Dooley (15-21) ousted by Vols

Derek Dooley (center) was fired as Tennessee’s head football coach with one game remaining in his third season. Dooley (15-21) never had a winning season, going 6-7, 5-7 and 4-7. Offensive coordinator Jim Chaney will coach the Volunteers in their final regular-season game Saturday against Kentucky.

Derek Dooley (center) was fired as Tennessee’s head football coach with one game remaining in his third season. Dooley (15-21) never had a winning season, going 6-7, 5-7 and 4-7. Offensive coordinator Jim Chaney will coach the Volunteers in their final regular-season game Saturday against Kentucky.

Monday, November 19, 2012

— Tennessee Athletic Director Dave Hart has no doubt that Derek Dooley improved the Volunteers’ football program after inheriting a difficult situation three years ago.

But that improvement didn’t show up in Tennessee’s record, so Dooley no longer is the Vols’ coach.

Dooley was fired Sunday after posting Tennessee’s longest run of consecutive losing seasons in more than a century. Dooley was 15-21, including an 0-15 mark against Top 25 teams. Dooley was 4-19 in SEC competition and had lost 14 of his last 15 league games.

“This is a result-based profession,” Hart said. “You cannot ignore the results at the end of the day.”

The Vols (4-7, 0-7 SEC) must beat Kentucky on Saturday to avoid going winless in SEC play for the first time. Offensive coordinator Jim Chaney will serve as Tennessee’s interim coach for the Kentucky game. Hart said Dooley turned down an opportunity to coach the season finale out of concern that it would affect the players’ focus.

Tennessee’s 41-18 loss to Vanderbilt on Saturday guaranteed the Volunteers their third consecutive losing season, the first time they have finished below .500 in three consecutive years since 1909-1911. Tennessee’s loss to Vanderbilt marked the second time in 30 years that the Vols had fallen to their instate rival.

The Vols will fail to reach a bowl in back-to-back seasons for the first time since being left out four consecutive years from 1975-78.

“Although progress was not reflected in our record, I am proud of the strides we made to strengthen the foundation for future success in all areas of the program,” Dooley said in a statement released by the university. “During the last 34 months, I’ve given my all for Tennessee.”

Dooley’s successor will become the Vols’ fourth coach in a six-year stretch. Phillip Fulmer was fired in the midst of a 5-7 season in 2008 and ended his 17-year tenure with a 152-52 record. Lane Kiffin stayed for one year before Southern California hired him away.

Dooley arrived at Tennessee in January 2010 after going 17-20 in three seasons at Louisiana Tech. Tennessee went a combined 12-13 in the two years leading up to his arrival.

“Derek Dooley did indeed improve this football program,” Hart said. “There is no question about that. He inherited a very, very difficult environment, one that I’m now very familiar with having been here for these 13 months. And quite honestly, he was given a pretty short stick to take into that battle. I think given those facts that he did a good job in a lot of areas in putting a solid foundation under our football program.”

DUKE

Cutcliffe staying put

DURHAM, N.C. - Duke Coach David Cutcliffe said he’s staying with the Blue Devils next season.

He was asked Sunday evening about the coaching vacancy at Tennessee. The former Volunteers offensive coordinator and mentor to Peyton Manning said he’s “going to be coaching at Duke next year” and that he “can put that to rest, and that’s a fact.”

Cutcliffe, 58, was an assistant to Phil Fulmer at Tennessee from 1982-1998 and again from 2006-2007, leaving both times for head coaching jobs at Mississippi in 1999 and Duke in 2008. He has led Duke (6-5) to its best season since 1994 and its first bowl game since then.

He withdrew from the Volunteers’ previous coaching search in 2010 to stay at Duke. Tennessee hired Derek Dooley, whom they fired Sunday.

MIAMI

Not sure on bowl

CORAL GABLES, Fla. - Miami Coach Al Golden wants to see the Hurricanes in a bowl game this season. But it’s still unclear if he will get that chance.

The university remained silent Sunday about whether Miami would self-impose a second consecutive postseason ban, which would be done in response to the ongoing NCAA investigation into the Hurricanes’ compliance practices. Golden said he spoke briefly Sunday with acting Miami athletic director Blake James, but was not told of any final decision.

Sports, Pages 20 on 11/19/2012