37 Reasons Why.....

[TN Outlaw]

The thing that amazes me is many act like there has been no improvement made. You don't have to be a football genius to just stop and look at the team. We have a much larger, faster and stronger team. The O line is huge compared to 2 years ago. I am actually seeing our players pancaking other players on blocks. I understand we are 1-3 and I thought we would be 3-1 at this time. In the games we lost we had way to many turnovers and penalties. Like the players say, for a play to work, ALL 11 must do the right thing. I just takes one or two missed assignments to blow a play up. Sometime you get beat on your assignment because the competition put a great move on you. That is why the game is played. Some of the penalties are out of frustration and that is because we are young and the players are pissed. Many of the hate losing as much as we do. I agree the record doesn't show it but the team REALLY is much better than last year. JMHO

I kind of agree with you here on obvious improvement in a few areas but say we pulled out the win vs GAST and we held off BYU and then took care of UTC and lost to UF. This team could be just as bad as last year and still be 3-1 with who we have played so far. Heck, they could be worse and still be 3-1.

Losing those games just shows this program is an entire other world of bad shape.

 

[TGVol]

Pruitt and his GREAT staff need time and 100% support to make sure recruiting does not suffer because he is on hot seat.
There are some great things happening already (for those willing to look past the record which certainly does not show it). Unlike with Butch, this time if we are patient we will be rewarded few years down the road and be back to where UT football belongs (thank god Fulmer is in charge because he probably understands this better than anyone).

 

[BeardedVol]

Pruitt and his GREAT staff need time and 100% support to make sure recruiting does not suffer because he is on hot seat.
There are some great things happening already (for those willing to look past the record which certainly does not show it). Unlike with Butch, this time if we are patient we will be rewarded few years down the road and be back to where UT football belongs (thank god Fulmer is in charge because he probably understands this better than anyone).

The secret juggernaut of a football team being built that can't compete with Georgia State until 2021 at the earliest when every player on the roster will have been recruited by Pruitt and his staff?

Then and only then can Pruitt's coaching be judged?

 

[vols1707]

@BeardedVol

Football is a team sport, Pruitt did make a major mistake that game thinking he could roll out the helmet and win.

However man JG kept Georgia state in that game to have a chance to win.

And this roster was in such bad shape when Pruitt got here that he had to leave him in because QB position was DECIMATED by Butch.

 

[BeardedVol]

@BeardedVol

Football is a team sport, Pruitt did make a major mistake that game thinking he could roll out the helmet and win.

However man JG kept Georgia state in that game to have a chance to win.

And this roster was in such bad shape when Pruitt got here that he had to leave him in because QB position was DECIMATED by Butch.

So Pruitt is this masterful coach, but after 18 months on the job, he can't field a team that is prepared to at least compete with Georgia State or BYU? How is regression by the team as a whole from year one to year two, a sure sign of future success?

 

[photovol]

Well, my wife is a lifelong Georgia fan and I like to watch all of the SEC play. This past Saturday, I watched UGA beat ND. I would hope that all of VOLNATION would like the outcome of this game. ( I hate ND!) but the thing that relates to us more than ANYTHING I have heard this year is the comment that Kirby Smart said after the game. He said they played 37 players on the defensive side of the ball! UGA has 37 guys good enough to play in a top 10 matchup at home. They were missing their 2 starting cornerbacks as well. AND THEY WON THE GAME!!!

If UGA is where we want to be, and it is, we are several hundred miles outta Dodge! As it stands right now we have 3 guys on defense that could be in that 37 man rotation! You can count stars all you want, production is production!

Our team is depleted of usable talent, especially experienced developed talent.
I've been in the Army for over 20 years and I have always thought that there are 2 distinctive ways to lead and organization; recruit the people you need to run the system you want to run OR change the system to accommodate what you have. CJP is obviously attempting the former. CBJ, Mike Leach, Kiffin, and Dooley have done the latter!!!! Saban, Meyer, Miles, Smart, Sweeney do the former.
I don't know about y'all but I wanna win championships and not just have a few winning seasons of hope along the way.

This rebuild sucks and its gonna continue to suck. I, along with the rest of you, hope that Pruitt is the one but all we can do is watch and wait.

P.S. If this coaching staff can pull in a top 10 recruiting class with this season and all the negativity, great things are headed our way!!!!!!

Pruitt will not be able to sign a Top 10 recruiting class this year, it won't happen, unfortunately

 

[TheMookieMonster]

In the SEC if you do not fill your own seats most of those seats will be filled by the opposing team fans and the UTAD folks that don't give a rats axx about anything but money could care less. In other words the bean counters get theirs no matter what. It may be time for UTAD and fans to consider if it's in our and the institution's best interests to even stay in the SEC at all. If we're not going to be competitive, I can see no reason for us financing a certain W on the schedule for the likes of Bama, UF, and UGA in perpetuity. It may be time for UT to go conference shopping.

Being part of the SEC is not even a mark on the record of issues Tennessee has plaguing this program. We lost to Georgia FREAKING State. This is not the SEC of 2009-2010. The East is BAD. Georgia is the only team worth a damn. Florida smashed our brains in but I don't think any team in the Top 25 is quivering in their boots at the thought of facing them. Kentucky is mediocre. Missouri is mediocre. South Carolina is bad. Vanderbilt is AWFUL. And BYU is a game we 100% should have won. If anything, the SEC is providing Tennessee it's best opportunity in years to climb out of the doldrums yet we can't get out of our own way. This schedule was weak this year and setup perfectly for 8-4, maybe even 9-3 if you pull off a big upset. Tennessee is just incapable of doing it. They would have the same results in another conference. I remind you we lost to Georgia FREAKING State.

 

[ABINGDON VOL FAN]

Pruitt and his GREAT staff need time and 100% support to make sure recruiting does not suffer because he is on hot seat.
There are some great things happening already (for those willing to look past the record which certainly does not show it). Unlike with Butch, this time if we are patient we will be rewarded few years down the road and be back to where UT football belongs (thank god Fulmer is in charge because he probably understands this better than anyone).

It does not matter how much support is given by the fans. The final 2019 record will determine how well UT’s recruiting classes the next couple of year’s holds up.

 

[TheMookieMonster]

It does not matter how much support is given by the fans. The final 2019 record will determine how well UT’s recruiting class holds up.

Agreed. Fan support only does so much. You can't sell fan support as a reason to come if the recruits see the rest of the program is literally falling apart.

 

[ABINGDON VOL FAN]

The secret juggernaut of a football team being built that can't compete with Georgia State until 2021 at the earliest when every player on the roster will have been recruited by Pruitt and his staff?

Then and only then can Pruitt's coaching be judged?

No, fake news.

 

[RollerVol]

UTK...BEST POST EVER...GOOD ON YA...I AM SO PROUD OF YOU....MY NEW SUPERHERO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GO BIG ORANGE!

 

[TGVol]

The secret juggernaut of a football team being built that can't compete with Georgia State until 2021 at the earliest when every player on the roster will have been recruited by Pruitt and his staff?

Then and only then can Pruitt's coaching be judged?

Of course Pruitt can and should be judged now. Agreed that GS was embarrasing loss and Pruitt and staff are certainly guilty for looking past that game. My guess is they were focusing on difficult schedule later on (if you were them which films would you be spening your time on). However, given how young this team is unfortunatelly things turned out this way (sadly talent alone was not enough in this case). But I prefer to look at the bigger picture. The players we have on the field now, even though young and inexperienced LOOK like top level SEC talent should look like (athletic, fast, etc - they did not look overmatch looking next to Gators and they have very physical players all over the filed). We have not seen enough of that at UT for a long time and this is why I'm excited. Pruitt is getting the talent in place and there is no doubt this coaching staff will develop them if given enough time. We will look like Bama and UGA in few years if people are able to calm down and give these guys some more time.
GBO!

 

[RollerVol]

I hope your right. If you are I’ll change my tune quick......but until at least the S.C. game I’m not there at all.

Even if your wrong there will be so many “still” clamoring “he needs more time” “he needs his players”

He doest need “more” to beat Vandy and UAB ect.....just like he shouldn’t have needed more to beat GA ST and BYU. But we’ll see, if he wins 5 games I guess I’ll have to like every post you make.

need to sticky this...shouldn't we start a "bold prediction with consequences" thread...

GO BIG ORANGE!

 

[screenthis]

The one game I went to this year was Georgia State, of course. I thought I wouldn't go to another game this year. It's been decades since I've been able to go to Neyland (moved up to Huntsville). But I agree with the OP. I'll go to another game and show my support. I'm a vol for life. And, I do see UT doing just about all they can to win. New Coach and some top level coaches, Fulmer back as AD, paying buy outs, high recruiting budget. I also believe Pruitt will get this done. With Butch, we had a car salesman. With this staff, we have game time coaches and recruiters (though Georgia state sure didn't show good coaching).

Mainly, I still put the blame on Hamilton's door step. Then, it's on our Boosters. That too seems to have been corrected.

 

[DaddyChad]

I have changed my tone a bit. I have let it fully sink in that Tennessee Football is on life support. That's not even being dramatic, it literally is on life support. We are staring a 2-10 or maybe 3-9 season in the face. But that's not the reason it's on life support. It may be the final nail in the coffin, but it doesn't have to be.

UT football is important to everyone here. Even the rival fans, the status of UT football matters to them. Listen, UT football is in the shape it is because of bad decision after bad decision over the coarse of 12 years. And that all starts at top. Poor decisions from boosters and board members time and time again. The fighting between these groups of people have created an absolutely toxic environment.

With that being said, what can we do as fans? I have the past couple weeks urged people to not go to games and make a statement that way...but you know what? I've changed my tone. We have done that in the past and nothing has changed. We have let Bama invade Neyland and nothing has changed. All we can do is support this Team and Coaches. Show up and cheer for them because quite frankly...Jeremy Pruitt, this staff and the young players we have on our team may just be UTs final hope.

No matter the record this year, as long as the young players keep improving game by game and you start to see some fight, we have to stick by this team. We can't add to the toxic environment that already exists. These coaches have to be able to pull recruits in to continue to stay afloat. It's going to be a long road, championships may be years and years down the road....but if we give this staff time to learn and grow together...then just maybe UT Football will take a breath on its own again. That is the only option we have. It sucks. But it is what it is, so let's band together and support this team and program until it either heals or takes its last breath.

Agreed. I’m as pissed as anyone about what I’ve seen. Coaching has been suspect but if anyone can’t see we’re in a deep hole as far as talent idk that they can be reasoned with. I just want to see improvement in younger players and we’re seeing that. A lot of Pruitt’s players are developing. I can see progress it’s just hard to stomach us being this bad.

 

[DaddyChad]

It would be tough to sell possibly to some. However we really should checker Neyland for the Georgia game.

Show the coaches, players, recruits, and the nation we are behind this school the turmoil is over.

Definitely would be a statement. I know some think not showing up will make them change. It just won’t. They’ve sold so many season tickets, have tv money coming in, etc. The only thing not showing does is hurt the program and to be fair help fans pocket book.

So if you love the team and want to see a game do so. If you think performance on the field has to meet your investment, might not be the year for you.

 

[vols1707]

Let’s do it then, someone fire it up!

Someone grab the bull by the horns and let’s get this done!

Break out the old Chart for what sections are what color, and let’s do it!

People that complain about doing it, I can promise those people aren’t going to be at the game anyway. Us that are there are behind the team, others will buy tickets that are with supporting these kids & coaches until this roster is flipped.

 

[vols1707]

Time to show these kids that have been held back by a couple of players that this fan base is mostly with them!

That a lot of us understand the challenges and we are behind them and going through this WITH THEM!

Those that don’t like it will come around when the wins do. And that’s just who they are. The rest of us let’s show this team we are with them and their FIGHT!

 

[teeball]

I have changed my tone a bit. I have let it fully sink in that Tennessee Football is on life support. That's not even being dramatic, it literally is on life support. We are staring a 2-10 or maybe 3-9 season in the face. But that's not the reason it's on life support. It may be the final nail in the coffin, but it doesn't have to be.

UT football is important to everyone here. Even the rival fans, the status of UT football matters to them. Listen, UT football is in the shape it is because of bad decision after bad decision over the coarse of 12 years. And that all starts at top. Poor decisions from boosters and board members time and time again. The fighting between these groups of people have created an absolutely toxic environment.

With that being said, what can we do as fans? I have the past couple weeks urged people to not go to games and make a statement that way...but you know what? I've changed my tone. We have done that in the past and nothing has changed. We have let Bama invade Neyland and nothing has changed. All we can do is support this Team and Coaches. Show up and cheer for them because quite frankly...Jeremy Pruitt, this staff and the young players we have on our team may just be UTs final hope.

No matter the record this year, as long as the young players keep improving game by game and you start to see some fight, we have to stick by this team. We can't add to the toxic environment that already exists. These coaches have to be able to pull recruits in to continue to stay afloat. It's going to be a long road, championships may be years and years down the road....but if we give this staff time to learn and grow together...then just maybe UT Football will take a breath on its own again. That is the only option we have. It sucks. But it is what it is, so let's band together and support this team and program until it either heals or takes its last breath.

Sounds good. ... But. ... After a few more beat downs I suspect you'll be back on the "Boycott Bandwagon" as UT records their worst season in HISTORY. I know I will be. The only voice a fan truly has is their pocketbook.

 

[igotworms]

Very true. However, Sabans years are numbered and what after him? Do you think the next coach will be as dominant?

Big 12 said same about OU.
Seems they have found a coach that is just a dominant if not better
So there could be a coach "just as good" coming in next at bama

 

[james_govols]

 

[KINGSVOL]

20 years in the Army, surely youve heard, there are no bad units, only bad leaders....


Including the ones you cant recruit to.

Yes I have, and it's a load of crap! That phrase symbolizes the easy way out, pinning ALL culture and structure on the leaders. I have been in many units with good leaders and bad Soldiers, the outcome is the same. I would say it's about a 60/40 split with leadership being the main cause for failure. Sometimes it's too easy to blame the few for the transgressions of the many!!!!!

 

[volfannbama]

Yes I have, and it's a load of crap! That phrase symbolizes the easy way out, pinning ALL culture and structure on the leaders. I have been in many units with good leaders and bad Soldiers, the outcome is the same. I would say it's about a 60/40 split with leadership being the main cause for failure. Sometimes it's too easy to blame the few for the transgressions of the many!!!!!

Should have joined the Marines, always rang true there.

 

[KINGSVOL]

They have alot more depth than us. How is that a surprise to anyone?

Not a surprise, we have 3 players that could be in the rotation to play on UGAs defense. Point is, stars don't always mean talent and that talent isn't always developed. CBJ was the perfect storm, he signed the best "stars" he could, the ones that our rivals didn't fight hard for and then did nothing with them. Josh Dobbs was the eraser. He erased all the things we didn't want to see. He was that good.

 

[KINGSVOL]

Pruitt will not be able to sign a Top 10 recruiting class this year, it won't happen, unfortunately

I hope you are wrong but I wouldn't put more than a dollar on it, either way!