Pruitt: "I didn't come here to win 6 games

[jakez4ut]

I still can't multi quote correctly...:thud:

just highlight the text, hit the little quote button to wrap it, and you're all set.

just make sure to delete any "extra" [/quote] you may have pasted. :thumbsup:

 

[BigOrangeTrain]

Simply put... and consistent with what I said concerning Fulmer, Dooley, and Jones... the "right" coach will win games that he "shouldn't" win.

The roster issues he is addressing and the development problem isn't nearly the show stopper that some claim. Lots of teams including UT have gotten Fr ready to play with only a few months to coach them. The development "curve" is one of diminishing returns. IOW's, a guy who is "coached up" will see a lot of improvement quickly then the returns will diminish later in his development.

Admittedly it is that late development that turns a player from very good to championship caliber... but a lot of progress can be made early.

The new coaching staff thing IS an excuse. If they can coach, they can coach.

Bottom line is that the right coach will produce more from the team than the sum of its parts. That's what the good ones do. That's what the bad ones, like Jones, can't do... in fact they do the opposite.

My biggest concern is the layout of the schedule. There's a brutal stretch. If the team exits that stretch beat up and with many guys injured then those final very winnable games become a much more difficult prospect.

I would probably agree that from a pure talent and program maturity standpoint UGA, Auburn, and Bama are pretty much off the table. UTEP, Vandy, Mizzou, Charlotte, and ETSU give a baseline of 5 wins. IMHO, UK should be on that list too but that isn't an argument worth having at this point. That means Pruitt needs to win only one of the other winnable games to meet the expectations that you and others have laid out. I simply disagree that should ever be the standard for a UT coach. They have to be better than "average". This seems to be a repeating argument. Jones' inability to make the most of his first roster proved to be a consistent theme.

So by your standard, coaches like Dabo, Snyder and Franklin wouldnt be the right guys becaise they didnt do that well immediately.

How can you realistically say Vandy and Mizzou are gimmie wins? Thats silly.

 

[Volosaurus rex]

I was hammered for suggesting that coaching decisions and methods were a significant factor in injuries. Pruitt seemed to think some of the practice methods contributed based on some comments back in the spring.


I understand what you are saying but what you call luck is nothing more than probability. A coach who consistently does things very well will be more "lucky" than a coach that doesn't.

A coach who rotates players well... will have less injuries. A coach that teaches the right techniques correctly will have less injuries. A coach that has a good S&C program will have less injuries. A coach who selects the right players will have less injuries. The schemes a coach runs also factor into injuries.

Those are all controllable "luck". Even the best will have injuries... but they won't have a consistently bad trend like Jones did.

The first great coach of Alabama, Wallace Wade, once said this about Neyland: “One of the things I used to misjudge, I used to think that he was lucky, but I began to realize after time that luck turns some time, but it never did with him, because he trained his players to take advantage of opportunities” (forward to the 3:20 mark of this documentary: Robert Neyland (Produced in Early 80's) - YouTube).

 

[volfan102455]

No coach takes a job at any school to lose. Nothing to see. Nothing to hear.

 

[Volador]

6 will keep the grim reaper at bay. 8 will have many fans celebrating. 10 or more and they will start looking for an alley to name Pruitt's Path!

BO BIG ORANGE!

I'd be thrilled beyond belief if the team at the O& W game could keep anyone away, including the Grim Reaper.

CJP is here to "redefine happiness" (BOC)

 

[butchna]

No coach takes a job at any school to lose. Nothing to see. Nothing to hear.

I hear coaches temper expectations for wins every time a new job is undertaken. This isn’t commonplace.

 

[KBVol]

No coach takes a job at any school to lose. Nothing to see. Nothing to hear.

Some guys have higher expectations, demand more from themselves and others to reach and exceed those expectations.

While others have lower expectations and spend their time convincing others they should too.

Guess which guy usually accomplishes more....

 

[KBVol]

I hear coaches temper expectations for wins every time a new job is undertaken. This isn’t commonplace.

Correct Butchna. Not once has Pruitt said he’s in a rebuild here, not once has he said anything about it taking 6 to 7 years to build the program. Everything he’s done and said to date has been just the opposite. That said, if the season starts and he changed his tune and starts sounding like Jones did, he’ll get the same criticism. But to this point, I like he’s pushing the expectations to where they should be and winning 6 games and getting bowl eligible ain’t it.

 

[volfan102455]

I hear coaches temper expectations for wins every time a new job is undertaken. This isn’t commonplace.

IMO, Pruitt is very arrogant and probably thinks he can solve world hunger in a week.

If he wins a lot of games - it doesn't matter. If he has the type of first season most feel he will, the excuses will begin.

If he truly believes he can win > 6 games this year, then one of the following is the case:

(a) He believes he can walk on water too.

(b) This program was not in as bad shape as most believe it was.

My feeling is that both are somewhat true. Success (or not in 2018) is going to depend upon Pruitt being willing to put the players in the best position to win even if that means he has to sacrifice some aspects of the offense and defense he would like to deploy. I just don't believe he is willing to do that. He is more stubborn and arrogant than the last few coaches were - but he is a southerner so most are okay with that.

I believe it will be his arrogance and stubbornness that could be his downfall. He really needs to temper that with a level of humility.

 

[Behr]

IMO, Pruitt is very arrogant and probably thinks he can solve world hunger in a week.

If he wins a lot of games - it doesn't matter. If he has the type of first season most feel he will, the excuses will begin.

If he truly believes he can win > 6 games this year, then one of the following is the case:

(a) He believes he can walk on water too.

(b) This program was not in as bad shape as most believe it was.

My feeling is that both are somewhat true. Success (or not in 2018) is going to depend upon Pruitt being willing to put the players in the best position to win even if that means he has to sacrifice some aspects of the offense and defense he would like to deploy. I just don't believe he is willing to do that. He is more stubborn and arrogant than the last few coaches were - but he is a southerner so most are okay with that.

I believe it will be his arrogance and stubbornness that could be his downfall. He really needs to temper that with a level of humility.

You need help bro.

 

[VFL-82-JP]

There is zero logic in post #184. It is full of the logical equivalents to "four plus blue equals banana."

 

[butchna]

IMO, Pruitt is very arrogant and probably thinks he can solve world hunger in a week.

If he wins a lot of games - it doesn't matter. If he has the type of first season most feel he will, the excuses will begin.

If he truly believes he can win > 6 games this year, then one of the following is the case:

(a) He believes he can walk on water too.

(b) This program was not in as bad shape as most believe it was.

My feeling is that both are somewhat true. Success (or not in 2018) is going to depend upon Pruitt being willing to put the players in the best position to win even if that means he has to sacrifice some aspects of the offense and defense he would like to deploy. I just don't believe he is willing to do that. He is more stubborn and arrogant than the last few coaches were - but he is a southerner so most are okay with that.

I believe it will be his arrogance and stubbornness that could be his downfall. He really needs to temper that with a level of humility.

You don’t like the guy and never approved the hire. Could just post that every time. :boredom:

 

[Volosaurus rex]

Fair enough, Chizzle. A counter to that position is General Neyland himself, especially these two maxims:

Press the kicking game. Here is where the breaks are made ... and ... play for and make the breaks and when one comes your way - SCORE.

Sound reasons for having your best players on the field during those key plays.

Then again, some statisticians have made a pretty compelling case in recent years that General Neyland was wrong in Maxim #6, that kickoffs in particular aren't as significant as most folks believe.

But yeah, fair enough. We did get a couple of injuries to starters during kickoffs and punts/punt returns.

JP, I believe that we, as Tennessee fans, would counter that argument by saying that no statistician ever won over 80% of his games as Neyland did during his tenure as Tennesse’s head coach. However, within the context of his times, that maxim really should have made reference specifically to the punting game, for that is what Neyland regularly used as a weapon to flip field position.

On the other hand, it is utterly amazing how rarely Neyland attempted a field goal. As low-scoring as games were in that era, kickoffs did not occur with anywhere near the frequency of today’s game. With respect to Neyland’s strategic use of the punting game, Hank Lauricella once said that Neyland would tally up the yards won or lost in exchange of punts. If we finished +50 for the game, Lauricella said that Neyland regarded that as the equivalent of a big play from scrimmage.

 

[butchna]

JP, I believe that we, as Tennessee fans, would counter that argument by saying that no statistician ever won over 80% of his games as Neyland did during his tenure as Tennesse’s head coach. However, within the context of his times, that maxim really should have made reference specifically to the punting game, for that is what Neyland regularly used as a weapon to flip field position.

On the other hand, it is utterly amazing how rarely Neyland attempted a field goal. As low-scoring as games were in that era, kickoffs did not occur with anywhere near the frequency of today’s game. With respect to Neyland’s strategic use of the punting game, Hank Lauricella once said that Neyland would tally up the yards won or lost in exchange of punts. If we finished +50 for the game, Lauricella said that Neyland regarded that as the equivalent of a big play from scrimmage.

Love the memories of General Neyland but how many threads would be devoted to mocking some of the more tedious, outdated philosophies he espoused...if he were still coaching nowadays? “So we were on Bama’s 30...why quick kick, exactly?”

 

[Volosaurus rex]

It was probably 35 years ago when the Neyland documentary was filmed, but Wallace Wade, the first great coach at Alabama, then said that Neyland would be just as successful as a [contemporary] coach, primarily because he would have adapted to the game as it is now played.

 

[Smallvol#1]

Butch didn't come here to win 6 games either.



Last year, he only won 4.

That many? Seemed like less.😢😢

 

[Johnnyreb#VFL]

Well there won’t be any kicking off or punting here within the next 10 years anyway, so one of those maxims is not timeless.

 

[TJ1985]

I believe it will be his arrogance and stubbornness that could be his downfall. He really needs to temper that with a level of humility.

Pot, meet kettle.

What exactly has led you to believe the garbage you just spewed? JP is unproven as a HC, so I understand being cautious, but you are just flat out negative.

 

[Smallvol#1]

Pot, meet kettle.

What exactly has led you to believe the garbage you just spewed? JP is unproven as a HC, so I understand being cautious, but you are just flat out negative.

Maybe he thought Butch was the one being discussed and just got confused.

 

[Volfan2012]

I think I'll be able to tell how many we'll win after that first game. We should beat W. Va. on a neutral field they would lose six games or more on our schedule.

 

[VFL-82-JP]

JP, I believe that we, as Tennessee fans, would counter that argument by saying that no statistician ever won over 80% of his games as Neyland did during his tenure as Tennesse’s head coach. However, within the context of his times, that maxim really should have made reference specifically to the punting game, for that is what Neyland regularly used as a weapon to flip field position.

Great point, Rex, you are right! When you're right, you're right, and you are right! :hi:

 

[volbeast33]

IMO, Pruitt is very arrogant and probably thinks he can solve world hunger in a week.

If he wins a lot of games - it doesn't matter. If he has the type of first season most feel he will, the excuses will begin.

If he truly believes he can win > 6 games this year, then one of the following is the case:

(a) He believes he can walk on water too.

(b) This program was not in as bad shape as most believe it was.

My feeling is that both are somewhat true. Success (or not in 2018) is going to depend upon Pruitt being willing to put the players in the best position to win even if that means he has to sacrifice some aspects of the offense and defense he would like to deploy. I just don't believe he is willing to do that. He is more stubborn and arrogant than the last few coaches were - but he is a southerner so most are okay with that.

I believe it will be his arrogance and stubbornness that could be his downfall. He really needs to temper that with a level of humility.

What are you talking about? He talks about adjusting to personal all the time

 

[Wildasamink16]

I just hope we fight hard regardless of win totals , i want the pride to be seen in the way the players play that every person who puts on the power T helment will truly respect it bc as inkey said TENNESSEE SHOULD NOT BE SECOND TO ANYONE IN FOOTBALL! This fanbase and players that paved the way deserve the best and our players and coaches deserve our best ! Go Vols !

 

[KBVol]

IMO, Pruitt is very arrogant and probably thinks he can solve world hunger in a week.

If he wins a lot of games - it doesn't matter. If he has the type of first season most feel he will, the excuses will begin.

If he truly believes he can win > 6 games this year, then one of the following is the case:

(a) He believes he can walk on water too.

(b) This program was not in as bad shape as most believe it was.

My feeling is that both are somewhat true. Success (or not in 2018) is going to depend upon Pruitt being willing to put the players in the best position to win even if that means he has to sacrifice some aspects of the offense and defense he would like to deploy. I just don't believe he is willing to do that. He is more stubborn and arrogant than the last few coaches were - but he is a southerner so most are okay with that.

I believe it will be his arrogance and stubbornness that could be his downfall. He really needs to temper that with a level of humility.

You’re pathetic. Get the hell off a Tennessee Vols fan forum....you don’t belong here.

 

[Orangeredblooded]

You don’t like the guy and never approved the hire. Could just post that every time. :boredom:

Every single opening or precived one, there it is again, like a beating drum. I think we all got the “mistake “ of the hire in your opinion. New schick is in order.