Former Tennessee coach Tony Vitello addresses his relationship with Vols athletic director Danny White
Tony Vitello stepped down as Tennessee’s head baseball coach last month to become the new manager of the San Francisco Giants.
When Tony Vitello decided to step down as the head coach of the Tennessee Vols to become the new manager of the San Francisco Giants, a narrative formed that he didn’t have a good relationship with UT athletic director Danny White.
“I think over the last couple years, if you’re inside and sort of know what’s going on, this probably wasn’t just a complete surprise to a lot of people,” said On3’s Chris Low during an interview with WNML’s Josh and Swain. “Certainly, [people] close to the program — that there had not been what I would call the best relationships between Tony and Danny White, the Tennessee AD. And I think when you combine all of it — I don’t think it was just one thing — but when you combine all of it, what happened yesterday, happened.
“I think as people sort of think back through (the Vitello era), it now, and what it was like, there’s a lot of sadness,” continued Low. “I know, Danny White said it was a proud day. I disagree. It was a sad day, because I don’t think this had to happen. I think there was a way for this not to happen, and it happened.”
Tony Vitello addresses his relationship with Vols athletic director Danny White
Vitello joined 104.5 The Zone’s 3HL on Wednesday, and he was asked about his rumored relationship with White.
“I mean, that part’s crazy,” said Vitello. “Because Danny is the athletic director, and I’m the baseball coach. We’re not drinking [buddies] — we’re not meeting on Broadway and going to see different shows.
“The communication that I had going on was heavily trying to figure out where exactly the San Francisco Giants were coming from. And there’s kind of a pecking order — a system that’s set up on campus. And our strength coach is pretty close with one of the administrators, and he was somebody that was was good to talk about with some things, in particular, the future of the program once things pushed forward.”
That answer probably won’t do much to silence the rumors about the relationship between Vitello and White.
But what it shows is that while Vitello and White may not see eye to eye on everything, they’re both true pros who have gone above and beyond for the greater good of Tennessee.
This article was originally published on A to Z Sports Tennessee Vols as Former Tennessee coach Tony Vitello addresses his relationship with Vols athletic director Danny White.
Tennessee Volunteers News
‘I was trying to watch Alabama and Tennessee’ – Tony Vitello gives behind the scenes look at his last Saturday as UT’s baseball coach
Before the Third Saturday in October, the idea of Tony Vitello leaving the Tennessee Vols for the San Francisco Giants seemed far fetched. Things got real, however, a few hours before Tennessee played Alabama when The Athletic reported that San Francisco was closing in on a deal with Vitello. It was several days before Vitello […]
