The CheckerBoard

I guess that solves that Cheek riddle.

Jimmy Cheek's statement...

As we face a transition in our football program, I want to make it clear that we support a mission of comprehensive excellence in our athletics department. Under the leadership of Vice Chancellor and Athletics Director Dave Hart, we will do the things required to return our team to national prominence. As we begin our search for a new coach, I have assured Dave that he will have the support and resources he needs to be successful.

For the next three years, the money the athletics department has contributed to the campus will be reinvested in the athletics department. Relieving athletics of this commitment will allow the department to add an average of $6 million per year to its bottom line for a total of $18 million over three years.

The money was committed under different circumstances and we now need to allow athletics to use these dollars to attain financial stability and invest in the future.

Most of this money has been used for scholarships and fellowships. We will continue to honor these commitments, primarily through private gifts. Let me emphasize, we will not reduce our commitment to students.

I know that winning championships and competing at the highest level lifts the national profile of the University of Tennessee. As chancellor, I am committed to winning both on the field and in the classroom.

WOW! That was a complete 180 from yesterday...

That definitely solves some problems. Whomever got through to Cheek is to be commended.

Wes called him out on the radio for the statements made yesterday, just as this news broke...

..

See: Hart, Dave.

The key here is the commitment from the university. That's what the donors had to see to get their checkbooks out - and they will have to. Six million a year for three years isn't enough to swing the whole deal, but it's enough to get it rolling.