Tennessee head coach Derek Dooley might want to avoid the iconic Rock on the Volunteers’ campus this week because, after a 41-31 loss to Mississippi State on Saturday that dropped his team to 3-3 overall and 0-3 in the SEC, it was painted with anti-Dooley messages by students.
The words “Fire Fooley” with a pair of orange pants crossed out is the most prominent, with other messages like “No Leadership,” “0-12 -> ranked opps.,” “Never Won Bowl game,” “Not SEC Worthy,” “1st Loss to KY in 26 yrs” and “14-17 Overall” also plastered on the Rock that is routinely painted by students for fun.
If you recall, Tennessee students also took their message to the Rock after Lane Kiffin bolted for USC in 2010. Thankfully, the messages for Dooley are more tame – at least for now.
Unfortunately for Dooley, the Rock is located right next to the Neyland-Thompson Sports Center, so he’d better hope the Tennessee athletic department remedies the situation or it could make a long week for Dooley even longer, as No. 1 Alabama is heading to Knoxville on Saturday.
