It’s next round of Dooley ‘rivalry’
Curry’s set for the son, UT
KNOXVILLE — Georgia State coach Bill Curry still remembers his reaction when he learned Derek Dooley was entering the coaching business.
“I asked that very question, ‘ Derek, have you lost your mind? You’re brilliant. You’ve got a great legal career,’ ” Curry recalled. “He smiled, laughed and said, ‘I guess so, but I’ve got to do this coaching stuff.’ ”
Sixteen years after Dooley began his coaching career, their paths are crossing again. Dooley will lead Tennessee into its home opener Saturday against Georgia State as Curry continues his final season before retirement.
Of course, this isn’t the first time Curry has squared off with a Dooley.
Curry coached Georgia Tech from 1980-86 when Dooley’s father, Vince, was in the midst of his illustrious career at Georgia. Curry will become the first coach ever to face both Vince and Derek Dooley.
Georgia Tech lost to Georgia by an average margin of 19.5 points in each of Curry’s first four seasons there, but quarterback John Dewberry led the Yellow Jackets to back- to- back victories over their in-state rival in 1984 and 1985 after transferring from Georgia to Georgia Tech.
“I remember a couple of years where Tech beat Georgia and Dewberry was ripping off the hedges,” said Dooley, who was in high school at the time. “(Those are) not fond memories of my childhood.”
The connection actually runs deeper than that.
Curry was a Georgia Tech team captain in 1964, which was Vince Dooley’s first season as Georgia’s coach. Derek Dooley and Curry’s son, Bill Curry Jr.,