A RESOLUTION to Honor Winchester Native Phil Fulmer and the University of Tennessee Volunteers on Capturing the 1998 College Football National Championship
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Filed for intro on 01/16/99 SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 23 By Cooper A RESOLUTION to honor Winchester native Phil Fulmer and the University of Tennessee Volunteers on capturing the 1998 College Football National Championship. WHEREAS, this legislature is proud to honor those estimable persons who as a result of their magnificent achievements are a great source of pride for all Tennesseans; and WHEREAS, Coach Phil Fulmer of the University of Tennessee Volunteers is one such person, whose stellar head coaching career took on a distinctive brilliance this year when he guided Tennessee to an NCAA College Football Championship; and WHEREAS, Coach Fulmer has made his mark on college football during his brief tenure at the helm of the Vols; he is the winningest active coach in college football with a 67-11 record and reached the 50-victory milestone sooner than any other coach in SEC history; and WHEREAS, he has also guided the Vols to two consecutive Southeastern Conference Championships and his teams have finished in college football's Top 10 for four consecutive years; and WHEREAS, as an offensive guard, Phil Fulmer helped Tennessee to a 30-5 record from 1969-71. The Vols captured the SEC Championship with a 9-2 record in 1969, went 11-1 and won the Sugar Bowl in 1970, and finished as the Liberty Bowl champions with a 10-2 record in 1971, a year in which he served as team captain. Coach Fulmer began his remarkable SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 23 000353 -1- coaching career as a graduate assistant in 1972 and returned to his beloved UT after stops at Wichita State and Vanderbilt; and WHEREAS, the many honors bestowed on Coach Fulmer in his sterling career include his selection this year as National Coach of the Year, the SEC Coach of the Year, and the Tennessean of the Year by the Tennessee Hall of Fame; he was also elected by his fellow coaches as the NCAA Region III Coach of the Year in 1993. Coach Fulmer has also been named twice to the coaching staff for the East-West Shrine game in San Francisco, serving as the East head coach in 1997, and in 1995 members of the American Football Coach’s Association elected him to serve on the organization's board of trustees, a position he still holds; and WHEREAS, Phil Fulmer's most remarkable achievement to date is his ascension to the pinnacle of college football; despite losing players to the NFL, most notably No. 1 pick Peyton Manning, Coach Fulmer and his band of gridiron warriors have breathed the rarified air of intercollegiate athletics not experienced on Rocky Top since 1951 and the days of legendary Coach Robert E. Neyland; and WHEREAS, ranked 10th in the polls at the beginning of the season, the Vols established themselves early on as a team of destiny with an exciting come-from-behind 34-33 victory against the Syracuse Orangemen; behind the running of Jamal Lewis and Tee Martin the Vols were victorious as Winchester native Jeff Hall kicked a last-second 27-yard field goal to win the game; and WHEREAS, Hall was one of many heroes for the Vols in the second game against Florida as they won a hard-fought battle with the Gators 20-17; a Shawn Bryson 57-yard touchdown dash, a Tee Martin-to-Peerless Price touchdown pass, and a swarming defense, led by linebacker Al Wilson, sealed the Vols' overtime win over the Gators; and WHEREAS, on September 26, the Houston Cougars came calling on the Vols at Neyland Stadium, only to fall prey at the hands of a tenacious Tennessee defense; Tee Martin - 2 - 00035347 turned in a career performance, completing 14 of 19 passes for 234 yards, and Jamal Lewis ran 59 yards for a score as the Vols rolled, 42-7; and WHEREAS, Auburn University was next on the Vols “hit list” as Shaun Ellis opened the scoring for the 5th-ranked Volunteers when he picked off an Auburn pass and returned the ball 90 yards for a score; and WHEREAS, Defensive Coordinator John Chavis and his Tennessee defense played a key role in the win as it kept the Tigers out of the end zone on one drive that started on the Tennessee six-inch line; the 17-9 win was not without cost for the Vols, however, as Jamal Lewis was lost for the season with an injury; and WHEREAS, in a showdown "between the hedges" at Georgia, Travis Stephens rushed for 107 yards to lead the Vols; Tennessee's defense shut down the 7th-ranked Bulldogs and Tee Martin passed for two scoring strikes as the Vols cruised to their eighth straight win over Georgia, firmly establishing themselves as the team to beat for the SEC East title; and WHEREAS, Tennessee struggled two weeks later against a tough Alabama team until the fleet-footed Peerless Price shook off would-be tacklers on a kickoff return and raced 100 yards to the end zone for a score; and WHEREAS, the win was Tennessee's fourth consecutive against Alabama as the Vol defense "rolled" the Tide, holding their fifth consecutive opponent to under 20 points; Travis Henry, one-half of the lethal "TNT" combination stepped up for the Vols on the ground as he blasted his way for 113 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries; and WHEREAS, in the Vols’ 49-14 pounding of the South Carolina Gamecocks on October 31, Tee Martin played a nearly flawless game, completing an NCAA record of 23 consecutive passes for 315 yards and four touchdowns, with Price and Jermaine Copeland being the beneficiaries of Martin's efforts; and WHEREAS, Tennessee’s crushing defense, led by Al Wilson, again led the way in Tennessee's November 7th clash with the University of Alabama-Birmingham as the Blazers - 3 - 00035347 were held to 71 passing yards; the 37-31 win vaulted UT to No. 1 in the rankings, and set the stage for a crucial SEC clash with undefeated and No. 9-ranked Arkansas; and WHEREAS, Tennessee's thrilling 28-24 comeback win against the Razorbacks was one big orange fans will not soon forget, as Arkansas led 24-22 and had all but secured a victory when the Vols' Billy Ratliff recovered a fumble; minutes later Travis Henry thundered into the end zone on a one-yard run for the lead in one of Tennessee's biggest victories in school history; and WHEREAS, the Vols thumped Kentucky one week later in a 59-21 victory over Tim Couch and the ‘Cats; With the win, Tennessee clinched its second consecutive SEC East title and lifted its record to 10-0 for the first time since the 1956 season; and WHEREAS, on November 28, Tennessee fans invaded Nashville and to see Travis Henry, Tee Martin, Peerless Price and the Vols’ sterling defense played key roles in a 41-0 rout of the Commodores; and WHEREAS, in the SEC Championship game against Mississippi State, Coach Fulmer and the Vols secured a berth in the Fiesta Bowl and a shot at the national championship by rallying for a 24-14 victory over the Bulldogs; responding like true champions, the Vols defense yielded a meager 65 yards rushing and 84 yards in the air as Tee Martin two touchdowns to secure the win in Atlanta’s Georgia Dome; and WHEREAS, Big Orange fans flooded Tempe and millions more around the world gathered to watch the Vols take on powerhouse Florida State; the Vols were not to be denied as Tee Martin connected with Fiesta Bowl MVP Peerless Price for several long gains, including a 79-yard touchdown pass, and the UT defense held its own against the mighty Seminoles, en route to a 23-16 win; and WHEREAS, Tennessee fans from far and wide will be basking in the euphoria of this triumph for many years to come; and - 4 - 00035347 WHEREAS, for their outstanding efforts, this body takes great pride in joining all Tennesseans in honoring Coach Fulmer, his staff and the entire Tennessee football; now therefore BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING, That we hereby congratulate Coach Phillip Fulmer and the University of Tennessee football team on winning the 1998 College Football National Championship, and extend to everyone associated with the team our best wishes for every future success. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That appropriate copies of this resolution be prepared for presentation with this final clause omitted from such copies. - 5 - 00035347.