Pruitt makes former players feel welcome
KNOXVILLE — When the coordinator of the Vol For Life program under former Tennessee football coach Butch Jones stepped down last year, he accused Jones of intimidation, bullying and mental abuse in his resignation letter.
Jeremy Pruitt is trying to start his tenure on a better note with the program’s former players.
Former Tennessee running backs Jabari Davis and Alvin Kamara were on the sideline at Saturday’s practice, and they were just the latest in a wave of former players who have been spotted observing Pruitt’s first spring session with the Volunteers.
“I think it’s good for the program,” Pruitt said. “I think it’s good to get everybody back.”
Jones was fired last November with two games left on the schedule. A document circulated between John Currie — Tennessee’s athletic director at the time — and executive associate athletic director Reid Sigmon during the search for Jones’ replacement last year detailed how they believed the VFL program needed an “overhaul” after Antone Davis resigned.
“We have never took advantage of our former players nor have we done enough to help them after football,” the document read. “I always though this was more than a 1-man job. Having a committee would allow for more communication and a free flowing think tank from former players.”
Pruitt told 104.5 The Zone in Nashville on Friday that, right now, Tennessee’s practices are open to all former players, law enforcement personnel and high school football coaches.
An athletic department photo from Saturday’s practice, the Vols’ ninth of 15 set for this spring, showed Kamara — the reigning NFL offensive rookie of the year and a versatile star for the New Orleans Saints — and Pruitt embracing.
“Tennessee is a football program that has a lot of pride and has had a lot of pride for a long, long time,” said Pruitt, a former assistant at rivals Alabama and Georgia who also played for Alabama. “It’s like I tell the guys: They were playing football here long before we were born, and they’re going to be playing football here long after we’re gone. It’s our job to leave it better than we found it.”
A replacement for Davis or the formation of a VFL committee — as was mentioned in the document circulated between Currie and Sigmon — has not been announced. But there was unrest brewing among some faction of former players before Davis resigned in November.
In a Facebook post last July, former Tennessee defensive back Chris Treece praised Penn State coach James Franklin for his program’s treatment of former players and suggested former Tennessee players do not receive the same respect. Other former players responded to the post, supporting Treece’s comments.
The “VFL” moniker was coined by former coach Derek Dooley. Like Pruitt, Dooley and Jones had not played or worked for Tennessee when they took the top job with the Vols. Jones talked regularly in news conferences about connecting with former players, but the resignation of Davis was a sign the coach’s efforts lacked in that area.
As a new era begins, Pruitt said he thinks former players “like what they see” as they watch the program under his leadership.
“Our guys are working hard,” Pruitt said. “They’re not perfect, but we’re working. I can assure you that. And they’re getting coached in everything that they do. I want as many former VFLs back as we can get. It’s going to take all of us to get this program back where it’s supposed to be, and I think everybody is willing to do that.”