Josh Heupel Has Elevated Tennessee — But Can He Evolve?

#1
RockyTop603

RockyTop603

Rocky Top in New Hampshire
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#1
I’m just gonna say it — Josh Heupel is turning into Tennessee’s version of James Franklin. Yeah, he wins games, puts up points, and has us looking way better than we were a few years ago… but he still can’t win the big ones. Every time we get a shot to take that next step, we fall flat.

At some point, being “better than before” isn’t enough. We need a coach who can close the deal when it matters most.
 
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#2
#2
RockyTop603 said:
I’m just gonna say it — Josh Heupel is turning into Tennessee’s version of James Franklin. Yeah, he wins games, puts up points, and has us looking way better than we were a few years ago… but he still can’t win the big ones. Every time we get a shot to take that next step, we fall flat.

At some point, being “better than before” isn’t enough. We need a coach who can close the deal when it matters most.
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He has won big games here....to suggest otherwise is wrong
 
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#3
#3
I sorta agree with your analogy but firing him is not the answer. He needs to improve in some areas and he admits that. This season the D has been the problem in every phase which was on display last night. When you have to outscore everyone you play to win that is not a championship winning way. It is what it is for this season. We will see what Heuple does after the season to improve that, then we will know the answer to your post.

AL plays good solid FB with few mistakes and they do what they do well. They should take some positives away from that. We will see.
 
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#4
#4
RockyTop603 said:
I’m just gonna say it — Josh Heupel is turning into Tennessee’s version of James Franklin. Yeah, he wins games, puts up points, and has us looking way better than we were a few years ago… but he still can’t win the big ones. Every time we get a shot to take that next step, we fall flat.

At some point, being “better than before” isn’t enough. We need a coach who can close the deal when it matters most.
Click to expand...
Good coach but not a great coach. You’ll be flamed for saying it. He’s our richt. We gotta decide if this university wants to win 8-9 a year, sometimes 10, or if we want the next level. I suspect we will settle.
 
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#5
#5
RockyTop603 said:
I’m just gonna say it — Josh Heupel is turning into Tennessee’s version of James Franklin. Yeah, he wins games, puts up points, and has us looking way better than we were a few years ago… but he still can’t win the big ones. Every time we get a shot to take that next step, we fall flat.

At some point, being “better than before” isn’t enough. We need a coach who can close the deal when it matters most.
Click to expand...
Is he James Franklin, who is pretty darn good, or just a later version of Butch Jones? I can remember when Butch was held in high regard.
 
#6
#6
Heupel has to work on clock management or find someone that can.

Heupel has to figure out how to start working the refs more.

Heupel has to figure out how to play in hostile road environments.

The team plays undisciplined. The coaching is subpar.

I'll give the team credit for fighting until the end but this loss is on Heupel. That playcsll at the end of the half was one of the worst I've ever seen.
 
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#7
#7
RockyTop603 said:
I’m just gonna say it — Josh Heupel is turning into Tennessee’s version of James Franklin. Yeah, he wins games, puts up points, and has us looking way better than we were a few years ago… but he still can’t win the big ones. Every time we get a shot to take that next step, we fall flat.

At some point, being “better than before” isn’t enough. We need a coach who can close the deal when it matters most.
Click to expand...
Your premise is demonstrably false. Of course, the definition of "big ones" is ambiguous enough the make it argumentative. He has won big games.

Can he evolve? Yes. Take a look at offensive scheme this year as an indication. Will he evolve the way all the "Monday morning QBs" want him to? Probably not.
 
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#9
#9
CJH took a program that was a dumpster fire and made it reasonably competitive.

He continues to bewilder me with his nonsensical clock management at critical points in games.

On the road, he fails to grasp times when offensively we could take advantage of other teams and calls way too conservative and predictable.

Defense, we are not disciplined and consistent.

What made Nick Saban the goat was that he was never satisfied with sloppy play or bonehead calls regardless of the score.
 
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#11
#11
McDad said:
Your premise is demonstrably false. Of course, the definition of "big ones" is ambiguous enough the make it argumentative. He has won big games.

Can he evolve? Yes. Take a look at offensive scheme this year as an indication. Will he evolve the way all the "Monday morning QBs" want him to? Probably not.
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The "big ones" are only the ones we lose clearly
 
#12
#12
RockyTop603 said:
I’m just gonna say it — Josh Heupel is turning into Tennessee’s version of James Franklin. Yeah, he wins games, puts up points, and has us looking way better than we were a few years ago… but he still can’t win the big ones. Every time we get a shot to take that next step, we fall flat.

At some point, being “better than before” isn’t enough. We need a coach who can close the deal when it matters most.
Click to expand...
He's won several big games. This your first year as a fan?🤣
 
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#13
#13
I’m holding my thoughts on the future of this program under Heupel until we see what happens this weekend against Kentucky. Heads need to start rolling, like today (Banks and Martinez, the latter most definitely). I don’t think it’s his, yet, but if we walk into Lexington looking lost and disorganized, and then nothing happens to correct course, he’s officially lost me.
 
#14
#14
james_govols said:
Heupel has to work on clock management or find someone that can.

Heupel has to figure out how to start working the refs more.

Heupel has to figure out how to play in hostile road environments.

The team plays undisciplined. The coaching is subpar.

I'll give the team credit for fighting until the end but this loss is on Heupel. That playcsll at the end of the half was one of the worst I've ever seen.
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Peyton Manning thru the exact pass his last game at the exact time and got the same result!
 
#15
#15
CJH lacks one of the most basic and difficult skills of leadership and that is recognizing poor performance by subordinates and making a change. By all accounts his firing at Oklahoma by Stoops had a devastating affect on him and I suspect that has effected his willingness to let underperforming staff members go. I think many on here would agree that there are a few coaches on staff that could and need to be upgraded before we will ever be a top tier team again.
 
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#17
#17
teeball said:
CJH lacks one of the most basic and difficult skills of leadership and that is recognizing poor performance by subordinates and making a change. By all accounts his firing at Oklahoma by Stoops had a devastating affect on him and that has effected his willingness to let underperforming staff members go. I think many on here would agree that there are a few coaches on staff that could and need to be upgraded before we will ever be a top tier team again.
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Psychological profiles in the blind are fascinating. Ive always felt they say more about the assessor more than the assessee.
 
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#19
#19
He’s hopeless. Just stupid. Wasn’t even bad decisions. It was wtf decisions. I’be been watching UT football over 40 years and I’ve never woke up this pissed the day after a game. I can totally accept losses but that level of incompetence is just incredible. This one game makes me even question I want to even watch football anymore. I thought he was a coaches son. How does he not comprehend basic in game function. The stupid kid from the Blind Side would have known what to do or not do. My 7 year old niece and she don’t even watch football but she can play checkers. There’s basic concepts in any type of game play. I doubt Danny White got any sleep last night.
 
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#20
#20
McDad said:
Psychological profiles in the blind are fascinating. Ive always felt they say more about the assessor more than the assessee.
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As they say … opinions are like ***** and everyone has one. It appears we have that in common. GBO!!!
 
#21
#21
CJH did elevate the program. Will he win an SEC title here? I think it’s very unlikely for the following reasons:

1. He doesn’t have the built in recruiting advantages of schools like Texas, TAMU, Florida, UGA, etc. For a UT coach to win it all at UT you need to be a unicorn coach / generational coach like Saban / Meyer. And I don’t think CJH is or ever will be that level of coach. His teams are way too undisciplined for me to believe that.

2. The SEC is more competitive than ever. Mizzou is now good. Ole Miss is now a good program, and we added Oklahoma, Texas, and TAMU.

3. I don’t see UT having a championship level defense under CJH.

Can we get a better coach? Highly unlikely. Theoretically, it’s possible we hire the next Saban but it’s not statistically likely to happen.

He will be a coach who on average wins 8-9 games . . . With an occasional, with a little luck, 10 win season.

He will be our coach until he has a couple of “down” seasons where we are expected to win 9-10 and only win 6-7 with a loss or two to a really bad team.

At this point in a season . . . What a team is becomes evident. We are a penalty prone, mistake prone (at the worst times), poor tackling, good rushing, turnover prone, porous defense team.

We could easily be 4-3 right now (we were fortunate to beat Mississippi State).

JMO.
 
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#25
#25
EastTNVol6240 said:
Good coach but not a great coach. You’ll be flamed for saying it. He’s our richt. We gotta decide if this university wants to win 8-9 a year, sometimes 10, or if we want the next level. I suspect we will settle.
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Not a fair comparison. Richt had an abundance of talent to recruit from in Georgia, so fans felt he underperformed expectations. Heupel has exceeded expectations with the talent that he had coming into the program. Even now, we are 17th in the country in blue chip ratio players, and made the CFPlast season and hovering around that ranking now in the AP.
 
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