kamoshika
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I know a lot of our fans -- and maybe even our coaches -- were dismissive of our struggles when we were sitting pretty at 5-0. That in itself frustrated me, because there was little recognition of the sobering reality: when you play like crap in the 1st half of every game, it should be clear that you have genuine problems that are not being fixed...and that failure will always come back to bite you on the arse at some point. Yes, we've had a ridiculous number of injuries, but those do not explain the alarming ineptitude we've displayed on both sides of the ball far too often.
The 2016 Vols are now officially a disappointment.
The offensive pieces havent all clicked. Led by a senior quarterback, a veteran offensive line, three backs who have shown SEC-level skills, two experienced playmakers at tight end and three veteran receivers, that side of the ball has only shown glimpses of the high-powered machine it can be. Some of that falls on Joshua Dobbs, some falls to Mike DeBord, some to injury, and theres plenty of blame to be spread around to others as well. Point fingers all you want, though. The bottom line is that its not getting the job done.
...Effort, basic execution and aggressive should always be on display from the coaches and players, whether playing with a full hand or half a deck. That simply hasnt been there at times over the past 120 minutes of football for UT.
Column: Vols No Longer Living Up to 2016 Expectations | Rocky Top Insider
Now eight games in, the Vols are who we thought they were: resilient, talented and maddeningly inconsistent -- from top down.
They are good enough to amass 110 points and 1,539 yards in a three-game stretch against well-regarded Florida, Georgia and Texas A&M. Then lackadaisical enough --- the word of the Vols head coach --- to sit below triple-digits at halftime against the previously pluck-less Gamecocks.
You talk about owning it, we've got to own it, Jones said in his opening post-game remarks. Unacceptable. The small details, the turnovers. You go on the road, you can't turn the football over. There was a lack of explosive plays, missed tackles, too many penalties on special teams when you do a good job of getting the ball out on some returns. Those are momentum-killers.
Nah, bigger than that at this point. They damn-well might be season-killers.
Brice: With pumpkins on its sideline, Tennessee sees its SEC East hopes carved up
The only way Tennessee will give itself a chance to back into the SEC Championship Game is if a frustrating team finally gets frustrated enough to fix itself.
Fourth-year coach Butch Jones said moments after Saturdays game that this situation starts with him and then his staff, and he was absolutely right about that. Injuries alone do not and cannot explain this. Whatever it is, its deeper than that. It has to be.
Thinking about anything other than whats directly in front of you is dangerous for any college football team, but before thinking about mighty Tennessee Tech, the Vols need to sit back and reflect on everything theyve done since New Years Day, and how that might have taken a promising season and tossed it into the trash. Then, and perhaps only then, can they start cleaning it up.
Rucker: Tennessee Vols football maiming itself into mediocrity
The 2016 Vols are now officially a disappointment.
The offensive pieces havent all clicked. Led by a senior quarterback, a veteran offensive line, three backs who have shown SEC-level skills, two experienced playmakers at tight end and three veteran receivers, that side of the ball has only shown glimpses of the high-powered machine it can be. Some of that falls on Joshua Dobbs, some falls to Mike DeBord, some to injury, and theres plenty of blame to be spread around to others as well. Point fingers all you want, though. The bottom line is that its not getting the job done.
...Effort, basic execution and aggressive should always be on display from the coaches and players, whether playing with a full hand or half a deck. That simply hasnt been there at times over the past 120 minutes of football for UT.
Column: Vols No Longer Living Up to 2016 Expectations | Rocky Top Insider
Now eight games in, the Vols are who we thought they were: resilient, talented and maddeningly inconsistent -- from top down.
They are good enough to amass 110 points and 1,539 yards in a three-game stretch against well-regarded Florida, Georgia and Texas A&M. Then lackadaisical enough --- the word of the Vols head coach --- to sit below triple-digits at halftime against the previously pluck-less Gamecocks.
You talk about owning it, we've got to own it, Jones said in his opening post-game remarks. Unacceptable. The small details, the turnovers. You go on the road, you can't turn the football over. There was a lack of explosive plays, missed tackles, too many penalties on special teams when you do a good job of getting the ball out on some returns. Those are momentum-killers.
Nah, bigger than that at this point. They damn-well might be season-killers.
Brice: With pumpkins on its sideline, Tennessee sees its SEC East hopes carved up
The only way Tennessee will give itself a chance to back into the SEC Championship Game is if a frustrating team finally gets frustrated enough to fix itself.
Fourth-year coach Butch Jones said moments after Saturdays game that this situation starts with him and then his staff, and he was absolutely right about that. Injuries alone do not and cannot explain this. Whatever it is, its deeper than that. It has to be.
Thinking about anything other than whats directly in front of you is dangerous for any college football team, but before thinking about mighty Tennessee Tech, the Vols need to sit back and reflect on everything theyve done since New Years Day, and how that might have taken a promising season and tossed it into the trash. Then, and perhaps only then, can they start cleaning it up.
Rucker: Tennessee Vols football maiming itself into mediocrity
