story (wish I could find an archive of it because I’d LOVE to have the exact wording of it), where Majors talked about playing Alabama on Saturday and then just a couple of days later being in Tuscaloosa speaking to a University football function.
Those were the days when the Alabama-Tennessee rivalry was on a different level–a level of respect and comity.
I know that Alabama people like Johnny because he never beat Alabama, but I like Johnny because he’s from my neck of the woods, he’s the UT coach with whom I grew up, he’s a great man and was a great coach for every game besides that all important one at the end of October.
I appreciate this because it has seemed like you — along with everybody else — has been Kiffin headhunting. I know he hasn’t earned any respect yet, and he won’t until he wins some football games, but this showed me that it’s at least moderately important to him to have a semblance of UT history in UT’s present.
That’s important.
Wasn’t Majors the coach who ended Alabama’s winning streak in 1982? Majors won four in a row when Alabama was at a strong position during the 1980’s.
Never beat Alabama isn’t correct—he did beat Alabama and did it during a tough time to do so.
Well, now all the Tennessee goobs can follow Kiffy. Like a bunch of lemmings. Now that he says it is okay to like Majors again, I see the fans are following suit. I wonder what Fulmer makes of all of this?
BB – Some of us have always loved Majors, and always disliked Fulmer (yours truly). Our fanbase has been split over it since it happened.
Here’s a quick story: Back in 2006, I met Paul Bryant, Jr. We were talking about sports, and the convo inevitably turned to football. I mentioned being acquainted with Coach Majors, and I told him that Johnny always had great respect for Bear. And he told me, “Yeah, Johnny was a fine man, too. They don’t make coaches like my daddy and him anymore.” And it’s true.
Do you guys think that the old days of sportsmanship and maturity will return to the SEC? Or has the coarsening of the general society irrevocably coarsened college athletics too?
I think it’s gone forever. We may catch glimpses of it, but I think wholesale sportsmanship and class are done. It’s a shame, too.
I thought after the firing of Fulmer, the Tennessee-Alabama rivalry would return back to a game of sportsmanship and class. But when Kiffin opened his mouth for the first time, that pretty much blew it all to hell.
A coach like Kiffin belongs at Auburn. Not Tennessee.
NYC………..If that clown belongs anywhere its Bama. The only hothead in the SEC worse than him is at Bama.
Ballplay, we all know you miss the Terry Bowden days at AUsome AUburn. Saban may be a hothead, but he doesn’t go around trying to call out other coaches and show that he has no knowledge of the rules like Kiffin has. I am glad Kiffin is not at Auburn. I actually like Chizik so far. I hope Auburn does well except for that last game. I am happy Kiffin is at Tennessee though. Tennessee deserves him more than any other team in the SEC.
But I am really glad all of you Auburn and Tennessee people hate Saban. All he has done is beat your teams asses on the field and in recruiting since coming to Bama, and it doesn’t look like it will let up anytime soon. So your despite is understandable.
I wouldnt loathe him if he were an average coach. So , (drum roll) You are right Brando. Saban is an unbelievable competitor. The best recruiter, An excellent coach overall. The one and only thing that I see as a flaw would be this. He hasnt stayed anywhere long enough to prove that he is one of the best CFB coaches ever. I believe that he may be in the top ten all time. At least going back the last 40 years (after all that is all that is relevent to me). Had he stayed at LSU I believe he would have created a CFB dynasty. And this makes me puke in my mouth a little to say this, but, Saban at Alabama is tenfold more dangerous than when he was at LSU. You have the prestige of the University plus the killer instinct of a great coach. If he stays at Bama over say 8 more years. The rest of the country is in trouble. I could see multiple Nat. Champs for Bama in the not so distant future. There will be some epic games played between Bama and Florida. It is about to get interesting. That is why I want Saban gone. He is just too dangerous to be across the state from Auburn.
Wow BI thanks for your honesty, your pal Julio knows this also but wants to make his mind think this is the year that Saban is going to USC, keep dreamin Julio, and hold on tight, Bama is about to make you really puke.
I think Kiffin may end up eventually being a lot classier than a lot of people expect. The kid is still quite young (the first SEC coach in my life younger than me, am I am am still noticeably immature). Give the kid some time to grow into the role. It seems like he is already calming down a little (of course I am sure a few people sat him down for a talk).
And to think…. The auburn faithful were begging for Lane Kiffin before he went to UT. They were also begging for Bryce Brown and David OKU.
Wow Ballplay. You have way more balls than Julio and Omni ever will have. I know it pains you to say it, but you did. But really, if Saban was at Auburn I would feel the same way. I would hope he left. I don’t expect him to stay 20 years, but I do feel if he builds this program into a powerhouse, he will have a hard time leaving that again. I think he has regretted leaving LSU. The only way to make up for that is to win big at Bama, and stick around and reap the rewards after he builds Bama up again. At least that is what I hope happens.
Carlos, you are right. Kiffin is going to have to grow up if he wants to be successful. But you do realize Fulmer didn’t leave Kiffin with the cupboard full. Will he have the time to grow up and build a competitive team? If he has a bad season or two, will the TN fans be ready to run him off? What if he gets embarrassed by Florida early this year? Lots of questions to answer about Kiffin so far. Like you said, he is young, and he will have to grow into it. And if he does do well? I think he will bolt for a west coast school if given the chance. You have noticed the coaches from the west coast that come to the SEC haven’t done very well, so I don’t expect Kiffin to break that trend. But we will see in about 150 something days if he is going to embarrass you all.
when Kiffin’s players start telling him to stfu like Leinart did, they will lose any respect they have for the youngster and the results will show on the field, hmmmm kinda reminds me of a guy name Mike Shula. . . .
If Kiffin would just focus on his team and recruiting, he may actually get something done. But he as started running his mouth, and the media is way more interested in what kind of gaffe he will make next, instead of the slow progress he is making on the field. Come on Kiffin, make us all laugh again!