Spurrier To Tennessee? Um, No

There was just no way.

Steve Spurrier to Tennessee?

Nope. Not possible, folks.

When it was announced on Monday that longtime Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer would step down after this season, speculation about who might replace him began almost immediately. And it didn't take long for much of that speculation to land squarely on the the famous visor of the Ole Ball Coach—South Carolina's Steve Spurrier.

Certainly, Spurrier has the pedigree. The man built Florida into the SEC's pre-eminent powerhouse. He won a national championship there, too. Spurrier can recruit, and he certainly can win (though his results at South Carolina have been slightly less than impressive). So maybe the Spurrier-to-Knoxville talk made sense to some people.

But certainly not anyone that has followed Spurrier over the years.

This is a man, after all, who has specialized mostly in torturing Tennessee. A Florida alum, Spurrier has taken great pleasure in dominating the Volts during his stints at Florida and South Carolina. So often did his Gators finish ahead of the Vols back in his Florida days that Spurrier, referencing the Vols' many trips to the SEC-runner-up Citrus Bowl, once joked: "You can't spell Citrus without UT."

No, there's simply too much Gator left in Spurrier. There's no way this guy could coach at Tennessee. And he confirmed that on Tuesday, telling reporters that the South Carolina job would be his last.

"I'm at my last gig right here," Spurrier told The State.

Photo: Steve Spurrier says he has no interest in the Tennessee job. (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)