The Zeitgeist List · coaching

Phillip Fulmer

Phillip Fulmer took Tennessee from Power Program I to Blue Blood.

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1992–2008 · 1 stint
Tennessee
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Career arc

His real stature score, season by season, across every program he’s coached — so a stretch that stays in one tier the whole way can still climb or sink on the line, not just flatten out. Node color marks the tier reached. Which program a stretch belongs to is carried by the shaded lane behind it.

Stature score reached, by season of his head-coaching careerTENNESSEEDynastythe sport's summitBlue Bloodpermanent top tierPower Programperennial contenderTennessee, 1992: 4-0, Power Program I1992Tennessee, 1993: 9-2, Power Program ITennessee, 1994: 8-4, Power Program ITennessee, 1995: 11-1, Power Program ITennessee, 1996: 10-2, Power Program ITennessee, 1997: 11-2, Power Program ITennessee, 1998: 13-0, Blue BloodTennessee, 1999: 9-3, Blue BloodTennessee, 2000: 8-4, Blue BloodTennessee, 2001: 11-2, Blue BloodTennessee, 2002: 8-5, Blue BloodTennessee, 2003: 10-3, Blue BloodTennessee, 2004: 10-3, Blue BloodTennessee, 2005: 5-6, Power Program ITennessee, 2006: 9-4, Power Program ITennessee, 2007: 10-4, Power Program ITennessee, 2008: 5-7, Power Program I2008+13.6One point per coached season, in career order; dashed segments are program changes — spacing is not proportional to calendar time

Reached Blue Blood in his 7th career season — faster than 30% of the 100 FBS coaches who have ever reached Blue Blood (rank #68 of 100 by seasons-to-arrival).

Tennessee, 17 seasons
+13.6
Power Program I → Power Program I.

The big-game ledger

How he does in the games that matter most — rivalry record, performance broken out by real opponent tier, one-score games, and his toughest historical matchup.

41–6 against his rivals. Just 1–4 against Nick Saban.

Rivalry record
41–6–1
85.4% · 3 rivals
One-score games
47–23–1
66.2% · margin ≤8
vs. Blue Blood or better
0–3
0.0%
Rivalry ledger
Alabama10–5–162%
Kentucky16–0100%
Vanderbilt15–194%
The toughest matchupNemesis
vs. Nick Saban1–4
5 meetings, 2000–2008
’00 L’01 W’01 L’07 L’08 L
Performance by opponent class
Dynasty
0–3 0.0%
Blue Blood
14–13 51.9%
Power Program
29–26 52.7%
National Program
43–7 86.0%
Regional Program
59–3 95.2%

Coaching career

1992–2008
Tennesseetransformerborderline
Power Program I → Blue Blood
Phillip Fulmer took Tennessee from Power Program I to Blue Blood.

1st-best Tennessee tenure of 16 by the numbers.

Succeeded by Lane Kiffin (2009–2009).

89 NFL Draft picks: Dale Carter (1992), Chris Mims (1992), Carl Pickens (1992), Chuck Smith (1992), Jeremy Lincoln (1992), Tom Myslinski (1992), Todd Kelly (1993), Heath Shuler (1994) + 81 more

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