They are the Big 3 at the University of Tennessee.
Fulmer, Summitt, and Pearl. No other school in the country can boast of three higher profile coaches. Depending upon your criteria, Fulmer is the winningest coach in college football. Summitt is the winningest college basketball coach of all-time. And Pearl has won more games in three years than any other Vol coach in men’s basketball history.
But they are not the Big 3 just because of the number of W’s they’ve racked up.
They are now the Big 3 tattletales in today’s world of sports. With the news last week that Summitt, as had long been speculated, did in fact accuse Geno Auriemma and the University of Connecticut Lady Huskies of cheating, it gave UT the perfect trifecta. All of the Big 3 have now turned in their arch rivals for recruiting violations.
Fulmer did it to Alabama. Pearl did it to Illinois while an assistant at Iowa. And now Summitt has followed suit.
Summitt knows her X’s and O’s but she apparently doesn’t know much about turning in cheaters. Where was the tape recorder? Fulmer and Pearl both used tape recorders to secretly record conversations with their unsuspecting prey. Summitt relied on such reliable information as newspaper reports, chat room transcripts, and rumors. She obviously didn’t go to the same detective school as did her two male counterparts on The Hill. She may someday be governor of this state but she could never make it as a private eye.
Summitt also hasn’t figured out that crying about trivial infractions that can’t be substantiated isn’t good enough. Fulmer and Pearl went for the juggler and the NCAA had a field day with the evidence provided by them. After seeing what Fulmer and Pearl had delivered, can you imagine the NCAA’s excitement when they received Summit’s packet of allegations. “This is going to be good,” they must have thought. Instead, they were left asking, “Where’s the beef?”
Playing the role of enforcer can be risky. You’d better have the goods or else.
Fulmer couldn’t beat Bama so he single handedly wrecked the football program and left lives in shambles. The Crimson Tide faithful have suffered through a decade of misery thanks to the evidence collected by Inspector Fulmer. Likewise, Pearl brought the Illini program to its knees after the NCAA discovered multiple major violations while following up on the evidence submitted by Detective Pearl. Lt. Summitt on the other hand produced no evidence and the Lady Huskies’ program remains as strong as ever. In fact, Geno & Company will likely be the consensus number one team in the country next season.
Fulmer and Pearl went after their prey like hungry tigers. Their victims felt the power of their gnashing teeth. Summitt on the other hand charged like a gnat and was little more than a nuisance to Auriemma. Oh sure, he had to answer a few questions and there was one very minor infraction that was verified but he still stands tall. His program has withstood the scrutiny of the NCAA. His team is loaded with talent and his Lady Huskies are expected to dominate over the next couple of years. And he has turned the whole thing into a public relations bonanza while creating a nightmare for Lady Summitt.
The downside to reporting cheaters is that you are putting your own reputation on the line. If it turns out you are right and major penalties result, you can survive in the court of public opinion. Most people, even if they don’t like tattletales, will say, “They got what they deserved.” But if you fire and miss, you look small and hear such words a “sour grapes,” whiner, and “crybaby” while that guy in New England that you hate so much comes out smelling like a rose. In this case, it’s UCONN that’s having fun with it and smearing Summitt’s reputation all the while. And all Summitt can say is “No Comment.”
No one likes a tattletale even if they are the most successful basketball coach in the history of the game. But when you tattletale and can’t back it up with proof, it is worse. That’s what happens when you try to live up to someone else. And all she wanted was to be part of the Big 3.