As Tennessee Basketball gears up for its Sweet 16 game against 2-seed Iowa State on Friday night in Chicago, Vols head coach Rick Barnes spent some time speaking with the media on Thursday afternoon. Barnes touched on a number of topics relating to the game, such as Ja’Kobi Gillespie’s importance to the team and what challenges the Cyclones will present.
Early in the press conference, though, Barnes was asked a bigger picture question about Tennessee’s athletic department as a whole: “Obviously, it costs a lot of money now to put a good team together like the one you have. Do you ever feel like you’re fighting with football for resources? As the price goes up, do you think that’s going to be an issue in departments like yours that want to win at everything?”
Barnes spent more than two minutes answering the question, giving credit to the Vols’ football program and the administration for their efforts.
Tennessee HC Rick Barnes details the importance of UT Football to the Vols’ basketball program ⬇️
“Of all the places I’ve been, Tennessee is the most electric place I’ve ever been.”pic.twitter.com/td4j4XFbuC
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“Well, no, I think football is the biggest asset that we have. I’ve been, think about it, Texas, Tennessee, Clemson, assistant coach at Alabama, assistant coach at Ohio State. There is no doubt football is the engine that drives the train for all of us.
By what they do, it allows all of us to be able to do what we do. I’ve always embraced that. What I’ve learned in this business — my job is important to me. I promise you Josh Heupel’s job is important to them. Karen Weekly, our softball coach. Every sport matters.
We’ve got a situation now certainly at Tennessee with Danny White and his staff and Randy Boyd, Donde Plowman, they want to give us all a chance to compete at the highest level. It goes back again — talking about jobs, if the administration is not lined up with the athletic department, it’s going to fail. It’s going to fail somewhere along the line.
I watched it fail at a couple different places because of that. You have to have an athletic director that knows all that.
I don’t know how anybody could ever be jealous of football because it means so much to us in terms of our fall visits. Of all the places I’ve been, Tennessee is the most electric place I’ve ever been, where there’s a fan base, you just feel it the whole week during the fall. Everybody looks forward to it.
I found out early that football, it is what it is. Like Josh, he’s to me one of the best football coaches in the country. We spend time together starting here in a couple weeks or so with the orange caravan, those type things. And we all have tough jobs. He’s got a really tough one. He’s got a really tough one. And the football coaches at this level, I think with him going to a playoff, it makes those jobs even tougher.
But it goes back to we’ve got an athletic director that really understands what we’re in, what we’re doing, and I know I don’t want to let him down. And I know all the other coaches don’t either, because he’s got the hardest job, by the way. Danny White has got the hardest job in the athletic department.
But he’s getting it done at a high level.”
Tennessee head football coach Josh Heupel began his Thursday morning press conference by wishing Barnes and his team the best of luck in their Sweet 16 game on Friday night.
“Start by wishing Coach Barnes, the basketball team, good luck as they get ready for the Sweet 16 ball game tomorrow night,” Heupel said. “Looking forward to watching them.”
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more Tennessee Basketball coverage with the Vols’ Sweet 16 game against Iowa State right around the corner.
