25 Years Ago Johnny Majors

#1

volfan2024

“Wanna play ball scarecrow “
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#1
Took a team that was 5-6 in 1988 and a year later in 1989 he went 11-1, ranked number 5 at the end of the season.

Amazing feat by any standard.
 
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#2
#2
Amazing that they were ranked #5..only loss that year was Alabama. Our nemesis during those years.
 
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#3
#3
Took a team that was 5-6 in 1988 and a year later in 1989 he went 11-1, ranked number 5 at the end of the season.

Amazing feat by any standard.

Majors was a great coach. He knew football and what it took to get good talent.
 
#4
#4
One thing UT had back then, year after year, were very good OL's. That allowed 2 young QB's to mature (as well as having the Cobb-Webb combo).
 
#6
#6
Johnny was an underrated recruiter as well....that team, like team 118 relied heavily on JuCo talent. There was a mercenary personality to that team.

I was in school on the hill that year and remember well the blue collar nature of that team. That was the start of Neyland Stadium being a feared place to play. The perception of that team and those who followed was that win or lose you really didn't want to play them. We were very physical and playing us was never a pleasant undertaking.
 
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#7
#7
Johnny was an underrated recruiter as well....that team, like team 118 relied heavily on JuCo talent. There was a mercenary personality to that team.

I was in school on the hill that year and remember well the blue collar nature of that team. That was the start of Neyland Stadium being a feared place to play. The perception of that team and those who followed was that win or lose you really didn't want to play them. We were very physical and playing us was never a pleasant undertaking.

That's what I want us to get back to! I don't expect us to win every game but by God I do expect us to fight every game. If we go in and trade blows every single game and give every team all they want, I have no doubt the wins will take care of themselves.
 
#8
#8
IMO that was the start of crazy talent coming to tn in the 90s.

If u noticed once the talent left so did our wins.. I know hard to believe there is a correlation.lol
 
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#9
#9
Johnny was an underrated recruiter as well....that team, like team 118 relied heavily on JuCo talent. There was a mercenary personality to that team.

I was in school on the hill that year and remember well the blue collar nature of that team. That was the start of Neyland Stadium being a feared place to play. The perception of that team and those who followed was that win or lose you really didn't want to play them. We were very physical and playing us was never a pleasant undertaking.

We smacked some teams in the mouth last year which was my proudest take away from last season. I look forward to the hard hitting brand of football reestablishing itself on the hill. I see a lot of blue collar ethics in Butch that our better coaches have demonstrated.
 
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#11
#11
Quite the run. Wasn't it the 88 team the started 0-5 and finished by winning the last six in a row? Combine the two and that's a solid stretch of football.
 
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#12
#12
Winning at the Rose Bowl against UCLA was big that year. Set the tone for the whole season. UCLA was a top ten team. We went on the road and gave em a Tennessee Dog Whoopin. Doubtful, but I would like to see something like that this year against Oklahoma.
 
#13
#13
I went to the UCLA in 89' with a buddy. American Express had this deal that if you got a card, you could get a round trip ticket anywhere in the lower 48 for $99. That was also when football players could sign students up for tickets, so we got in the game free.

The game was electric with (I would estimate) 8 - 10k TN fans. The Rose Bowl was sparsely attended except for the corner where they put the TN fans. I don't think the UCLA people had any idea what was going on with us making all that noise.

Doug Matthews has an interesting write-up about 88' and the change-up mid year; https://t.e2ma.net/message/lbfrf/ljdrkl .
 
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#15
#15
5-6 sure wasn't "my" expectation in 88 after going 10-2-1 in 87. I found the ups & downs of a JM coached team very frustrating.
 
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#16
#16
Quite the run. Wasn't it the 88 team the started 0-5 and finished by winning the last six in a row? Combine the two and that's a solid stretch of football.

We started the season 0-6 & won the last 5, then went 11-1 in '89 so we won 17 out of 18 during that season & a half
 
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#17
#17
Johnny was an underrated recruiter as well....that team, like team 118 relied heavily on JuCo talent. There was a mercenary personality to that team.

I was in school on the hill that year and remember well the blue collar nature of that team. That was the start of Neyland Stadium being a feared place to play. The perception of that team and those who followed was that win or lose you really didn't want to play them. We were very physical and playing us was never a pleasant undertaking.

Exactly! Tennessee offenses, under Coach Majors, were predictable... but brutal. Everyone knew what was coming... pound the rock, then play-action & sling it over the top... and they dared their opponent to stop them.

Fans complained about the offense being too conservative, back then. (Even though they hung 40+ on LSU in Death Valley, brutalized UCLA in Pasadena, roughed up Pat Dye & Auburn for nearly 300 on the ground and scorched Arkansas' defense in the Cotton Bowl.)

In the lone defeat, the Vols put 30 on the board against 'Bama.

Coach Majors Vol squads were physical and didn't care if everyone in the stadium had a copy of their playbook.
 
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#18
#18
I went to the UCLA in 89' with a buddy. American Express had this deal that if you got a card, you could get a round trip ticket anywhere in the lower 48 for $99. That was also when football players could sign students up for tickets, so we got in the game free.

The game was electric with (I would estimate) 8 - 10k TN fans. The Rose Bowl was sparsely attended except for the corner where they put the TN fans. I don't think the UCLA people had any idea what was going on with us making all that noise.

Doug Matthews has an interesting write-up about 88' and the change-up mid year; https://t.e2ma.net/message/lbfrf/ljdrkl .

I was there too! What a game!! The players ran over to the 10,000 or so UT fans there & celebrated with us. UCLA was ranked #6 I believe & we were unranked. Love going to games at the Rose Bowl!
 
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#20
#20
Exactly! Tennessee offenses, under Coach Majors, were predictable... but brutal. Everyone knew what was coming... pound the rock, then play-action & sling it over the top... and they dared their opponent to stop them.

Fans complained about the offense being too conservative, back then. (Even though they hung 40+ on LSU in Death Valley, brutalized UCLA in Pasadena, roughed up Pat Dye & Auburn for nearly 300 on the ground and scorched Arkansas' defense in the Cotton Bowl.)

In the lone defeat, the Vols put 30 on the board against 'Bama.

Coach Majors Vol squads were physical and didn't care if everyone in the stadium had a copy of their playbook.
I distinctly remember the CBS commentator remarking about how, win or lose, you'd better have your lunch packed if you were going to play Tennessee. They might not beat you, but they would definitely beat you up. We contributed to a lot of schools losing their following game simply because of the toll playing us took.

I loved the late Majors era teams, and would love to get back to having that type of reputation, as well as the type of home streak we enjoyed during this years. Neyland was a fearsome place for visiting teams.
 
#22
#22
Iirc, our offensive line in 1988 was inexperienced, though extremely talented (with two future first-rounders in Antone Davis and Charles McRae). The line struggled at the beginning of the season, but when it gelled, the offense was practically unstoppable.
 
#23
#23
Quite the run. Wasn't it the 88 team the started 0-5 and finished by winning the last six in a row? Combine the two and that's a solid stretch of football.

I was a junior at UT in 1988. For the sake of accuracy, I respectfully submit that they actually started 0-6 and finished with 5 straights wins. But you're absolutely right Freak.... if you look at the 2 years, after losing those 6 straight, they rattled off 16 of 17... that's some damn good football. Given the awful football we've witnessed the last 6-7 years around here, that seems like 2 lifetimes ago.
 
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#24
#24
And Boston College was next for HC in the pouring rain. It was cold & rainy, we were 1-6 & that stadium was full. That's when I really realized the deep loyalty of Tennessee fans!

That was before HDTV! :)

I remember those days as well. Every game was sold out. There were no empty sections in the stadium. As much as I like watching every game on TV or going to the games, there was something about helping Dad out in the yard with the leaves and listening to John Ward call the game. Later that day I couldn't wait for the highlights on the local news....Bob Kesling.
 
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#25
#25
That was before HDTV! :)

I remember those days as well. Every game was sold out. There were no empty sections in the stadium. As much as I like watching every game on TV or going to the games, there was something about helping Dad out in the yard with the leaves and listening to John Ward call the game. Later that day I couldn't wait for the highlights on the local news....Bob Kesling.

Thanks for getting me all choked up! :cray:

I have memories like that with my Dad as well. He passed away about 5 years ago and I have to say, now that he's gone being a UT fan isn't as enjoyable as it used to be. Getting to talk UT football with my Dad was one of the things I enjoyed most in life.
 
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