Roy Exum: The Vols Ain't Dead Thursday, January 21, 2021 - by Roy Exum Roy Exum Matt Hayes, a writer for the SaturdayDownSouth.com website, was blistering in his view of what has been allowed to happen to the once-mighty University of Tennessee football program just hours after coach Jeremy Pruitt went down in flames on Monday. “I’ve got some harsh words for those in power at Tennessee, something they don’t want to hear but better embrace. It’s not the 1990s anymore. Tennessee will never be elite again,” Matt wrote. “After yet another coach failed to make it work on Rocky Top,” Matt reasoned, “and Jeremy Pruitt was fired after 3 seasons and amid an NCAA investigation, it can no longer be denied: The days of Tennessee consistently winning big and competing at the highest level of college football are long gone.”