Any news about THIS team?

#1

ShowmeVols

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#1
It's been more frustrating than usual trying to follow Vols baseball from out of state this off-season.

The lack of news and information about the current and new players is so striking that it's almost weird.

Look at the team's web site:
--Lots of stuff about Serrano with Team USA. (Not our team.)
--Lots of stuff about Serrano in Italy with Vols basketball. (Our team, but not our sport.)
--Lots of stuff about former Vols in the pros. (Our team and our sport, but not the current team.)

No news of any new Vols commits. No sign of any Vols 2013 recruits playing in Area Code Games, PG All American Game, or PG World Series. No articles on summer ball performance. Tennessee simply has not been mentioned in the summer baseball reporting.

We don't know who fully half the new players are. Serrano said he's bringing in 27 new players, but only half of them have been announced or published by the sites that track that sort of thing.

On the flip side, we also don't know which of the approximately 20 players from 2012 who didn't graduate or get drafted and haven't been reported as transfers or cuts are really coming back. Obviously, if there are 20 returnees and 27 newbies, there will be about a dozen cuts. But I have no clue as to who is battling against whom or who might win.

Honestly, aside from Godley, Nick Williams, Bennett, and Maddox, I don't know who to expect to see getting regular action next spring.

Does anyone else find this moratorium on news about the 2013 squad unsettling?
 
#4
#4
out of season maybe for a lack of news? You do know that Big Orange Football is coming at ya full steam and baseball is a non-topic right now. I don't think of that sport till like March...just me. :whistling:
 
#5
#5
Guys, I get it. I know who pays the bills. I'm not saying you need to be talking about baseball.

My point is that the baseball information I would expect to see, particularly regarding spring signings for this fall and summer commitments for the following class, just isn't out there. For just about every team in the conference other than Tennessee, anyone who cares can easily get a rough idea of the likely weekend rotation and most of the starting lineup, or at least know who is expected to battle for which positions. This upcoming Vols baseball team, on the other hand, is almost a total mystery.
 
#6
#6
It's been more frustrating than usual trying to follow Vols baseball from out of state this off-season.

The lack of news and information about the current and new players is so striking that it's almost weird.

Look at the team's web site:
--Lots of stuff about Serrano with Team USA. (Not our team.)
--Lots of stuff about Serrano in Italy with Vols basketball. (Our team, but not our sport.)
--Lots of stuff about former Vols in the pros. (Our team and our sport, but not the current team.)

No news of any new Vols commits. No sign of any Vols 2013 recruits playing in Area Code Games, PG All American Game, or PG World Series. No articles on summer ball performance. Tennessee simply has not been mentioned in the summer baseball reporting.

We don't know who fully half the new players are. Serrano said he's bringing in 27 new players, but only half of them have been announced or published by the sites that track that sort of thing.

On the flip side, we also don't know which of the approximately 20 players from 2012 who didn't graduate or get drafted and haven't been reported as transfers or cuts are really coming back. Obviously, if there are 20 returnees and 27 newbies, there will be about a dozen cuts. But I have no clue as to who is battling against whom or who might win.


Honestly, aside from Godley, Nick Williams, Bennett, and Maddox, I don't know who to expect to see getting regular action next spring.

Does anyone else find this moratorium on news about the 2013 squad unsettling?

You mentioned looking on UT's site for this information. You're aware that that UT can't post anything on any recruits until they sign, correct?

UT posted about players in the summer leagues while they were playing. Other than that, there isn't really anything UT can post about the current team.

As far as the large number of new players, many of those are walk-ons. UT is not allowed, by NCAA rule, to put a first-year walk-on's name on their site or even acknowledge their existence, until the first day of classes.
 
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#7
#7
You mentioned looking on UT's site for this information. You're aware that that UT can't post anything on any recruits until they sign, correct?

UT posted about players in the summer leagues while they were playing. Other than that, there isn't really anything UT can post about the current team.

As far as the large number of new players, many of those are walk-ons. UT is not allowed, by NCAA rule, to put a first-year walk-on's name on their site or even acknowledge their existence, until the first day of classes.

Yes, I am aware of the rules and of normal practices elsewhere.

The university can announce the name of anyone who has signed an NLI, and most schools issue a press release when they nail down the spring signings. Some issue another release if there are summer signings. Tennessee has more than a dozen recruits they haven't announced. If they're all walk-ons, that's a bad sign. If they didn't find anyone worth giving any of JUCO-turned-pro recruits' money to, that's another bad sign. If they did, they should tell us who they landed.

And what's the explanation for the fact that PG and CBD and the other services haven't reported a single Vol recruit at a high profile event or any Vol commitments worth including in their blogs or Twitter feeds? Again, silence is not encouraging.

Also, most schools also publish periodic updates on summer performance, which Tennessee didn't do this year, but we know from the other thread that's because no one had summer numbers worth writing home about except Bennett and Williams, who only played the first few weeks.

I'm looking for reasons to believe 2013 might be better than 2012. You really haven't offered any reassurance.
 
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#8
#8
I'm looking for reasons to believe 2013 might be better than 2012. You really haven't offered any reassurance.

I honestly don't expect them to be a whole lot better in 2013. They might make the SEC Tournament in 2013, but the program is still a year or two away from being very competitive.
 
#9
#9
I just called the team, and they said they are dispatching the mystery machine as we speak. Once those meddling kids get on scene, all the mysteries regarding this team will be solved. Stay tuned
 
#10
#10
UT is not allowed, by NCAA rule, to put a first-year walk-on's name on their site or even acknowledge their existence, until the first day of classes.

Deer that isn't entirely true. A school can release a walk on kids "commitment" to the media just the same as a scholarship players signing once their room deposit has been paid at the university. I agree with show that it is very odd the lack of info coming from the SiD this summer about the current team.
 
#12
#12
Deer that isn't entirely true. A school can release a walk on kids "commitment" to the media just the same as a scholarship players signing once their room deposit has been paid at the university. I agree with show that it is very odd the lack of info coming from the SiD this summer about the current team.

That is not the Tennessee compliance office's interpretation of the rule. No walk-on info is released by the school until the first day of classes.

What info on the team do you feel they should be releasing? They did in-depth stuff on guys in the summer leagues last year and nobody read it. the entire summer, the page they set up got less than 100 hits.
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#13
#13
That is not the Tennessee compliance office's interpretation of the rule. No walk-on info is released by the school until the first day of classes.

What info on the team do you feel they should be releasing? They did in-depth stuff on guys in the summer leagues last year and nobody read it. the entire summer, the page they set up got less than 100 hits.
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If I was a part of that department I would ask the compliance officer to get another opinion from the conference office. There are many schools that release walk ons once they pay their room deposit.

My only complaint with the info coming this summer would be the issue we are discussing here and a player that transferred out of Knoxville being claimed as a former vol that made the big leagues.
 
#14
#14
What info on the team do you feel they should be releasing? They did in-depth stuff on guys in the summer leagues last year and nobody read it. the entire summer, the page they set up got less than 100 hits.
Posted via VolNation Mobile

DP12,

You're kidding, right? If you're not getting enough hits, it usually means you have too little content and too few updates. If your response to fewer than 100 hits is to stop posting stuff, you're putting yourself on track to have fewer than 50 hits next time around. Are you really endorsing a death spiral of less information leading to fewer hits leading to even less information and even fewer hits?

Also, for summer of 2011, UT posted only one article in late July with one or two sentence summaries of each player's performance. It might have been more than the "Vols Head Off For Summer Leagues" article they posted this year in May and never followed up, but you can't seriously claim the SiD has really tested the market's appetite for player information.

Compare UT's non-effort to the web site for the last place team in the ACC. They posted four full articles: beginning of season, two in-season updates, and an end-of-season recap. We can't match Duke?
 
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#17
#17
My only complaint with the info coming this summer would be the issue we are discussing here and a player that transferred out of Knoxville being claimed as a former vol that made the big leagues.

I still don't see an issue with that, especially when it is someone that works out in our facilities with our strength coach during the offseason, and never wanted to leave in the first place, had his scholarship pulled by our former coach over the objection of the administration, and despite the way things ended, still considers himself a Vol and contributes to the program.

If UT puts out a story over the winter about the 20 MLB players that work out in our facilities, will you have a problem with that?
 
#18
#18
I think UTK can get all the interns they need.

Any more excuses or rationalizations?

The bottom line is, the SID office concluded, with the input of the coaching staff, that covering summer leagues wasn't worth doing full updates, other than tweets and posts in the Tennessee Update Blog.
 
#20
#20
The bottom line is, the SID office concluded, with the input of the coaching staff, that covering summer leagues wasn't worth doing full updates, other than tweets and posts in the Tennessee Update Blog.

You just affirmed my original post: the SID and the baseball coaches decided they don't want to talk about their own team. You and Arencibia's #1 jock sniffer seem to think that's just fine. I think it's cause for concern.
 
#21
#21
I still don't see an issue with that, especially when it is someone that works out in our facilities with our strength coach during the offseason, and never wanted to leave in the first place, had his scholarship pulled by our former coach over the objection of the administration, and despite the way things ended, still considers himself a Vol and contributes to the program.

If UT puts out a story over the winter about the 20 MLB players that work out in our facilities, will you have a problem with that?

I wouldn't have an issue with a release about all the big leaguers working out at the facilty but yes if they claim any player that last played college at another school as their own that's plain wrong.


Deer I know you are in a position to ask about the walk-on releases being legal(or ask for a second opinion). Unless the SEC has a conference rule it is very permissable as I know many other schools that do it. I think that would be useful info if indeed they could release all the kids that are joining the program.
 
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#22
#22
I wouldn't have an issue with a release about all the big leaguers working out at the facilty but yes if they claim any player that last played college at another school as their own that's plain wrong.


Deer I know you are in a position to ask about the walk-on releases being legal(or ask for a second opinion). Unless the SEC has a conference rule it is very permissable as I know many other schools that do it. I think that would be useful info if indeed they could release all the kids that are joining the program.

Or just issue a release now that classes have started.
 
#23
#23
I wouldn't have an issue with a release about all the big leaguers working out at the facilty but yes if they claim any player that last played college at another school as their own that's plain wrong.

Deer I know you are in a position to ask about the walk-on releases being legal(or ask for a second opinion). Unless the SEC has a conference rule it is very permissable as I know many other schools that do it. I think that would be useful info if indeed they could release all the kids that are joining the program.

I disagree, if a guy played here, he's a Vol, period. Chris Fritts is no less a Vol because he's going to play his final year elsewhere, same for Gomes.

Again, the UT policy is set that first-year walk-on names and information is not released for winter and spring sports until the first day of class, which is UT's interpretation of the NCAA rule.

However, a "recruited walk-on" can be publicized and listed on the roster prior to that date, but the majority decline to claim that status because once they agree to formally accept the "recruited walk-on" offer by taking an official visit and signing a document in some cases, they can not sign scholarship papers with another school. Most athletes, particularly in non-fall sports, will not do that in case another school has a late scholarship opening. Also, if a "recruited walk-on" is cut in the fall, they cannot transfer freely and be eligible in the spring.

UT updated the roster today, and some guys listed in the other thread as having left the program are still on it: Official Baseball Roster - UTSPORTS.COM - University of Tennessee Athletics

This list has to get down to 35 before the spring, so there will be cuts after fall practice.
 
#24
#24
I disagree, if a guy played here, he's a Vol, period. Chris Fritts is no less a Vol because he's going to play his final year elsewhere, same for Gomes.

Again, the UT policy is set that first-year walk-on names and information is not released for winter and spring sports until the first day of class, which is UT's interpretation of the NCAA rule.

However, a "recruited walk-on" can be publicized and listed on the roster prior to that date, but the majority decline to claim that status because once they agree to formally accept the "recruited walk-on" offer by taking an official visit and signing a document in some cases, they can not sign scholarship papers with another school. Most athletes, particularly in non-fall sports, will not do that in case another school has a late scholarship opening. Also, if a "recruited walk-on" is cut in the fall, they cannot transfer freely and be eligible in the spring.

UT updated the roster today, and some guys listed in the other thread as having left the program are still on it: Official Baseball Roster - UTSPORTS.COM - University of Tennessee Athletics

This list has to get down to 35 before the spring, so there will be cuts after fall practice.

Who was listed as leaving in other threads?
 
#25
#25
I disagree, if a guy played here, he's a Vol, period. Chris Fritts is no less a Vol because he's going to play his final year elsewhere, same for Gomes.

I'll mostly agree with you on this, DP. In my book, if he played here, left under honorable conditions (even if cut), and is okay with the school continuing to use his name, it's fine to consider him still a Vol and talk up his accomplishments.

BTW, any idea where Fritts is playing?
 

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