Phillip Fulmer

Head coach, Tennessee, 1992 to 2008

College career151-52-1

Titles1national

Program liftNo. 144tied · of 1,290 tenures since 1937

Now

Career arc

Bowls and playoffs: 7-7 · won 1 of 1 national title game

’93L’94W’95W’96W’97L’98W★’99L’00L’01W’02L’03L’04W’06L’07W

Show all 14 games

1993Citrus BowlL 13-31

1994Gator BowlW 45-23

1995Florida Citrus BowlW 20-14

1996Florida Citrus BowlW 48-28

1997Orange BowlL 17-42

1998 ★Fiesta BowlW 23-16

1999Fiesta BowlL 21-31

2000Cotton BowlL 21-35

2001Florida Citrus BowlW 45-17

2002Peach BowlL 3-30

2003Peach BowlL 14-27

2004Cotton BowlW 38-7

2006Outback BowlL 10-20

2007Outback BowlW 21-17

Report card

Above the median offense — 57th percentile.

Tennessee, every completed season graded against the whole field, then averaged.

Offense

B-

of which —57th

efficiency — 57th percentile success rate, 2004–08

C+48th

Standard-downs success

B68th

Passing-downs success

C+49th

Trench push (line yards)

B61st

Red-zone scoring rate

B-58th

Power-success (short yardage)

B60th

Ball security (giveaways per game)

Each season is his team’s percentile among every team with that stat (the share it beat), averaged over his completed seasons here; a mid-season takeover year and the season in progress aren’t graded. Letters: A+ 90th percentile and up, A 80, B+ 70, B 60, B− 50, C+ 45, C 40, C− 30, D 15, F below.

Stats

Big games

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

48-23-1

66.7% · margin ≤8

Against Blue Bloods or better

15-16

48.4%

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

15-13 53.6%

Power Program

29-26 52.7%

National Program

43-7 86.0%

Regional Program

60-3 95.2%

Signature games

7-16 vs. AP top 25 · 4-12 vs. the top 10 · 2004– (no AP data before 2004)

AP-ranked regular-season opponents since 2004, by rank (#1 at top) and year

win loss · higher = higher-ranked opponent · dashed line = top 10

Signature wins

Michigan · 2001

45-17

Quality opponentBowl/CFP stakes

Alabama · 1995

41-14

RivalQuality opponent

Florida State · 1998

23-16

Quality opponentBowl/CFP stakes

Signature losses

Maryland · 2002

3-30

Bowl/CFP stakes

Nebraska · 1997

17-42

Bowl/CFP stakes

Alabama · 2007

17-41

Rival

Tags describe each game; they aren’t scores. The weighting that picks these games is still being tested.

How he plays

more run-heavy than 62% of FBS coaches →

Run/pass mix, by field position

Called about what the situation called for.

2,612 run and pass snaps at Tennessee, 2004–2008, his own games, one row per offensive coordinator. Each cell is how much more often he passed than the rest of FBS did in the same situation (field zone, down, distance, score, quarter, same season), in percentage points. Play-by-play starts in 2004, so his earlier seasons there aren’t in it.

backed upown territorymidfieldopp. territoryred zoneOC unrecorded2004–08+2+1+3+3+5

passed moreran morewithin noise (95% range includes 0)

Pass rate, stint by stint

Where each stint’s offense sat between run-first and pass-first, and how far it moved from one season to the next, against the FBS-wide average of 41% pass. The band is that stint’s real season-to-season range, not a fixed-width box.

Pass rate — share of offensive plays that were pass attemptsfirst covered seasonmost recent covered seasonfull season-to-season range (3+ covered seasons)

How much that is, against every other stint

Season-to-season pass-rate range for all 449 FBS coaching stints with at least three covered seasons, 2004–2025.

Typical stint7.010.3 median14.8middle half of all stints

Tennessee11.8pt#180 of 449 · a typical amount

Building the roster

Three numbers on how he actually stocks a roster, from signing day to draft day.

1Roster ownership
2Where he recruits
3The NFL pipeline

Roster ownership

100%His own players

of his 2008 roster arrived on his watch — 28 of 28 players. Nobody is left from before he was hired.

This coach's entire tenure (1992-2008) predates 2021, when transfer-portal tracking begins in this database. Portal usage cannot be measured for this tenure at all -- this is not the same as '0% portal'.

“His own” means the player arrived while he was head coach; “inherited” means a predecessor brought him in.

Where he recruits

TNTop state

is his biggest recruiting state: 21 of 96 signees (22%) across his 2000–2008 classes on record (his tenure ran 1992–2008), drawn from 25 states in all. Next: CA (10).

Where his signees came from, 2000–2008 (96 high-school, JUCO and prep signees)

51% of his signees come from TN and its 8 border states (GA 8, NC 7, AL 4, KY 3, MS 3, AR 2, VA 1).

By region

South

West

Midwest

Northeast

Roster distance from campus (Neyland Stadium, TN)

median hometown distance: 253 mi
within 100 mi: 17%
within 500 mi: 78%
beyond 1,000 mi: 0%

18 of 28 roster players with a known hometown (64% coverage)

The map counts signed recruits across his tenure; the distance figures cover his current roster, transfers and walk-ons included. Two different groups, kept separate on purpose.

The NFL pipeline

at least82Drafted

players drafted into the NFL off his teams here (a floor — see the note below). None can be traced to who brought them in — there’s no roster record for these players here. 16 went in the first round.

At least 82 — the draft class following his 1995 season is missing from this table entirely; and his 1992 season predates the modern 7-round draft, so this table’s pre-1994 pick counts are a floor, not a full count, for that season.

0 roster-verified · 82 estimated

Most recent picks first

Year	Pick	Player	Pos	NFL team	Note
2009	R1.18	Robert Ayers	Defensive End	Denver Broncos	Estimated
2008	R1.10	Jerod Mayo	Outside Linebacker	New England Patriots	Estimated
2008	R3.13	Brad Cottam	Tight End	Kansas City Chiefs	Estimated
2008	R5.27	Erik Ainge	Quarterback	New York Jets	Estimated
2007	R1.16	Justin Harrell	Defensive Tackle	Green Bay Packers	Estimated
2007	R1.27	Robert Meachem	Wide Receiver	New Orleans Saints	Estimated
2007	R2.03	Arron Sears	Offensive Guard	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Estimated
2007	R2.22	Turk McBride	Defensive Tackle	Kansas City Chiefs	Estimated

Year	Pick	Player	Pos	NFL team	Note
2007	R3.20	Jonathan Wade	Defensive Back	St. Louis Rams	Estimated
2007	R7.10	Marvin Mitchell	Linebacker	New Orleans Saints	Estimated
2006	R1.16	Jason Allen	Defensive Back	Miami Dolphins	Estimated
2006	R5.07	Parys Haralson	Linebacker	San Francisco 49ers	Estimated
2006	R5.35	Omar Gaither	Linebacker	Philadelphia Eagles	Estimated
2006	R5.36	Jesse Mahelona	Defensive Tackle	Tennessee Titans	Estimated
2006	R7.42	Kevin Simon	Linebacker	Washington Redskins	Estimated
2005	R2.10	Kevin Burnett	Linebacker	Dallas Cowboys	Estimated
2005	R3.35	Dustin Colquitt	Punter	Kansas City Chiefs	Estimated
2005	R6.08	Cedric Houston	Running Back	New York Jets	Estimated
2004	R5.04	Gibril Wilson	Defensive Back	New York Giants	Estimated
2004	R6.26	Troy Fleming	Running Back	Tennessee Titans	Estimated
2004	R7.05	Mark Jones	Wide Receiver	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Estimated
2004	R7.50	Scott Wells	Center	Green Bay Packers	Estimated
2003	R2.17	Eddie Moore	Linebacker	Miami Dolphins	Estimated
2003	R3.01	Kelley Washington	Wide Receiver	Cincinnati Bengals	Estimated
2003	R3.05	Jason Witten	Tight End	Dallas Cowboys	Estimated
2003	R3.28	Julian Battle	Defensive Back	Kansas City Chiefs	Estimated
2003	R5.11	Aubrayo Franklin	Defensive Tackle	Baltimore Ravens	Estimated
2003	R5.27	Keyon Whiteside	Linebacker	Indianapolis Colts	Estimated
2003	R6.10	Rashad Moore	Defensive Tackle	Seattle Seahawks	Estimated
2003	R7.24	Demetrin Veal	Defensive End	Atlanta Falcons	Estimated
2002	R1.09	John Henderson	Defensive Tackle	Jacksonville Jaguars	Estimated
2002	R1.13	Donte' Stallworth	Wide Receiver	New Orleans Saints	Estimated
2002	R1.15	Albert Haynesworth	Defensive Tackle	Tennessee Titans	Estimated
2002	R3.01	Fred Weary	Offensive Tackle	Houston Texans	Estimated
2002	R3.15	Will Overstreet	Defensive End	Atlanta Falcons	Estimated
2002	R4.21	Travis Stephens	Running Back	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Estimated
2002	R5.24	Andre Lott	Defensive Back	Washington Redskins	Estimated
2002	R6.20	Reggie Coleman	Offensive Tackle	Washington Redskins	Estimated
2002	R7.45	Teddy Gaines	Defensive Back	San Francisco 49ers	Estimated
2002	R7.49	Dominique Stevenson	Linebacker	Buffalo Bills	Estimated
2001	R2.27	Travis Henry	Running Back	Buffalo Bills	Estimated
2001	R3.11	Eric Westmoreland	Linebacker	Jacksonville Jaguars	Estimated
2001	R5.11	David Leaverton	Punter	Jacksonville Jaguars	Estimated
2001	R6.06	Cedrick Wilson	Wide Receiver	San Francisco 49ers	Estimated
2001	R6.35	David Martin	Tight End	Green Bay Packers	Estimated
2000	R1.05	Jamal Lewis	Running Back	Baltimore Ravens	Estimated
2000	R1.12	Shaun Ellis	Defensive End	New York Jets	Estimated
2000	R2.10	Raynoch Thompson	Linebacker	Arizona Cardinals	Estimated
2000	R2.13	Chad Clifton	Offensive Tackle	Green Bay Packers	Estimated
2000	R2.18	Dwayne Goodrich	Defensive Back	Dallas Cowboys	Estimated
2000	R2.20	Cosey Coleman	Offensive Guard	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Estimated
2000	R2.26	Deon Grant	Defensive Back	Carolina Panthers	Estimated
2000	R3.09	Darwin Walker	Defensive Tackle	Arizona Cardinals	Estimated
2000	R5.34	Tee Martin	Quarterback	Pittsburgh Steelers	Estimated
1999	R1.31	Al Wilson	Linebacker	Denver Broncos	Estimated
1999	R2.22	Peerless Price	Wide Receiver	Buffalo Bills	Estimated
1999	R3.25	Shawn Bryson	Running Back	Buffalo Bills	Estimated
1999	R6.01	Steve Johnson	Defensive Back	Seattle Seahawks	Estimated
1999	R6.12	Jeff Hall	Place Kicker	Washington Redskins	Estimated
1999	R7.44	Corey Terry	Linebacker	Indianapolis Colts	Estimated
1998	R1.01	Peyton Manning	Quarterback	Indianapolis Colts	Estimated
1998	R1.20	Terry Fair	Defensive Back	Detroit Lions	Estimated
1998	R1.30	Marcus Nash	Wide Receiver	Denver Broncos	Estimated
1998	R3.04	Leonard Little	Defensive End	St. Louis Rams	Estimated
1998	R3.29	Jonathan Brown	Defensive End	Green Bay Packers	Estimated
1998	R7.11	Trey Teague	Offensive Tackle	Denver Broncos	Estimated
1998	R7.15	Andy McCullough	Wide Receiver	New Orleans Saints	Estimated
1998	R7.42	Cory Gaines	Defensive Back	Indianapolis Colts	Estimated
1997	R2.16	Joey Kent	Wide Receiver	Tennessee Oilers	Estimated
1997	R3.04	Jay Graham	Running Back	Baltimore Ravens	Estimated
1997	R5.15	Raymond Austin	Defensive Back	New York Jets	Estimated
1995	R1.19	James Stewart	Running Back	Jacksonville Jaguars	Estimated
1995	R2.09	Ronald Davis	Defensive Back	Atlanta Falcons	Estimated
1995	R4.06	Aaron Hayden	Running Back	San Diego Chargers	Estimated
1995	R4.35	Ben Talley	Linebacker	New York Giants	Estimated
1995	R6.20	Jerry Colquitt	Quarterback	Carolina Panthers	Estimated
1995	R7.04	Billy Williams	Wide Receiver	Arizona Cardinals	Estimated
1994	R1.03	Heath Shuler	Quarterback	Washington Redskins	Estimated
1994	R2.13	Charlie Garner	Running Back	Philadelphia Eagles	Estimated
1994	R3.22	Cory Fleming	Wide Receiver	San Francisco 49ers	Estimated
1994	R3.28	Shane Bonham	Defensive Tackle	Detroit Lions	Estimated
1994	R5.21	Horace Morris	Linebacker	New York Jets	Estimated

A pick counts toward his tenure when the player’s final college season was one he coached, a checkable rule rather than a claim about who developed the player. A blank note means the player is on a verified roster and arrived on his watch. “Estimated” means no roster record, so the final season is assumed to be the year before the draft.

Career

Coaching career

1 national title

See Tennessee’s full coaching history →

The arc of his career is on Now.

Transformer raised the program into the sport's top tier, or higher within it

1992–2008

Tennessee Transformer≈

Power Program I → Blue Blood (left at Power Program I)

Closest comparable run: Chuck Martin’s Miami (OH) run (2014–now)

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

+13.6 pts over 17 seasons · top 44% of 10+-season tenures (202 in sample)

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

Followed Johnny Majors (1977–1992) · succeeded by Lane Kiffin (2009).

System Shift, on departure

Season	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008
Record & result
Record	4-0	9-2-1	8-4	11-1	10-2	11-2	13-0	9-3	8-4	11-2	8-5	10-3	10-3	5-6	9-4	10-4	5-7
Postseason	W bowl	L bowl	W bowl	W bowl	W bowl	L bowl	W bowl	L bowl	L bowl	W bowl	L bowl	L bowl	W bowl	—	L bowl	W bowl	—
Outcome — opponent-adjusted efficiency percentile
Offense	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	67	53	80	44	14
Defense	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	28	85	28	42	89
Tendencies — play-by-play, neutral script
1st-down pass%	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	34.2	42.2	46.0	47.5	37.1
Red-zone pass%	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	41.3	33.7	40.9	51.8	39.8
4th-down go%opp. territory	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	34.6	20.5	24.3	23.3	27.3

Where the roster comes from, by position

Grows Tight end from high school

100%

#164 of 188 stints

Grows Edge from high school

100%

#191 of 208 stints

Postseason detail1993: Lost to Penn State 13-31 Bowl1994: Beat Virginia Tech 45-23 Bowl1995: Beat Ohio State 20-14 Bowl1996: Beat Northwestern 48-28 Bowl1997: Beat Auburn 30-29 Bowl1997: Lost to Nebraska 17-42 Bowl1998: Beat Mississippi State 24-14 Bowl1998: Beat Florida State 23-16 Bowl1999: Lost to Nebraska 21-31 Bowl2000: Lost to Kansas State 21-35 Bowl2001: Beat Michigan 45-17 Bowl2002: Lost to Maryland 3-30 Bowl2003: Lost to Clemson 14-27 Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl2004: Beat Texas A&M 38-7 Cotton Bowl2006: Lost to Penn State 10-20 Outback Bowl At Tampa Fl2007: Beat Wisconsin 21-17 Bowl

151-52-1

All-time wins

Wins at programs this site tracks, 1936–present — one consistent count for every coach, not each program’s own historically reported total.

1st all-time at Tennessee

Was he good?

Only one of the usual three angles is measurable for this era — raised the program.

Raised the program

+13.6 pts at Tennessee · #144 of 1290 · top quarter