We can win next year

[zooguy]

5-7

 

[Glocker_Alum_2005]

Remember this team was 4-8 last year.

When Kirby took over UGA, he took a 10 win team the year before and digressed to 7-5 in the regular season. Usually first year coaches making major changes to the offensive and defensive systems see a few more losses than the prior year.

Increasing the wins from 4 to 6 despite all the changes would be a good season.

Disagree. GA started a true Frosh QB and patchwork OL. Good lord they had a grad transfer tackle from Univ of Rhode Island.

 

[led0321]

The players on this roster are 1.5-2 years behind in strength and conditioning.

 

[i2amavol]

Foolish? no. there's a lot of unanswered questions. but to get to that kind of record, just like this past year, we'd have to get a whole lot of right answers.

just tough to do that in year one. there's some front line talent, agreed. but we're still not very good on the O line, we have issues at LB. depth is a concern at almost every position.

there's some legit football reasons why 9-3 is probably unattainable, to go along with the brutal schedule.

go to a bowl. get reps. recruit. develop. and see what 2019 brings....i think going to a bowl, 7 reg season wins, would be a really good 1st year.

This.

There is much reason for optimism at this point, but to pull it all together enough to win more than 7 would require a whole lot of skill and more than a smidgeon of luck. Anything is possible though, and I am an optimist.

 

[Wolfeman_Vol]

I think the eye test will be telling from early on. We haven't looked like we knew how to play quality football in years. Even our mighty 2016 team looked confused from the start. A team that looks like a team will be telling one way or the other. That's what I'm looking for next year over wins and losses. Of course, I'm hoping for several wins!

 

[Sara Clark]

Not even going to guess. With that, all things are possible with hard work and determination. Go Vols!!

 

[RockCityVol]

Jones won 4. Since he has left .... That is automatically worth a couple wins.

Add a competent staff ... Maybe a win or two more.

Who knows but it will be better than that FU Jones.

 

[ParkerM]

Injuries won't be healed. On OL many are gone for good. Jack Jones for instance is done with football. Hall may not be back also. You cannot overcome a thin under developed O line. It will stop the rest of the offense from working. And a poor offense eventually will wear down even a good defense. So the OL will likely prevent this team from having a good season in 18. Our only hope is that the staff lands some of the Juco's and develops the current roster by next fall. That is a tall order.

When was the last time Tennessee had an actual OL... only weak link on offense tbh

 

[Johnnyreb#VFL]

We will beat Florida in Knoxville. At least that should be at the top of Pruitt’s list of things to accomplish in Year 1.

 

[JCHateSteve]

Next year is a transition year. Everything is new and who knows what this recruiting class will end up looking like. S&T takes a couple years to really set in and we are changing that again as well. We are razor thin due to injuries over the last couple years and their is likely to be some attrition due to the coaching change. 6-6 will be a good year. I think that's attainable but expecting more than that, year one isn't very realistic.

 

[jasonvol18]

Foolish? no. there's a lot of unanswered questions. but to get to that kind of record, just like this past year, we'd have to get a whole lot of right answers.

just tough to do that in year one. there's some front line talent, agreed. but we're still not very good on the O line, we have issues at LB. depth is a concern at almost every position.

there's some legit football reasons why 9-3 is probably unattainable, to go along with the brutal schedule.

go to a bowl. get reps. recruit. develop. and see what 2019 brings....i think going to a bowl, 7 reg season wins, would be a really good 1st year.

The schedule isn't really any more brutal than this years. We swap AU and LSU and W.Va and Ga Tech. Really not a huge difference. Think we only leave the state 4 times the entire season with one being a neutral site game that we will have the crowd advantage in.

 

[Sat330pmAppt]

If Will Grier returns to WVa, he will be among the top 5 names on the Heisman Watch.

6-6 with a Shreveport or Birmingham Bowl...

 

[Snapper58]

If Will Grier returns to WVa, he will be among the top 5 names on the Heisman Watch.

6-6 with a Shreveport or Birmingham Bowl...

But WVa doesn't play defense.

 

[jasonvol18]

Next year is a transition year. Everything is new and who knows what this recruiting class will end up looking like. S&T takes a couple years to really set in and we are changing that again as well. We are razor thin due to injuries over the last couple years and their is likely to be some attrition due to the coaching change. 6-6 will be a good year. I think that's attainable but expecting more than that, year one isn't very realistic.

I'm on the other side of this. W.Va is gonna be very winnable so that would be 4 wins in OOC games, Fla is in the exact same boat and we get them at home so that's very winnable. So that's 5..we lose to Ala and AU and Ga so that's 5-3. Probably lose to S.Carol so 5-4. But should beat UK and Mizzou at home so that's 7-4 and based off law of average vs Vandy that's 8 wins. 7-5 or 8-4 are the likely 2 most probable. S&C shouldn't put us behind much if any. There is always the attrition possibility but can also possibly be looking at adding a couple transfers too. We only have 9 Olineman returning but potentially JUCO and Grad Transfer help could be on the way. Maybe we can steal one of Ole Miss's then add the Cal transfer and possibly get atleast 2 JUCO Olineman. This weekend's visitors will go a long way in determining the Offensive Line questions.

 

[R481967]

I remember looking at the UGA roster and man, did they have a bunch of seniors. After that, not a lot of juniors... mostly sophomores and freshmen. Be interesting to see if they can be as good this coming year. Gonna be some improvement in their East rivals, so that may be a factor also.

 

[1982Alum]

This team currently has no OL or DL on the roster. Without either, this team won't win in the SEC. Don't tell me about Tre Smith or McKenzie/Tuttle. Tre is excellent but only can play one position. McKenzie and Tuttle both came in with great fanfare and promise and have done nothing in their three years on the team. If those two weren't injured, they were getting pushed qll around on the field. And who knows qhat Kongbo will do, if anything.

We must bring in 4 or more OL and DL recruits and hope they pan out or we will be struggling for years.

 

[jasonvol18]

If Will Grier returns to WVa, he will be among the top 5 names on the Heisman Watch.

6-6 with a Shreveport or Birmingham Bowl...

And W.Va still struggled with the very few teams on their schedule that plays any ounce of Defense. He's also more turnover prone than Dormady was. He had 12 Int's and a handful of fumbles to go with them. I'm not sure he comes back anyway though especially with the injury to his finger. Not sure he risks worse injuries by coming back. But either way W.Va is an average Big 12 team and have yet to discover what playing any kind of defense means.

 

[JCHateSteve]

I'm on the other side of this. W.Va is gonna be very winnable so that would be 4 wins in OOC games, Fla is in the exact same boat and we get them at home so that's very winnable. So that's 5..we lose to Ala and AU and Ga so that's 5-3. Probably lose to S.Carol so 5-4. But should beat UK and Mizzou at home so that's 7-4 and based off law of average vs Vandy that's 8 wins. 7-5 or 8-4 are the likely 2 most probable. S&C shouldn't put us behind much if any. There is always the attrition possibility but can also possibly be looking at adding a couple transfers too. We only have 9 Olineman returning but potentially JUCO and Grad Transfer help could be on the way. Maybe we can steal one of Ole Miss's then add the Cal transfer and possibly get atleast 2 JUCO Olineman. This weekend's visitors will go a long way in determining the Offensive Line questions.

WVU is going to be a tough game at a neutral site right out of the gate. I put it UF and Mizz as toss ups. Mizz is late in the year when we are likely to be even thinner. UF just has our number. I highly doubt we win all 3. I'm saying 1-3 in those games due to a new system, coaches, and a roster with holes in key areas. Or we could win 2/3 of those and drop UK and/or Vandy, due to injuries. Everything is going to be in flux even if we get Juco help. Even Saban only won 6 his first year.

 

[jasonvol18]

This team currently has no OL or DL on the roster. Without either, this team won't win in the SEC. Don't tell me about Tre Smith or McKenzie/Tuttle. Tre is excellent but only can play one position. McKenzie and Tuttle both came in with great fanfare and promise and have done nothing in their three years on the team. If those two weren't injured, they were getting pushed qll around on the field. And who knows qhat Kongbo will do, if anything.

We must bring in 4 or more OL and DL recruits and hope they pan out or we will be struggling for years.

I think the coaching change will help both lines of scrimmage players. There's pieces in place and the coaching philosophy change will change the way both lines play and bring a much different level of physicality. The days of our guys being soft and poorly coached is overer. We have 14 scholarship DLineman coming back next season, 7 scholarship LB's but only 8 Scholarship Olineman I think. We are seeing that JP took notice of that early on and making the OLine lack of depth top priority.

 

[jasonvol18]

WVU is going to be a tough game at a neutral site right out of the gate. I put it UF and Mizz as toss ups. Mizz is late in the year when we are likely to be even thinner. UF just has our number. I highly doubt we will all 3. I'm saying 1-3 in those games due to a new system, coaches, and a roster with holes in key areas. Or we could win 2/3 of those and drop UK and/or Vandy, due to injuries. Everything is going to bed in flux even if we get Juco help. Even Saban only won 6 his first year.

I see what you're saying. A lot for Mizzou and W.Va will hinge on if either QB returns. Fortunately we have Mizzou at home and W.Va will be a neutral site game but we will have the home field advantage. As for Fla they will be going through the exact same thing with new Coach's and system. Mizzou will also have a new PC and possibly a new QB.Theres so many things that will change before our first game next season. Hopefully the changes for us are good.

 

[jasonvol18]

I remember looking at the UGA roster and man, did they have a bunch of seniors. After that, not a lot of juniors... mostly sophomores and freshmen. Be interesting to see if they can be as good this coming year. Gonna be some improvement in their East rivals, so that may be a factor also.

Oh yea GA is losing 22 or 23 SR's alone with possible JR's leaving too. That will be a different GA team next year.

 

[JCHateSteve]

I see what you're saying. A lot for Mizzou and W.Va will hinge on if either QB returns. Fortunately we have Mizzou at home and W.Va will be a neutral site game but we will have the home field advantage. As for Fla they will be going through the exact same thing with new Coach's and system. Mizzou will also have a new PC and possibly a new QB.Theres so many things that will change before our first game next season. Hopefully the changes for us are good.

I sure hope so. If we win more than 6 it's going to be an amazing coaching job. CJP deserves coach of the year if he wins 8. He will have overcome a ton of adversity if the season goes that well.

 

[SaintLouisVol]

The players on this roster are 1.5-2 years behind in strength and conditioning.

While I agree with the OP that there should be talent on the team, your point is a huge, huge factor.

These players are not only behind in S&C, they're behind in general technique and development. Every year, there are just a handful of guys that walk onto an NCAA D1 field as a frosh ready to ball. The rest of them have to get bigger, stronger, faster and SMARTER before they have a chance. I think there's too many guys on the roster that aren't a whole lot different than the day they got here.

The success of the team in 2018 will depend on just how much development the new staff can do with one spring practice, one summer and a fall camp. And, of course, how may JuCo studs they can find that have been in a good program for 2-3 years.

 

[TennaciousD957]

I am not sure if Pruitt is going to be the man or not, but we all know that next year we will have some growing pains. However, I am persistently seeing people say 5-7 would be likely and 6-6 would be a stellar season for us. There is plenty of talent on this roster. It is not perfect. The OLine needs some help and TE is weak. However, there is PLENTY of talent at all other positions and this does not even include the incoming class. I am not thinking this is a 10 win team by any means, but this roster is good enough to be 7-5 or 8-4 IMO. We are in the east and we only have to better than SC, VANDY, MIZZ, UK to be 8-4.

Next Years Roster (Sans Freshman) - 247 sports rankings
5 - 5 star players
24 - 4 star players
32 - 3 star players

Offense
QB - Dormady - 4 star
QB - Gaurantano - 4 star
QB - McBride, 3 star
WR - Callaway - 4 star
WR - Jennings - 4 star
WR - Byrd - 4 star
WR - B. Johnson - 3 star
WR - Williams - 3 star
WR - Murphy - 3 star
WR - Palmer - 3 star
WR - Fant - 3 star
WR - J Jones - 3 star
TE - Pope - 3 star
TE - Bumphus - 3 star
TE - Johnson - 3 star
TE - Wolf - 2 star
TE - J. Brown - 3 star
RB - J Kelly - 3 star
RB - Chandler - 4 star
RB - Fils-Aime - 4 star
RB - Jordan - 3 star
RB - Coleman - 3 star
OL - T. Smith - 5 star
OL - D. Richmond - 5 star
OL - R. Johnson - 4 star
OL - Hall - 4 star
OL - Boulware - 4 star
OL - Tatum - 3 star
OL - Calbert - 3 star
OL - Brooks - 3 star
OL - Niehaus - 3 star
OL - Locklear 3 star

Defense
LB - Bituli - 4 star
LB - Ignont - 4 star
LB - Kirkland - 4 star
LB - Bates - 4 star
LB - Sapp - 4 star
LB - A. Smith - 3 star
LB - Blakely - 3 star
LB - Page - 3 star
LB - Reid - 3 star
DL - Mckenzie - 5 star
DL - Kongbo - 5 star
DL - Phillips - 5 star
DL - Tuttle - 4 star
DL - A. Johnson - 4 star
DL - Crosby - 4 star
DL - D. Taylor - 4 star
DL - Picou - 3 star
DL - Butler - 3 star
DL - Bennett - 3 star
DL - D. Johnson - 3 star
DL - Thaxton - 3 star
DL - Bain - 2 star
DB - Warrior - 4 star
DB - Abernathy - 4 star
DB - Osborne - 4 star
DB - TK Jr. - 4 star
DB - Gaulden - 4 star
DB - M. Gray - 4 star
DB - Buchanan - 3 star
DB - Labruzza - 3 star
DB - T. Bailey - 3 star
DB - T. Jackson - 3 star
DB - Shamburger - 3 star

 

[sjt18]

As I see it, our failures on the field last year were due to poor play calling and an unbelievable attrition from injuries.

That's like saying the cause of your ticket was crossing the yellow line rather than driving drunk. You really can't do much with playcalling in a bad system with 4 years of poor development. The injuries... relate to both the development and the system that causes players to be uncertain about what they're doing.

The best thing Butch Jones did while at Tennessee was recruit. from his second year onward, we had top 10 recruiting classes. There is real talent on this team.

Yes and no. Jones failed in recruiting in many ways. Some positions are just weak.

It may not go that way. I hope that it does, and I don't believe I am being foolish in thinking that it is a realistic possibility.

If Pruitt is an elite coach and some things fall into place just right... nine wins are possible. If he gets 7 or 8 wins then we'll have to wait to see how it goes. If he wins 6... he's probably not the guy either. If he wins 5 or less then just plan on another painful termination and coaching search within the next 4 years OR a steady decline of the program.