The wait is over…Tennessee has its national title
The Tennessee baseball Volunteers are national champions. I knew I would be writing that sentence at some point, but the waiting is finally over. The light at the end of the tunnel has been reached, the 25 years of no national championships in any men’s sport in Knoxville is no more.
Almost 7 years ago I was a freshman at The University of Tennessee and back then, as many of you reading remember, things looked bleak. Rick Barnes had 2 years under his belt but had not reached the tournament yet. Butch Jones was floundering through his final year as the football coach while embarrassing the University at every turn. Holly Warlick was failing to live up to the recently deceased Pat Summitt’s legacy in the Lady Vol basketball program. However, worst of all, the people in the main leadership positions at the University seemed to not care about athletics. John Currie almost hiring Greg Schiano was the straw that finally broke the camel’s back. The uproar that ensued led to Currie being fired, and the chancellor and president of the University were gone shortly after.
The wheels were turning in Knoxville and they had to get people who cared about the University and the state in charge. Donde Plowman took over as chancellor and Randy Boyd took over as the president. Since those two names took their respective roles the athletic department has done a 180. When things got rocky for Phillip Fulmer after the hiring of Jeremy Pruitt was a complete disaster they had a decision to make on a new athletic director. Safe to say that the man they hired was the final piece to getting the athletic department back on track. Danny White has brought a winning culture to Knoxville. Since he has been on campus the success of the athletic department has been unprecedented, but before Monday night in Omaha, none of the programs had notched a national championship.
I think many people felt that Tony Vitello was the man to break the glass ceiling. He took over a rusted-out sedan of a baseball program and has turned it into a Ferrari. Over the last 4 years no program has won more games, hit more home runs, and made as much noise in the sport than the Vols. The national championship the 2024 team just secured is the culmination of all those years and hard work. This title belongs to all the players who changed the culture as well. Drew Gilbert, Jordan Beck, Trey Lipscomb, Camden Sewell, Chase Dollander, etc. They built the base camps for this 2024 team to climb the mountain they have reached the summit of and they deserve recognition as well.
Tony has raised the standard now. Josh Heupel and Rick Barnes, who were on the field to embrace Tony shortly after the final out was recorded, have now seen a group of Vols hoist a natty. Hopefully, that fuels their fire to go and get one of their own. Lastly, before John Currie was chased out of Knoxville with pitchforks and torches he did do one good thing. He was the guy who hired Tony Vitello back in the summer of 2017. As much as it pains me to say it, thank you John Currie, but still don’t show your face in Knoxville ever again.