UTMark
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From deerpark in regards to article
Before the end of the regular season before "Champions of Life" and before the Vanderbilt loss we had already started working on an assessment of Tennessee football in Butch Jones' fourth year. As we talked with more and more people close to the university and the program people with intimate knowledge of the place we were continually surprised by some of the things we were learning.
To be honest, we were not sure what we'd find. We set out to ask a simple question: "How are things going?" And today's story was the product of that. We knew, without question, this would be a divisive story in the Tennessee community. And we knew that the use of anonymous sources would be something that not everyone would understand. But believe us when we say that we took every measure to ensure that this encapsulates the true sense of how things stand after Jones' fourth season.
This story, in a sense, is not complete. There's great curiosity surrounding what happens in the next chapter, especially related to the incoming AD and how Jones alters his coaching staff and reconfigures his weight room, in particular.
A year from now, we could get a very different response to "how are things going?" This is the answer right now, according to the dozens of people we spoke with for the story.
I think it's hard to determine some of the information, because does it come from one coach, several coaches, support staff, people in other departments, etc?
Do I think some of it is fair, I do. Butch deserves criticism they way he's handled certain things. But, in talking to a number of people, I don't know that it's as bad as the story made it seem.
Like, if Butch would just handle PR better he would be in a better spot. Because he handles PR poorly doesn't mean everything sucks. It just means he sucks at PR.
Now, I think he's taking steps to fix the S&C stuff and I'll wait to pass judgement on what he does with his staff. There is still plenty of talent on this team and the East is going to be average again next year.
In terms of him being willing to improve in certain areas, that is on him. We will see how he does.
Just my take on it.
Still a one-sided story with no sources named. Poor journalism. Why does Butch and Hart owe any media person information to try to combat stuff that might be from former players or coaches or staff members with an ax to grind? All it might do is more damage. I am glad they did not provide any comments about it.
I really don't understand why anybody is surprised or outraged by this story. The writer could have found alums, donors, boosters and former players who could have validated his opinions and said things far more detrimental to the program. It could have been much worse.
Butch needs to be a CEO. Hire replacements for most of the "best coaching staff in College Football" and then get out of their way.
