Honest Conversation with Butch Jones: What happened at Tennessee?

#28
#28
OrangeBeachVol said:
Even AL fans made fun of him while he was there. Agree he did nothing for AL FB. He had to find a job in FB to keep getting his buyout $ and he got Saban to hire him as an analyst. Paid him $30K/yr so he could collect his millions from TN. It all was just him screwing TN. And then you have the cigar thing after the win.

No respect for him at all.
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Yeah. I never really minded the slogans, just kind of rolled my eyes at it and figured "well if it's effective for the team then fine" but what got old over time was he just never talked to the media/fans like a regular person. EVERY single communication was a slogan/marketing/recruiting attempt and it felt very fake.
 
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#29
#29
Believing anything Botch has to say is kinda like following the advice of a car salesman at a buy here pay here lot. It may sound nice, but good Lord it is gonna cost ya.

The man was simply not "big" enough for the role. It is what it is. He rode BKs tail as long as he could and then the UT job exposed him for what he was. A poseur. A fraud. The caricature of a football coach without the ability or results.

Sadly, Ark St level was about his ceiling from the beginning. Pity we didn't realize that.
 
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#30
#30
Amazed at how many of you think I’m endorsing Butch. Good grief, all three were disasters by any objective measure. Butch was just not quite as terrible as the other 2.
 
#32
#32
The Original Fade said:
Amazed at how many of you think I’m endorsing Butch. Good grief, all three were disasters by any objective measure. Butch was just not quite as terrible as the other 2.
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I disagree. I think Pruitt was a better HC than Jones. Pruitt was a dumb redneck from North Alabama, but he also played a much harder schedule than Jones ever did. Pruitt played Saban, Kirby, Florida Dan Mullen, and some decent Mark Stoops teams every year. I think if you gave Pruitt the 2015 and 2016 Tennessee teams and schedule, he would actually win the SEC East one of those years. In 2019, Tennessee started off terribly, but Pruitt did pull them together to win 8 games with basically no QB. Jones needed Dobbs just to get to 8 wins. Jones best SEC record was 5-3 with Alvin Kamara and Dobbs, while Pruitt went 5-3 with Guaratano and Tim Jordan. Pruitt also left the program with decent talent on the roster, while Jones left us with middle schoolers playing on the team. Jones also went 0-8 in conference one year and 4-8 overall. Pruitt never won fewer than 2 SEC games. Also, don't forget that Jones never even beat an SEC West team, and Pruitt won at Auburn in year 1 and beat MS State in year 2.

Now idk what to say about Dooley. He should never have been a football coach
 
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#34
#34
Brave Volunteer said:
Plus I would argue that Pruitt left us a muh better roster than Jones or Dooley did.
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Basically impossible. Dooley recruited NO offensive linemen for Jones roster. And besides, all I heard when Heupel came was how the roster was in shambles. Of the 85 man roster, 45 hit the portal or graduated. Dislike Jones but don’t act like he was the worst.
 
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#35
#35
a vol n tears said:
Basically impossible. Dooley recruited NO offensive linemen for Jones roster. And besides, all I heard when Heupel came was how the roster was in shambles. Of the 85 man roster, 45 hit the portal or graduated. Dislike Jones but don’t act like he was the worst.
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Pruitt left Heupel with Hendon Hooker, Cedric Tillman, Jalin Hyatt, Cade Mays, Cooper Mays, Alontae Taylor, and Darnell Wright? The roster in shambles stuff was way overplayed
 
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#39
#39
hUTch2002 said:
0-8 is all you need to know. No matter how bad Dooley and Pruitt were, they didn’t go 0-8.
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actually he was 0-6 in SEC play in 2017, Brady Hoke coached the team in the last two losses to LSU and Vandy
 
#40
#40
GetYouSomeofThat said:
I will never understand the loathing of some Tennessee fans for Butch. He was in over his head and abilities but compared to his predecessor and successor, he was easily heads and shoulders better than those two guys. IMO, he tried to win in the ways he knew how and gave his all, but was never going to over come his shortcomings.

The interview just shines a light on how his personality will likely never allow him to be super successful. His constant reminders about his successes. no matter how small, coupled with the name-dropping that never stops, makes him seem very insecure, which isn't typically a trait of those who reach pinnacles of success.
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Head and shoulders better than Dooley and Pruitt isn't saying a whole lot but yeah I think overall he was decent but not good.

Having said that, his issue was while he improved pretty steadily at first, once he got to a certain point he couldn't close the deal. 2015 was his best season imo and felt like his most complete team results wise. Should have been at worst 10-2 (OK and FL should have been wins) and could have won Arkansas and Alabama. It set up 2016 nicely.

2016 was a choke. Simple as that. Had the East won and choked against SC, then had a Sugar Bowl bid in the bag that we choked against Vandy. Even so if you look at 2016 it's crazy how we easily could have been 11-1....or like 7-5. 2017 was just the whole house of cards falling.

As you said his biggest issue was his personlity and just his approach. He didn't take accountablity, he deflected, made excuses, etc. He made up ridiculous "achievements" like 5 star hearts and "Champions of Life". Real participation trophy level crap, and a weird deflection since nobody said they were terribe people or garbage because they didn't win the SEC.

All in all he seems like he could be a pretty good coach but his immaturity and narcissistic tendencies hold him back.
 
#41
#41
Butch is the last Tennessee coach to beat georgia in fact he beat them twice
 
#42
#42
IfDickeyStayed said:
I disagree. I think Pruitt was a better HC than Jones. Pruitt was a dumb redneck from North Alabama, but he also played a much harder schedule than Jones ever did. Pruitt played Saban, Kirby, Florida Dan Mullen, and some decent Mark Stoops teams every year. I think if you gave Pruitt the 2015 and 2016 Tennessee teams and schedule, he would actually win the SEC East one of those years. In 2019, Tennessee started off terribly, but Pruitt did pull them together to win 8 games with basically no QB. Jones needed Dobbs just to get to 8 wins. Jones best SEC record was 5-3 with Alvin Kamara and Dobbs, while Pruitt went 5-3 with Guaratano and Tim Jordan. Pruitt also left the program with decent talent on the roster, while Jones left us with middle schoolers playing on the team. Jones also went 0-8 in conference one year and 4-8 overall. Pruitt never won fewer than 2 SEC games. Also, don't forget that Jones never even beat an SEC West team, and Pruitt won at Auburn in year 1 and beat MS State in year 2.

Now idk what to say about Dooley. He should never have been a football coach
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I will say this much about Jeremy-he gave it everything he had. Even went beyond the limits of what was allowable, but the man wanted to win lol.

You are also forgetting that Pruitt had Jennings. Jauan is and was a baaaaaaddddd man on the football field. He alone willed us to half those wins in 2019

You put that man on any one of about 5 of our teams in the 90s, and UT would have another NC banner hanging in Neyland. Guy was just relentless. God bless him
 
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#44
#44
IfDickeyStayed said:
I disagree. I think Pruitt was a better HC than Jones. Pruitt was a dumb redneck from North Alabama, but he also played a much harder schedule than Jones ever did. Pruitt played Saban, Kirby, Florida Dan Mullen, and some decent Mark Stoops teams every year. I think if you gave Pruitt the 2015 and 2016 Tennessee teams and schedule, he would actually win the SEC East one of those years. In 2019, Tennessee started off terribly, but Pruitt did pull them together to win 8 games with basically no QB. Jones needed Dobbs just to get to 8 wins. Jones best SEC record was 5-3 with Alvin Kamara and Dobbs, while Pruitt went 5-3 with Guaratano and Tim Jordan. Pruitt also left the program with decent talent on the roster, while Jones left us with middle schoolers playing on the team. Jones also went 0-8 in conference one year and 4-8 overall. Pruitt never won fewer than 2 SEC games. Also, don't forget that Jones never even beat an SEC West team, and Pruitt won at Auburn in year 1 and beat MS State in year 2.

Now idk what to say about Dooley. He should never have been a football coach
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Josh Heupel could have won National Title with 2015 Tennessee
 
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#46
#46
Lots of reasons…

The Bama cigar smoking thing, celebrating a win he had nothing to do with over guys he recruited.

Him taking an analysts role at Bama for nothing so he could still rake in the failure money from UT.

His fake, corporate speak, disingenuous personality.

Gave us the worst year in Tennessee history.

Dismantled a strength and conditioning program.

Lied about an injury to one of our players.

Squandered so much talent. Benefitted from Dobbs and a lot of legacy players, but choked the year we should have won the East.

Brushed off Trevor Lawrence and helped contribute to Clempson’s success.

Ran a read option with Worley.

He was a fool, and worse an arrogant fool.

I don’t dislike Pruitt or Dooley. Jones deserves the dislike he gets.
 
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#47
#47
IfDickeyStayed said:
I disagree. I think Pruitt was a better HC than Jones. Pruitt was a dumb redneck from North Alabama, but he also played a much harder schedule than Jones ever did. Pruitt played Saban, Kirby, Florida Dan Mullen, and some decent Mark Stoops teams every year. I think if you gave Pruitt the 2015 and 2016 Tennessee teams and schedule, he would actually win the SEC East one of those years. In 2019, Tennessee started off terribly, but Pruitt did pull them together to win 8 games with basically no QB. Jones needed Dobbs just to get to 8 wins. Jones best SEC record was 5-3 with Alvin Kamara and Dobbs, while Pruitt went 5-3 with Guaratano and Tim Jordan. Pruitt also left the program with decent talent on the roster, while Jones left us with middle schoolers playing on the team. Jones also went 0-8 in conference one year and 4-8 overall. Pruitt never won fewer than 2 SEC games. Also, don't forget that Jones never even beat an SEC West team, and Pruitt won at Auburn in year 1 and beat MS State in year 2.

Now idk what to say about Dooley. He should never have been a football coach
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Pruitt at least knew football. And he left Heupel with a pretty damn good roster.
 
#48
#48
Godfatha said:
Pruitt at least knew football. And he left Heupel with a pretty damn good roster.
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He was a very good position coach and knew how to evaluate talent.

Here is my conspiracy take on his hiring. Fulmer of course knew Pruitt had no skills as a HC but he thought he could mentor him along the way and in return he would be the de facto HC for a couple of yrs. Have no actual proof of this but see no other reason to hire a coach with no experience for a HC spot.
 
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