John Chavis Deserves the Benefit of the Doubt

#1
Sheik Yerbouti

Sheik Yerbouti

Class of 2000
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May 1, 2007
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#1
Last Saturday sure seems like the cumulative result of five or six years worth of negligence when it comes to defense fundamentals: namely tackling. For five or six years, I feel like I've been complaining about Vol defenses who can't seem to hit a guy and wrap him up. It's pathetic. It speaks volumes when Eric Berry has better tackling fundamentals than some of our veteran linebackers. Why are Berry's fundamentals better? Because he showed up at UT that way. Lets hope he doesn't catch the arm-tackling/ankle-diving disease from the rest of the defensive backs and linebackers.

But I don't want to get too down on Chavis. He has certainly fielded some great defenses, and he has kept the Vols competitive during some seasons when the offense was less than average.

So, I'll give the guy the benefit of the doubt for a little while longer. But if I see Vol defenders diving at ankles and grabbing for jerseys tonight instead of wrapping guys up and driving them into the turf, I'll probably lose some respect for Chavis.

He should be able to turn this situation around. I hope for our sake that he does.
 
#2
#2
no doubt Chavis's resume' is strong; It hasn't been that long ago he was certainly named among the top DC's in the country; I know we don't have a top-rated line right now, but I certainly feel like it underachieved by quite a bit in the opener. Our talent on D may not be the best of the best overall, but there's enough there to do a lot more, imo. I wanna believe too...

I suppose USM's offense doesn't pose the kind of challenge that will define a defense, but we can certainly show that we're hungrier than we appeared last week, no?
 
#3
#3
I'm sorry, but another bad performance this Saturday would be very very bad for Chavis' stay in UT.
 
#4
#4
Chavis' defenses make him look good...wilson, burnett, grant and allen's of the past coached themselves. They pulled themselves together many times while Chavis was in the box. I would not doubt Fulmer has told him to come down on the field awhile back so he could get in their faces and try to coach these weaker generations.....their own recruiting weakness.
 
#5
#5
Opinions are like rear ends, everyone has one and no one thinks anybody elses smells too good, but seem to delight in their own aroma, ...so here is my opinion... i think chavis is a hell of a def. coord.. i thought our tacklers flew past the ball and the carrier last week. i dont blame chavis for that. if you have coached, played, and officiated ( i have done all three) you get a different perspective on a game as it goes on. you also become aware how little you can actually control, unless you are playing. hope my opinion's aroma was not too offensive. Go Vols!!:stinker2:
 
#6
#6
gcb/hoosiervol said:
Opinions are like rear ends, everyone has one and no one thinks anybody elses smells too good, but seem to delight in their own aroma, ...so here is my opinion... i think chavis is a hell of a def. coord.. i thought our tacklers flew past the ball and the carrier last week. i dont blame chavis for that. if you have coached, played, and officiated ( i have done all three) you get a different perspective on a game as it goes on. you also become aware how little you can actually control, unless you are playing. hope my opinion's aroma was not too offensive. Go Vols!!:stinker2:
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:yuck:
 
#7
#7
gcb/hoosiervol said:
Opinions are like rear ends, everyone has one and no one thinks anybody elses smells too good, but seem to delight in their own aroma, ...so here is my opinion... i think chavis is a hell of a def. coord.. i thought our tacklers flew past the ball and the carrier last week. i dont blame chavis for that. if you have coached, played, and officiated ( i have done all three) you get a different perspective on a game as it goes on. you also become aware how little you can actually control, unless you are playing. hope my opinion's aroma was not too offensive. Go Vols!!:stinker2:
Click to expand...
:disappointed:
 
#8
#8
Chavis is a riddle this year. He's the defensive coordinator and linebacker position coach.

He has 4 and 5 star Linebackers two and three deep on the depth chart.
 
#9
#9
oklavol said:
Chavis is a riddle this year. He's the defensive coordinator and linebacker position coach.

He has 4 and 5 star Linebackers two and three deep on the depth chart.
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Yet they never got a chance to go after Longshore. I have always thought our greatest defensive games are the ones where we blitz relentlessly, and our biggest shortcomings come from dropping back into zone or the dreaded mustang.
 
#10
#10
ledhed43 said:
Yet they never got a chance to go after Longshore. I have always thought our greatest defensive games are the ones where we blitz relentlessly, and our biggest shortcomings come from dropping back into zone or the dreaded mustang.
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yeah the only way UT could beat Florida.

Those lesson's come at a cost. The coaching staff shouldn't be having to relearn them.
 
#11
#11
What really worries me about Chavis is his inability to coach against the option. More and more teams are going to the spread offense, so we are going to have to find an answer for the option attack. We all seemed to think we had a chance against florida cause Tebow isn't a proven passer, but you know he may not have to pass that much. First things first we got to get past Southern Miss, which I feel will be much more a challenge than we really want. I hope Ainge is on today cause we will need points.
 
#13
#13
ledhed43 said:
What really worries me about Chavis is his inability to coach against the option. More and more teams are going to the spread offense, so we are going to have to find an answer for the option attack. We all seemed to think we had a chance against florida cause Tebow isn't a proven passer, but you know he may not have to pass that much. First things first we got to get past Southern Miss, which I feel will be much more a challenge than we really want. I hope Ainge is on today cause we will need points.
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I never did like the excuse he gave for the Air Force game.
 
#15
#15
I'm still not convinced that fundamentals are being stressed. The D-Line looked better in the second half, but I'm not so sure that So. Miss.'s O-Line will be the same quality as Florida's. I'm a bit worried, actually.
 
#16
#16
Sheik Yerbouti said:
I'm still not convinced that fundamentals are being stressed. The D-Line looked better in the second half, but I'm not so sure that So. Miss.'s O-Line will be the same quality as Florida's. I'm a bit worried, actually.
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we all have reason to be worried. Tebo is very illusive, so whether his O-Line breaks down or not he can move away and make a play. I watched the Florida game closely. They have a deep rotation to their O-line. Fresh legs constantly coming in. Harvin stays back in the the slot and scat back position as a safety valve with a single back set with Moore (not impressive so far). I agree with you. Chavis must light a fire under them. We have to get ahead in the game quickly. It seems we have played catch up the first quarter each game. Florida played catch up all year last year. They were the epitome of the a second half team. We need to play four quarters Saturday or we'll get embarrassed. I will be there, section C row 5. Go Vols!
 
#17
#17
i'm curious ... how many times under chavis has TN led the SEC in total defense? how many times under chavis has TN led the NCAA, or ranked in the top 10, in total defense?

i've looked around and have found that under chavis TN has been in the top 3 in the SEC in total D eight times, and he was the division IA assistant coach of the year in 06. not bad, but not sure i'd call that great.
 
#18
#18
Whoops! More crappy defensive fundamentals and out of position players led to several Florida touchdowns. The Defensive staff needs to get it together quick or go away, as does the special teams staff (who coaches special teams anyway?).

For that matter, the offensive line hasn't been able to run block ever since we hired Jimmy Ray Stevens.

What exactly are these guys teaching the players?
 
#19
#19
I'm willing to give Cutcliffe the benefit of the doubt, he is at least trying to bring an innovative offensive scheme into play,

But Chavis like Fulmer, seems to be lost when faced with any new challenges. Chavis used to be an innovator, but lately he just seems to be trying and failing to react to anything new brought out by others; he and our defense always seem to be caught by surprise. A day late and a dollar short.
 
#20
#20
tm3 said:
i'm curious ... how many times under chavis has TN led the SEC in total defense? how many times under chavis has TN led the NCAA, or ranked in the top 10, in total defense?

i've looked around and have found that under chavis TN has been in the top 3 in the SEC in total D eight times, and he was the division IA assistant coach of the year in 06. not bad, but not sure i'd call that great.
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That award isn't really for coaching ability. Kind of like a rotary club award.

He got it last year, during one of the worst defensive years in his career.
 
#21
#21
Volmania said:
I'm willing to give Cutcliffe the benefit of the doubt, he is at least trying to bring an innovative offensive scheme into play,

But Chavis like Fulmer, seems to be lost when faced with any new challenges. Chavis used to be an innovator, but lately he just seems to be trying and failing to react to anything new brought out by others; he and our defense always seem to be caught by surprise. A day late and a dollar short.
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It's not the surprises that upset me most. Granted, Chavis should be on top of the new trends in college offenses, especially when they have been emerging for the last three or four years and have been well-publicized (like the spread option).

What upsets me most is when I see an opposing running back gain five or six (or ten or twenty) extra yards after contact because Tennessee's defenders can't figure out how to wrap a guy up. That's just bad fundamentals, and bad fundamentals comes from bad coaching.
 
#22
#22
I tell you what else sucks. They always put in one of the freshman for one of two reasons. They are either gonna throw it deep or run a reverse. Don't you think the coaches on the other sideline can pick up on this?
 
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