Volosaurus rex
Doctorate in Volology
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In the immediate aftermath of his sterling performance against South Carolina, Josh Dobbs has been the subject of a plethora of threads. This one will speculate on the potential big-picture ramifications of his career at Tennessee. I propose the following hypothesis for your collective scrutiny: If Butch Jones achieves the kind of long-term success that we all hope for and Dobbs can avoid serious injury, Josh will be remembered as having fundamentally redefined the quarterback position at Tennessee.
Prior to this season, a number of contributors to this forum suggested that, based on Butch's track record at CMU and Cincy, he prefers to use the quarterback position as a more integral part of the running game than we are accustomed to seeing from a Tennessee offense. For example, in 2007, Dan Lefevour, Jones starting QB at Central Michigan, ran 188 times for 1,122 yards (6.0 ave.) and 19 tds. He also passed for 3,652 yds. and 27 tds. that year. Over the course of his career, Lefevour amassed nearly 3,000 yards and 47 touchdowns on the ground while passing for almost 13,000 yards and 102 touchdowns (Dan Lefevour Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com). Yes, that was against MAC-level competition but Butch is now stockpiling SEC-caliber athletes to implement his system.
Fast-forward to 2014. In two games, Dobbs has rushed for 241 yards on 43 carries (5.6 ypc) while passing for 493 yards and 4 touchdowns. That, of course, includes a school-record 166 yards rushing and 301 yards through the air vs. a very bad South Carolina defense, a total which it appears would now rank third all-time on the single-game total offense charts for Tennessee quarterbacks. On the other hand, Dobbs accounted for 75 yards rushing and 267 yards total offense in 52:05 of action vs. an Alabama defense which, going into the game, was ranked 3rd nationally in scoring defense (13.1 ppg), 2nd in rush defense (63.4 ypg) and 3rd in total defense (262.1 ypg). Dobbs also orchestrated two touchdown drives against bama, both of which were 84 yards in length and culminated 10- and 15-play drives, respectively, which lasted 5:00 and 6:46, respectively. Those are the two longest scoring drives which Alabama has surrendered all season.
If you prefer to examine Dobbs immediate impact on team offensive productivity, particularly in terms of opening up the running game, remember that we averaged an anemic 94 ypg and 2.63 ypc rushing for the first seven games. In the two games that Dobbs has started, Tennessee has rushed for 525 yards on 98 carries, a total which is only 133 yards less than we collectively amassed during the preceding seven games. Keep in mind, too, that, in the true litmus test, Tennessee rushed for 181 yards against Alabama, which is almost three times their per-game defensive average. Despite this massive improvement in the running game, our passing attack has not suffered appreciably, accounting for 493 yards and four touchdowns under Dobbs direction.
To further contextualize the almost revolutionary dimension that Dobbs brings to Tennessees offense, the single-season rushing record for quarterbacks at UT was, to the best of my knowledge, established by Jimmy Streater in 1978, when he ran for 593 yards on 146 carries for 10 touchdowns. It is highly unlikely, but Josh could potentially challenge that record with a strong performance down the stretch. And it boggles the mind to think that such an achievement would represent only five games of his sophomore season.
At this point, I am sure that the length of this post has begun to tax the patience of some of our readers, so I will conclude with the following remarks. First, nobody is predicting All-American honors or Heisman Trophy finalist status for Dobbs, so please refrain from the clichéd its-time-to-pump-the-brakes response. Second, I am not really a dual-threat quarterback advocate per se. A pure pocket passer can succeed in this offense if he enjoys the protection of a top-caliber SEC offensive line. However, the MASH-unit status of this offensive line, which resulted from talent deficiencies, inexperience and injuries at certain positions, made the use of a mobile quarterback utterly imperative if the offensive potential of this squad was to be reached. Third, I suspect that Butch would prefer that his quarterback not carry the ball twenty times a game against an SEC schedule and it should be possible to reduce the positions workload as Butch restocks and retools the offensive line to the needs of his offensive scheme. Fourth, yes, defensive coordinators most definitely will gameplan to restrict the effectiveness of Dobbs specific skillset; it is just as obvious, however, that Joshs development as a quarterback has not even begun to approach fulfillment of his maximum potential. His command of the passing game, for example, certainly is a work in progress. Fifth, if Josh remains healthy, continues to flourish in this offense and accelerates Tennessees return to prominence, Butch will reap even greater rewards on the recruiting trail. Sixth, should Juaun Jennings succeed Dobbs, the die will be cast for Tennessee to become a consistent competitor and destination for elite dual-threat quarterback prospects. Finally, if we can agree on nothing else, we should be able to agree that Josh Dobbs is the most intelligent quarterback at Tennessee since Peyton Manning. If Josh can develop an ability to intellectually dissect opposing defenses comparable to Peytons, you can add Cerebral Assassin to the list of nicknames that Josh Dobbs has earned.
Prior to this season, a number of contributors to this forum suggested that, based on Butch's track record at CMU and Cincy, he prefers to use the quarterback position as a more integral part of the running game than we are accustomed to seeing from a Tennessee offense. For example, in 2007, Dan Lefevour, Jones starting QB at Central Michigan, ran 188 times for 1,122 yards (6.0 ave.) and 19 tds. He also passed for 3,652 yds. and 27 tds. that year. Over the course of his career, Lefevour amassed nearly 3,000 yards and 47 touchdowns on the ground while passing for almost 13,000 yards and 102 touchdowns (Dan Lefevour Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com). Yes, that was against MAC-level competition but Butch is now stockpiling SEC-caliber athletes to implement his system.
Fast-forward to 2014. In two games, Dobbs has rushed for 241 yards on 43 carries (5.6 ypc) while passing for 493 yards and 4 touchdowns. That, of course, includes a school-record 166 yards rushing and 301 yards through the air vs. a very bad South Carolina defense, a total which it appears would now rank third all-time on the single-game total offense charts for Tennessee quarterbacks. On the other hand, Dobbs accounted for 75 yards rushing and 267 yards total offense in 52:05 of action vs. an Alabama defense which, going into the game, was ranked 3rd nationally in scoring defense (13.1 ppg), 2nd in rush defense (63.4 ypg) and 3rd in total defense (262.1 ypg). Dobbs also orchestrated two touchdown drives against bama, both of which were 84 yards in length and culminated 10- and 15-play drives, respectively, which lasted 5:00 and 6:46, respectively. Those are the two longest scoring drives which Alabama has surrendered all season.
If you prefer to examine Dobbs immediate impact on team offensive productivity, particularly in terms of opening up the running game, remember that we averaged an anemic 94 ypg and 2.63 ypc rushing for the first seven games. In the two games that Dobbs has started, Tennessee has rushed for 525 yards on 98 carries, a total which is only 133 yards less than we collectively amassed during the preceding seven games. Keep in mind, too, that, in the true litmus test, Tennessee rushed for 181 yards against Alabama, which is almost three times their per-game defensive average. Despite this massive improvement in the running game, our passing attack has not suffered appreciably, accounting for 493 yards and four touchdowns under Dobbs direction.
To further contextualize the almost revolutionary dimension that Dobbs brings to Tennessees offense, the single-season rushing record for quarterbacks at UT was, to the best of my knowledge, established by Jimmy Streater in 1978, when he ran for 593 yards on 146 carries for 10 touchdowns. It is highly unlikely, but Josh could potentially challenge that record with a strong performance down the stretch. And it boggles the mind to think that such an achievement would represent only five games of his sophomore season.
At this point, I am sure that the length of this post has begun to tax the patience of some of our readers, so I will conclude with the following remarks. First, nobody is predicting All-American honors or Heisman Trophy finalist status for Dobbs, so please refrain from the clichéd its-time-to-pump-the-brakes response. Second, I am not really a dual-threat quarterback advocate per se. A pure pocket passer can succeed in this offense if he enjoys the protection of a top-caliber SEC offensive line. However, the MASH-unit status of this offensive line, which resulted from talent deficiencies, inexperience and injuries at certain positions, made the use of a mobile quarterback utterly imperative if the offensive potential of this squad was to be reached. Third, I suspect that Butch would prefer that his quarterback not carry the ball twenty times a game against an SEC schedule and it should be possible to reduce the positions workload as Butch restocks and retools the offensive line to the needs of his offensive scheme. Fourth, yes, defensive coordinators most definitely will gameplan to restrict the effectiveness of Dobbs specific skillset; it is just as obvious, however, that Joshs development as a quarterback has not even begun to approach fulfillment of his maximum potential. His command of the passing game, for example, certainly is a work in progress. Fifth, if Josh remains healthy, continues to flourish in this offense and accelerates Tennessees return to prominence, Butch will reap even greater rewards on the recruiting trail. Sixth, should Juaun Jennings succeed Dobbs, the die will be cast for Tennessee to become a consistent competitor and destination for elite dual-threat quarterback prospects. Finally, if we can agree on nothing else, we should be able to agree that Josh Dobbs is the most intelligent quarterback at Tennessee since Peyton Manning. If Josh can develop an ability to intellectually dissect opposing defenses comparable to Peytons, you can add Cerebral Assassin to the list of nicknames that Josh Dobbs has earned.
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