After Tennessee’s fall from grace in the ‘negotiated’ beatdown from Arkansas, Coach Chavis’s abilities, role and status are a hotly debated subject on Tennessee Message Boards today. Is The Chief going to be Phillip Fulmer’s fall guy this week?
So with that said, we dusted off the John Chavis interview, This is one of first blogs. It is a timeless classic.
As part of our 2006 preview, I met up with the man known as the “The Chief”, a prominent Tennessee Volunteers Defensive Coach. In response to the total Vol news overload*, I curled up Wednesday night in the nice, safe dog basket of the back room of impossibly exclusive Knoxville Tennessee watering hole The Emerald Club to review the Practice Notes and Nuggets from Volquest. The Chief and I sipped Long Island Ice Teas out of wine flutes designed to look like stripper shoes as we kicked around the weekly Phil Steele scorecard. The purpose of the interview is to discuss his strategy for the upcoming game against the California Golden Bears.
JOE: Thanks for meeting me here Chief. You don’t mind if I call you Chief?
The Chief: No problem Joe. Sometimes I gotta get away from Trooper Taylor and his crazy chest bumping shit
JOE: I wasn’t even aware of Trooper’s shit was crazy. Does it make you batshit crazy?
The Chief: That’s really shameful considering that you consider yourself some sort of half-man, half-Vol-culture god.
JOE: You always say that people are half-man and half-something when you’re drunk.
The Chief: Touché, Douche
JOE: Everyone says that Linebacker Ryan Karl is doing a Keith Richards impression this season. I prefer to think he’s doing a Jack “Hacksaw” Reynolds impression.
The Chief: I don’t drink that much.
[I bust out laughing.]
The Chief: No, really.
[The Chief busts out laughing.]
JOE: You’re so fucking drunk, Chief.
JOE: I couldn’t help but notice that your defense isn’t in the top 3.
The Chief: I noticed that, too.
JOE: But you’re motherfucking drunken Chief, Mustang!
The Chief: Tell me about it.
JOE: Speaking of Mustang, are you planning on using your famous “Mustang” package against Cal? Chief Tikki Tavi.
The Chief: Don’t worry, it’s coming.
JOE: I also couldn’t help but notice that you are having flirting with that cocktail waitress right in front of me.
The Chief: See, when you say things like that, people are going to think that I’m drunk and hitting on a cocktail waitress right in front of you when that’s clearly not the case.
JOE: Excuse me, coat check girl.
The Chief: Accuracy is important. Have you learned nothing from Trev Alberts?
JOE: Back to the Mustang package.
The Chief: On the field we call it “MUS-TAAANG.”
JOE: Can I just say something? Clowns are fucking funny.
The Chief: They really fucking are.
JOE: Fifth place or whatever. Last season sucked bad. Vanderbilt? What the fuck is up with that?
The Chief: We had one of the lowest YPG average.
JOE: Do you think Mexicans understand YPG average? Let’s ask the coat check girl, I think she said she was from Missouri.
The Chief: Don’t be crazy, she will bring Mark-fucking May who will bring Lou Holtz along. I hate that guy. He spits when he talks. Like a damn Labrador Retriever that just drank a bowl full of water. Geez he is nasty old bastard.
JOE: Dude, I was trying to throw some props your way.
The Chief: Jesus Christ, I’m fucking drunk.
JOE: At least I didn’t slip in a Horse-related bestiality joke here.
The Chief: Thanks for that. You’re quality people, man. I gotta go get my coat.
[He hugs me and falls asleep in my lap.]
———
[*It was either hang with The Chief or play keno and smoke crack with fellow Blogger The Grill Viper.]
(Again for you fellow Vol Homers, This is FICTION)
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I just wanted everyone that is bashing Coach Chavis to chill out and think back to last year when we had a national championship caliber defense that kept us in most of the games last year when we had no offense at all. He didn’t forget how to coach defense over the summer. We just dont have the horses up front at tackle to clog up the middle. We are using undersized tackles and they are doing the best they can. Turk is very quick off the ball but I think that is opening up a hole right in his gap. Mcglothlin hasn’t made a play all year. I do agree its time to work in some of the younger, larger d-tackles like Bolden and Dan Williams. At least they have the size to clog up the middle. But lay off Coach Chavis who is one of the most loyal, dedicated coaches in America who gives his all for UT.
Sure thing, we will continue to give him a free pass and not hold him accountable for anything that happens on the field. After all he has nothing to do with that right?
and another thing, The book was written on Chavis his first year as coordinator. We won the MNC by barely eeking out a win against UF, and the rest of the SEC with very bad coaching at the time.
There are a lot of good young coaches in the conference now, and I hate to admit it, but we are now the ones with suspect coaching. Funny how things go in cycles. It is definitely a long hard fall from the top.
I agree, Why do people act like Chavis is one of the greatest dc of all time? Don’t get it. I would love to see the dc at Rutgers with what Chavis has had to work with! John Thompson, Kines,Muschamp, even Tommy West was a GOOD dc, not a good hc but was a good Dc.
Chavis does deserve a break, a break from DC at TN and maybe coach LBs at CN or East Carolina. Chavis is the slowest thinking and slowest reacting DC at a top program in the nation. He doesn’t have the nads to demand a TO for his troops to regroup after LSU had driven the lenght of the field on them to set themselves up to score, and we had two TOs that would have given them a blow,and let them all hear the defensive formation so they would not have been in two seperate defensive formations as Doug Matthews said they were because thet could not hear the signals down in that nosiest endzone of the whole field. An astue DC would have perceived that his guys were in trouble and taken measures to correct it. Chavis has never done this. It cost us the GA game in 2001 and the LSU game this year and several others over the years. We have the 5th largest Athletic buget in the country, why not go after Chizac(sp) or an NFL position coach with DC experience who is young and dynamic and can inspire players and recruits (recruiting-something JC has never done) alike. Anpicipate the changes needed before they become the death knell they have become at TN at defense. Btw every program in the country deals with injuries.
Conyers,you have credible insight. bummer.
I think some of you message board heroes should apply for his job. you guys know a whole lot about the game. You could get those guys fixed and headed in the right direction.
ConyersVol, you’re an absolute brain. I salute you.
I agree with you lws. Just b/c he had the #6 Defense in the nation last year doesn’t mean shit. He obviously forgot how to coach over the offseason. This is the SEC, it is what have you done for me in the last 10 days. Who cares that he has young undersized DT’s and LB’s or the we graduated 3 of the best DL in the country last year. We don’t rebuild here we reload. These whiney bitch fans sound like Ole Miss fans, and we can see how that worked out for them.
Tennessee fans are the only fans who cel;ebrate when the star QB gets injured. I am thinking of becoming an Auburn Fan
you should have seen roy williams yesterday he got a pass for a first down and his celebration was he acted like he was shooting a bow and arrow and it reminded me of that spaztastic puntuh from arcuntsaw