Mears is largely regarded as the father of Tennessee Volunteers basketball, and was known for his trademark orange blazer, which he wore during games.

Mears played college basketball at Miami University as a walk-on, graduating from there in 1949 with a bachelor's degree in education.

[5] He earned his master's degree at Kent State University while coaching at West Tech High School in Cleveland, Ohio.

In 1950, he left Cadiz for a two-year stint in the United States Army, returning to the head basketball coaching position at West Tech in 1952.

Under the watch of interim coach Cliff Wettig, the Volunteers struggled to an 11–16 record, and Mears officially retired for health reasons after the season.

After leaving coaching, he served for 10 years as athletic director at the University of Tennessee at Martin (UT-Martin).

One of the prime achievements of Mears' tenure at Tennessee was the introduction of the phrase "Big Orange Country" to the Volunteer fans.

Indeed, years later, longtime Vols radio voice John Ward said that many of Tennessee's athletic traditions originated with Mears.

Mears would often, particularly for important away games, walk the perimeter of the floor in his Big Orange sportcoat, both engaging and enraging opposing teams' fans.