Board Mood If We Go 0-4?

Pruitt couldn't beat GA Stste. We lost 30 players from last years team Pruitt could not have done the job Coach Heupel under the same circumstances. I think we will win more than 6 games. But at the beginning of this season I wasn't sure about that. I've been following the Vols since 1957 and these last 14 years have been absolutely the worst stretch I've ever seen. I think our expectations should always be higher than break even. I believe this staff will get it done.
Pruitt would have beaten Bowling Green and Tenn Tech. Obviously you dont believe that. And he would have finished at least 6-6. Im not defending him nor am I comparing his teams to Heupel, merely saying he would have been 6-6. Did he not beat SC and Mizzou last yr and also lose to FL? As for losing 30 players only about 10 were contributing. I personally think players transferring out that didnt play is a damn good thing. This opens up scholarships for Heupel to sign some that will contribute. He also brought in Hooker, Payton, Evans, Mitchell, Turnage, Tremblay who have contributed a lot to this team. I'm happy with our coach and our future but I never believed we wouldnt win 6 games this season. We have 6 bad football teams on our schedule. But I'm impressed with the decisive victories. Something Pruitt didn't seem capable of. GBO!!!
 
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Pruitt would have beaten Bowling Green and Tenn Tech.
BGSU this year is about on par with GA ST a couple of years ago. There were no real certainties with Pruitt mostly because his leadership and decision making were so poor. You never quite knew when one or the other would cause a failure.

And he would have finished at least 6-6.
Based on? Not once in his 3 years did he come close to coaching UT to the level of its talent. Last year he was 4 games off. The two years before at least two and probably 3. There's no chance ANY O that he had control over would have put 62 points on the board vs MU. He would have made their D look credible... and their O would have found ways to put up points against his "vaunted" defense. What you saw in the 2nd half vs USCe... would have been the whole game under Prutt. Pruitt was actually MORE conservative than that on O.

In all likelihood this Vol team would have won less than 6 games if Pruitt were still HC.

Im not defending him nor am I comparing his teams to Heupel, merely saying he would have been 6-6. Did he not beat SC and Mizzou last yr and also lose to FL?
Come on guy. He lost to a middling UK team and a bad Ark team. UK was ONLY bowl eligible because they beat UT and that ONLY because Pruitt would not let go of the insanity of continuing to start JG.

As for losing 30 players only about 10 were contributing. I personally think players transferring out that didnt play is a damn good thing. This opens up scholarships for Heupel to sign some that will contribute. He also brought in Hooker, Payton, Evans, Mitchell, Turnage, Tremblay who have contributed a lot to this team. I'm happy with our coach and our future but I never believed we wouldnt win 6 games this season. We have 6 bad football teams on our schedule. But I'm impressed with the decisive victories. Something Pruitt didn't seem capable of. GBO!!!
Actually agree with this part. We don't know that the players who left would have helped or fit into the team concept Heupel is pushing. IMHO... I don't think guys like Henry T would have. I think he's always been about his route to the NFL rather than the team around him. Gray started the season as "1b" but is pretty clearly the #2 RB now and that only because they don't have much depth besides him. If we weren't certain before... I'd say most of us recognize that Evans, Small, and Co are better than Gray and Chandler.

I personally think the biggest lost was Jahmir Johnson. UT could really use him right now.

I don't actually count 10 that could have returned that would have contributed. You can't really count dismissals or those who moved on from CFB.
 
If we go 0-4 then the same whiners will whine, the same group will demand the coaching staff's collective heads and the typical fair weather fans will put their orange and white gear back in mothballs. I will be unhappy, but I will continue to cheer on the team.
 
Ah shoot. Let's play the 4 games and see what happens rather than predict what will happen based on hypothetical results.
 
BGSU this year is about on par with GA ST a couple of years ago. There were no real certainties with Pruitt mostly because his leadership and decision making were so poor. You never quite knew when one or the other would cause a failure.

Based on? Not once in his 3 years did he come close to coaching UT to the level of its talent. Last year he was 4 games off. The two years before at least two and probably 3. There's no chance ANY O that he had control over would have put 62 points on the board vs MU. He would have made their D look credible... and their O would have found ways to put up points against his "vaunted" defense. What you saw in the 2nd half vs USCe... would have been the whole game under Prutt. Pruitt was actually MORE conservative than that on O.

In all likelihood this Vol team would have won less than 6 games if Pruitt were still HC.

Come on guy. He lost to a middling UK team and a bad Ark team. UK was ONLY bowl eligible because they beat UT and that ONLY because Pruitt would not let go of the insanity of continuing to start JG.


Actually agree with this part. We don't know that the players who left would have helped or fit into the team concept Heupel is pushing. IMHO... I don't think guys like Henry T would have. I think he's always been about his route to the NFL rather than the team around him. Gray started the season as "1b" but is pretty clearly the #2 RB now and that only because they don't have much depth besides him. If we weren't certain before... I'd say most of us recognize that Evans, Small, and Co are better than Gray and Chandler.

I personally think the biggest lost was Jahmir Johnson. UT could really use him right now.

I don't actually count 10 that could have returned that would have contributed. You can't really count dismissals or those who moved on from CFB.
My only point was losing about 20 players that didnt or rarely seen the field should not be used as an excuse. I also agree the offensive line may have take the biggest hit or possibly linebackers. Still we have two 5 stars on our offensive line which is more than at least 10 SEC teams combined.

No one is defending Pruitt. You are entitled to your opinion but FACTS do show that he beat Mizzou and S Car and lost to FL. The same as Heupel. Will Heupel beat KY? I think he will. I think he is a much better coach. But I do believe Pruitt would have beaten BG and Tenn Tech. You don't. Let's leave it there. It doesnt matter if you win by 10, 20, 30, or 40 pts a W is a W. Personally I dont care if we beat Ole Miss by 2 or by 20. I just want to win. You are impressed by margins of a victory. I only want the victory. To each his own I guess. GBO!!!
 
Winning and looking good doing it has been wonderful for Volnation. Everyone seems to be sky high and Saturday feels like the good ol' days again.

Losing stinks. No matter how many points, no matter the opponent, no matter how expected it is. As someone said, 0-4 is very much a possibility and that would change the mood significantly. It won't be pretty around here if that happens. This is why I keep reminding myself that 6-6 is a "successful" season. What we're feeling now is hopefully a taste of the future under Heupel.
 
My only point was losing about 20 players that didnt or rarely seen the field should not be used as an excuse.
You're singing my favorite Hymn.

I also agree the offensive line may have take the biggest hit or possibly linebackers. Still we have two 5 stars on our offensive line which is more than at least 10 SEC teams combined.
I think the whole bad roster angle was a media narrative started by Hubbs, Price, and a few other ants. UT did lose a lot of guys. But in their hurry to declare the sky falling... they never really looked at what was left. ILB was supposed to be thin but in a base 4-2-5... it isn't all that thin. The two primary guys, Banks and Beasley are 3rd and 4th on the team in tackles. And on that point... UT's tackles are spread out more than I'm personally accustomed to seeing. It seems like a really good thing. They're rotating a lot of guys... and different guys are stepping up to make tackles.

The media even has a false narrative going that UT only has 71 scholarship players. That's not true. They have 81 with 80 arriving at UT on scholarship. This team has talent. It just needed a coach with a clue as to how to develop and use it.
No one is defending Pruitt. You are entitled to your opinion but FACTS do show that he beat Mizzou and S Car and lost to FL.
My point was that I do not believe Pruitt could have been trusted to beat either this year and especially with this roster.

The same as Heupel.
Same as Heupel? Neither game was competitive after the first quarter this year. That's quite a bit different from any game I can remember Pruitt coaching against an FBS opponent.

Will Heupel beat KY? I think he will. I think he is a much better coach. But I do believe Pruitt would have beaten BG and Tenn Tech. You don't. Let's leave it there.
I didn't say he wouldn't. My point was that he was not reliable even in meeting fairly low expectations. I didn't and don't hate Pruitt. He's a coach unlike the used car salesman before him. He's just not equipped to be a HC.

It doesnt matter if you win by 10, 20, 30, or 40 pts a W is a W. Personally I dont care if we beat Ole Miss by 2 or by 20. I just want to win. You are impressed by margins of a victory. I only want the victory. To each his own I guess. GBO!!!
Yes. There is a difference between dominating an opponent and struggling with them... or worse yet playing down to the level of competition. There's a HUGE difference between Heupel's aggressive approach and Pruitt's conservative, play not to lose approach.

If you can put an opponent down in the 1st qtr then you do.... Heupel does that. I'll take a close win any day. But yeah... give me the scoreboard rolling over like a pinball machine if I can have my preference.

My point about Pruitt and MU is that he would have let them hang around. His style was to "manage" the game on O and let the D win it for you. It is supposedly low risk... but letting teams hang around always has risks. There was pretty much "no risk" in the MU game after the first quarter and a half. The lead was big and MU began to give up.
 

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