DiderotsGhost
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Last night's game was depressing. No way to spin it. Still, I'd rather stay positive and point out the progress, rather than focus on the negative.
Defense. This is one of the best defenses we've had in the past decade. Remember last year when many VN posters were saying that Jancek wasn't an SEC-caliber Defensive Coordinator and that he should be replaced eventually? Right now, I'd say we have the third best defense in the entire conference (only behind Ole Miss and Bama), and Jancek, Martinez, et al deserve a lot of credit for one of the most dramatic turn-arounds ever.
Jalen Hurd. Kid is a beast. The O-line provided no help, the D played us close all night, and we couldn't get anything going. And still, Hurd averaged 3.1 yards per carry last night. With an injured shoulder. If we actually had an O-line, a deep game, and could keep defenses honest, can you imagine what Hurd could do?
Recruiting. We have the best recruiting staff in the nation. Two top 5 classes and between the 2014 and 2015 classes, we've brought in 50+ new players, with a majority being 4- and 5- star recruits.
Butch Jones' Leadership. I keep hearing some VN posters saying we should ditch Jones if we don't make it to a bowl game this season or next. If anything, I think the current mess re-emphasizes why Butch was so desperately needed. This disaster we're seeing right now is a result of Derek Dooley's lackadaisical recruiting in his last two seasons. This trainwreck on offense is a direct consequence. Butch Jones has come in and re-invigorated this program. He's changed the culture, dramatically improved the recruiting, and provided real leadership. There are very few coaches that would have succeeded with the mess Dooley left, and Jones is doing about as well as possible.
Our O-line Players. Dooley left us a ship full of holes. We're trying to plug it up with anything we can, but a lot of the pieces don't fit. We're starting true Freshmen that aren't ready. We're forcing guys to play out of position because there's no one else there. We're playing an injured walk-on because we have no depth. As tempting as it is to blame our players, let's realize that these guys are doing the best they can with a mess that wasn't created by them. If any good comes out of this, it's that I think guys like Jashon Robertson and Coleman Thomas are going to be all the better in future years.
Overall. We're headed in the right direction. It's just miserable waiting for the ship to turn around, but we've got to have patience. Ultimately, the poor shape of our team this year is the result of the previous staff's weak recruiting for the 2012 and 2013 classes. Remember, Butch's first full class only hit the field one about a month and a half ago. In 2015, he'll have two full classes, but they'll still bit full of mostly young players. It's really going to take till 2016 till we start seeing the full results of Butch's recruiting.
If in 2016, we're still seeing poor on the field results, then I think it's time to start questioning the coaching. Right now, I don't know that any coach would be succeeding with this mess.
Defense. This is one of the best defenses we've had in the past decade. Remember last year when many VN posters were saying that Jancek wasn't an SEC-caliber Defensive Coordinator and that he should be replaced eventually? Right now, I'd say we have the third best defense in the entire conference (only behind Ole Miss and Bama), and Jancek, Martinez, et al deserve a lot of credit for one of the most dramatic turn-arounds ever.
Jalen Hurd. Kid is a beast. The O-line provided no help, the D played us close all night, and we couldn't get anything going. And still, Hurd averaged 3.1 yards per carry last night. With an injured shoulder. If we actually had an O-line, a deep game, and could keep defenses honest, can you imagine what Hurd could do?
Recruiting. We have the best recruiting staff in the nation. Two top 5 classes and between the 2014 and 2015 classes, we've brought in 50+ new players, with a majority being 4- and 5- star recruits.
Butch Jones' Leadership. I keep hearing some VN posters saying we should ditch Jones if we don't make it to a bowl game this season or next. If anything, I think the current mess re-emphasizes why Butch was so desperately needed. This disaster we're seeing right now is a result of Derek Dooley's lackadaisical recruiting in his last two seasons. This trainwreck on offense is a direct consequence. Butch Jones has come in and re-invigorated this program. He's changed the culture, dramatically improved the recruiting, and provided real leadership. There are very few coaches that would have succeeded with the mess Dooley left, and Jones is doing about as well as possible.
Our O-line Players. Dooley left us a ship full of holes. We're trying to plug it up with anything we can, but a lot of the pieces don't fit. We're starting true Freshmen that aren't ready. We're forcing guys to play out of position because there's no one else there. We're playing an injured walk-on because we have no depth. As tempting as it is to blame our players, let's realize that these guys are doing the best they can with a mess that wasn't created by them. If any good comes out of this, it's that I think guys like Jashon Robertson and Coleman Thomas are going to be all the better in future years.
Overall. We're headed in the right direction. It's just miserable waiting for the ship to turn around, but we've got to have patience. Ultimately, the poor shape of our team this year is the result of the previous staff's weak recruiting for the 2012 and 2013 classes. Remember, Butch's first full class only hit the field one about a month and a half ago. In 2015, he'll have two full classes, but they'll still bit full of mostly young players. It's really going to take till 2016 till we start seeing the full results of Butch's recruiting.
If in 2016, we're still seeing poor on the field results, then I think it's time to start questioning the coaching. Right now, I don't know that any coach would be succeeding with this mess.
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