NASHVILLE — On Jan. 18, 2021, Tennessee announced the retirement of Phillip Fulmer as athletic director and the termination of Jeremy Pruitt as head football coach after a university investigation uncovered a slew of violations that had been committed by Pruitt and several of his staff members.
A day later, Kentucky coach Mark Stoops weighed in.
“I’ve got to be careful in my response here,” Stoops told Kentucky Sports Radio. “Did I see it coming? Yes, I’m grateful it came. Does it surprise me? Not one bit.”
Stoops on Wednesday was back at Southeastern Conference Media Days to discuss his 11th season with the Wildcats, who have been to seven consecutive bowl games to set a program record and tallied 10-win seasons in 2018 and 2021. His league tenure is behind only Nick Saban, who is entering his 17th season at Alabama, with Kirby Smart entering his eighth year at Georgia to rank third.
A week after Stoops arrived at Kentucky after serving as Florida State’s defensive coordinator, Tennessee hired Butch Jones.
Stoops was asked plenty of questions regarding the 2023 Wildcats, who expect to be quarterbacked by North Carolina State graduate transfer Devin Leary, but he was also asked about his remarks from two years ago. Tennessee was recently handed a five-year probation that included a fine in excess of $8 million and scholarship reductions, but the Volunteers avoided a postseason ban.
“You know, really, at this point, I have no reaction,” Stoops said. “That was two years ago, and I’ve moved way beyond that, so no disrespect, but I just don’t have anything. I don’t know much about it, and I’m worried about my own backyard.
“So it is what it is, and I have no control over that.”
Calling the shots
At a time when multiple SEC head coaches are turning over play-calling duties to their offensive coordinators, Florida’s Billy Napier isn’t ready to join that club.
“It was part of our evaluation this offseason,” Napier said. “Like most parts of our organization and our process, we will improve in year two, and I think it’s something that we’ll continue to evaluate. I like having my hand on the script and the installation and that process. I think I can help establish our identity and personality as a team through that process.
“I think if you get too far away from that, there could be some things from a sustainable, repeatable part, so I want to continue to do it, and I think each year that we’ll continue to evaluate.”
‘Grass to mow’
It wouldn’t be an SEC Media Days without a Georgia or a Florida coach being asked about their rivalry game in Jacksonville and whether or not it should be moved.
“There are a ton of economic implications relative to these decisions,” Napier said. “We are going to have to cross that bridge at some point due to the renovations in Jacksonville, but there is benefit to home-and-home from a recruiting perspective, and I think there is a benefit where it is from an economic standpoint for both athletic departments and institutions.
“Right now, we have three more years of the same model. I’ve got enough grass to mow right now, so I’m going go focus on the things that are in front of me.”
Nothing like Leach
Arkansas fourth-year coach Sam Pittman is among the more entertaining in the league, but he was asked Wednesday if he would be taking over the most colorful title from the late Mike Leach.
“Man, I couldn’t come close to him,” Pittman said.
Pittman shared a story about attending Leach’s funeral last December. He admitted he didn’t know him all that well, and when asked why he was going, Pittman said, “Because he would be at mine.”
Odds and ends
An Alabama player had never won the Heisman Trophy before Nick Saban’s arrival, but Saban has now coached as many Heisman winners as any other coach with Mark Ingram, Derrick Henry, DeVonta Smith and Bryce Young. … Arkansas will be seeking its first win at Florida on Nov. 4, when the Razorbacks visit Gainesville for a sixth time.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.