Is Tennessee underrated?

#101
#101
EastTNVol6240 said:
The question is offense per usual when it comes to coach H. Our offensive side of the ball hasn’t been great under him with the exception of the hooker years. And let’s face it, Heupel kind of fell into that situation due to an injury. I think this year will look much like last year if we get comparable play from JA that we did from Nico, which isn’t asking for much. It’s hard to get hype around your program when there is ? About scoring potential.
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This is all that concerns me about Hype, his evaluation at qb, he has not recruited a qualaity qb yet that has plaiyed well.
 
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#103
#103
Heupel is either going to evolve this offense and get himself into the elite level of top 5 coaches in the country or he is going to start next year on the hot seat and we will regret the extension which really accomplished nothing. Tired of seeing this ridiculously simplistic offense get stuffed against good teams. I hope it's the former and he moves us into a perennial Top 3 team in SEC because I really like the guy.
 
#106
#106
Power_Sweep_Vol said:
Heupel is either going to evolve this offense and get himself into the elite level of top 5 coaches in the country or he is going to start next year on the hot seat and we will regret the extension which really accomplished nothing. Tired of seeing this ridiculously simplistic offense get stuffed against good teams. I hope it's the former and he moves us into a perennial Top 3 team in SEC because I really like the guy.
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Counterpoint: he has two 10 win seasons, which is more than the last 3 guys combined. Also, he did it after we hit the lowest point in recent program history.

Lets give the guy a break. He has more than earned respect. Also, if you buy in to the narrative that the offense is simplistic, then you do not know ball.

I guess wins against Alabama (twice!), and an LSU team that ended up in the SEC championship are kinda meaningless.

Just because we can't beat UGA (shocker, most teams haven't) and a loaded Ohio State team that ended up winning the Natty and you want to fire him. Get a life.
 
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#107
#107
Nico ee-ah-MAH-LAY-ah-va said:
Counterpoint: he has two 10 win seasons, which is more than the last 3 guys combined. Also, he did it after we hit the lowest point in recent program history.

Lets give the guy a break. He has more than earned respect. Also, if you buy in to the narrative that the offense is simplistic, then you do not know ball.

I guess wins against Alabama (twice!), and an LSU team that ended up in the SEC championship are kinda meaningless.

Just because we can't beat UGA (shocker, most teams haven't) and a loaded Ohio State team that ended up winning the Natty and you want to fire him. Get a life.
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Yeah, you need some help on reading comprehension because nowhere did I say I wanted him fired. But the offense is very simplistic, and almost never makes you think, "wow...that was a clever play". There is a reason we were shut out in 3 straight first halves last year.

I hope he succeeds...the results thus far have been solid. There are warning signs that if he doesn't make some big changes we'll continue to struggle on offense.
 
#108
#108
Vols are underrated. Quarterback is an upgrade. OL is flying low under the radar ready ro rise up and strike. Defense is silent but deadly. Punters will ride the bench. Hype is playing rope-a-dope and has the pocket ace. Vols are ready to shock the nation.

Or not. Ask me again Sunday.

(Although Saturday may not tell us much. Guessing Hype won't show any of his cards, much less the ace.)
 
#109
#109
I don’t know what to expect this season.

I can see a scenario where this team surprises to the upside and into the playoffs.

I can also see a scenario of 7-5.

And everything in between.

So…until I learn otherwise, I’m hopeful for surprising to the upside.
 
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#111
#111
djohnnyg said:
Where are we according to the "experts?" I see ranked at #24 but our fpi is #8 according to espn. I don't get it.
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Noticed that as well. Boise State was ranked #25 but they got walloped by Golesh and USF. Last year we were ranked #17 I believe to start.

Screw the polls. Go out and handle business. We should cover the spread if we’re the #8 by FPI metrics.
 
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#112
#112
Most definitely underrated. My biggest question is the QB to WR connection. If the passing game is effective, then they're in the discussion for the playoffs.
 
#113
#113
Other_Guy said:
Obviously VN will be biased but the justification for all of these experts or youtubers having Tenn really low and certain other teams higher, potentially being really good teams, doesn't actually make sense to me, and I've watched a ton of prediction videos.
The argument against Tenn: lost a lot on offense, got a transfer no one is raving about. Yeah they got an easy schedule, great defense and finished the highest of these last year, but 8-4 is about right.
Yet someone I'm supposed to believe in OU's offense with their transfer QB and bad OL.
Somehow I'm supposed to pretend Napier didn't almost get fired midseason and Lagway will stay healthy amidst a brutal schedule.
Im supposed to think ole miss is going to be View attachment 765560just fine replacing that defense and QB when they couldn't go better than 9-3 with their best roster ever.
I'm supposed to think S Carolina will be a potential playoff team despite losing their defense. Who is Sellers throwing to?
Point is, Tenn has similar issues to these schools yet everyone still has faith in them and universally people are seeing 8-4 for Tenn with the easiest or 2nd easiest schedule in the SEC.
Heupel has consistently done more with less. Where is the faith in him?
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Florida is clearly overrated.
 
#115
#115
Power_Sweep_Vol said:
Heupel is either going to evolve this offense and get himself into the elite level of top 5 coaches in the country or he is going to start next year on the hot seat and we will regret the extension which really accomplished nothing. Tired of seeing this ridiculously simplistic offense get stuffed against good teams. I hope it's the former and he moves us into a perennial Top 3 team in SEC because I really like the guy.
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We are a perennial top 3 team in the SEC now
 
#117
#117
99gator said:
I think they are underrated.

The perception is that it (last year’s team) was a high flying offensive team led by Nico.

I think it was a team that leaned on defense and running the ball with Nico generating a few plays here or there.
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I feel like we won some games IN SPITE of Nico. I know he was relatively young, but I saw little to no improvement as the year went on. He barely made an impact in terms of TDs against the better teams on our schedule.

Also, quick side note... you guys may have your hands full with USF after what they did to Boise last night. That USF QB is fun to watch.
 
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#118
#118
Power_Sweep_Vol said:
Yeah, you need some help on reading comprehension because nowhere did I say I wanted him fired. But the offense is very simplistic, and almost never makes you think, "wow...that was a clever play". There is a reason we were shut out in 3 straight first halves last year.

I hope he succeeds...the results thus far have been solid. There are warning signs that if he doesn't make some big changes we'll continue to struggle on offense.
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I would find Stoerner Fumbles's post earlier in this thread. It sounds like we will be seeing some innovative new wrinkles, particularly with the TE's thanks to Seth Littrell. I also think our offense was hampered by Nico last year, but that's just me.
 
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#120
#120
WilliamDuVOL said:
I would find Stoerner Fumbles's post earlier in this thread. It sounds like we will be seeing some innovative new wrinkles, particularly with the TE's thanks to Seth Littrell. I also think our offense was hampered by Nico last year, but that's just me.
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I think we will have some new wrinkles with the TE's harkening back to Princeton Fant type plays and I am here for it
 
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#121
#121
In the national perception our image suffers because of a lack of star power and Nico leaving.

But Heup has quietly been building a strong roster. We might win the same way we did last year, and be happy to take a playoff spot again.
 
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#124
#124
Yes. The Vols are underrated.
Nico, despite having Sampson to take the pressure off, had numbers almost identical to Milton. Joey (or Merk, for that matter) will be AT LEAST as good and most likely better.
The run game won't be Sampson, but should be equal to Wright/Small. Remember all the scoreless first halves? Won't happen this year.
The D was excellent and should be even better.
 
#125
#125
Few things of note from a friend in the program:

RB is not a dropoff.

Bishop is a punisher with first down carries and basic inside runs. He’s getting to the second level regularly through very small holes. He’s making decisive cuts and then laying into people. Lewis is the first big back with true breakaway speed in a long time. If he beats the LB, he’s gone. Expect both guys to do well.

TE almost an embarrassment of riches. They block well, can catch, and have been given read assignments to release when they double the slot or walk up in the box. These guys are really good.

WR Matthews is living up to his billing. Jefferson and Staley each have big play potential when healthy. Brazzell had a slow Fall, but has surged recently. This group has to stay healthy.

OL Best group we’ve had since Heupel has been here. We’ll miss Mays’ ability to read shifts, pick up MLB blitz, and make quick calls, but we have real bigs for the first time.


DB Best group we’ve had in a very long time. We can play press man or let safeties run free in zone. Very flexible, strong, athletic group.

QB Aguilar has a manageable package and has not been throwing picks in practice. Look for the playbook to be vanilla until Georgia. We’ll have some chunk plays, but we aren’t going to overload him or receivers with complexity.

LB The most athletic group we’ve had, with one of the best coaches we’ve ever had at this position. This group can hit, read and release, and cover the damn slant that always kills us.

The coaches think Syracuse will stack the box and play off our receivers. They think they are very well coached, but can’t handle a slug fest. Well run often on O, look for big plays if they walk up, and pick on the middle with passes. TE is going to be big for us.

On D, we’re going after them. We believe we have better athleticism everywhere and we aren’t going to lay back. We’ll have an aggressive box and let our corners cover one on one.


I’m really excited about this young team. They look like an SEC team top to bottom. Aguilar is an unknown on this stage, but hopefully he can handle the basics. He does not have a world class arm, and he’s going to need to make quick reads and run when it’s there.

Let’s do this!
 
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