Taylor 'angry' and 'upset' that anyone would think he spoke negatively of UT

by rustytanton on Mar 11, 2008 6:41 AM EDT

Bumped from the diaries. Many thanks to Rusty as I was all set to write just about the same thing when I noticed he'd already done so. To be fair to hooper, he wrote that post at my prodding, and I prodded him because I thought it was a really interesting quote that I wasn't sure how to take. It didn't sound right to me, knowing what I know about Taylor. We absolutely adore Trooper around here. I guess some Vol fans, me included, are a bit sensitive to perceived criticisms that our offense is stale and outdated. In any event, I'm glad to hear that I misinterpreted his remarks. My bad.

-- Joel

Trooper! Chest bump! Best of luck at Okie State.
Hope to see you back in Knoxville soon!

I disagreed with Hooper's interpretation of former UT receivers coach Trooper Taylor's remark where, regarding being at OSU vs. UT, he said:

It's like I'm speaking the same language again where before I went to Pluto and I had to learn 3 yards and a cloud of dust again.

I thought it was just a slightly awkward remark that didn't come out right, but that no slight was intended. And that's exactly what Taylor says happened when he was interviewed for this Scout.com article.

Here are some of the quotes, since I think that may be behind a pay firewall:

Taylor said the thought of him being critical of UT's program is "totally unfounded. I apologize to anyone who might be offended. My family still lives there. The best place I've ever worked was at Tennessee.
"It's ludicrous for anyone to think I was talking bad about Tennessee or Coach Fulmer.
"If anyone thinks I'd want to disrespect Tennessee, they're wrong. Tennessee gave me an opportunity to better my career and the players are like family to me. That's crazy.
"When I retire, you can bet I'll be near Knoxville. Knoxville will always be like home to us. I loved it. My wife loved it. My kids loved it.
"Tell all the faithful it was not a negative comment being made."

He later even called the author back and said:

"I'm angry and upset that people would think I'd say something negative about Tennessee," Taylor said. "They're wrong. They're really wrong."

So there you have it. He sounded a little surprised to me that anyone would have interpreted the remark that way.

EDIT 11:15 AM: Let me express my own feelings. I tried to write the post a little ambiguously and a little contentiously to encourage discussion in the thread. (On a side note, all such discussion was rightly and effectively killed by Aerobab's first post.) From what I've seen in my short time at UT, Trooper's nothing but a class act and there's no reason to hold his move or even this quote in suspicion. The move was absolutely the right decision for his long-term career; building extensive networks is the norm in today's coaching world and he'll get a chance to prove his UT success is portable anywhere. The quote was simply Taylor being his excited, amiable self - that's part of what we grew to love about the guy to begin with. Nothing wrong with that. H/T to Rusty for the follow-up. So if my post added to the antagonism, I sincerely apologize to Taylor and his family. -- hooper

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Thanks, Rusty

Much thanks for the follow-up!

Like I said last week, I believe TT's initial statement was "coachspeak". He said the 'PC' or the 'right' thing to the local media, regardless of his actual, personal feelings. He had to. He's the shiny new Porsche in the OSU garage. I'm delighted to see him set the record straight and to see him express his genuine positive-sentiment for the city of Knoxville and CPF's football program. At the same time, I'm somewhat saddened to know that TT will likely be censoring himself MUCH more now, in an effort to avoid future mix-ups.

Yeah, it's a cliche, but it's time to let TT go. Let him say what needs to be said so that he can do great things at OSU and maybe we can hire him back as OC after our own Coach Clawson leaves for the NFL in a few years! :)

by Aerobab on Mar 11, 2008 10:47 AM EDT reply actions

I'm also a little saddened...

...that he'll probably self-censor more, but I also view it as inevitable as he moves up through the coaching ranks. A head coach or even an OC at a high profile school has to vet their remarks a little more than a position coach does.

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by rustytanton on Mar 11, 2008 11:30 AM EDT up reply actions