If we go 8-4?

#351
#351
Trade a gator win for the arky win and I'd be happy. A win over Mizzou haven't been easy to come by either.
 
#352
#352
volgrad500 said:
Like others have said, at face value 8-4 seems ok. But that would pretty much mean you lost every game against top teams. If the losses are likely to be from OU, Fl, UGA, and Bama, who is your best win? Arkansas? I mean, a lot of teams have beaten them the last two years and we have them at home. SCAR? Hell, we've beaten them two years running. So it's hard to say 8-4 isn't a success, but then again your 8 wins would be Bowling Green, Western Carolina, Arky, Kentucky, SCAR, North Texas, Missouri and lolVandy.
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Of those Arkansas, Carolina, and Missouri each will probably be tough, heads up football that could go either way.
 
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#354
#354
Florida is going to be a WIN.

The toss up games are going to be Oklahoma, Bama, Mizzou, UGa and Arkansas.

#BrickbyBrick...VFL...GBO!!!
 
#356
#356
10-2 with a healthy Hurd and Dobbs the full season. An 8-4 season would tell me Dobb's injured.
 
#358
#358
The more I think about it I don't think this year's schedule lends itself to the kind of "minimum" win debate we've had the last coupe of seasons, because where they come from really could paint a completely different picture. 8-4 could be ok, but it could be rather s@#tty. For instance:

Who among this group would not be a "bad" loss ("bad" meaning multiple times during the post game call in show you're screaming "what the @#$# Butch??"): Bowling Green, Western Carolina, North Texas, Kentucky, and lolVanderbilt (at HOME). That's five pretty much layups.

That means all we'd have to do is win 3 games out of 7 legitimate opponents to reach 8-4. If one of those is OU, then we would end up 4-4 in the SEC, with 2 of those wins being Vandy and UK. If the other two are against AR and Mizzou, then have we really progressed? Losses to AL, UGA, FL, and SCAR pretty much leaves us where we've been-thanking the good Lord that UK and Vandy are below us in the East.

But if those other two wins are against AL and FL, or we lose to OU and pick up another SEC win to go 5-3, I think we'd all be thrilled with where we are.
IMO, it's going to be a unique season where how you feel about the team's progress could vary on an almost week to week basis (unless we decide to just win every damn game and be done with it).
 
#359
#359
volgrad500 said:
The more I think about it I don't think this year's schedule lends itself to the kind of "minimum" win debate we've had the last coupe of seasons, because where they come from really could paint a completely different picture. 8-4 could be ok, but it could be rather s@#tty. For instance:

Who among this group would not be a "bad" loss ("bad" meaning multiple times during the post game call in show you're screaming "what the @#$# Butch??"): Bowling Green, Western Carolina, North Texas, Kentucky, and lolVanderbilt (at HOME). That's five pretty much layups.

That means all we'd have to do is win 3 games out of 7 legitimate opponents to reach 8-4. If one of those is OU, then we would end up 4-4 in the SEC, with 2 of those wins being Vandy and UK. If the other two are against AR and Mizzou, then have we really progressed? Losses to AL, UGA, FL, and SCAR pretty much leaves us where we've been-thanking the good Lord that UK and Vandy are below us in the East.

But if those other two wins are against AL and FL, or we lose to OU and pick up another SEC win to go 5-3, I think we'd all be thrilled with where we are.
IMO, it's going to be a unique season where how you feel about the team's progress could vary on an almost week to week basis (unless we decide to just win every damn game and be done with it).
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Thoughtful, well thought out analysis of our schedule and what 4 loss season actually means to the momentum of our program's progress. 8-4 sounds really good until you dissect the probable losses like you just did...doesn't look so good then imo. It's why I've come to believe that 8-4 is the minimum expectation this year and not the goal. I think 9-3 is very good and only 10-2 or better would be a special season.
 
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#360
#360
volgrad500 and KB sum up how I feel. You can't just look at the record. You have to look at each game and break it down into sections. Last season we closed the gap in our losses from 2013. Now we need to turn some of those into wins. There are 5 "easy" wins on the schedule. So is going 3-4 against: OU, UF, UGA, Mizzou, Bama, Ark, & SC really showing progress when 4 of those games are home?
 
#361
#361
Boca Vol said:
volgrad500 and KB sum up how I feel. You can't just look at the record. You have to look at each game and break it down into sections. Last season we closed the gap in our losses from 2013. Now we need to turn some of those into wins. There are 5 "easy" wins on the schedule. So is going 3-4 against: OU, UF, UGA, Mizzou, Bama, Ark, & SC really showing progress when 4 of those games are home?
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7 programs better than Ohio State's schedule...yeah winning 3 or 4 out of that stretch is pretty salty.
 
#362
#362
butchna said:
7 programs better than Ohio State's schedule...yeah winning 3 or 4 out of that stretch is pretty salty.
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I think going 4-3 in that stretch is very doable. Don't you? Considering OU, UGA, Ark, and SC are home.

I'm not sure what was meant by the Ohio State reference.
 
#363
#363
Boca Vol said:
I think going 4-3 in that stretch is very doable. Don't you? Considering OU, UGA, Ark, and SC are home.

I'm not sure what was meant by the Ohio State reference.
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I expect us to eventually dominate that stretch of games...might or might not have the depth currently...if we're being lucid...not sure why them being home games makes them sure fire wins...Bama's pretty good. :blink:

Ohio State doesn't go to the playoffs every year with that schedule...seemed relevant. :hi:
 
#364
#364
butchna said:
I expect us to eventually dominate that stretch of games...might or might not have the depth currently...if we're being lucid...not sure why them being home games makes them sure fire wins...Bama's pretty good. :blink:

Ohio State doesn't go to the playoffs every year with that schedule...seemed relevant. :hi:
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I agree UT hasn't been very good at home as of late but I still like our chances at home more so than on the road. That's why Bama being on the road isn't that big of a deal. I would rather play Bama on the road and Ark at home. 1-1 in that scenario is much more likely than Bama at home and Ark on the road.

Similar with UF on the road. Does it really matter where we play them? No. That still leaves OU, UGA, and SC as home games in addition to Ark.

I'm really not concerned about how well OSU would fare with UT's schedule because UT is the team that has to play it. 9-3 should be a realistic goal for this team.
 
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#365
#365
Boca Vol said:
I agree UT hasn't been very good at home as of late but I still like our chances at home more so than on the road. That's why Bama being on the road isn't that big of a deal. I would rather play Bama on the road and Ark at home. 1-1 in that scenario is much more likely than Bama at home and Ark on the road.

Similar with UF on the road. Does it really matter where we play them? No. That still leaves OU, UGA, and SC as home games in addition to Ark.

I'm really not concerned about how well OSU would fare with UT's schedule because UT is the team that has to play it. 9-3 should be a realistic goal for this team.
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Ohio State reference is perspective...in case you slip up and actually believe it's as easy as you posit.
 
#366
#366
butchna said:
Ohio State reference is perspective...in case you slip up and actually believe it's as easy as you posit.
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So you don't think UT can go 4-3 in that stretch of games? By the way, I never said it was going to be easy, but doable.

Out of those 6 games (we'll leave Bama out), which ones do you see UT being a severe underdog?
 
#368
#368
zero-sum said:
For the first time in maybe a decade we are the more talented team. Now it's a question of coaching and preparation --- who's the better staff
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I agree with you. This is a very winnable whether in Neyland or BHG.
 
#369
#369
Boca Vol said:
So you don't think UT can go 4-3 in that stretch of games? By the way, I never said it was going to be easy, but doable.

Out of those 6 games (we'll leave Bama out), which ones do you see UT being a severe underdog?
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Never said "can't"...just not going to burn my Vols gear if we fall short...Bama should be the only team we're a "severe" underdog to...but that's current thinking...we get some Barnett like quick development from some of our newcomers and maybe we reset...as of now, we have the better QB. I think we both WANT the same thing...our timetables for DEMANDING it differ.
 
#370
#370
Boca Vol said:
I agree UT hasn't been very good at home as of late but I still like our chances at home more so than on the road. That's why Bama being on the road isn't that big of a deal. I would rather play Bama on the road and Ark at home. 1-1 in that scenario is much more likely than Bama at home and Ark on the road.

Similar with UF on the road. Does it really matter where we play them? No. That still leaves OU, UGA, and SC as home games in addition to Ark.

I'm really not concerned about how well OSU would fare with UT's schedule because UT is the team that has to play it. 9-3 should be a realistic goal for this team.
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Agree. Especially the point on Bama being on the road this year. Much better having them home next year imo-This year is not bad either honestly, as Bama will be coming off a brutal stretch (@UGA, AR, @UTAM, with their bye not coming until after our game), while we have our bye the week before playing them. Can't ask for much of a better set up than that.
 
#372
#372
butchna said:
Never said "can't"...just not going to burn my Vols gear if we fall short...Bama should be the only team we're a "severe" underdog to...but that's current thinking...we get some Barnett like quick development from some of our newcomers and maybe we reset...as of now, we have the better QB. I think we both WANT the same thing...our timetables for DEMANDING it differ.
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It is encouraging to occasionally read a reasonable opinion on here.:hi:
 
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#373
#373
butchna said:
Never said "can't"...just not going to burn my Vols gear if we fall short...Bama should be the only team we're a "severe" underdog to...but that's current thinking...we get some Barnett like quick development from some of our newcomers and maybe we reset...as of now, we have the better QB. I think we both WANT the same thing...our timetables for DEMANDING it differ.
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We should be 8-4 and I agree. We still have a slightly young team. Next year we have the possibility of being 7-5 or 11-1 and anywhere in between. I believe in Butch to get us there. My main concerns are the OL and Debords ability to utilize our weapons on offense. Our defense shoulld be top 35-40 in all categories and a solid unit.
 
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#374
#374
08Vol said:
Yep, Mizzou got a weak AR team coming off of 2 dominant wins over ranked teams last year. I mean why can't people just give credit where credit is due? Mizzou was a good team last year that whooped people in the trenches.
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So you seriously think that Arkansas last year was even remotely as good as Ole Miss or Bama?
 
#375
#375
sjt18 said:
So you seriously think that Arkansas last year was even remotely as good as Ole Miss or Bama?
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Am I missing something 18? Is this a direct question? Or is there some sarcasm/ulterior motive at play?

2014-
Arkansas 13 Alabama 14
Arkansas 30 OleMiss 0
 
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