Fulmer shows his class; Willingham? Not exactly

One squirms at the idea of enduring a “three-week funeral” that didn’t let him slip away more quietly. The other seems intent on torching whatever support he had left before exiting. At least that’s the take of Miami Herald writer Jeff Shain, who writes:

You can’t get much more diverse than the way Tennessee’s Phillip Fulmer and Washington’s Tyrone Willingham have approached their final days of meaningful employment. It also shows two of the pitfalls that come from long lame-duck terms.

“I don’t think I would encourage any athletic director to do it that way,” Fulmer told reporters this week. “That’s made it tough on everybody.”

Fulmer was told Nov. 3 that he wasn’t going to be invited back when the season concluded. At the time, Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton tried to put a happier spin on it by saying it gave fans a chance to send him out with honor.

It didn’t get off to the best of starts, as Tennessee dropped a 13-7 dud to Wyoming. But it managed to turn things around by beating Vanderbilt last week.

Today has been designated “Phillip Fulmer Appreciation Day” on Rocky Top, celebrating his 17-year career, 1998 national title and two Southeastern Conference titles. Fulmer never has lost to Kentucky, and one more victory would allow the Vols to maybe carry him off the field.

Reflection, though, isn’t something Fulmer is comfortable with. “I told some good friends it’s been like a three-week funeral in some ways,” he said.

Say what you want about Tennessee’s recent demise under Fulmer, he always has carried himself publicly with class. That wouldn’t be the first description Willingham brings to mind these days.

After each of Washington’s past two losses, Willingham has taken shots at how low the program was when he took over Keith Gilbertson’s 1-10 mess four years ago.

“Obviously, if you’re the head coach at this time, you take responsibility for what’s going on,” Willingham said after last week’s overtime loss to Washington State in an Apple Cup of epic wrecks.

“But it should also be noted, the day I arrived, what the state of the program was.”

Not that 0-11 is any better. Asked during a Monday media briefing why he continues to bring up the Gilbertson regime, Willingham replied: “Is it not a fact?” He then ended the session.

Huskies fans might wish his tenure concluded as abruptly.

Huskies, Hill haven’t met

Washington’s season is so horrid, the Huskies are now apparently losing even when they don’t play.

By late Friday, three more potential contenders in the secretive search to replace Tyrone Willingham had taken other jobs, indicated no one had called or expressed a desire to stay put.

Former Oakland Raiders coach Lane Kiffin had professed his interest in the UW job hours after Willingham was fired last month, effective at season’s end. On Friday, Kiffin agreed tentatively to be the new coach at Tennessee.

Fresno State coach Pat Hill is rumored to be near the top of the Huskies’ wish list. If so, they are taking a long time to let him know.

When asked, after his Bulldogs got trounced 61-10 at No. 9 Boise State on Friday night, whether Washington had contacted him, Hill said flatly: “No.”

Is Hill interested in being the next Huskies’ coach?

“I just want to talk about this game,” Hill said outside his locker room, obviously perturbed by the 48 points Boise State put up in the second half.

Earlier this week, Boise State coach Chris Petersen, another successful coach rumored to be coveted by Washington, chuckled through the telephone when he was asked if talk he will soon sign a lucrative extension to remain with the Broncos is true.

“I’d like to stay here for as long as I can. That’s about all I have to say about that,” said Petersen, who improved to 35-3 in three seasons since being promoted when former coach Dan Hawkins left to lead Colorado.

Washington (0-11) is the only winless major college team in the nation.

Griz look for first-round win

Montana has lost just eight games over the past four seasons, but three have come at home in the first round of the FCS playoffs, including a 23-22 loss to Wofford last season.

The fifth-ranked Griz (11-1) will try to shake their recent streak of bad luck in the playoffs today when they take on Texas State (8-4), ranked 23rd in the Sports Network poll. Kickoff is at 12:05 p.m. at Washington Grizzly Stadium in Missoula.

Montana’s 2006 playoff loss was also a heartbreaker, a 19-17 decision at the hands of Massachusetts. The Griz fell to Cal Poly 35-21 in the first round of the 2005 playoffs. The next weekend, Texas State beat Cal Poly 14-7 before falling to Northern Iowa in the semifinals.

“This is another big step for our program,” second-year Texas State coach Brad Wright said.

“We know Montana is a very good team, but we are going to prepare to win the game.”

Montana and Texas State have never met on the football field, but teams from the Southland Conference have an 0-7 record against Montana since 1995.