Insight about the roster turnover and what CJP has to work with. (article)

[VolArmy74]

Always in year 0 around here.

As someone pointed out, we don't suffer from a lack of talent, we suffer from a lack of development. Those players were outstanding in high school and worked their butts off to be noticed by the schools that offered them They've been given no guidance on how to improve themselves while here. Pruitt took the job 22 months ago. We look worse now than we did the day he got the job. It's not shocking since he's literally never done before what he was hired to do, and that's on Phil.

 

[JohnnyJava]

As usual Rucker writes an article any of us could have written. If he would have written this article before the season it would hold more weight. He is just like us fans. He picked us to win game one. then he picked us to win game 2. then he picked us to play Florida close. Now he writes this article. lol. Now we all see what Pruitt has to work with and it's going to be a long painful process. We can't fire him. We can't afford to go back to square one. The reality is we are not very good and really it matters not who the qb is from here on out. We will find other ways to lose games. (see byu). Hey Rucker...tell us water is wet!

Many people place more weight on those opinions which are printed in the paper. Oh wait, nevermind.

 

[m1al]

We as fans have done our job every single time and showed up to games to pay for the program. That's going to start changing very soon creating a bigger problem. Enough is enough

Why are you mad? I thought the dawgs were doing really well.......

 

[Catbone]

Why are you mad? I thought the dawgs were doing really well.......

Let's keep that a secret

 

[m1al]

Let's keep that a secret

Well if you wouldn’t have quoted me I could’ve deleted it. To late....

 

[Catbone]

Well if you wouldn’t have quoted me I could’ve deleted it. To late....

I mean I've only heard it 100000 times before so may as well play along

 

[m1al]

I mean I've only heard it 100000 times before so may as well play along

I’m just messin’ with ya. You know that, right?

 

[cobbwebb0710]

Bad players or bad coaching?

Personally I think it’s a bit of both. Mullen called a great game but our front never got any pressure.

I’m no coach, and I don’t claim to be a football guru, but, why are our corners lined up like that? At the snap, the WR is digging up field, gaining speed and our corners are dropping in what we used to call karaoke, cross stepping. The corners then turn to run with them after they’ve gone by them. I’m pretty sure a WR is gonna win that battle the majority of the time. They are also lined up outside of the WR, giving them an easy break to the middle. That’s a bad position for a corner to be in, especially with no safety help. God, seeing that video made it even worse! We are getting out schemed at a very serious rate.
GBO!!

 

[Give Him 6]

Haven't seen it since the GSU game? What about when Taylor let the BYU receiver run by him and then the safety misses the tackle? Did you see that? During the UF game the sideline reporter said one of the UT O-lineman raised his hand and said "coach what are we doing?" The players don't have a clear vision of what they are supposed to be doing. It's obvious.
The way players play is a reflection of the coaching they receive. Period.

I didn’t say there weren’t mistakes. I said the defense has played well enough to win games if the offense would pick up there end. Period!

 

[TommyJoe]

Rucker: Let’s be real about size, scope of Vols’ rebuild

Some hightlights:
All the transfers are not a bad thing.
The guys from '16 and '17 recruiting classes are not what they were on paper
Pruitt's first class was assembled in essentially 2 weeks so those are just marginally "his guys" and thats UTs fault for the coaching debacle.
Our roster is not good currently (I know I know, GaSt., shot happens is all I can say)

I thought this was laid out very well and encompasses alot of the discussion on this board.

Damage control. You must have worked for Bill and Hilliary at one point.

 

[Johncarter53]

I’m no coach, and I don’t claim to be a football guru, but, why are our corners lined up like that? At the snap, the WR is digging up field, gaining speed and our corners are dropping in what we used to call karaoke, cross stepping. The corners then turn to run with them after they’ve gone by them. I’m pretty sure a WR is gonna win that battle the majority of the time. They are also lined up outside of the WR, giving them an easy break to the middle. That’s a bad position for a corner to be in, especially with no safety help. God, seeing that video made it even worse! We are getting out schemed at a very serious rate.
GBO!!

I’m no coach or guru either but from what I know the key to Pruitt’s defense is getting pressure on the qb. He had really good D linemen at FL st, Ga, and Alabama but we don’t have one dominant player up front or at least hasn’t developed into one yet. If we had a couple pass rushers, Trask doesn’t make half of those throws. That’s why recruiting this year is so important.

 

[indian rick]

While I am nowhere near suggesting that we need to let CJP go, I disagree with this mentality that he inherited a mess and that's why we have been underwhelming and, in fact, have regressed. The situation CJP inherited was not as horrible as the mess inherited by either Dooley or Jones, and somehow those teams didn't succumb to the low level this team has played at so far.

I do think there will be some improvement but I just don't think "the mess he inherited" is the root cause of this year's regression.

Think again

 

[Remy]

Yes the Ga. State players were huge! Not 1 of them could even walk on here at UT. Its like getting whipped by the tackling dummies. I agree with you but this game and the Vandy game last season can't be explained.

What the Ga State loss should be telling evefrybody is how talent rich the Atlanta Metro area actually is. It's no secret Ga State is just a small step up from commnunity college here in Georgia. Ga State are not world beaters but they're not exactly chopped liver with no talent either. Give them props they beat us, shlould not have, but they have a few kids that can play D1 ball on that team.

 

[1985Vols]

If you lack talent, why wouldn't you look confused and clueless? I lack talent. If they put me on the field I would probably look pretty clueless.

Disagree, I may not be " talented" enough to play but if you " coach" me correct, I guarantee you I could learn where to line up. Especially if I was a second year starter playing cornerback in a prevent defense with 17 seconds to go in the game ( Alontae Taylor)

 

[1985Vols]

What the Ga State loss should be telling evefrybody is how talent rich the Atlanta Metro area actually is. It's no secret Ga State is just a small step up from commnunity college here in Georgia. Ga State are not world beaters but they're not exactly chopped liver with no talent either. Give them props they beat us, shlould not have, but they have a few kids that can play D1 ball on that team.

Western Michigan 47. Ga. state 10. Enough said.

 

[Ashevolle]

While I am nowhere near suggesting that we need to let CJP go, I disagree with this mentality that he inherited a mess and that's why we have been underwhelming and, in fact, have regressed. The situation CJP inherited was not as horrible as the mess inherited by either Dooley or Jones, and somehow those teams didn't succumb to the low level this team has played at so far.

I do think there will be some improvement but I just don't think "the mess he inherited" is the root cause of this year's regression.

I don't know how you can say that. The 2017 Vols were the worst team in school history. That's a fact.

 

[photovol]

Pruitt must be able to teach this team to crawl, then he must teach them to walk and talk......it's going to be a very long process, Aight, get used to it, ok

 

[troyntn71]

Lack of talent still doesn't explain players that look confused, clueless, and unmotivated.

Also all these fans lecturing us about being patient and this team not being talented forget we lost to Georgia State. The team that had a fraction of the talent we did. Tennessee has the only fan base in America that seems to be okay with losing consistently. Some actually embrace it.

 

[troyntn71]

It's lazy to blame the student athletes, and not the multi-millionaire professional that is tasked with insuring it doesn't happen....either by coaching or personnel changes.

The blame goes with both. Those kids are treated like kings on campus. Most are getting a scholarship and a free education and it shouldn't be hard to be self-motivated to go out there and play good football in front of your family, your friends, and millions of people watching on TV. The coaches are to blame because they our table to scheme or make adjustments.

 

[VolsRule]

Butch left the program in shambles---it will take 3-4 years of recruiting stars to be able to compete with alabama and georgia.

 

[troyntn71]

That’s just your opinion to which just isn’t true. I haven’t seen that since the Georgia St game and from the expanation given by coach Pruitt they called a conservative game and the players were playing on there heals. Since the first game I think the defense has played well enough to win games if the offense would just get going. People are gonna have to get over Georgia St game and look at this team with real perspective. I get that game happened but to say they haven’t played better since is just choosing to focus on one game.

It's not just one game. Georgia state is not easy to get over. It's like people still talk about Michigan in the Appalachian State to this very day. This will always be talked about. You just don't lose to that team and it's not just that game anyway . Pruitt has lost by 25 points or more in 16 games than Fulmer did in 16 years. Getting humiliated by vandy last year is acceptable. Losing 34 to 3 to Florida is unacceptable. Getting blown out by Missouri is unacceptable. I could go on and on. So all you people to keep saying that we're focusing on one game you have your head in the sand.

 

['Boro-vol]

The blame goes with both. Those kids are treated like kings on campus. Most are getting a scholarship and a free education and it shouldn't be hard to be self-motivated to go out there and play good football in front of your family, your friends, and millions of people watching on TV. The coaches are to blame because they our table to scheme or make adjustments.

I know some see it that way. It’s ok to disagree on it. My perspective is that the kids are the ones that sacrifice to be here, through multiple coaching changes. And, most, continue to study, practice, and play through it all. Most will always have a connection back to the University, which is unlikely in most instances with a coach.

Maybe my perspective is a bit different because my son plays DIII college ball. No scholarships at that level, but all of the work and responsibility. It’s not easy. I’m certain there are things about big time ball that make it even a more difficult juggling act.

My only point is next time we are tempted to blame a kid, remember that somebody making a hefty salary was responsible for teaching him how to do his job and put him in the position to succeed or fail.

 

['Boro-vol]

Butch left the program in shambles---it will take 3-4 years of recruiting stars to be able to compete with alabama and georgia.

I don’t think anyone is expecting to compete with UGA and Bama anytime soon.

Beat the patsy’s and compete with the middle of the SEC East. Win 6, go bowling, and improve next year.

 

[IPleadInsanity]

What the Ga State loss should be telling evefrybody is how talent rich the Atlanta Metro area actually is. It's no secret Ga State is just a small step up from commnunity college here in Georgia. Ga State are not world beaters but they're not exactly chopped liver with no talent either. Give them props they beat us, shlould not have, but they have a few kids that can play D1 ball on that team.

Every small college team has D1 players after 3 years of playing football. This is not unusual. None of them would have been recruited by UT as a freshmen and none of them would replace a player on the current team. Their back was good but will he replace our starting back? Our frosh are better than their frosh, sophs better than sophs and so on. Now when their team is executing their plays, all on the same page and the opposing team (us) does the exact opposite with no one on the same page the weaker team has a chance to win. Even then it's a small chance.

 

[troyntn71]

I know some see it that way. It’s ok to disagree on it. My perspective is that the kids are the ones that sacrifice to be here, through multiple coaching changes. And, most, continue to study, practice, and play through it all. Most will always have a connection back to the University, which is unlikely in most instances with a coach.

Maybe my perspective is a bit different because my son plays DIII college ball. No scholarships at that level, but all of the work and responsibility. It’s not easy. I’m certain there are things about big time ball that make it even a more difficult juggling act.

My only point is next time we are tempted to blame a kid, remember that somebody making a hefty salary was responsible for teaching him how to do his job and put him in the position to succeed or fail.

I put most of the blame on the coaches. I agree in that aspect.