Recruiting Forum Football Talk IV

[MoCo_Vol]

Just remember, year 1 for Pruitt he only had one game where they scored 30 against a FBS opponent.

 

[SpringBokVol]

Maybe, but there are mixed reports. I don't think Hooker is the clear 2.

Well, what we do know for sure is that Milton is QB1.

 

[SpringBokVol]

Ooooof. Milton looked like who he is. Hope he makes strides .
Evans is my kind of Back.

Side note* Big Kat Bryant was so good last night for UCF. wow better than advertised

Man, Big Kat did look good. Kept thinking about what if he stayed at UT. Our D Line would be NASTY

 

[Devo182]

So you're choosing to believe Tennessee still has the wrong coaches? Because if the staff is purposely not playing the best QB, or not recognizing who the best QB is, then we obviously still have the wrong coaches. Where does Uncle Dobrucky coach?

Uncle got it from nephew - an older player/walkon. Someone did confirm...maybe a VQ mod...that maybe a few favored someone else at qb. And then someone noted maybe the walkon likes someone else because the other QBs are the ones throwing to walkons, not Milton...I could also see walkons having a hard time with Milton because they arent d1 scholarship caliber. Maybe a softer thrower like HH or HB is just more their speed, idk.

Grade of slaw regardless. Unless you have a stud qb, out of 109 other players, you will have varying opinions, just human nature. That's why there's a dictatorship - the HC, like Saban says it's not a democracy.

 

[SpringBokVol]

I wonder if the first two drives were scripted and the others weren’t.

I saw someone on Twitter say we only run like 8 pass plays in a game - and that’s been the case with Heupel wherever he’s been. They find a matchup they like and go after it over, and over, and over.

Well if you go back and look at it - we ran about 10 different plays all game long in the passing game - just different formations, but concepts and route trees pretty similar.

It's a way to make the game a little easier. We shall see.

 

[GoBigOrange86]

I’m trying not to be upset considering we won and won easily, but I’m just disappointed we didn’t see more fireworks. I’m still stuck thinking we win 4 or 5 because I just don’t think our QBs are very good. I wanted to see something like we saw against WKU in Kiffin’s first year. At least it was never really in doubt, but I don’t know. I was just hoping for more. I’m not confident at all that we’ll beat Pitt.

 

[MoCo_Vol]

Did you watch any of his Michigan tape? He never trusted what he saw there either.

He probably is what he is; perhaps he can get a little better around the edges, and he is better than what we saw last night, but I'd be surprised if a light bulb goes off and he starts consistently hitting those timing/anticipation throws down the field. If he does, then Heupel is a hell of a coach.

Tore the thumb ligament in game 1 against Minnesota, so hard to judge too much of the games that followed after that. He also got blasted often behind that terrible line they had there last year.

 

[Ulysees E. McGill]

That's where I'm at. I'm not high on Heup's long term potential but it's gonna be a tough year one for any coach. That's not to say there won't be things to judge throughout this year.

That's where we disagree...I am very high on Heupel long term.

 

[Weezer]

This is stupid, Weezer. I hate how we do this on message boards. Good grief.

No, but I do believe that it is possible for a coach to fall in love with a guy who can throw it 80 yards effortlessly and think that he can use those tools to create big explosive plays, verses playing the guy who doesn't have those tools, but who is effective in the offense. Wow, crazy, I know. It's almost like Heup has done that before. Oh yeah, when he started Wimbush in 2019 at UCF before making the switch to Dillion Gabriel and the rest is history.

So Heupel made that mistake before and didn't learn from it? Is that what you're saying?

What I hate on MBs is when we think we know more than the coaches. Like I said, if that's actually the case, if we know more than the coaches, then we obviously don't have the right coaches.

As far as Milton goes, if he can't get it done in games, I trust that Heup will give someone else a chance until he finds something that works. I'm just tired of the narrative that Bailey didn't get a fair shake. If that's true, then again, we STILL have the wrong coaches. Considering Heup is probably guaranteed the next 4-5 years, I hope and pray that's not the case.

 

[05_never_again]

Tore the thumb ligament in game 1 against Minnesota, so hard to judge too much of the games that followed after that. He also got blasted often behind that terrible line they had there last year.

He did not seem to be limited at all that that injury, however significant it probably was. The zip on the ball was still there. He still overthrew a bunch of guys and had trouble on any sort of anticipatory throw, especially over the middle of the field; that doesn't have anything to do with a hand injury.

I just think he can't consistently anticipate throws and read defenses, which is a shame because he has all the arm talent in the world.

 

[SweetasSoda]

I said 5-8 wins based on QB play and injuries. Was disappointed in Milton. Not so much how he didn’t look comfortable or connect on long passes because that takes time, and he didn’t have spring practice. It was more the simple throws over the middle. Guess I was hoping for that after JG. I think HH and HB could do that better, but you would have to give up the long balls. Glad CJH is not giving up on Milton after one game though. And I am sure the other two will continue to be developed and prepared in case he does not improve.

 

[Bassmaster_Vol]

So Heupel made that mistake before and didn't learn from it? Is that what you're saying?

What I hate on MBs is when we think we know more than the coaches. Like I said, if that's actually the case, if we know more than the coaches, then we obviously don't have the right coaches.

As far as Milton goes, if he can't get it done in games, I trust that Heup will give someone else a chance until he finds something that works. I'm just tired of the narrative that Bailey didn't get a fair shake. If that's true, then again, we STILL have the wrong coaches. Considering Heup is probably guaranteed the next 4-5 years, I hope and pray that's not the case.

Nobody thinks we know more than the coaches. Nobody. We are pointing out that Joe Milton looked terrible last night. There's no disputing it. And it's possible that Heup wanted to give him the shot because of his arm, but that there might be a better QB as far as managing the games and making plays on the roster, like was the case in 2019. Either Joe will improve and keep his job, or he won't, and we'll find out.

 

[Devo182]

Anyone know what V Tech is running out there this year?

I just went in there and VTech is gonna be running 3 Honda Civics with Spoon VTEC engines.

 

[Gilbert]

Hot take.

If Hyatt makes two more catches last night, we’re in a lot better mood today and have a rosier outlook.

 

[SweetasSoda]

I'll be honest... I don't think Milton has some major issue.

Feel like the bulk of what I saw was rust more than anything else. Last game was November last year against Penn State, no spring ball and had to repair a torn ligament in his thumb on his throwing hand. He didn't seem to "trust" what he was seeing is really what I thought it came down to. And that'll be fairly easy to sort out in the film room.

Practice reps will never be the same as full speed game reps.

This. He was thinking and questioning everything.

 

[MoCo_Vol]

Little surprised how after a 32 one sided win ya'll coming in here full handwringing mode about a 6-5 Pitt team that didn't even beat a 500 team last year.

Here's who they beat:

4-5 Austin Peay
1-10 Syracuse
4-7 Louisville
3-6 FSU
5-6 Virginia Tech
3-7 Georgia Tech


I wanted us to score 30+ and win going away. We did that, turned into a lopsided rushing attack instead of flinging it all over the field...but nice to see we'll be capable of running the ball. I mean last year's Bowling Green team was a hot mess, but that's not who we played last night. This year I'm sure they'll be a better team than where they ended up last season.

 

[Catbone]

Milton was the sole reason I am disappointed, minus the dropped pass by Hyatt.

I bet you Hyatt bounces back though. Velus HAS to be better. Need to get a TE involved. Evans and small looked solid. Wright goes down when you breathe on him. Pass protection was pretty good. Run blocking got better as the game went on.

Defense needs to create takeaways to be successful. No excuse letting their QB pick us apart. Run defense was good. Young coming back will help. Bent but not break in redzone. Big drop off at LB, not much depth there.

Special teams were solid. Impressed by lack of penalties when starting a brand new system and scheme.

Still on track for 5-7 imo

Onto week 2.

 

[dwaugh]

I could see receivers preferring someone that doesn't throw 90 MPH fastballs at them...much easier to catch a softer throw. If Milton can get better at touch passes, I think he will be fine. I also saw him go through progressions multiple times last night.

Defense looked like they knew their assignments and played fast, unlike last year. Running game looked really good. Half time adjustments that worked! Overall, looked better out of the gates than the past 2 years. I'm really interested to see how much progress we make before the next game.

 

[Bassmaster_Vol]

Little surprised how after a 32 one sided win ya'll coming in here full hand wring mode about a 6-5 Pitt team that didn't even beat a 500 team last year.

Here's who they beat:

4-5 Austin Peay
1-10 Syracuse
4-7 Louisville
3-6 FSU
5-6 Virginia Tech
3-7 Georgia Tech


I wanted us to score 30+ and win going away. We did that, turned into a lopsided rushing attack instead of flinging it all over the field...but nice to see we'll be capable of running the ball. I mean last year's Bowling Green team was a hot mess, but that's not who we played last night. This year I'm sure they'll be a better team than where they ended up last season.

Pitt is not good, but they do have a good defense. Based on what we saw last night, all they have to do is take away the run and we're in trouble. Joe must be better

 

[Ulysees E. McGill]

I know, but we're talking about just 2 throws, and one of those things wasn't even Milton's fault. We ran almost 90 plays...if just 2 of them had a different outcome the narrative about Milton/the offense/the entire game is totally different.

It isn't like I'm saying "Man, if Milton was more accurate on about 12 throws he would have looked pretty good."

How was one of those two deep throws "not his fault"? He was under no real pressure...plus he went 1-10 during one stretch, plus he missed recievers running wide ass open on a ton of plays.

 

[Devo182]

It's not that difficult. People are worried because Joe Milton looked terrible last night. Really simple to understand. If he plays like that next week, we will lose and we will lose handily

And no one likes how the defense, run game, and STs looked? Those balance out the negative aspects imo. Team sport, overall I thought we did as expected.

You could rebalance things based on expectations - most probably expected a bit more from QB, but less from defense. Team-wide we are what we thought we were. At least those of us expecting a ~34 pt win. Jmo. If you expected a 51 pt win, then sure you're quite disappointed, but that's sort of on you.

 

[Enki_Amenra]

I don't think Hooker or Bailey or better

May not be. I'd still try someone out who doesn't stand completely still, flat-footed for a second or more at a time. He starts that in an SEC game, he's gonna get murdered, it's terrible for us and dangerous for him.

 

[Kingston Vol]

Little surprised how after a 32 one sided win ya'll coming in here full handwringing mode about a 6-5 Pitt team that didn't even beat a 500 team last year.

Here's who they beat:

4-5 Austin Peay
1-10 Syracuse
4-7 Louisville
3-6 FSU
5-6 Virginia Tech
3-7 Georgia Tech


I wanted us to score 30+ and win going away. We did that, turned into a lopsided rushing attack instead of flinging it all over the field...but nice to see we'll be capable of running the ball. I mean last year's Bowling Green team was a hot mess, but that's not who we played last night. This year I'm sure they'll be a better team than where they ended up last season.

I don’t think anyone is saying Pittsburgh is great, but they’re the ‘85 Bears compared to that Bowling Green team. They have actually D1 linemen on both sides of the ball.

This right here also causes a lot of consternation for me:


There is no doubt that UCF team in 2019 was better than this current UT team. Pitt knows the recipe for this offense and knows how to beat it.

 

[Bassmaster_Vol]

And no one likes how the defense, run game, and STs looked? Those balance out the negative aspects imo. Team sport, overall I thought we did as expected.

You could rebalance things based on expectations - most probably expected a bit more from QB, but less from defense. Team-wide we are what we thought we were. At least those of us expecting a ~34 pt win. Jmo

We do, of course. WE looked good in all those areas. But that was against BG. BG gave up an average of 310 ypg on the ground last year. Us running against them might not be all that impressive. We will not run the ball like that against Pitt. BG is bad, and so it's even more of a surprise that Milton looked that bad against them

 

[MoCo_Vol]

We also only called 24 pass plays last night... Joe was like 9/11 going into the 2nd quarter when we saw a few drops happen and Cooper go out. Momentum stalled for a bit after that, after halftime we went for over 300 yards and scored 24 more points. I think Saturday against Pitt will be an important game, hopefully we can compete and clean up the things we need to in the passing game.

Velus being banged up, no Keyton and no Calloway I'm sure also changed the chemistry in the passing game.