UT blew it bigtime when they let Phil Fulmer go....
Very true and it's been going down hill ever since. Fulmer had the second best record in UT history second only to Neyland himself. Fulmer lived and breathed UT. He did a lot for the university in donations, he did a lot for his teams making sure they were actually educated, and the teams he built changed Neyland Stadium. The very least they could have done and the right thing was not to have fired a proven coach in mid season.
UT's AD has faced problem after problem due mainly to poor choices made by the pay grades above Coach. Part of the reason Jones has had problems keeping players is due to previous damage done in the past before he got there which destroys recruiting for many years to come. UT had a good coach within it's own ranks when Fulmer was fired and the man was passed over. They likely had several capable ones. That's how Fulmer became head coach. Fulmer would IMO have been the one UT should have recruited to take Hamiltons places as AD and yes if necessary begged.
How many head coaches has Tennessee had since?!