Two Weeks

[hatvol96]

Originally Posted by kiddiedoc

Thanks, guys, for turning my excitement thread into a baseless Orange-slurping rant fit for a class of third-graders.

Sadly, that type of silliness is becoming the rule rather than the exception around here. I almost miss OrangeSquare and OldVol. At least they had a rudimentary grasp of the language.

[General Jack]

Originally Posted by kiddiedoc

Well, in 14 days we shall see.

What will the Clawson offense look like?
Will Crompton prove that his recruitment excitement was warranted?
Will Foster make a case for his status as a UT RB elite?
Who will distance themselves amongst our receivers?
Is Gerald Jones the playmaker that we think he is?
Will the OL turn weightroom strenghth into on-the-field brawn?
Will the DL have the depth for 4 quarters of pressure up front?
Will our linebackers step up and intimidate?
Will the defensive backfield be as good as advertised?
Will Colquitt's missteps cost us in the kicking game?
Will Lincoln be ready to hit some deep ones when we need them later in the year?

Again, we shall see.

The wait is on. . . .

I definitely share in the excitement!

My $0.02 worth...

Crompton, while being the #1 guy starting the season for the first time, is old and mature enough for us to be successful. Its not like he's a true freshman, and what's best about the guy... he's tough and a natural leader, something I don't really think that the brittle Ainge was (nothing against Ainge).

I don't think Foster will be an elite RB by Tennessee standards regardless of whether he sets the all-time record. But while he's not in the same category as C Webb and J Lewis, he is good enough considering the other weapons that we have and the fact that we won't be one dimensional. And I do think our O line is going to do a pretty decent job in run blocking this year which will help foster's numbers.

I believe G Jones will be an elite Vol receiver before he leaves, right up there with Meachem, Stallworth, P Price, A Harper and maybe, maybe even C Pickens. I have much faith in Jones - in his limited action last year he proved to me he is SEC impact player talented and a baller.

Not sure we'll be as effective as we want at stopping the rush in the fourth quarter. This could be a problem as I see us in several dogfights late into the game this year. It will be incumbant upon our offense to sustain drives late to give our lack of depth on D line time to rest. Also, an injury to D Williams, D Bolden or W Fisher will be devastating.

Our linebackers will be the (somewhat) surprise. I'm not sure why these guys aren't getting more credit, because McCoy has shown he's a big time player, by all accounts G Williams is SEC ready... Wilson and Reviez coming off the bench don't give up much. Only question here for me is whether McKenzie or Myers-White are solid enough against the run.

DBs will be good, but due to the perception as Berry being the second coming and the remainder being the strongest we've had since...?? we are primed for a let down. However, I do think these guys will be good and allow us to blitz more... which plays into Chief's comfort zone.

Fingers crossed that Cunningham is servicable... I think he will be. We very very rarely have issues at punter... not since Leaverton at, gulp, UCLA in 1997.

Lincoln will hit most of what we need him to... kicker has been one of our most consistent positions over the years and I don't see any reason why that won't continue.

Without getting too drunk on the koolaid, I think we're going to be pretty good this year, best since 2001 - unless we get more injuries on the D line or Crompton doesn't play within himself.

[gcb/hoosiervol]

I am not sure we will have answers to any of the above questions in 14 days, but I bet we have a much better idea come 9/20 around 7 PM or so.

My hope is the UCLA game does not leave us scratching our collective heads with 10 additional questions.

D Line and Crompton are keys I will be scrutinizing. I also believe Lincoln could end up being MVP of this team with crucial FG's, such as Fla/Aub/Geo/SC etc. I really hope he stays healthy and accurate.

May I add a comment or two...I really enjoy the posts of KiddieDoc/LWSVOL/and Jake...they just seem to be well thought out. Does not mean I agree 100%, but if they post I want to read. Maybe I am blind but those folks do not seem to have an agenda either, or a huge ego i.e. " I know more about the VOLS and football than the rest of you morons."

Thanks fellas.

GO VOLS

[Cartervol]

I would like too see us tackle solidly for a whole year. Chavis was barking about tackling in the scrimmage. Seems tackling is always a issuse. I would like too see a fundamentally sound football team for a whole year. Not good one game, terrible the next. I also want to see us kick the crap out of ucla. But we all know the season starts sep.20

[General Jack]

Originally Posted by Cartervol

I would like too see us tackle solidly for a whole year. Chavis was barking about tackling in the scrimmage. Seems tackling is always a issuse. I would like too see a fundamentally sound football team for a whole year. Not good one game, terrible the next. I also want to see us kick the crap out of ucla. But we all know the season starts sep.20

Agree wholeheartedly. Strange how some programs, Auburn and Penn State come to mind, just seem to breed solid tackling defenses... while we are inconsistent in that regard.

[kiddiedoc]

Originally Posted by gcb/hoosiervol

May I add a comment or two...I really enjoy the posts of KiddieDoc/LWSVOL/and Jake...they just seem to be well thought out. Does not mean I agree 100%, but if they post I want to read. Maybe I am blind but those folks do not seem to have an agenda either, or a huge ego i.e. " I know more about the VOLS and football than the rest of you morons."

Thanks fellas.

GO VOLS

Thanks for the comment. There are quite a few regular posters around here that try to keep a level head. You won't find us starting posts with the likes of "Woo-Hoo, 12-0, Here we come!" or commenting on the body habitus of our coach.

We do however, have an agenda: we want to win. Sometimes that means questioning our coaching staff, even when we believe it to be comprised of, largely, devoted and upstanding men who are loyal to our university. Sometimes that means realizing that we have fallen from the ranks of the elite. But, we also realize that we support a great university with well-recognized tradition and the ability to recruit and compete on a national level. We remember that the last time we won a championship, we were reeling from the departure of one of the greatest QB's to play the game but rebounded with heart, fang-toothed defense, and a refusal to lose. We hate Alabama. We hate Florida. We are the first to arrive at the parking lots and welcome all who love the game. We stand and cheer, even when it bothers the old-timers sitting behind us. We travel to hostile territory to support the Vols and continue to do so even after gut-punches ala Bama last year.

Two weeks.

Go Vols.

[kiddiedoc]

Well, in 14 days we shall see. And, now, we have.

What will the Clawson offense look like?
Underprepared, stubborn, and lacking the ability to do what it proclaimed (get the ball to the "playmakers").

Will Crompton prove that his recruitment excitement was warranted?
By no means. Hate to lay too much blame on the kid, but he made quite a few really poor throws.

Will Foster make a case for his status as a UT RB elite?
His fumble will be remembered more than his near century-mark in yards.

Who will distance themselves amongst our receivers?
Jones

Is Gerald Jones the playmaker that we think he is?
Yes

Will the OL turn weightroom strenghth into on-the-field brawn?
Looked good in the running game. Not so hot in pass protection.

Will the DL have the depth for 4 quarters of pressure up front?
No

Will our linebackers step up and intimidate?
Nice stopping the run, but no one really jumped out as a stud.

Will the defensive backfield be as good as advertised?
No, but they had a lot to live up to, and the coaches killed them in the second half.

Will Colquitt's missteps cost us in the kicking game?
Not last night. The block was the line's fault.

Will Lincoln be ready to hit some deep ones when we need them later in the year?
Ummm. A resounding "NO."

Again, we shall see.

The wait is on. . . .

The wait is over, and a very anticlimactic wait it was.

[MillwoodFootball]

Guys I think Gerald has clearly Proven that he is the playmaker that you guys think he is... Everytime the ball touches his hands somthin happens...

[bigorange]

Originally Posted by MillwoodFootball

Guys I think Gerald has clearly Proven that he is the playmaker that you guys think he is... Everytime the ball touches his hands somthin happens...

absolutely... Gerald's performance Monday is the only thing giving me some hope for this season at the moment

[DC Vol]

Originally Posted by bigorange

absolutely... Gerald's performance Monday is the only thing giving me some hope for this season at the moment

You apparently didn't see any of the 175 yards on 25 rushing attempts I did. Be pessimistic if you want, but I think everyone is looping the running game in with the passing game and writing off the entire offense.

I'm not saying we're going to be able to put those kind of yards up against half of the teams in the SEC, but apparently UCLA was supposed to have a fairly stout Defense... especially against the run. One way or another, I saw them get handled on just about every attempt.

[bigdaddy]

KD, sadly I think we have overestimated out talent on this team. We have a few really good guys like Jones, Berry, and D-mo but that is about it from what I witnessed Monday night. Crompton has a long way to go and Foster has a "bug" that won't go away. After the Fl game I think we will all have a good feeling of what this team has to offer.