OneManGang
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Tennessee vs The Maxims vs Alabama
From last week: Anyone who believed Tennessee would come through this season unscathed is delusional. Is Tennessee better than they were at this time last year? Undoubtedly. Are they ready for championship contention? On the whole, this writer thinks not but the jury is still out.
The jury deliberated Saturday evening and and the verdict handed down was that, indeed, Our Beloved Vols are not there yet.
But they will be.
In April, 1863, the Union Army of the Potomac began to move with a purpose. The Confederate Army of Northern Virginia was arrayed to protect Richmond and the seat of Southern government but, in so doing, had an open flank to the northwest along the Rapahannock River.
The Bluecoats had already made one attempt on this flank. Back in January, Gen. Ambrose Burnside had tried to raise the morale of the Army of the Potomac after the disaster at Fredricksburg in December. Unfortunately for Burnside, the march opened on 20 January and the skies opened up with torrential downpours that lasted for days. The dirt roads of the time turned into bottomless morasses that swallowed wagons, cannons and horses. After about a week of this, the Army of the Potomac turned back speaking bitterly of the failed Mud March.
Burnside was fired and replaced with General Joe Hooker who had garnered some reputation as an aggressive commander and the press nicknamed him "Fighting Joe. Hooker's eye for the ladies eventually led to his last name being applied to the World's Oldest Profession.
Be that as it may, on 30 April Hooker and his army crossed the Rappahannock in a well-organized operation and began to move against Lee. Hooker sent a series of jaunty messages to President Lincoln during the buildup for this move and his proclamations of impending victory were signed with a flourish from his Headquarters in the Saddle. Lincoln dryly remarked that Hooker seemed to have his headquarters where his hindquarters should have been,
Lee had a choice. The conventional wisdom would have him turn part of his army and refuse the left flank, digging in and awaiting the Union attack.
Lee did no such thing. He knew the federals did not have the strength to threaten both his flank and Richmond at the same time and so he chose to attack.
This was the last thing Hooker expected. On the morning of 1 May, Lee sent his best commander, Lt. Gen, Thomas J. Jackson, against the Union left flank. Jackson's Corps burst out of the thickets around the small hamlet of Chancellorsville and stopped the Union host cold. Hooker holed up in a farmhouse and tried to get a grip on what was happening. Jackson's men pushed until nightfall when both sides broke off the action. During the night Lee doubled down on his plan. He detached Jackson and ordered him to march his corps around the Union positions and attack the Union right the next day.
It was a hard, grueling march but Jackson's men had earned the title Foot Cavalry during the Shenandoah Valley campaign the previous year and showed it.
At 5:30pm on 2 May Jackson's men slammed into the Union IX Corps and put them to fly. Hooker had no answers for anything Lee did.
Unfortunately for the Confederates, as Jackson was making a reconnaissance at nightfall he crossed in front of a North Carolina brigade that had no idea he was there. The Tarheels opened fire and Jackson was hit in the left arm. The wound would claim Jackson's life about a week later. Lee sadly remarked that, General Jackson may have lost his left arm, but I feel I have lost my right.
Lees cavalry commander, the legendary Gen, James Ewell Brown Stuart, took over Jackson's corps and continued the assault the next day.
Meanwhile, Lee detached another part of his force to deal with another Union force at Salem's Crossing a few miles away and drove them back as well.
Hooker and the Army of the Potomac went into full retreat and recrossed the Rappahannock. Hooker would be relieved of command in turn and replaced by Gen George Meade whose sour disposition caused his men to refer to him as that damned old goggle-eyed snapping turtle.
Two months later, Meade would lead the Army of the Potomac into battle against Lee around another small hamlet
named Gettysburg.
Like Gen Hooker, Butch Jones and the Vols had no answers Saturday. The Mighty Integral of college football, the Alabama Crimson Tide executed a near complete destruction of the Boys in Orange.
This writer has maintained for years that an SEC season is a campaign of attrition. Tennessee was without the services of half their starters Saturday and it showed. Alabama can afford to lose multiple starters, Tennessee cannot.
Yet.
So how did the team do compared to the Maxims?
1. The team that makes the fewest mistakes will win.
It wasn't the number of mistakes that doomed the Vols, it was the timing. From Josh Dobbs' interception which was returned for a touchdown, to the bust by the return team that led to another Alabama score, the combination put a dagger in the Vols and they never really recovered.
2. Play for and make the breaks. When one comes your way SCORE!
Alabama made precious few mistakes and Tennessee's near total lack of an offense combined to make it nearly impossible to do anything. That being said, the Vols did take advantage of a Tide fumble and punch in their sole touchdown of the day.
3. If at first the game or the breaks go against you, dont let up PUT ON MORE STEAM!
Tennessee never really quit. However by the middle part of the third canto, it was irrelevant.
4. Protect our kickers, our quarterback, our lead and our ballgame.
Having to start an inexperienced red-shirt freshman at right tackle was symptomatic of Tennessee's ills. At one point, this writer wondered if maybe Butch Jones should have simply opted for one of those T-DOT lane-shift flashing signs at tackle and been done with it. Shanking punts and allowing returns for touchdowns didn't help either.
5. Ball! Oskie! Cover, block, cut and slice, pursue and gang tackle THIS IS THE WINNING EDGE.
And indeed it was for Alabama.
Alright, this needs to be said. One simply cannot send a patched up and banged up defense out against what is probably the fourth or fifth best team in the NFL and expect anything good to come of it. I blamed neither players nor coaches.
Rebuilding Tennessee to championship caliber was and is a multi-year project. Compared to where John Majors was at a similar point, Butch Jones seems to be ahead of schedule. It took Majors five years and a series of humiliations to notch his first win over the Tide. However, at that time, Bear Bryant was close to retirement and Bama wasn't all that. Saban seems to be at the height of his powers.
6. Press the kicking game. Here is where the breaks are made.
One of the few aspects that didn't go wrong was the performance of Aaron Medley.
7. Carry the fight to Alabama and keep it there for sixty minutes.
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Tennessee fought to the final gun but, like the Army of the Potomac at Chancellorsville, had no answers for what Saban and the Tide were doing. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Vol fans have to feel like Union supporters during the early years of the Civil War. Our Guys just can't seem to get it done and Marse Nick seems to always have an answer for anything the Vols can cook up. Remember, though, that after Chancellorsville came Gettysburg.[/FONT]
Brick by Brick, Baby!
MAXOMG
Suggested Reading:
Shelby Foote, The Civil War, A Narrative: Fredricksburg to Meridian
Ernest B. Furgurson, Chancellorsville 1863
Gen. Edward J. Stackpole, Chancellorsville
© 2016
Keeping Your Stories Alive
Lee and Jackson plot strategy during the night of 1 May 1863. (US Army)
From last week: Anyone who believed Tennessee would come through this season unscathed is delusional. Is Tennessee better than they were at this time last year? Undoubtedly. Are they ready for championship contention? On the whole, this writer thinks not but the jury is still out.
The jury deliberated Saturday evening and and the verdict handed down was that, indeed, Our Beloved Vols are not there yet.
But they will be.
******
In April, 1863, the Union Army of the Potomac began to move with a purpose. The Confederate Army of Northern Virginia was arrayed to protect Richmond and the seat of Southern government but, in so doing, had an open flank to the northwest along the Rapahannock River.
The Bluecoats had already made one attempt on this flank. Back in January, Gen. Ambrose Burnside had tried to raise the morale of the Army of the Potomac after the disaster at Fredricksburg in December. Unfortunately for Burnside, the march opened on 20 January and the skies opened up with torrential downpours that lasted for days. The dirt roads of the time turned into bottomless morasses that swallowed wagons, cannons and horses. After about a week of this, the Army of the Potomac turned back speaking bitterly of the failed Mud March.
Burnside was fired and replaced with General Joe Hooker who had garnered some reputation as an aggressive commander and the press nicknamed him "Fighting Joe. Hooker's eye for the ladies eventually led to his last name being applied to the World's Oldest Profession.
Be that as it may, on 30 April Hooker and his army crossed the Rappahannock in a well-organized operation and began to move against Lee. Hooker sent a series of jaunty messages to President Lincoln during the buildup for this move and his proclamations of impending victory were signed with a flourish from his Headquarters in the Saddle. Lincoln dryly remarked that Hooker seemed to have his headquarters where his hindquarters should have been,
Lee had a choice. The conventional wisdom would have him turn part of his army and refuse the left flank, digging in and awaiting the Union attack.
Lee did no such thing. He knew the federals did not have the strength to threaten both his flank and Richmond at the same time and so he chose to attack.
This was the last thing Hooker expected. On the morning of 1 May, Lee sent his best commander, Lt. Gen, Thomas J. Jackson, against the Union left flank. Jackson's Corps burst out of the thickets around the small hamlet of Chancellorsville and stopped the Union host cold. Hooker holed up in a farmhouse and tried to get a grip on what was happening. Jackson's men pushed until nightfall when both sides broke off the action. During the night Lee doubled down on his plan. He detached Jackson and ordered him to march his corps around the Union positions and attack the Union right the next day.
It was a hard, grueling march but Jackson's men had earned the title Foot Cavalry during the Shenandoah Valley campaign the previous year and showed it.
At 5:30pm on 2 May Jackson's men slammed into the Union IX Corps and put them to fly. Hooker had no answers for anything Lee did.
Unfortunately for the Confederates, as Jackson was making a reconnaissance at nightfall he crossed in front of a North Carolina brigade that had no idea he was there. The Tarheels opened fire and Jackson was hit in the left arm. The wound would claim Jackson's life about a week later. Lee sadly remarked that, General Jackson may have lost his left arm, but I feel I have lost my right.
Lees cavalry commander, the legendary Gen, James Ewell Brown Stuart, took over Jackson's corps and continued the assault the next day.
Meanwhile, Lee detached another part of his force to deal with another Union force at Salem's Crossing a few miles away and drove them back as well.
Hooker and the Army of the Potomac went into full retreat and recrossed the Rappahannock. Hooker would be relieved of command in turn and replaced by Gen George Meade whose sour disposition caused his men to refer to him as that damned old goggle-eyed snapping turtle.
Two months later, Meade would lead the Army of the Potomac into battle against Lee around another small hamlet
named Gettysburg.
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]****[/FONT]
Like Gen Hooker, Butch Jones and the Vols had no answers Saturday. The Mighty Integral of college football, the Alabama Crimson Tide executed a near complete destruction of the Boys in Orange.
This writer has maintained for years that an SEC season is a campaign of attrition. Tennessee was without the services of half their starters Saturday and it showed. Alabama can afford to lose multiple starters, Tennessee cannot.
Yet.
So how did the team do compared to the Maxims?
1. The team that makes the fewest mistakes will win.
It wasn't the number of mistakes that doomed the Vols, it was the timing. From Josh Dobbs' interception which was returned for a touchdown, to the bust by the return team that led to another Alabama score, the combination put a dagger in the Vols and they never really recovered.
2. Play for and make the breaks. When one comes your way SCORE!
Alabama made precious few mistakes and Tennessee's near total lack of an offense combined to make it nearly impossible to do anything. That being said, the Vols did take advantage of a Tide fumble and punch in their sole touchdown of the day.
3. If at first the game or the breaks go against you, dont let up PUT ON MORE STEAM!
Tennessee never really quit. However by the middle part of the third canto, it was irrelevant.
4. Protect our kickers, our quarterback, our lead and our ballgame.
Having to start an inexperienced red-shirt freshman at right tackle was symptomatic of Tennessee's ills. At one point, this writer wondered if maybe Butch Jones should have simply opted for one of those T-DOT lane-shift flashing signs at tackle and been done with it. Shanking punts and allowing returns for touchdowns didn't help either.
5. Ball! Oskie! Cover, block, cut and slice, pursue and gang tackle THIS IS THE WINNING EDGE.
And indeed it was for Alabama.
Alright, this needs to be said. One simply cannot send a patched up and banged up defense out against what is probably the fourth or fifth best team in the NFL and expect anything good to come of it. I blamed neither players nor coaches.
Rebuilding Tennessee to championship caliber was and is a multi-year project. Compared to where John Majors was at a similar point, Butch Jones seems to be ahead of schedule. It took Majors five years and a series of humiliations to notch his first win over the Tide. However, at that time, Bear Bryant was close to retirement and Bama wasn't all that. Saban seems to be at the height of his powers.
6. Press the kicking game. Here is where the breaks are made.
One of the few aspects that didn't go wrong was the performance of Aaron Medley.
7. Carry the fight to Alabama and keep it there for sixty minutes.
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Tennessee fought to the final gun but, like the Army of the Potomac at Chancellorsville, had no answers for what Saban and the Tide were doing. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Vol fans have to feel like Union supporters during the early years of the Civil War. Our Guys just can't seem to get it done and Marse Nick seems to always have an answer for anything the Vols can cook up. Remember, though, that after Chancellorsville came Gettysburg.[/FONT]
Brick by Brick, Baby!
MAXOMG
Suggested Reading:
Shelby Foote, The Civil War, A Narrative: Fredricksburg to Meridian
Ernest B. Furgurson, Chancellorsville 1863
Gen. Edward J. Stackpole, Chancellorsville
© 2016
Keeping Your Stories Alive
Lee and Jackson plot strategy during the night of 1 May 1863. (US Army)
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