By Jimmy Hyams
Tennessee acting athletic director Phillip Fulmer is on Day 5 of his coaching search, and not much is certain.
But we do know this: Duke coach David Cutcliffe is not in the running.
“I’m not involved in any part of the Tennessee situation,’’ Cutcliffe texted me yesterday.
Cutcliffe was apparently offered the job Nov 27 and said no.
I’m sure he talked to Fulmer recently, and provided the same answer.
In the case of Cutcliffe, and perhaps some other coaches, Fulmer might also be asking for recommendations or backgrounds on other potential candidates.
That would be a reason Fulmer would call someone like former Texas coach Mack Brown, 66.
So where is Fulmer in the search?
I believe he will interview a number of candidates in New York as he attends the College Hall of Fame induction ceremony of Peyton Manning.
I believe Fulmer has talked to or interviewed:
* SMU coach Chad Morris, who was also interviewed by fired athletic director John Currie but never offered the job. Morris was a high school coach in Texas seven years ago. Morris has also interviewed for the Arkansas job.
* Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele, a former UT player and assistant coach. He has worked for six coaches who have won a national championship.
* Alabama defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt, who has also been DC at Auburn and Florida State.
* Former LSU coach Les Miles, 64, who won a national title and two SEC championships for the Tigers – the same as Fulmer at Tennessee.
* Purdue coach Jeff Brohm, a former Louisville quarterback who had a sparkling record at Western Kentucky, where he was 30-10 after replacing Willie Taggert.
* Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables, the 2016 Broyles Assistant Coach of the Year. Venables has had great success at Clemson and Oklahoma. He played at Kansas State.
* Georgia defensive coordinator Mel Tucker, 45. Tucker, who played at Wisconsin, has worked nine years as a full-time college assistant (four in the SEC) and 10 years as an NFL assistant (Browns, Jags, Bears).
* Washington State coach Mike Leach, who I believe had a verbal agreement in place with Currie. I don’t know if Fulmer contacted Leach as a courtesy move or is serious about possibly hiring Leach.
* USC offensive coordinator Tee Martin, who led the Vols to a 1998 national championship. Some who admire Martin don’t think he’s ready to be a head coach.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Tennessee kicked the tires on Washington coach Chris Peterson and Stanford coach David Shaw. Chances of landing either one are remote.
Heck, Fulmer might have even called former Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops to gauge his interest – or bounce some candidates names Stoops’ way.
It will be interesting to see what Fulmer does in the next few days.
Perhaps his closest mentor is Doug Dickey, Fulmer’s college coach and UT’s athletic director when Fulmer won his national title. Dickey also hired Fulmer as head coach.
You also wonder if Fulmer hasn’t studied the way Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez has run his program. Alvarez is a former Badgers’ coach who has had great success in keeping the school’s football program winning at a high level.
I don’t know what Fulmer is going to do, but here’s my best guess: He will interview several candidates in New York, pare his list to a few, then make an offer.
I think he will hire a coach by Thursday.
If not, UT runs the risk of ruining a potentially strong recruiting class.
Quarterback commit Adrian Martinez is set to visit Nebraska and he’s visited Ohio State and Missouri.
Quarterback Michael Penix is visiting Florida.
Gibbs’ offensive lineman Ollie Lane has an offer from Nebraska.
You’ve also had de-commits from OL Cade Mays, CB Jaycee Horn, RB Lyn J. Dixon and athlete Alontae Taylor.
Tennessee could have as many as a dozen visitors this weekend.
If you don’t have a coach in place within the next 48 hours, you might postpone those visits, because it doesn’t make a lot of sense to bring prospects to your campus without knowing who their head coach is.
I’m not in favor of rushing a hire to save a recruiting class, but if you can identify your guy soon, that would surely help.
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