Vols' Dooley not feeling the Heat yet ...but it is Early

"If you try to temper fans' expectations, you're walking up a hill you can't climb," Dooley said during the tour stop at the Cleveland Country Club. "Here's what's fun , the expectations now versus the fall. Now it's, 'Hey, coach, we're understanding. We've got a long way to go.'
"But the first time you kick that ball off, the feelings change a little bit because of the competitive environment, and that's OK. You wouldn't want it any other way. Surprisingly, expectations aren't that different anywhere you go. It's always a little higher than what you could probably pull off , no matter where you are."
A lack of depth and plenty of inexperience has lowered the bar at UT this year, and there seems to be a consensus that it could take some time for Dooley to get the program back to higher standards.
The questions have mostly been about his coaching philosophies, what he learned from his legendary father and daily requests for updates on the status of departed players Bryce Brown and Aaron Douglas. "I think it's an important part of the job," Dooley said. "A lot of coaches treat that as sort of a necessary evil, but I think we have a responsibility. It's like a company and your customer base. They're our customers, and we have a responsibility to serve them the right way, and they need to know who their coach is and they need to feel good about their coach.
"Same thing with the team, they need to understand they have a responsibility to represent the fans. If you don't have the fans, you don't have a program. This is what makes Tennessee special."