The Tennessee Titan story should be a movie.

The blockbuster movie would be filled with intrigue, entrepreneurship, fortune, inventiveness, dictatorship, hostile take-overs, change overs, defeat, tenacity, endurance, sweat, tears and finally victory. Best of all it contains a success formula. But first, let’s start at the beginning. Most people don’t realize the Tennessee Titans didn’t really get started until half way through the 2015 season.

It’s been recorded that the Tennessee Titans team got it’s start as the Oilers in Houston, Texas in 1960. The teams owner, Bud Adams had just founded the AFL and played the Oilers in that new league, competing against the NFL. The Oilers won the first and second AFL Championships in 1960 and 1961. Due to the AFL NFL merger the Oilers joined the NFL in 1970.

Texas to Tennessee

Due to a dilapidated stadium in Houston, Bud Adams moved the Texas team to Tennessee in 1997. The team was situated in Memphis for one year before moving to their permanent home in Nashville a year later.

In 1999 the Oilers had their named changed to the Tennessee Titans after moving to Nashville. In spite (or maybe because of) the football teams new home and a new name the aging Adams didn’t have his heart in the team and it showed. Their training facility was in disrepair as was the underlying operations of the team in general. The owners lackadaisical non-involvement was showing through and resulted in poor game play.

For a decade the Titans paled in comparison to the vibrant tourist industry of Nashville. The Grand Ole Opry, Music Row and Broadway shows all glowing in the moonlight with the Titans on the sidelines. In contrast, the Predators and Tennessee Volunteers were extremely popular.

Broken Change

Amy Adams Strunk, Bud Adams daughter, was also sitting on the sidelines. She was painfully watching as her Father’s team languished in 2014. She had inherited 1/3 of her Father’s assets. The other two parties included her sister Suzie. Suzie was married to Tommy. The final 1/3 had been given to her brother Ken who had passed. This left his 1/3 portion to his family that included his son Kenneth.

One of the inherited assets included the Titans football team. Susie’s husband, Tommy had been appointed by Bud to run the team. He had made the other two heirs silent partners.

Tommy was running the team just as his father-in-law had. They both required absolute control with a dictatorship style of operation. Amy would notice improvements that could be made but was always dismissed and kept “silent”.

The 2014 season ended badly with 2-14, the worst in Titan history. Of this Amy says, “If it ain’t broke, sure, don’t fix it. But if it is broke, you better get in there and figure out what to do.” Other family members had also tried reasoning with Tommy. They were trying to help troubleshoot what to change for the team. Tommy was stuck on thinking everything was “good”.

The heirs were still locked into the silent partner arrangement with Susie and Tommy holding the controlling interest. Family talks were started requesting someone else from the other two families step in to make necessary changes. Amy and Kenneth, Amy’s brother’s son combined added up to a 2/3 vote, a majority share. This combination could take over if necessary.

After 18 months of non-action on Tommy’s part Amy and Kenneth decided it has been long enough. Something had to be done. Shortly after Tommy announced his resignation as CEO and President. Amy Adams Strunk was voted in as the controlling owner of the Tennessee Titans.

Fearless to Win

Amy says of her business experience, “I became confident that if something needed to be done, I could do it. I’m not afraid to make hard decisions.” Replacing Tommy, her brother-in-law was most likely an extremely hard decision that she didn’t want to make but did because it was in the best interest of the team and Tennesseans.

A Titans restructuring was needed and it was already mid-season 2015. Amy made another tough decision to replace the Head Coach with then assistant Coach Mike Mularkey. Underwood, the teams CEO and President, didn’t agree but Amy moved forward with the decision because she felt it was “the right thing to do”.

Post 2015 season Amy also removed the GM. She found his replacement by working with Underwood and Kenneth to draw up a candidate list. She then researched their backgrounds and made the selection. This process was out of the ordinary for the industry. Candidates are usually found by hiring a recruiting firm. Amy was more hands on in this case.

She honed in on Jon Robinson, a college scout for the New England Patriots. The two had lunch together. Afterwards, Amy knew he was the right selection. He communicated that small changes wouldn’t help. He wasn’t afraid to communicate tough things such as, “The system’s broken. That’s the reason you’re not winning. It’s broke and you need to fix it.”

What he said resonated with both Amy and Kenneth. It was consistent with what they both had recognized. The difference is that here was someone who had some answers to the problem. Amy knew Jon Robinson was their new GM.

In Jon Robinson’s first two years as the Titans GM he changed out 2/3’s of the team. The result was ending 2016 with 9-7. They won their playoff game 22-21 in Kansas City. Their success was short lived when the Patriots won the Superbowl the next week.

Tennessee Titans – Keep Moving Forward

Amy wasn’t satisfied. She new continued change was the key. That’s what had gotten them this far. She fired Mularkey a week after the season ended. That wasn’t the only change she made. She financed an entire restoration of the Titans uniforms and facilities. The changes made gave the team a tangible, daily reminder that she cared about them and that they were important.

Amy’s leadership style with the team is vastly different then her father’s. She makes it a point to know the players, their families and what’s important to them. She’s known by the players as being very warm and personable.

Don’t take Amy’s warmth as weakness however. It is equally matched by her aggressive persistence to push the Titans forward. She says she has “no problem doing whatever it takes to win.” She takes responsibility for their results. She isn’t afraid to make touch decisions and she cares about each team member – on and off the field.

I think this is the winning formula. Go Titans!