New Expectations for the Tennessee Program

#1
C

csheaton

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#1
With so much parity in the SEC it is hard to expect to win a SEC championship at least once every four years. The 1990's are long gone and Tennessee and Florida are not the only two teams in the SEC. In the 90's is was UT and UF every year and then you would have maybe one other pretty good team every year like an Auburn or Georgia maybe Alabama, or Arkansas and everyone else was a fairly easy win. But it's getting ridiculous nowadays guys. These Tennessee teams are struggling to keep up with the rest of the pack, and its hard to watch. Even in the 90's I believed the SEC was the toughest conference in the nation, but nowadays the validity of that statement is a known truth and cannot even be argued. So is a change in the expectations of Tennessee football warranted in the modern age of college football?


Instead of 10-11 win seasons are we to be satisfied with 8-10 win seasons?

Is it realistic to expect to win a SEC championship every 4-6 years and at least make one appearance every 3-4 years?

Should UT fans expect to be in th NC picture at least once every 6-8 years and or play in a NC game once every 10 years?


Bottom line, I would just like to hear some of your expectations of Tennessee football. And please do not take into consideration the current coaching staff, just try to give your honest opinion of how UT SHOULD fare year in and year out on average against the SEC and the rest of the NCAA....
 
#2
#2
I think that Tennessee should be in the national title picture, at least once every 5 years, if not more.
 
#4
#4
I would expect not to go 10 years without an SEC title regardless of how much competition there is.

I would also expect not to go 14-14 over the course of a 28 game span.

With our budget, the right coaching staff could compete with the Gators, Bulldogs and LSU's of the world.
 
#5
#5
I don't know about the future but as of right now we're middle of the pack in the SEC.

Think about it, we loose to Florida every year and we beat Georgia last year but program wise Georgia just got whooped and is still in the top 10.

Tennessee isn't even ranked or close to it.

In the West we have LSU who won it all last year, Auburn who just beat us and Bama who's turning into a juggernaut one year ahead of schedule.

We aren't as good as any of those programs at this point. Is there any reason to believe we'll ever be better than any of them again until Fulmer is gone?
 
#6
#6
It's not as much about a magic win number, to me. We need to compete in every game. Sometimes you just get beat.
 
#7
#7
jwells said:
It's not as much about a magic win number, to me. We need to compete in every game. Sometimes you just get beat.
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I agree. If we're competitive, as we should be, then our years will come as they should.
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#8
#8
never expect to go undefeated every year. 10-11 wins and at least in the top 10 would be great, and where we should be
 
#9
#9
BigPapaVol said:
I agree. If we're competitive, as we should be, then our years will come as they should.
Posted via VolNation Mobile
Click to expand...

If we're competitive we'll be at the good teams when they have bad games. Auburn this year, LSU last year, etc.
 
#10
#10
1) We should win the East once every 3 years

2) We should win the SEC Championship twice a decade

3) We should average being a top 10 team at the END of every year

4) We should compete for a national title (a top 3 or 4 or better) finish a couple of times each decade.

With the facilities, history, reputation, tradition, money, boosters, fan base, Neyland Stadium, size of college, etc. That's not too much to ask.
 
#11
#11
good question.

teams fortunes cycle up and down. with the coaching talent in the SEC and the strong recruits in the south, no SEC team is going to dominate the conference year in and year out. the vandys and kys will look good from time to time, but the real players are bama, GA, UF, LSU, and auburn.

if the vols can get back to the level of those top teams, then just by arithmetic each would be on a pace of about 1 SECC every 6 years. so expecting an SECC about every 4 to 6 years is reasonable. i'd also add to the list no season below .500 and staying competitive e.g. not being dominated and blown out by any one team.

NCs are so variable with so much luck involved i would not factor them into the equation.
 
#14
#14
tm3 said:
good question.

teams fortunes cycle up and down. with the coaching talent in the SEC and the strong recruits in the south, no SEC team is going to dominate the conference year in and year out. the vandys and kys will look good from time to time, but the real players are bama, GA, UF, LSU, and auburn.

if the vols can get back to the level of those top teams, then just by arithmetic each would be on a pace of about 1 SECC every 6 years. so expecting an SECC about every 4 to 6 years is reasonable. i'd also add to the list no season below .500 and staying competitive e.g. not being dominated and blown out by any one team.

NCs are so variable with so much luck involved i would not factor them into the equation.
Click to expand...

I second that notion. I can understand the 8, 9, or 10 win seasons but the way we have been losing lately is what gets me
 
#15
#15
First post - I am a 1979 graduate and attended UT during Battle’s last two years and Major’s first two years (lucky me – 4 seasons in a row with no bowl games, it may be only my class can say that). I am a VASF contributor and buy season tickets. I usually attend about 4 games a year, limited by the 7 hour trip from Northern Virginia to Knoxville.

Here are some facts about the last 55 years since The General stopped coaching:

• There have only been 5 unconditional/unshared SEC championships (1956, 1967, 1969, 1997, 1998).
• There have been three other championships: 1985 conditioned on Florida’s probation (same SEC record, but they beat us); 1990 conditioned on Florida’s probation (they had a better SEC record even though we beat them); 1989 in a 3-way tie with Alabama and Auburn (all three teams split with the other two – Bama got the Sugar Bowl bid on a vote).
• Counting a tie as half a win and half a loss, 17 of those 55 seasons had less than 3 losses
• There have been 23 seasons of more than 3 losses
• There have been 10 seasons of .500 or worse
• There have been two stretches of sustained excellence (which I define as contending for the SEC championship): 1967-1972 under Dickey/Battle and 1989-1998 under Majors/Fulmer (ignoring 1994).
• And some occasional dud seasons (1958, early 60s, 1977, 1980, 1988, 2005). Unless we find a quarterback under a rock some where, it looks like 2008 will be another one of those dud years.

Based on these facts, it sounds like most expectations expressed here will pave new ground. (Hope my formatting is OK -apologize if it is not)
 
#16
#16
i think 9 - 10 win seasons is solid. until sec teams start going on proby again recruiting will be a tad tougher.
Every 3 years competiting for SECCG
Dont care too much about mnc anymore it is a crapeshute. if you win the sec ideally you are in a pretty good spot to compete for the mnc. inless youre toughest ooc is citadel
I dont even think we beat florida year in and year out. I dont however see getting beat down at home. then see thier F****KIN band playing ROCKY TOP at the end of the game!!
 
#17
#17
1 SEC title within a 10 year span is not too much to ask. Bowden at clemson is the only other coach in a bcs conference to not win a title and he is on year 10 as well. It will be interesting what clemson does with Bowden already with 2 bad losses. If he gets canned before Fulmer, i think it will resonate even stronger to the Hill for a change.
 
#18
#18
csheaton said:
With so much parity in the SEC it is hard to expect to win a SEC championship at least once every four years. The 1990's are long gone and Tennessee and Florida are not the only two teams in the SEC. In the 90's is was UT and UF every year and then you would have maybe one other pretty good team every year like an Auburn or Georgia maybe Alabama, or Arkansas and everyone else was a fairly easy win. But it's getting ridiculous nowadays guys. These Tennessee teams are struggling to keep up with the rest of the pack, and its hard to watch. Even in the 90's I believed the SEC was the toughest conference in the nation, but nowadays the validity of that statement is a known truth and cannot even be argued. So is a change in the expectations of Tennessee football warranted in the modern age of college football?


Instead of 10-11 win seasons are we to be satisfied with 8-10 win seasons?

Is it realistic to expect to win a SEC championship every 4-6 years and at least make one appearance every 3-4 years?

Should UT fans expect to be in th NC picture at least once every 6-8 years and or play in a NC game once every 10 years?


Bottom line, I would just like to hear some of your expectations of Tennessee football. And please do not take into consideration the current coaching staff, just try to give your honest opinion of how UT SHOULD fare year in and year out on average against the SEC and the rest of the NCAA....
Click to expand...


SEC title is realistic every 3-6 years, or at least a championship game appearance. There are 6 teams in the East, two of which (UK, VU) are doormats, and a third (SC) which can't seem to get it together. So in most years it's a three-team race. Even if UGA and the gators alternate we should be able to get in there every five years or so with our facilities, money, talent, etc.
 
#19
#19
TacomaJPP said:
1) We should win the East once every 3 years

2) We should win the SEC Championship twice a decade

3) We should average being a top 10 team at the END of every year

4) We should compete for a national title (a top 3 or 4 or better) finish a couple of times each decade.

With the facilities, history, reputation, tradition, money, boosters, fan base, Neyland Stadium, size of college, etc. That's not too much to ask.
Click to expand...

The problem with such blanket statements is that Florida and Georgia in the East, and LSU, Auburn and Alabama in the West have equal (or in some instances, better,) aspirations, facilities, money, boosters, fan bases, stadiums, and sizes. It is a pretty tough neighborhood. We aren't going to out recruit, out play, or out coach all of those teams as often as any of us would like.

That being said, UT does need to be right in the thick of things amid the "big six," but there are going to be years, and even stretches of years, when losses against them outnumber wins. You can go ahead and carve that in granite, for it is law. The question is what to do about those stretches when they occur.

ZZ13 said:
Based on these facts, it sounds like most expectations expressed here will pave new ground. (Hope my formatting is OK -apologize if it is not)
Click to expand...

I like the format, and there are some interesting points. The problem is that, during recent memory, Tennessee was paving that new ground, but the tenuous perch on top of the pile has slipped away. I still wonder if Donte Stallworth had held onto the ball in '01, or if that long run hadn't been called back for holding in '04, or if Ainge hadn't thrown that pick last year, and Fulmer had another SEC championship banner to hang from the rafters, whether fans would be calling for Vandy's coach to dress up in orange, but the fact is that it has been a very long time since we were kings of the conference, and that is a legitimate gripe.
 
#20
#20
NashvilleVol854 said:
SEC title is realistic every 3-6 years, or at least a championship game appearance. ...Even if UGA and the gators alternate we should be able to get in there every five years or so with our facilities, money, talent, etc.
Click to expand...

Like in 1997, 98, 01, 04, and '07? We also finished in a tie in '03.
 
#21
#21
I currently do not have any expectations, good or bad. Leave me a message and I'll get back to you later on in the season..or maybe next year....beep.
 
#22
#22
csheaton said:
With so much parity in the SEC it is hard to expect to win a SEC championship at least once every four years. The 1990's are long gone and Tennessee and Florida are not the only two teams in the SEC. In the 90's is was UT and UF every year and then you would have maybe one other pretty good team every year like an Auburn or Georgia maybe Alabama, or Arkansas and everyone else was a fairly easy win. But it's getting ridiculous nowadays guys. These Tennessee teams are struggling to keep up with the rest of the pack, and its hard to watch. Even in the 90's I believed the SEC was the toughest conference in the nation, but nowadays the validity of that statement is a known truth and cannot even be argued. So is a change in the expectations of Tennessee football warranted in the modern age of college football?


Instead of 10-11 win seasons are we to be satisfied with 8-10 win seasons?

Is it realistic to expect to win a SEC championship every 4-6 years and at least make one appearance every 3-4 years?

Should UT fans expect to be in th NC picture at least once every 6-8 years and or play in a NC game once every 10 years?


Bottom line, I would just like to hear some of your expectations of Tennessee football. And please do not take into consideration the current coaching staff, just try to give your honest opinion of how UT SHOULD fare year in and year out on average against the SEC and the rest of the NCAA....
Click to expand...

we have expectations, what are they finish above 500
 
#23
#23
- Win 9-11 games per year

- Make a trip to the SECG every 4 years

- Be consistently ranked in the top 15 year in year out

- Play for a NC every 5-7 years.

- Have a top 10 recruiting class every year

- TAKE BACK HOMEFIELD ADVANTAGE!!!!! Their are no excuses to lose more than 2 home games a year.

What we shouldnt have!

- .500 or below seasons ( also no 7-5's or 8-4's )

- Not winning a SECG in 10 year's

- Not being ranked in the top 25

- No one BCS appearnce in 10 year's

- No homefield advantage
 
#24
#24
something other than an off season tift between CPF and a local sports writer to get people excited about football.
 
#25
#25
I'm on par with the Alabama fans in expecting and accepting nothing but championships. After the taste of glory in 1998 there is no going back.
 
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