Recruiting Forum Football Talk [RIP 9.3.2019]

[jakez4ut]

Well, yeah, happens all the time.

I don't mean that we were confident in landing Henry and Crouch, but we were deep in those battles. Doesn't feel that way with Sewell or Washington. Feels like we're there but not like that. Maybe I'm misremembering. There may have been some teetering on Wright, but VQ was basically telling us he was a Vol for 9 months.

we went months thinking Crouch was a clemson lock...to the point where he was barely even discussed, until after the pappoe deal went south.... we went the whole HT recruitment believing he was going to Bama, no shot at him coming here.

i get what you're saying, but there is some revisionism going on, "best of times/worst of times"........

last year, imo, was a lot more stressful on this front because there was a TON of unknown.

this year, i think people focus on how we closed the recruiting cycle out, and just beleived it would pick up where we left off. and it doesn't work that way.

there's plenty of meat left on the bone for this cycle. we'll see how much we get when it's all said and done. but the only way i'm really going to worry about this class, and the future in general, is if we just really flame out badly on the field this year......past that, i think we're gonna be aight.

 

[SLICKYINC]

 

[Devo182]

seems crazy doesn't it? the same prospects that could help TN (or anyone really) get to the point of winning at a high level, are saying no because TN isn't winning at a high level.

no dude, i need you and 10 of your 4* and 5* buddies to come here, and we'll be throttling folks too lol.

Pruitt being punished for Butch failing to develop his 4s and 5s. Suddenly the narrative is (this was literally said on-air right after Toots signed) "Tennessee hasn't developed their players recently" when it should be "the bums are out of office and it's new jack city over at Tennessee. **** about to get real".

 

[bignewt]

Pruitt being punished for Butch failing to develop his 4s and 5s. Suddenly the narrstive is "Tennessee hasn't developed their players recently" when it should be "the bums are out of office and it's new jack city over at Tennessee. **** about to get real".

 

[jakez4ut]

Pruitt being punished for Butch failing to develop his 4s and 5s. Suddenly the narrative is (this was literally said on-air right after Toots signed) "Tennessee hasn't developed their players recently" when it should be "the bums are out of office and it's new jack city over at Tennessee. **** about to get real".

yep. and i think that's what's keeping us in a lot of these races, is that we've done a good job of seperating our new selves from our old selves. the new boss isn't the same as the old boss so to speak.
we have all the facilities. we have a great coaching staff, that is widely well know and respected among players/prospects. we have medical, S&C, training, nutrition....everything you need to be successful.

just need some proof in the pudding....and a few kids willing to buy in early and help out with that.

 

[jakez4ut]

lol. yep. except that didn't really end too well for them...............lol.

 

[Bassmaster_Vol]

we went months thinking Crouch was a clemson lock...to the point where he was barely even discussed, until after the pappoe deal went south.... we went the whole HT recruitment believing he was going to Bama, no shot at him coming here.

i get what you're saying, but there is some revisionism going on, "best of times/worst of times"........

last year, imo, was a lot more stressful on this front because there was a TON of unknown.

this year, i think people focus on how we closed the recruiting cycle out, and just beleived it would pick up where we left off. and it doesn't work that way.

there's plenty of meat left on the bone for this cycle. we'll see how much we get when it's all said and done. but the only way i'm really going to worry about this class, and the future in general, is if we just really flame out badly on the field this year......past that, i think we're gonna be aight.

I might be misremembering but the battles for Sewell and Washington don’t feel the same to me

 

[jakez4ut]

I might be misremembering but the battles for Sewell and Washington don’t feel the same to me

i can see that. to me, they feel a lot HT and Crouch. definitely a subjective thing. you could also draw comparisons to Washington and Arik's recruitment if you wanted. two highly coveted 5*'s we're definitely in on heavily, and will have to fight to get, definitley not the leader for either.

the other thing seperating this year from last, is the difference in the in state recruiting. not near as big a push last year, as this year....so there's a few less national prospects....

the last thing that's a little different is it feels like we've really not taken deep dives on some of the flakier prospects out there, like we did with Bogle and eboigbe last year. Jarrett and morris may be the two that come closest to that?

not really arguing your point for or against...just depends on the eye looking at it.

 

[Joe Dirt]

I meant on the field this season

Year 2 is the hardest to predict for any coaching staff. Strength and conditioning gains, kids buying into the system, coaching upgrades, learning how to be a HC, in-game adjustment improvements etc.

Some coaches improve marginally in year 2 and some burst onto the scene. I've heard nothing but praise for Pruitt's coaching acumen -- so he might make massive strides -- but also BVS so idk

 

[butchna]

Well, yeah, happens all the time.

I don't mean that we were confident in landing Henry and Crouch, but we were deep in those battles. Doesn't feel that way with Sewell or Washington. Feels like we're there but not like that. Maybe I'm misremembering. There may have been some teetering on Wright, but VQ was basically telling us he was a Vol for 9 months.

I honestly feel we’re deeper with Sewell and Washington than we were with Toto and Crouch this time last year. They were pipe dreams until December and unforeseen contingencies like Lupoi jetting from Bama can’t be predicted. I’d add Gray because the staff had a different type of RB in mind before we played a season. Before the usual comments begin, no I’m not happy we’re ranked in the 30’s in recruiting and falling before we’ve played a game but I recall two time periods of relative hopelessness in recent memory on that front. The beginning of Dooley’s final season when we were fighting off William & Mary for recruits and midway through Butch’s final season when we realized that top 10 was gone and we had no inkling how far it was going to fall. Football damn it! Let’s do some!

 

[MoCo_Vol]

I think the louder minority of the fanbase just wants to seem "relevant" in sharing their opinionated word vomit constantly in this day and age of social media it's the squeaky wheels that seem to be noticed.

People just don't seem to take into account the landscape for recruitment is different.

Class size is now at 25 instead of 30+, ESD allows top guys to play the long game (they can sign in November OR February). So they aren't forced to just accept a top school that isn't their #1 anymore. They can wait to see if someone who signs during ESD ends up ineligible or backing out/transferring before the February signing day even.

 

[jakez4ut]

Year 2 is the hardest to predict for any coaching staff. Strength and conditioning gains, kids buying into the system, coaching upgrades, learning how to be a HC, in-game adjustment improvements etc.

Some coaches improve marginally in year 2 and some burst onto the scene. I've heard nothing but praise for Pruitt's coaching acumen -- so he might make massive strides -- but also BVS so idk

pretty much agree. just depends on what you (or anyone for that matter) would define as "massive strides".

for a program that has one 9 games in 2 years, and only 2 conf games in 2 years, "massive gains" could be 4-4 in the league and 7 total. some others may just call that marginal.

either way, the only thing that matters is that it is headed in the right direction, and continues to look like it's headed in the right direction.

this staff, and this team, will probably have an opportunity or two to win a game they maybe shouldn't. it's going to be those kinds of games/moments that will set up the next few years. said it a lot, but just imagine if we'd of beaten OU, ARK and/or aTm, and UF in 2015...heck we had bama on the ropes that year as well. all games we had the opportunity to win, that we didn't. or just close 2016 out over USCe, Vandy and MO.

that staff wasted those opportunities. so we know what it looks like when it goes south.

i'm waaaaaaaaay more interested in seeing what happens when we're in those situiatons again. and what might happen if we find ourselves on the other side of those types of games.

 

[Bassmaster_Vol]

i can see that. to me, they feel a lot HT and Crouch. definitely a subjective thing. you could also draw comparisons to Washington and Arik's recruitment if you wanted. two highly coveted 5*'s we're definitely in on heavily, and will have to fight to get, definitley not the leader for either.

the other thing seperating this year from last, is the difference in the in state recruiting. not near as big a push last year, as this year....so there's a few less national prospects....

the last thing that's a little different is it feels like we've really not taken deep dives on some of the flakier prospects out there, like we did with Bogle and eboigbe last year. Jarrett and morris may be the two that come closest to that?

not really arguing your point for or against...just depends on the eye looking at it.

VQ pod making me feel like we have a great chance to land Gilbert or Washington. We’ll see. We need to

 

[LA Vol]

Is there serious confidence that we’re gonna deliver in that regard? CJP expecting to overachieve?

I think the coaches seem more confident than the fans-- and have since spring. The coaches keeping things under wraps and the media feeding that low expectations narrative feeds the angst.

 

[UT = Checkmate]

Who are you kidding? Many on here will freak out no matter what happens. The same ones that post during games after every single play. OMG A DROPPED PASS, PRUIT SUCKS TEE SUCKS WE SUCK FAHR EM ALL BLAH BLAH BLAH. NO PASS RUSH FIRE ROCKER HE'S OLD AND CANT RECRUIT OR DEVELOP ARGGGGGIMAMORONARGGGGG

And then we come back after halftime like in Auburn game last year.

 

[jakez4ut]

I think the coaches seem more confident than the fans-- and have since spring. The coaches keeping things under wraps and the media feeding that low expectations narrative feeds the angst.

yeah, i believe pruitt when he says he really likes this team and its chemistry. i think he knows we're not "there", but probably has a better sense of where we're at all across the roster, than they did this time last year. if nothing else, i think he sees a team that, physically, at least looks more like the competition, and positionally has more consistency from a personell standpoint. that should make their job as coaches a little easier going forward.

quietly confident. which is fine. would be nice for them all to get a result early on that could validate it and boost it.

 

[Devo182]

I’m sure that is true which means our class should look very similar to Auburns with them going thru the same type thing. The issue is it doesn’t look like it right now

Hmm our fanbases might feel the same, but coming off an SECW division title and 8-5 is liiight years ahead of 4-8, 5-7.

 

[RiotVol]

yeah, i believe pruitt when he says he really likes this team and its chemistry. i think he knows we're not "there", but probably has a better sense of where we're at all across the roster, than they did this time last year. if nothing else, i think he sees a team that, physically, at least looks more like the competition, and positionally has more consistency from a personell standpoint. that should make their job as coaches a little easier going forward.

quietly confident. which is fine. would be nice for them all to get a result early on that could validate it and boost it.

I think he was legit taken aback by the lack of size and attitude of the team he inherited even beyond what we’ve heard.

 

[jakez4ut]

I think he was legit taken aback by the lack of size and attitude of the team he inherited even beyond what we’ve heard.

i tend to agree. it was relatively obvious with how he went after the jucos and transfers he went after. and with his comments on the OL size a couple weeks ago at media days. physically we didn't look like a team that would compete at the level he wants to compete at.

which is one thing that gives me hope. absent the big splash recruits and top 5 classes, you can definitley see a concerted effort to rectify the speed/size issues our roster has had.

that we're not getting the top 5 classes right away just means it's going to take a little longer to develop some guys, and have to rely on some that may not really be ready. so there's some "taking lumps along the way" that comes with that. but it also should have some dividends to be gained on certain parts of our schedule that we've been more than lacking against. while we're young right now, we should still expect to see competitive gains against the 2nd tier (while us, ourselves, moving back in to that 2nd tier mind you)...and as those kids develop and the roster gets more veteran, then have the ability to take shots at the top of the league, and hopefully reloading with more top shelf talent later on so you don't have to go thru 3 year cycles of developing before you can compete.

i don't think that's what htey intended to do. i think pruitt probably came in pretty confident in the recruiting ability. not sure how much of the negative recruiting he factored for, or how difficult it might be to overcome it.

 

[Chuckie]

Wtf is Mullen even saying here

Coach Mullen, can you interpret that mindless drivel that just came out of your mouth?

 

[JCLawyerVol]

Is Jager worth a shot?

 

[Rishvol]

Is Jager worth a shot?

 

[drvenner]

Who are you kidding? Many on here will freak out no matter what happens. The same ones that post during games after every single play. OMG A DROPPED PASS, PRUIT SUCKS TEE SUCKS WE SUCK FAHR EM ALL BLAH BLAH BLAH. NO PASS RUSH FIRE ROCKER HE'S OLD AND CANT RECRUIT OR DEVELOP ARGGGGGIMAMORONARGGGGG

LOL yep. The first time JG throws a pick or holds it too long, it will be FAHR CHENEY, FAHR FRIEND, FARH EM ALL.

 

[drvenner]

I might be misremembering but the battles for Sewell and Washington don’t feel the same to me

That's because they won't be the same. Each cycle and each player is different. Who knows what will happen? Staff turnovers during and after the season will shake things up considerably. If we end up out of the Top 15, then I will begin to worry. I am not saying you're worrying, but there are plenty here who are.

 

[NMVol]

Thinking about the season and what will be critical. One thought pushes ahead of all others. JJ is back for another year!