How Bad Is It: Tennessee Edition

Things on Rocky Top went from not very good to slightly beyond bad on Saturday night. What started off as a promising season with some very attainable expectations has turned into another bad dream for the Big Orange faithful. Things aren't in full fledged melt down mode yet, but #1 Alabama comes into Neyland Stadium this Saturday night and if the expected happens (UT opens up as 19 point underdog) the Volunteer fan base will go all out Chernobyl.
Some are already there. All you have to do is log on to any one of the numerous message boards and you can see that Vol Nation is hanging on by a thread. And if (when) that thread breaks Saturday night it will be the start of some interesting (and some completely ridiculous) discussions for the rest of the season.

There are basically two arguments being made right now. One is Derek Dooley has to go.
He's 0 and way to many against ranked opponents. He's coming off a 5 win season. He lost to Kentucky. His only SEC wins are against bottom tier programs. Some just feel that Dooley can't win at Tennessee. And that some is turning into a lot in hurry.

The other group says give Dooley some more time.
He walked into a disaster. He inherited a roster with below average SEC talent. He has had to play a ton of inexperienced young players. He's recruiting well.

Both groups make some valid points. But it's all in how you look at it. It's obvious Tennessee is not what it once was.
The question Vol fans have to ask is what is realistic expectations?

Not that long ago Tennessee's expectations were very defined. Beat your rivals (Bama, UF, UGa) win the East, play in Atlanta. Recruit. Repeat.
Beating teams like South Carolina, Miss. St and Kentucky were givens on the Vols worst days. But to set expectations now, fans have to acknowledge the difference between then and now.
Nick Saban has built a program at Alabama that John L Smith would have a hard time bringing down.
Les Miles is raking in talent at LSU at a rate not seen since Saban was there.
Muschamp is recruiting elite talent and showing he can coach it to.
The Ole Ball Coach has the Gamecocks rolling.
Georgia is solid as usual.
Throw in the success of Miss St. And Texas AM and this ain't your dads SEC. The days of UT/UF deciding who plays Alabama in Atlanta is over. If Tennessee's expectations are still the same, then some big decisions have to be made at seasons end.
Do you oust Dooley and try and land a "big fish"? Will the results be any different? Some fans think the solution is as simple as loading up a Brinks truck full of cash and dumping it in a top tier coaches front yard. And maybe it is. Most of the time in the coaching world you get what you pay for. You can't have a $5 coach and expect 5 million dollar results. Elite coaches, much like elite talent, require a certain dollar figure for there services. Tennessee should be able to entice an elite coach. Their a storied program with one of the biggest stadiums in America and facilities that are second to none. They make up for their lack of instate talent with the largest recruiting budget in the nation enabling them to go far and wide to land prospects. They play in the best conference in the country and when winning, have a fan base that will treat you like a god.
But they would have to shell out some cash. Lots of it.
Or do you stay the course with Dooley and "the relentless pursuit for
continuos improvement"? Are you okay with an 8 win ceiling? Can you accept not being a contender on any meaningful level in the college football world. Can you live with being the sixth, seventh, even eighth best team in your conference?
I'm not sure which direction the powers to be will go come January. Change could be in the air but it might not be the change the fans want.

UT fans may have to find a way to deal with mediocrity.