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#1
Vollifer1949

Vollifer1949

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#1
Forgive me if this this has been posted before. But for you folks who correctly predicted Pruitt would fail (I was very much on the Pruitt bandwagon) What was your clue that he would be a disaster?
 
#3
#3
Simple for me. He was basically the only candidate not named Leach that would take it. Not that he was the best of the candidates that wanted the job.
 
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#5
#5
I didn't know he was going to fail, until I fully grasped the fact that scoring offense wins championships. The days of pounding the rock, controlling the clock, and playing brutal defense, are gone. He simply couldn't turn Chaney lose, to run the offense, or even allow Chaney to choose his starter at QB. Once I realized that Pruitt was a control freak, that lacked the desire or ability to change, I knew he would fail.
 
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#8
#8
I wasn’t sure he would fail. But, the first time I heard him address the media, I was not impressed. You don’t have to be eloquent to be a good coach. However, his poor use of the English language creates a first impression that he is not intelligent.
 
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#10
#10
Classic story of coordinator with no HC experience. Job was simply too big for him. I hoped I was wrong but the Georgia State loss was clear for the world to see. Better times ahead with CJH will give him time to show us his development.
 
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#11
#11
When I saw how out of date his offense in his first season was and even then I didn't give up on him. The same reason that I lost hope in Pruitt and Jones is the same reason I have hope in Heupel and it is a element of the offense called the passing game. When I look back on Butch Jones tenure at Tennessee I always felt had the offense been opened up more and built more around Dobbs arm rather than his legs that Butch Jones might have gotten further than he did. With Pruitt it was very easy to see from the word go that he was nothing more than Fulmer 2.0 and that is just not going to work or even come close in today game just look at Alabama prime example. That is the reason because of his offense that Josh Hepuel has a better chance at getting the job done rather than Pruitt and Jones. Sorry I went off topic
 
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#12
#12
I was really worried that he had zero experience as a head coach. I hoped he would be some kind of a savant, because his demeanor certainly did not inspire confidence. To be blunt, he came across as an imbecile. But you can't judge a book by it's cover and all that. So, I tried to keep an open mind and hope for the best. I really wanted him to prove me wrong.

But when he criticized the fans for attendance at the O&W Game, I really began to worry. Not only was he completely wrong, but even if he had a point it was an asinine decision from a PR standpoint. A new coach who had yet to win his first game was criticizing one of the most loyal fan bases in cfb. It struck me as just a dumb thing to do for no reason.

The kicking the whiteboard on the sideline was undisciplined and didn't set a good example for the players. Maybe Woody Hayes could get away with that kind of thing, but he had the track record to back it up. Then the Quarte Sapp incident, where Sapp basically called him a liar and then was allowed to come back and they just went on like the whole thing never happened.
 
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#13
#13
Vollifer1949 said:
Forgive me if this this has been posted before. But for you folks who correctly predicted Pruitt would fail (I was very much on the Pruitt bandwagon) What was your clue that he would be a disaster?
Click to expand...

1. He wasn't wanted by any other school as a HC. Much lesser schools backed off due to personality issues.
2. He had a reputation for being abrasive. I worried about culture and hiring assistants. That really became really evident with hiring Felton and Osovet into assistant roles when they weren't wanted by any other P5 program (or D1, D2, D3 program with Osovet)
3. He had reputation for questionable ethics (exits from FSU and UGA) as well as a slimeball mentor in Rush Probst.
4. His first two coordinators had no P5 coordinating experience. That plus first year HC = disaster in 2018.
5. His 2018 team couldn't make adjustments at halftime and weren't ready to start the game. This really became a huge issue in 2020 but it was evident all along.
6. His teams quit the last 2 games in 2018.
7. Georgia State

There were a lot of warning signs...
 
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#15
#15
The amazing thing about all of these coaching failures is that I believed each of them would leave it better than he found it.

The only guy that's a "push" in that regard IMO is Butch. It was pretty bad when he took over and I think he left behind talent that's at least as good as what he inherited.
 
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#16
#16
Vollifer1949 said:
Forgive me if this this has been posted before. But for you folks who correctly predicted Pruitt would fail (I was very much on the Pruitt bandwagon) What was your clue that he would be a disaster?
Click to expand...

As with most buttholes, he just couldn't pass the smell test!
 
#18
#18
Hacksaw said:
I almost feel like anyone who responds to this should provide evidence that they doubted Pruitt from the beginning.
Click to expand...

My question about Pruitt is that his career showed that he could take a talented unit and produce quality defenses. He had coached at Alabama, FSU (when they were really good) and Georgia. He never was defensive coordinator at North Carolina State or Arizona or somwhere where he didn't have a distinct talent advantage compared to his opponent.

So, what was he going to do when the talent was even or he had a talent disadvantage? And would he be able to recruit well enough to get the quality talent needed to get to a higher level.

But, the coaching profession is such that anyone who knows someone will succeed or fail is lying. I certainly didn't see Dabo coming. And while everyone may tell you how great Nick Saban is.....no one saw what he's doing at Alabama coming.

So, I didn't have a firm belief as to whether Pruitt would succeed or fail, but those were my questions.
 
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#22
#22
Vollifer1949 said:
Forgive me if this this has been posted before. But for you folks who correctly predicted Pruitt would fail (I was very much on the Pruitt bandwagon) What was your clue that he would be a disaster?
Click to expand...

The first game told me we were in trouble. The team showed no excitement to play a good team like WV. Usually, teams are very fired up for their coaches first game.

At first I blamed the players for not buying in but as I watched the stupid decisions continue, I realized any success would be minimal.
 
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