Adams: Tee Martin would be a better choice than Les Miles
John AdamsI realize Tennessee's choices for a football coach are limited.
But Les Miles?
Former Tennessee quarterback Tee Martin would be a better hire. Newly appointed Tennessee athletic director Phillip Fulmer would be a better hire.
He could just hire himself as coach, then bring Martin aboard as an associate head coach and coach in waiting.
I can understand why Miles would be attractive to Fulmer.
Both have won national championships.
Phillip Fulmer, Les Miles have long runs of success
Both had long runs of success at SEC schools - Fulmer at UT and Miles at LSU.
Both, when at the top of their game, were outstanding recruiters.
Both were shocked when they were fired - Fulmer in 2008, Miles in the first month of the 2016 season.
And there's no denying Miles' record. He went 114-34 at LSU. He never won fewer than eight games in a season.
Moreover, his players seeded to enjoy playing for him. After the Butch Jones Era of Tennessee football, that shouldn't be ignored.
Why didn't someone hire Les Miles after last season?
But if Miles would be such a great hire, why didn't someone him after last season? Or why hasn't he been mentioned with any of the numerous openings this season?
Never mind his crazy gambles that paid off early during his tenure at LSU. He's an awful game-day manager and maybe the worst clock manager of any coach in SEC history.
Those were Jones' shortcomings as well.
Jones could recruit top-10 classes but couldn't convert them into top-10 teams. Miles had top-10 recruiting classes and top-10 teams at LSU. And I'm sure he would continue to recruit well at Tennessee, though not as well as at LSU
But his track record tells you he won't develop quarterbacks and won't get the most from his offense, no matter how much talent he has.
Maybe, Tennessee fans would settle for that after a coaching search that is now two athletic directors long.
Several Tennessee targets have been hired
When Tennessee’s coaching search began, Chip Kelly, Scott Frost, Dan Mullen and were possibilities. All have been hired elsewhere.
I won't retrace the ill-fated steps of recently fired Tennessee athletic director John Currie's search. Or all the rejections from UT coaching candidates. But if Fulmer feels as though his options are limited to fired coaches or coaches with no experience, then he should consider Martin.
Oklahoma just made the College Football Playoff with Lincoln Riley as a first-year head coach. Georgia made the CFP with Kirby Smart as a second-year head coach.
What does that tell you?
Tee Martin deserves serious consideration
It tells you Martin deserves serious consideration.
He already has proved himself as a recruiter. And I would trust him more with UT's offense than I would trust Miles.
My opinion of Martin as a head coach is influenced by the kind of quarterback he was. He wasn't the best player on UT's 1998 national championship. But he was a great leader.
Martin is a better choice than Miles
His teammates rallied around him as a player. I think current Tennessee players would rally around him, too.
My first reaction to Martin as a candidate was that he needed more experience to take on a job of this magnitude. But then, I considered how little experience Riley had. And then, I thought about what a leader Martin was as a player.
He would be a better choice than Miles. His former coach should realize that.
John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342-6284 or john.adams@knoxnews.com. Follow him at: Twitter.com/johnadamskns.
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