Post Spring Practice Top 25

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

For the most part I agree with you. We have arguably one of the top 3 most talented teams in the SEC this year, most talented in the East. We arguably had a more talented team than them last year, but the result ended in a loss. I truly believe we WILL beat Florida this year, especially since the game is at Neyland. Our players/coaches more than likely aren't thinking about history when they take the field against the gators later this year, but for damn sure the gators are, which gives them confidence to win, less-talented or not.

I'm seeing a lot of Florida guys getting drafted in the 1st round again and no Vols in sight.

I was one of those that falsely thought we were more talented after back to back top 5 classes. My mistake was I forgot Florida had 3 straight top 5 classes on campus.

Our freshmen and sophomores were more talented than Florida's freshmen and sophomores. However, they're seniors and juniors were way better. And typically stud juniors and seniors beat stud freshmen and sophomores.

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

So you believe there is some voodoo magic involved here as well?

Why is it hard for some of you to admit Florida has simply had a better program?

If we lose to Alabama for another 10 years do they also have a magical spell over us?

This football dawg. If you lose to an opponent consistently, they're simply better than you. It ain't magic.

Once again you are putting words in my mouth. There have been plenty of years florida has had a worse team than us and we lost. How do you explain the 4 years when Peyton was here? Like you completely disregarded when I highlighted that fact earlier. What about 2007 when Florida beat us but yet we went to the SEC championship game?

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

Once again you are putting words in my mouth. There have been plenty of years florida has had a worse team than us and we lost. How do you explain the 4 years when Peyton was here? Like you completely disregarded when I highlighted that fact earlier. What about 2007 when Florida beat us but yet we went to the SEC championship game?

Just because you can pick a year or two where we may have been more talented and we still lost as evidence that there is something supernatural going on is dumb.

During the Peyton Manning years, wasn't Florida also a top 5 team? Didn't they also win a national title? Weren't they beating the likes of Florida State?

Dude there's never been a time in the last 25 years where Florida was Vanderbilt status and we were world beaters but we still lost to them. If that happened, then you would have a point. But for most of the last 25 years either Florida has been great and we sucked or we've been great and they've been great or we've sucked and they've sucked.

Either way there's never been a stretch where you go Tennessee should be beating Florida. This year is really the first time I can remember.

 

[Orange_Crush]

Agreed that this team has the "swagger" which they didn't seem to have last year. And yes I believe they have all the confidence in the world to beat EVERYONE on their schedule. I guess we will just have to continue to disagree about last years talent vs. florida. No worries, we are all entitled to our own opinions and I respect yours. :good!:

:good!:

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

Just because you can pick a year or two where we may have been more talented and we still lost as evidence that there is something supernatural going on is dumb.

During the Peyton Manning years, wasn't Florida also a top 5 team? Didn't they also win a national title? Weren't they beating the likes of Florida State?

Dude there's never been a time in the last 25 years where Florida was Vanderbilt status and we were world beaters but we still lost to them. If that happened, then you would have a point. But for most of the last 25 years either Florida has been great and we sucked or we've been great and they've been great or we've sucked and they've sucked.

Either way there's never been a stretch where you go Tennessee should be beating Florida. This year is really the first time I can remember.

I'm not saying anything is supernatural. I simple stated that we have a hard time beating Florida whether we are more talented than not. Yes, we are undoubtedly more talented than them this year and SHOULD win. We were more talented than Arkansas last year and still lost. It just happens sometimes. ALL I am saying is, and read carefully, is that the Florida game has always been a tough one on our schedule.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

I'm not saying anything is supernatural. I simple stated that we have a hard time beating Florida whether we are more talented than not. Yes, we are undoubtedly more talented than them this year and SHOULD win. We were more talented than Arkansas last year and still lost. It just happens sometimes. ALL I am saying is, and read carefully, is that the Florida game has always been a tough one on our schedule.

I know this might sound crazy but maybe they're always tough because they've been the most consistent program in the SEC the last 25 years?

This is like Buffalo Bills fans or Miami Dolphins fans being shocked that they keep losing the AFC East to New England. And citing unnatural forces.

The Patriots have been the most consistent great team in the NFL the last 14 years. And Florida has been consistently great program in the SEC for last 25 years. Sure just like the Pats missed the playoffs one year, Florida had some down years. But for the most part we also sucked during those down years so I wouldn't think it's wierd that we lost to them then as well.

 

[KBVol]

What do you think they thought after Oklahoma?

This is probably the dumbest post I've ever read.

Don't proofread your own, eh?

Also, you don't think the players were stunned at how that game played out last year? The 2 TD lead with 10 minutes to play followed by all the 4th down conversions and inexplicable TD allowed on a simple deep comeback route where we had the kid surrounded with 3-4 players? You think they just said, "meh, no big deal, we just dropped another to the Gators, a loss is a loss"?

Lol at you, YOU, D4H, calling ANYBODY else's response the dumbest you've ever read.

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

I know this might sound crazy but maybe they're always tough because they've been the most consistent program in the SEC the last 25 years?

This is like Buffalo Bills fans or Miami Dolphins fans being shocked that they keep losing the AFC East to New England. And citing unnatural forces.

The Patriots have been the most consistent great team in the NFL the last 14 years. And Florida has been consistently great program in the SEC for last 25 years. Sure just like the Pats missed the playoffs one year, Florida had some down years. But for the most part we also sucked during those down years so I wouldn't think it's wierd that we lost to them then as well.

11 straight years of losses? It's not just about Florida being consistently good for 25 years. You'd figure we would have 1 or 2 wins in that time span. But you're D4H, the know-it-all who is always right about every single topic on this board.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

11 straight years of losses? It's not just about Florida being consistently good for 25 years. You'd figure we would have 1 or 2 wins in that time span. But you're D4H, the know-it-all who is always right about every single topic on this board.

Yes. Yes I am.

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

Yes. Yes I am.

Please answer this truthfully. Are you being serious right now?? If so, you need some humility.

 

[Remy]

I'm seeing a lot of Florida guys getting drafted in the 1st round again and no Vols in sight.

I was one of those that falsely thought we were more talented after back to back top 5 classes. My mistake was I forgot Florida had 3 straight top 5 classes on campus.

Our freshmen and sophomores were more talented than Florida's freshmen and sophomores. However, they're seniors and juniors were way better. And typically stud juniors and seniors beat stud freshmen and sophomores.

To your point of the 1st twenty players taken in the NFL draft this year, UF had as many taken as Bama, UT, and Georigia combined.

 

[hndog609]

Please answer this truthfully. Are you being serious right now?? If so, you need some humility.

In fairness there's enough material that D4H is going to be vindicated or crushed within the next 6mo or so. We'll see.

The funny thing is there's a lot I sincerely very much hope he's at least mostly right about.

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

In fairness there's enough material that D4H is going to be vindicated or crushed within the next 6mo or so. We'll see.

The funny thing is there's a lot I sincerely very much hope he's at least mostly right about.

As we all do. We all want great things from the Vols. But the sheer arrogance and disregard for others opinions is what gets me.

 

[KBVol]

To your point of the 1st twenty players taken in the NFL draft this year, UF had as many taken as Bama, UT, and Georigia combined.

I count two for Florida (Hargreaves #11, Neal #17) and two for the others (Floyd from Georgia #9, Kelly from Bama #18). So, while that sounds impressive in print, they had 2 players taken, both DBs. With all due respect Remy, it's not as though they and the other teams you mentioned had 5 or 6 players each taken. It was only 2 for each.

They are two fantastic players to be sure, especially Neal IMO. However, neither had a great impact on the Tennessee-Florida game last year. Hargreaves had an injured back and played very sparingly....had only 2 tackles, no TFLs, no picks, no forced fumbles, etc.

Neal had a really good game with 13 total tackles, and a forced fumble which didn't lead to Tennessee points. But he didn't force a turnover, no picks, and likely had all those tackles from his safety spot because of UT's outstanding running game that day....we gashed them pretty good.

On a side note, recall that a likely future 1st round pick for Florida next year, Jalen Tabor, didn't play vs Tennessee last year due to suspension.

 

[KBVol]

In fairness there's enough material that D4H is going to be vindicated or crushed within the next 6mo or so. We'll see.

The funny thing is there's a lot I sincerely very much hope he's at least mostly right about.

Your last sentence? .... me, too. But he's such an arrogant arse about things (and very, very often just dead wrong about), that it's a bit of a catch-22 for me. Lol.

 

[BigOrange15]

I'm betting that when the vast majority of D4H's bull**** predictions flame out, he'll mysteriously vanish. Hell, CodyG10 still immediately catches **** as soon as he posts and he hasn't said nearly as many stupid things as D4H.

 

[KBVol]

I'm betting that when the vast majority of D4H's bull**** predictions flame out, he'll mysteriously vanish. Hell, CodyG10 still immediately catches **** as soon as he posts and he hasn't said nearly as many stupid things as D4H.

Perhaps, however, I suspect you severely underestimate D4H's hubris.

 

[codymcvfl]

But then it wouldn't be a *preseason* ranking, would it? These things are usually based on *projected* talent and schedule, etc, so... You'd just as soon they not have preseason rankings? Or just use different criteria for UT than they use for everyone else?

I do think there should be preseason rankings just because they're fun. But they need to have no impact on the season after that. If the number 10 team in the preseason looks better than the number 1 team in the preseason after a couple weeks, then they need to be ranked higher than the number 1 team does. I just feel like they should use last year's 2nd half debacles against us until we can prove them wrong. Don't give us anything until we earn it.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

As we all do. We all want great things from the Vols. But the sheer arrogance and disregard for others opinions is what gets me.

This is the internet. Get over it.

Its a place to be real without all the fake niceness or humility of the real world.

If you believe something then say it like you mean it.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

I'm betting that when the vast majority of D4H's bull**** predictions flame out, he'll mysteriously vanish. Hell, CodyG10 still immediately catches **** as soon as he posts and he hasn't said nearly as many stupid things as D4H.

Then you don't know me. I'll be around. Just hope the program doesn't revert back to the Dooley years. Then I'll disappear.

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

Then you don't know me. I'll be around. Just hope the program doesn't revert back to the Dooley years. Then I'll disappear.

You're a bandwagon fan, which means not a true fan, which further means a troll.

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

This is the internet. Get over it.

Its a place to be real without all the fake niceness or humility of the real world.

If you believe something then say it like you mean it.

You see this is what I mean. The irony of this post is laughable. I don't see you getting too far in "the real world" with your ideals. It's not hard to be nice to others, try it sometime, see a viewpoint from another's perspective. You're probably too young and cocky to understand that though.

 

[jakez4ut]

this is funny. d4h is the type of TN fan everyone loves to hate. he's the guy that's always "wait til next year!!".

and for the better part of the last decade, next year has been the same or worse as last year.

but this year.....this is is the year. and how do we know this? i don't know.

as much mysticism and superstition some of us are supposedly using to justify our realistic view of "let's play the games and see what happens", the same could be said for the forever optimist that just "believes" it's going to happen, when there's no empirical reason to justify it, other than whatever subjective reasoning you want to cling to...star rankings, good feelings about last season, the attitude of the team....whatever.

so, it appears we're at an impasse.

here's the only truth.....they still have to play the games. for those of you that say the fun part of being a fan is the pre season hype, and we should enjoy "being back", i say to you, it's a whole lot more fun win you actually are winning.

so, i'll wait and see, and i do plan on having a lot of fun this season. you all enjoy the pre season rankings and fodder.

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

this is funny. d4h is the type of TN fan everyone loves to hate. he's the guy that's always "wait til next year!!".

and for the better part of the last decade, next year has been the same or worse as last year.

but this year.....this is is the year. and how do we know this? i don't know.

as much mysticism and superstition some of us are supposedly using to justify our realistic view of "let's play the games and see what happens", the same could be said for the forever optimist that just "believes" it's going to happen, when there's no empirical reason to justify it, other than whatever subjective reasoning you want to cling to...star rankings, good feelings about last season, the attitude of the team....whatever.

so, it appears we're at an impasse.

here's the only truth.....they still have to play the games. for those of you that say the fun part of being a fan is the pre season hype, and we should enjoy "being back", i say to you, it's a whole lot more fun win you actually are winning.

so, i'll wait and see, and i do plan on having a lot of fun this season. you all enjoy the pre season rankings and fodder.

We love to hate D4H because he is a self-admitted bandwagon fan who belittles others for their entitled opinion on a message board.

 

[LouderVol]

I would rather earn it.