Preseason FPI Rankings

#26
#26
jackaro said:
With question marks at QB, OL and WR and considering our best CB is injured being ranked 10 seems generous.
Click to expand...
FPI had us at 13 in 2020 IIRC. Also had Alabama in the top 4 at the end of the year last year when they were just as likely to humiliate themselves as they were to win a game against a Power 5 team. 10-3 Syracuse was like 25 spots behind 6-7 Virginia Tech at season’s end last year despite the fact Syracuse beat the Hokies and won 4 more games than the Hokies while playing in the same conference. Virtually meaningless ranking.
 
#27
#27
YankeeVol said:
Bishop and Lewis are back, both averaged over 5 YPC. We are fine at RB*.

*Plus the transfer kid from Duke (Star Thomas).
Click to expand...
I think we will be fine at running back, but fine is a big drop off from Sampson breaking all the records last year, and Sampson was the only reason our offense had a pulse.
 
#28
#28
LegionnaireOfTheMiserable said:
I think we will be fine at running back, but fine is a big drop off from Sampson breaking all the records last year, and Sampson was the only reason our offense had a pulse.
Click to expand...
Sampson was great. RB is a replaceable position. Especially with what we have coming back and the transfer
 
#29
#29
YankeeVol said:
Sampson was great. RB is a replaceable position. Especially with what we have coming back and the transfer
Click to expand...
If QB, receiver, and OL play are all dead even with last year, we will have problems. Running back is replaceable, but that doesn’t mean that you won’t have a drop off from a guy who broke all the school records. We will probably run for 2k yards and do fine running the ball, but if we have to depend on the running backs to carry us in every SEC game to have a chance like last year, it’s gonna be a rough season.
 
#30
#30
LegionnaireOfTheMiserable said:
If QB, receiver, and OL play are all dead even with last year, we will have problems. Running back is replaceable, but that doesn’t mean that you won’t have a drop off from a guy who broke all the school records. We will probably run for 2k yards and do fine running the ball, but if we have to depend on the running backs to carry us in every SEC game to have a chance like last year, it’s gonna be a rough season.
Click to expand...
I could play better QB than Nico.

Sampson wasn’t a 1st round pick. Great college career, And was picked AFTER another back by the same team.
 
Last edited:
#31
#31
YankeeVol said:
I could play better QB than Nico.

Sampson wasn’t a 1st round pick. Great college career, And was picked AFTER another back by the same team.
Click to expand...
I was down on Nico before it was cool, but there’s no guarantee we have anyone better than him. 50 teams probably do, but we don’t know if we are one of them. We very well may not be.

And Idk what to tell you about Sampson. If you think just anyone can step in and have the year that he had, I’d have to ask why nobody in the history of the school has ever done it before. Hooker wasn’t a first rounder either, not were Hyatt and Tillman, but we haven’t adequately replaced them. Sampson was SEC Player of the Year and most of this board bent over backwards and jumped through hoops to come up with reasons why he was actually better than Jeanty, and yet now everyone is saying that he is no loss. It just doesn’t compute.
 
#32
#32
LegionnaireOfTheMiserable said:
I was down on Nico before it was cool, but there’s no guarantee we have anyone better than him. 50 teams probably do, but we don’t know if we are one of them. We very well may not be.

And Idk what to tell you about Sampson. If you think just anyone can step in and have the year that he had, I’d have to ask why nobody in the history of the school has ever done it before. Hooker wasn’t a first rounder either, not were Hyatt and Tillman, but we haven’t adequately replaced them. Sampson was SEC Player of the Year and most of this board bent over backwards and jumped through hoops to come up with reasons why he was actually better than Jeanty, and yet now everyone is saying that he is no loss. It just doesn’t compute.
Click to expand...
Not saying he’s not a loss, but the other kids did good in their time. Bishop had 31% of Sampson‘s yards on 28% of the amount of carries.
 
#33
#33
YankeeVol said:
Not saying he’s not a loss, but the other kids did good in their time. Bishop had 31% of Sampson‘s yards on 28% of the amount of carries.
Click to expand...
He also stayed banged up for much of the year with only 28% of the carries Sampson had. I think we will be fine at RB, but we need more than “fine” if we are worse at QB, receiver, and OL, which is highly possible given that we lost 8 starters at those positions.
 
#34
#34
WillisWG said:
I am not in the camp that QB1 is his. Problem I have with Mark's take is there is little to no consideration to the other QBs or to RBs replacing Sampsons. Every O player will be an upgrade for JA, hope he benefits from that. Let the competition be fierce.
Click to expand...
Loved Sampson. The RB room could be better if for no other reason than depth.
 
  • Like
Reactions: WillisWG and orangebloodgmc
#35
#35
LegionnaireOfTheMiserable said:
I was down on Nico before it was cool, but there’s no guarantee we have anyone better than him. 50 teams probably do, but we don’t know if we are one of them. We very well may not be.

And Idk what to tell you about Sampson. If you think just anyone can step in and have the year that he had, I’d have to ask why nobody in the history of the school has ever done it before. Hooker wasn’t a first rounder either, not were Hyatt and Tillman, but we haven’t adequately replaced them. Sampson was SEC Player of the Year and most of this board bent over backwards and jumped through hoops to come up with reasons why he was actually better than Jeanty, and yet now everyone is saying that he is no loss. It just doesn’t compute.
Click to expand...
Sampson got more carries. I love the guy but the second most carries per game during the Heupel era to Sampson's 19.85 was Small's 12.73. Lewis' development has been pretty normal and as you mentioned Bishop was hurt. The mystery to me was Seldon. I thought he looked good in limited playing time.
 
  • Like
Reactions: WillisWG and orangebloodgmc
#36
#36
LegionnaireOfTheMiserable said:
If QB, receiver, and OL play are all dead even with last year, we will have problems. Running back is replaceable, but that doesn’t mean that you won’t have a drop off from a guy who broke all the school records. We will probably run for 2k yards and do fine running the ball, but if we have to depend on the running backs to carry us in every SEC game to have a chance like last year, it’s gonna be a rough season.
Click to expand...
All three of those positions will be better than last year.
 
  • Like
Reactions: orangebloodgmc
#37
#37
sjt18 said:
Sampson got more carries. I love the guy but the second most carries per game during the Heupel era to Sampson's 19.85 was Small's 12.73. Lewis' development has been pretty normal and as you mentioned Bishop was hurt. The mystery to me was Seldon. I thought he looked good in limited playing time.
Click to expand...
Dudes used to carry it 30 times regularly and never hit the numbers Sampson did last year. And I’m pretty sure Wright had more than 13 carries per game in 2023.
 
#39
#39
LegionnaireOfTheMiserable said:
Dudes used to carry it 30 times regularly and never hit the numbers Sampson did last year. And I’m pretty sure Wright had more than 13 carries per game in 2023.
Click to expand...
11.42 carries per game for Wright in 2023


I remember when "dudes" used to do that. A big OL or DL weighed about 275. LBs were around 200 lbs. They were slower and less powerful. Sports medicine and S&C have radically changed things like that.
 
  • Like
Reactions: WillisWG
#40
#40
sjt18 said:
11.42 carries per game for Wright in 2023


I remember when "dudes" used to do that. A big OL or DL weighed about 275. LBs were around 200 lbs. They were slower and less powerful. Sports medicine and S&C have radically changed things like that.
Click to expand...
I forgot Wright averaged so many per carry. Probably the best straight line speed back we have had since Coker.

In any case, I don’t see how linemen’s sizes have anything to do with what I said. Sampson broke all our records while not carrying the ball at some unprecedented rate.

Again, it is beyond comprehension how the same people who were arguing Sampson was better than Jeanty last year are now arguing that he isn’t a loss and anyone could just do what he did.
 
#41
#41
LegionnaireOfTheMiserable said:
I forgot Wright averaged so many per carry. Probably the best straight line speed back we have had since Coker.

In any case, I don’t see how linemen’s sizes have anything to do with what I said. Sampson broke all our records while not carrying the ball at some unprecedented rate.

Again, it is beyond comprehension how the same people who were arguing Sampson was better than Jeanty last year are now arguing that he isn’t a loss and anyone could just do what he did.
Click to expand...
I'm not taking anything away from Sampson... but you don't understand the difference between having a guy weighing 320 falling on you and 260?

Wright was a loss, right? Small, right? Most years you're going to lose good guys. You're always developing guys. UT has guys who can step in either as individuals or as a group. They have to develop but each time Heupel has lost a guy he's still come back to have one of the SEC's top rushing O's. One consistent thing has been his ability to build a run game around the guys he has.

Think about Wright. He kind of came out of nowhere. Not a big time recruit. DIdn't have great skills. Lewis kind of looked like Wright as a young player.
 
  • Like
Reactions: orangebloodgmc
#43
#43
sjt18 said:
I'm not taking anything away from Sampson... but you don't understand the difference between having a guy weighing 320 falling on you and 260?

Wright was a loss, right? Small, right? Most years you're going to lose good guys. You're always developing guys. UT has guys who can step in either as individuals or as a group. They have to develop but each time Heupel has lost a guy he's still come back to have one of the SEC's top rushing O's. One consistent thing has been his ability to build a run game around the guys he has.

Think about Wright. He kind of came out of nowhere. Not a big time recruit. DIdn't have great skills. Lewis kind of looked like Wright as a young player.
Click to expand...
I understand the difference between those two sizes and what it means for being tackled. I don’t understand how it makes Sampson’s record less impressive or easier to replace.

I have stated I think the rushing attack will be fine. I imagine we cross the 2000 yard mark again and have fine numbers. But the running game was so pivotal last year, and we lost so much around it, that if there is any drop off, it is going to be tough for our offense. It took the SEC Player of the Year dragging the offense kicking and screaming to a playoff last year. If we don’t have a similar level of play out of the backfield this year, it will probably be tough sledding. And odds are there will be some drop off. I don’t expect it to fall off a cliff, but I do expect a drop off
 
#44
#44
LegionnaireOfTheMiserable said:
I understand the difference between those two sizes and what it means for being tackled. I don’t understand how it makes Sampson’s record less impressive or easier to replace.
Click to expand...
He got lots of carries. You even recognize that Wright got more yds/carry. I loved Sampson. Amazing back. Every "amazing" RB that's come through UT over the last 40 years... has been replaced. Unless you recruit poorly, they're replaceable. I personally think Lewis has a higher ceiling than Sampson.
LegionnaireOfTheMiserable said:
I have stated I think the rushing attack will be fine. I imagine we cross the 2000 yard mark again and have fine numbers. But the running game was so pivotal last year, and we lost so much around it, that if there is any drop off, it is going to be tough for our offense. It took the SEC Player of the Year dragging the offense kicking and screaming to a playoff last year. If we don’t have a similar level of play out of the backfield this year, it will probably be tough sledding. And odds are there will be some drop off. I don’t expect it to fall off a cliff, but I do expect a drop off
Click to expand...
I think the OL is the question to be answered. Not the RBs.

I am probably in the minority in believing that Nico hurt the OL more than he helped it. He made some individual plays that showed off his athleticism. I don't think he ever became a very good manager of the O.

I don't know that any of the QBs can make the plays needed to become a contender. I do suspect that a guy with Aguilar's experience brings something from a game management side.
 
New posts
You must log in or register to reply here.

VN Store



Back
Top