2021 SEC Predictions.

#52
#52
“The portal losses are overblown”
It’s funny how fans refuse to be objective. Those portal losses literally leave us short handed until the SEC or NCAA decides to fix the transfer portal/25 scholarships issue. Literally one of the biggest group of transfer losses in college football history and you say they’re overblown 😂
Look..... AT.... THE.... ROSTER....

I am old enough to remember what Kiffin inherited. This roster is far deeper and more talented. I am BEING objective. You are the one who is not. You don't look at what you lost. You look at what you HAVE. You are not "objectively" doing that.

I don't deny that some talented players went through the portal. But even the best of them had performed below their ranking to this point of their career.

To be honest the bigger roster problem comes next year. UT could afford to lose many of those players because of the Covid allowance. Players lost to expired eligibility will be more than usual after this season.
 
#53
#53
Look..... AT.... THE.... ROSTER....

I am old enough to remember what Kiffin inherited. This roster is far deeper and more talented. I am BEING objective. You are the one who is not. You don't look at what you lost. You look at what you HAVE. You are not "objectively" doing that.

I don't deny that some talented players went through the portal. But even the best of them had performed below their ranking to this point of their career.

To be honest the bigger roster problem comes next year. UT could afford to lose many of those players because of the Covid allowance. Players lost to expired eligibility will be more than usual after this season.

This, it is like no one is looking at the current roster, we have 5* 4* and really good 3* players, doom and gloom before the first game.....geesh.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sjt18
#54
#54
Do not attempt to change sjt18's mind about anything. You will fail.
LOL. Predictable. You don't want to deal with the merits of what someone says... so you try to make it about them personally.

That's actually less true of me than most on this board. In my time here, only a few of us have publicly acknowledged they were wrong about anything. I have been here for a long time with one screen name. I don't change it like many have to avoid where I was wrong. I don't even mind saying that I was wrong. Most when proven wrong will either change their name or stop posting rather than admit they were wrong. Notice that you haven't seen k-town-king lately? He either changed names or left to avoid dealing with how badly wrong he was about JG.

Are you going to change my mind on this by repeating "25" over and over? No. Why? Because I've actually looked at the 2 deep and considered that most of the players who left wouldn't be in it. Some would and I've acknowledged those losses. But even among that group one or maybe 2 cannot be replaced by a similarly talented athlete. I don't think UT has a gamebreaker at RB like Gray. Small had already started taking Chandler's playing time. Henry T is a physically talented LB. He and Mitchell would have made a great pair. Crouch probably should have been a RB. He never played very well at LB and didn't appear to have the instincts for it.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: LittleVol
#55
#55
My annual SEC picks that I have made every year since 1993. SEC EAST. 1. Georgia 2. Kentucky 3.Florida 4.Mizzou 5.South Carolina 6. Tennessee
7. Vandy. SEC West. 1. A&M 2.Alabama 3.LSU 4.Arkansas 5.Ole Miss 6. Auburn 7. Miss St. Georgia wins the SEC title over A&M

I was right there with you, but Bama wins it all.
 
#58
#58
LOL. Predictable. You don't want to deal with the merits of what someone says... so you try to make it about them personally.

That's actually less true of me than most on this board. In my time here, only a few of us have publicly acknowledged they were wrong about anything. I have been here for a long time with one screen name. I don't change it like many have to avoid where I was wrong. I don't even mind saying that I was wrong. Most when proven wrong will either change their name or stop posting rather than admit they were wrong. Notice that you haven't seen k-town-king lately? He either changed names or left to avoid dealing with how badly wrong he was about JG.

Are you going to change my mind on this by repeating "25" over and over? No. Why? Because I've actually looked at the 2 deep and considered that most of the players who left wouldn't be in it. Some would and I've acknowledged those losses. But even among that group one or maybe 2 cannot be replaced by a similarly talented athlete. I don't think UT has a gamebreaker at RB like Gray. Small had already started taking Chandler's playing time. Henry T is a physically talented LB. He and Mitchell would have made a great pair. Crouch probably should have been a RB. He never played very well at LB and didn't appear to have the instincts for it.
I wasn't taking a shot at you. I agree with you frequently. I was just trying to inform that relatively new poster that he's wasting his time. Guys like you and butchna (who I also like) are stubborn as pine knots. I've been a lawyer for about 20 years and I argue with guys like you for a living and I've lost my appetite for it, unless somebody is paying me. LOL.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Proud Army Wife
#59
#59
I wasn't taking a shot at you. I agree with you frequently. I was just trying to inform that relatively new poster that he's wasting his time. Guys like you and butchna (who I also like, are stubborn as pine knots). LOL.
I am pretty stubborn once I draw a conclusion mostly because I don't do it without putting a lot of thought and consideration into it. You will see me pretty frequently say that I just don't know.

I like Heupel but I'm not willing to give him a pass. He has 80 or more guys on the roster including the Fr class who came to UT on scholarship. Some have suggested that UT may be taking some of their scholarship reductions this year... in a pretty painless way. They lost guys mostly who weren't likely to contribute except on the scout team... which isn't unimportant. The two or 3 deep UT has right now has talent. There's gaps in experience which to me means it is far more about the quality of coaching than losses through the portal.

IMHO, this timing was a break for Heupel. With the new rules, new coaches usually have guys on their roster that aren't culture fits and hurt the transition. The Covid allowance made it easier to let those guys go while keeping a full or near full roster. Without the extra year of eligibility, several more guys would be gone.
 
#60
#60
Look..... AT.... THE.... ROSTER....

I am old enough to remember what Kiffin inherited. This roster is far deeper and more talented. I am BEING objective. You are the one who is not. You don't look at what you lost. You look at what you HAVE. You are not "objectively" doing that.

I don't deny that some talented players went through the portal. But even the best of them had performed below their ranking to this point of their career.

To be honest the bigger roster problem comes next year. UT could afford to lose many of those players because of the Covid allowance. Players lost to expired eligibility will be more than usual after this season.
Thats just such a ridiculous take brother. Hype can fix it but this is a bottom third roster in the SEC.
 
#61
#61
Thats just such a ridiculous take brother. Hype can fix it but this is a bottom third roster in the SEC.
We will see but it isn't if you actually look at the roster and compare to both previous UT rosters and current opponent rosters. I don't blame you for reacting this way. Kiffin was probably the last UT coach to get results reflective of the sum of his talent or better. Each year since UT's coach has underperformed roster talent... that's true from the "eye ball perspective" and recruiting rankings over time. The most likely exception... is Dooley in his first year. That was an awful roster and should have been 8-5 with a win over LSU if not for a couple of "weird" plays- still underperformed I guess but was just that close. Even accounting for lack of experience, UK, Mizzou, and UT are roughly equal in talent. USCe trails them. Vandy is a mess.

If you are looking at the SEC as a whole then your argument would be stronger. But UT isn't playing the whole West. They have only two West opponents.

I think Ole Miss is the 4th least likely win but it is not an unwinnable game.

I've said this same things for years... after and during each coaching search especially. The guy who turns UT around will have two traits. One, he will find more than his share of underrated 3* players. Two, he will get more out of the roster than the sum of its talent... regardless of what that talent level is.
 
#63
#63
. I’m thinking Oklahoma is finally due to win it all this season
Hahahah.
Yeah and Notre Dame too right?

How many times do they need to get dominated by the truly elite for people to realize they are not elite?

They beat a Florida team with their worst defense in years and MOST importantly missed their top 3 offensive playmakers that accounted for the majority of their offense.
 
#64
#64
This transfer portal diaspora is gonna hurt. Anybody who thinks it isn't is kidding themselves. Do I think we only win 2-3 games? No, but I'm thinking 5, 6, maybe 7 if everything goes right, 4 if the injury bug hits us hard, but I don't think it's particularly reasonable to expect huge 8 or 9 wins this year all things considered.

 
#65
#65
My annual SEC picks that I have made every year since 1993. SEC EAST. 1. Georgia 2. Kentucky 3.Florida 4.Mizzou 5.South Carolina 6. Tennessee
7. Vandy. SEC West. 1. A&M 2.Alabama 3.LSU 4.Arkansas 5.Ole Miss 6. Auburn 7. Miss St. Georgia wins the SEC title over A&M
Vol Card pulled!!
 
#66
#66
I'm gun shy. I won't say that of any of them except Mitchell until they actually do.

The OL losses weren't "good"... but there's talent to cover.
Morris and Johnson were never good; not to say they won't be good in the future.
 
#67
#67
No way to prove who is right but I don't agree.

Also the portal losses are overblown. It is a large number but the meaningful losses were largely replaced in kind through the portal. By position group, OL and RB were net negatives but not critical- there's talent left at both positions. WR and TE were likely a wash.

The DL and DB were a net gain. LB is a push or perhaps a slight negative.

You have to look at the roster you have... not what you lost. I would love to have Henry T back. But he wasn't a great LB last year. Mitchell had similar stats and from what little I could tell was better in pass coverage than Henry T ever was.

To me the biggest loss was Gray. I don't think UT has anyone who replaces him in kind. He's special in the open field.

J Johnson I believe is actually listed as a Grad Transfer. I would like to have him back. I never thought Morris played anywhere close to his 5* rating. Could be coaching. Could be scheme. It could be him. But he never played well enough for me to say I'll miss him.
Good post, but I think Dee Beckwith, an T. Evans make people forget about Gray. They have something that Gray never had; that is size and power.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sjt18
#69
#69
This transfer portal diaspora is gonna hurt. Anybody who thinks it isn't is kidding themselves. Do I think we only win 2-3 games? No, but I'm thinking 5, 6, maybe 7 if everything goes right, 4 if the injury bug hits us hard, but I don't think it's particularly reasonable to expect huge 8 or 9 wins this year all things considered.



Yeah
QB 4 deep
RB 5 deep
WR 10 deep
OL 10 deep
DL 14 deep
ILB 6 deep
OLB unsure
CB 5 deep
SS 5 deep
NB 3 deep

You all act like we didn't have a 2021 recruiting class AND probably the MOST SUCCESSFUL transfer portal incoming class this off-season.

You all like showing the expenses from your broke down car two weeks ago, but then don't acknowledge your direct deposit payday just recently as well as your tax return 🙄.
 
#70
#70
Good post, but I think Dee Beckwith, an T. Evans make people forget about Gray. They have something that Gray never had; that is size and power.

Gray though was really good in the open field. He has break away speed. Wright is probably UT's only RB with that.
 
#71
#71
Yeah
QB 4 deep
RB 5 deep
WR 10 deep
OL 10 deep
DL 14 deep
ILB 6 deep
OLB unsure
CB 5 deep
SS 5 deep
NB 3 deep

You all act like we didn't have a 2021 recruiting class AND probably the MOST SUCCESSFUL transfer portal incoming class this off-season.

You all like showing the expenses from your broke down car two weeks ago, but then don't acknowledge your direct deposit payday just recently as well as your tax return 🙄.
IIRC, there are 14 OL's signed to scholarships not counting those who earned one like Davis.
 
  • Like
Reactions: LittleVol
#73
#73
I got:

East:
1. UGA
2. UF
3. UK
4. UT
5. USCjr
6. Mizzou
7. Vandy

West:
1. LSU
2. Bama
3. Tamu
4. Ole Miss
5. Arkansas
6. Auburn
7. Miss St.
 
#74
#74
To be fair to UK, if they played a "normal" 12 game season last year, they would have gone 4-4 in conference and likely 9-4 overall. Given their continuity and what they lost compared to what we lost via the portal, I don't think they lost enough for us to jump over them. I don't think there's a wide gap between us, them, and Mizzou but if I'm going to play the odds, I'll bet on continuity and having the home games.
You forget, we lost the reason we lost. JG gave them the game. KY out gained UT by what 5 yards.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 901 Orange

VN Store



Back
Top