HOOVER, Ala. — In each of his first 12 seasons as Tennessee’s head coach, Phillip Fulmer led the Volunteers to a bowl game, including the 1998 Fiesta Bowl in which the Volunteers beat Florida State to win the national championship.

But after a rough 2005 that saw a spate of off-the-field incidents and the Vols’ first losing since season 1988, Fulmer finds himself in a place he’s never been — on the hot seat.

Fulmer’s players know the talk is out there about him needing to turn things around fast, but defensive tackle Justin Harrell tries to ignore that talk.

“We don’t worry about that,” Harrell said. “There’s always going to be rumors about coaches getting fired and all those things. All we can do it just try to win game(s). ... We’re just going about our business.”

Fulmer knows all of his accomplishments can vanish quickly in the eyes of fans — and administrators — with a few more years like last season’s 5-6 finish.

“I’ve always looked at myself by nature as an optimist, but I’m also, I think, certainly a realist,” Fulmer said. “I do realize that we have a number of challenges with this team that we need to do. As I said, we have worked really hard to overcome those problems that we have.”

One of the problems with last year’s team, Fulmer said, were players taking success for granted and focusing on themselves as individuals rather than team goals.

“We just kind of assumed things were going to work out great,” Fulmer said.

But after an early season win over LSU helped vault the Vols to a 3-1 start, everything went down hill on the field.

Tennessee lost four games in a row for the first time since 1988, and eventually fell to Vanderbilt at home to end its long winning streak over the Commodores and the streak of bowl games.

“I think it was a real big problem (with) people taking things for granted, not really taking grasp of what they had in their hands,” said offensive tackle Arron Sears. “Now, I think a lot of people are realizing ... the University of Tennessee really doesn’t need you, you’re there for the university, to represent the university. A lot of guys are being refreshed of that.”

The experience has been a humbling one for the Volunteers.

“At this time last year, we were going in with great expectations,” Sears said. “This year, we’re going in as underdogs.”

Not all of Tennessee’s problems were on the field.

At one point last off-season, eight players were either arrested or cited in a six-month span for a variety of offenses.

“Leading up to last year, we had, I think, done very well with those types of things,” Fulmer said. “Last year was a complete meltdown from a standpoint of guys feeling like it was a privilege to be a part of the program instead of a right.”

Fulmer emphasized that his player’s off-the-field issues weren’t indicative of a major problem on the team.

“One or two or three guys can bring, in any school, terrible exposure to a group of a hundred other guys that are doing the right things,” he said. “Whether it be academically or socially or whatever. It’s unfortunate, but it’s the way of the world now, that the negative ends up getting so much more coverage and credence than all the positive things.”

Even though Fulmer is trying to clean up the off-the-field image of his team, the Vols have still been fighting the perception.

Reserve quarterback Jim Bob Cooter was suspended indefinitely after being arrested on a drunken driving charge in early June. Linebacker Marvin Mitchell, the projected starter at middle linebacker, was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct after an incident at a convenience store near Tennessee’s campus May 1.

To help revive a moribund offense, Fulmer brought back his former longtime assistant David Cutcliffe as offensive coordinator to replace Randy Sanders.

“We’ve got to get our toughness back offensively,” Fulmer said. “Got to throw it and catch it.”

Cutcliffe returns to Tennessee, where he served as an assistant under Fulmer until taking over as head coach at Ole Miss in 1999.

Although the Volunteers won just five games, four of their losses came by a combined 17 points, so Tennessee was in every game in the fourth quarter.

“We’ve had our share of good fortune, I know that,” Fulmer said. “It darn sure balanced itself out last year. We want to get back on track.”

Fulmer understands that with heightened results, come heightened expectations.

“When I took over as the head football coach, I felt like there was another level we could get to,” Fulmer said. “We worked like heck to get to that level, and I think we have raised expectations at Tennessee.

“I think we certainly have a handle on how to manage the expectations at Tennessee.”

Although it won’t be easy for Tennessee to return to its former glory, Fulmer said he also didn’t think a season like last would become the norm in Knoxville.

“I think last year was an aberration, but we still have a lot of work to do to get back to where we want to be,” Fulmer said. “I don’t think you’re just going to flip a switch and say, ‘Oh, we’re going to be back there.’ The goal is always to be in the championship mix.

“It’s not like we’re all of a sudden void of talent.”