What are you basing this on? No matter how much we improve year to year, we are still 20 points behind Bama and UGA when we play them. Look at the scores of the current streaks. It's almost embarrassing. Our roster isn't even in the same universe as those guys.
Florida is Florida - talent has never mattered in that game. We just lose it every year until we don't. That game has never made logical sense. It isn't explainable like UGA and Bama.
meh.
the only thing we're not getting right now is the splash class that puts you on the map faster.
we've got two top 10 classes under our belt so far, and working on a 3rd.
the rsoter wasn't good when they got here and has been overhauled, especially on the O line......
defenisvely, we've made signficant strides, even w/out the benefit of all world top 5 talent across the board...hell we have two WR playing CB that are going to likely be on some version of all SEC lists.....
offensively, we need a QB....
we've gone from 0-8 in the SEC in 2017 to 5-3 in 2019.
news flash: UGA and Bama and Florida have been a head of us for a while now. hell, up until a couple years ago, USCe, Mizzou, Vandy all had winning streaks against us....to go along with the current streaks against the other 3.
you don't have to like it. but we're not yet ready to compete for SEC titles....and probably won't be for another year or two, at least. while UGA and Bama have show the ability to recruit their way to that level in relatively short order, TN has not been able to do that, and really, never has been able to do that....even when we were a top dog signing top 5 classes, we were still a development first program.
and that's where we are right now....develop the ones you have, and the ones you get.....when we've been able to get immediate contributors, they've contributed. the majority need time....and i honestly dont' care anymore about comparing us to this or that program. it really doesn't matter. cause we are where we are....and what happens someplace is inconsequential.
we need to continue to beef up the front 3-4 on defense...we need to continue to add depth to the OL and find/develop OT's...we need to get a QB developed....
but i really don't think we're light years behind anymore.....we went toe to toe with Bama physically last year until you know what happened. we went toe to toe with UGA physically, on defense anyway, and as a result was only down 2 freaking points in AThens headed to the 4th qtr....in both of those games had we had solid/good/better qb play...who knows....
but UGA's defense is legit. Bama's offense is legit. and across the board, we do not have the personnel yet to just go out and "handle" the difference between them and us in those match ups. the same has been tru with FL in a lot of cases....they seem to have just enough of an advantage in the right spots to be able to do what's needed when they play us.
the good news, we've bridged the gap, and in some cases passed, most everyone else in the SEC in my opinion.....other than those three programs, there's not another program i would just put an L next to on the schedule anymore.
anyway...........i'm not here to ruin a good bish session....but most of it is being done w/out any consideration of the context involved in TN football vs. the SEC as a whole.....
