Heupel could be "the" guy.

#27
#27
vol94 said:
Beat GA in playoffs? We don’t play GA in regular season.

I hope he can get us to the promise land but it won’t be this yr.

Texas, aTm, LSU, Auburn, and USC Jr will be tough games. Not to mention we struggle v. Arkansas and Vandy pounded us last season.
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We win all of those
 
#28
#28
stolitonic said:
We will NOT be going to the playoffs this year.

Anyone with that delusion needs to take a long hard look in the mirror and turn the sunshine pumping down a bit

First year starting QB most likely a true freshman, new system on D, and a bunch of question marks.

This year is going to be the year of pain that we SHOULD have just bit the bullet on last year after Nico bailed As things were, we tried to salvage the season and just kicked the van down the road a year
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So a question, let's say Brandon or George is a huge surprise and performs way above freshman expectations. The pieces and the talent are there on defense, and reports are that strength and conditioning is much improved. Those being the case, what would you put our win/loss numbers at?
 
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#29
#29
I love how adaptable he is. In 22 that offense was wild and slinging it everywhere and fast paced and all the things. In 24 we were more run oriented to suit the personnel. We got pushed around in big games and the defense was bad so he made changes.

Those are good signs.
 
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#31
#31
Berry4Heisman14 said:
I think Heupel is good, not great. He will need great coordinators around him. He also should have fired banks a long time ago
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I’m right there with you. Heupel has improved the program a lot, but don’t just compare him to who he has replaced. Fans talk about Ga was just a missed FG from winning. Jones was just a couple of missed tackles from beating Fl and Ok, oh what could have……..,in both cases. Fans look at recruits or coaching changes and think, wow, great improvement. They disregard every other program is trying to get top recruits and improve, they aren’t sitting pat while Tenn improves. With all the new HCs in the SEC I’d have a hard time ranking them now, but last year’s coaches, I wouldn’t rank him any higher than 4-6 for in game planning and in game coaching. He’s got about 10 years experience, not a rookie anymore.
 
#32
#32
Berry4Heisman14 said:
I think Heupel is good, not great. He will need great coordinators around him. He also should have fired banks a long time ago
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Agree 💯. Knowles may be the answer as the new defensive coordinator . . . But who knows how long it will take for him to install AND acquire the talent needed for his system. On the one hand, the portal allows holes to be filled quicker . . . But there is always a learning curve for a period of time. I’m not sure CJH needs an all star OC as I see him as a Spurrier type. BUT, if Knowles is a bust (for whatever reason), CJH won’t last very long in the meat grinder that is the SEC.

Waiting too long to replace Banks may be costly in the long run. 🤷‍♂️

I will say one area that makes me think UT has some potential to make the playoffs this year: a really good OLine hides a lot of issues.
 
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#33
#33
I agree OP. The trajectory is good. Faizon and DGG 2027 will be the year. This year we surprise some people and make the playoffs
 
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#34
#34
If he can’t put a UT team in the SECCG OR beat Smart & UGA OR win a playoff game then he has no business seeing a year 10 as HC. I hope he can do one of those three but this year’s variables like schedule and no experienced QB make that difficult to see occurring this year. Hope he can.
 
#35
#35
DonDiego said:
So a question, let's say Brandon or George is a huge surprise and performs way above freshman expectations. The pieces and the talent are there on defense, and reports are that strength and conditioning is much improved. Those being the case, what would you put our win/loss numbers at?
Click to expand...

If either one performs WAY above freshman expectations-and by that I mean WAY above expectations on the level of HH in 2021 (came outta nowhere)-then maybe we go 8-4.

This year was gonna be tough anyway. Nasty schedule.
Little experience where it really counts.

We pay the price this season for a fairly cushy schedule the last two years.

I'm expecting 7-5 or 6-6. Blunt truth. If I'm wrong I'm wrong, but my big toe hurts......and when my big toe hurts bad times are ahead for the Vols lol.
 
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#36
#36
stolitonic said:
If either one performs WAY above freshman expectations-and by that I mean WAY above expectations on the level of HH in 2021 (came outta nowhere)-then maybe we go 8-4.

This year was gonna be tough anyway. Nasty schedule.
Little experience where it really counts.

We pay the price this season for a fairly cushy schedule the last two years.

I'm expecting 7-5 or 6-6. Blunt truth. If I'm wrong I'm wrong, but my big toe hurts......and when my big toe hurts bad times are ahead for the Vols lol.
Click to expand...
Probably gout. Lay off the shellfish.
 
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#37
#37
I thought Heupel might be the guy after his first 3 seasons.

I've changed my mind. I think it's just a matter of time before we are finding a new coach.

Unless ADDW is super loyal.
 
#39
#39
DonDiego said:
Probably gout. Lay off the shellfish.
Click to expand...

Lol. I wish it was that simple. The downstream effect of a youth playing whatever sport was in season (or we had equipment for anyway) ten hours a day between March and October ha ha. Tendon issue. Getting old ain't for sissies.........
 
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#44
#44
AllVol11717 said:
I think if you bench a QB who isn’t really underperforming then you risk seeing the whole team quit when they realize you’ve given up on the season as a whole. The Vandy game though was absolutely an example of Heupel just trying to keep that 200yd streak going and should have been a chance to let our potential QB of the future learn how to navigate playing from behind, since the season was effectively over at that point.

I was pretty vocal about the poor management of backup QB reps during the season. Merklinger never looked comfortable commanding the offense against lesser competition but was routinely taking snaps that would’ve been much more useful for Macintyre.

As a staff, they have to have seen Merklinger’s shortcomings in practice and known with Faizon coming in that his transfer was more than likely. Why you continue to invest valuable live action reps on getting Merklinger ready to start for UConn this year instead of Macintyre more prepared for us is poor roster management.

I’m pro-Heupel long term, but it’s clear he’s still learning the finer points of moving from being a really good coach to a great one, and it’s not an easy transition.
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Your point is taken, but the game-and fan expectations-have changed. Once the playoffs are out then the season is basically over-the ticket resale market will tell you that. I am not just talking about UT here, but probably half or more of all FBS teams.

Would dropping one more game last year and ending up in a bowl somehow crappier than the MCB have been the worst thing on earth last year? I think not


Do I think Meerk was anything special? Honestly
, nope. But some people are gamers man and all the bad practices in the world don't mean jack after the first time a guy pulls a rabbit out of his hat and makes something magical happen do they? Always remember that Milton got the nod over Hooker due to a better practice performance lol.


All that being said I wish Meerk all the luck in the world-and I just realized I completely forgot even where it was he ended up ha ha. Seriously though, I hope the guy turns into Tom Brady 2.0
He did what was asked of him here and kept his mouth shut, then made his exit in a classy enough manner. Best you can ask for these days

Edit-UCONN is where he ended up
 
#45
#45

Heupel could be "the" guy.​


NOT till he LEARNS how to "Manage The Game from the Sideline!"

*It's the "Elephant in the Room"...EVERYBODY has seen it EVERY Season...with NO REAL SENSE of Corrective Measures...

WHAT'S IT GONNA TAKE, Josh??!!
 
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#46
#46
OffTackleVol said:
Wow..........
Click to expand...
oh-wow-you-dont-say.gif
 
#47
#47
Berry4Heisman14 said:
I think Heupel is good, not great. He will need great coordinators around him. He also should have fired banks a long time ago
Click to expand...
You won't get much arguing about Banks.
- Knowles I think is a great coordinator.
- Heupel needs an independent OC that takes his Briles foundation and adds to it with their own style.

Right now Heupel is just good.
But jmo- he's doing things that will propel him upwards, vs Mark Stoops who literally coached 3 more seasons waiting to be fired. Heupel is actively competing to actually get better from an individual standpoint as a coach.
 
#48
#48
TAF said:

Heupel could be "the" guy.​


NOT till he LEARNS how to "Manage The Game from the Sideline!"

*It's the "Elephant in the Room"...EVERYBODY has seen it EVERY Season...with NO REAL SENSE of Corrective Measures...

WHAT'S IT GONNA TAKE, Josh??!!
Click to expand...


Ragan makes a great point there.

Heupel needs an OC that is equally good as himself but also has a different foundation.
 
#49
#49
stolitonic said:
Your point is taken, but the game-and fan expectations-have changed. Once the playoffs are out then the season is basically over-the ticket resale market will tell you that. I am not just talking about UT here, but probably half or more of all FBS teams.

Would dropping one more game last year and ending up in a bowl somehow crappier than the MCB have been the worst thing on earth last year? I think not


Do I think Meerk was anything special? Honestly
, nope. But some people are gamers man and all the bad practices in the world don't mean jack after the first time a guy pulls a rabbit out of his hat and makes something magical happen do they? Always remember that Milton got the nod over Hooker due to a better practice performance lol.


All that being said I wish Meerk all the luck in the world-and I just realized I completely forgot even where it was he ended up ha ha. Seriously though, I hope the guy turns into Tom Brady 2.0
He did what was asked of him here and kept his mouth shut, then made his exit in a classy enough manner. Best you can ask for these days

Edit-UCONN is where he ended up
Click to expand...
Fan expectations are almost always ludicrous, especially for SEC teams and shouldn’t be the end all, be all for coaching decisions. Losing one more game last year absolutely would’ve pissed off fans and you’d have more than your fair share calling for Heupel’s head for a 7 win season in his 5th year against a medium difficulty schedule by comparison to our peers.

In addition to fan expectations, you also have to sell your program to high profile recruits and transfers and winning less is actively a detriment to that. And maybe I’m crazy, but as a fan I want us to win every single game we play regardless of it’s importance, it’s only when a game is conceivably out of reach that it’s acceptable to move into “see what else we have” mode.

And why are you zero-ing on just practice? We’ve seen Merk in live action more than once last year against lesser competition and he did not perform exceptionally well. The offense stalled multiple times under him against UAB’s very poor defense. Acting like he never saw the field has me doubting how much of the season you actually saw. I also specifically mentioned that he was at UConn in the post you replied to so I’m also not sure you’re even reading what you’re replying to.

I wish nothing but the best for the kid, he’s a good dude and has talent, but we’ve seen he’s not a high end P4 guy. UConn is a great place for him to carve out a role and I really hope he has a successful career in whatever capacity that may be.
 
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#50
#50
LittleVol said:
You won't get much arguing about Banks.
- Knowles I think is a great coordinator.
- Heupel needs an independent OC that takes his Briles foundation and adds to it with their own style.

Right now Heupel is just good.
But jmo- he's doing things that will propel him upwards, vs Mark Stoops who literally coached 3 more seasons waiting to be fired. Heupel is actively competing to actually get better from an individual standpoint as a coach.
Click to expand...
Golesh was the perfect mold for an OC under Heupel. He had a good feel for the offense and knew how to call plays to bait the defense into seeing something different so that our big play option routes were routinely open. Most importantly, he had a better situational feel than Heupel/Halzle. Halzle either needs to make a big jump or we need to find a guy with a little more willingness to be aggressive as a playcaller to counter Heupel’s occasional timidness.
 
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