Season could be a major struggle....

#1
M

Massey

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#1
Hear me out folks...

For all those die hard Vol fans out there and I can say I am one of those, do not be surprised to see us struggle this season...

And I can already see it now if we finish 5-7 or something like that which is very possible, people will be calling for Dooley's head...DONT DO THAT! THAT WOULD BE A MISTAKE!

Here is our schedule...a brutal one at that:

Sept. 4 UTM
Sept. 11 Oregon
Sept. 18 Florida
Sept. 25 UAB
Oct. 2 at LSU
Oct. 9 at Georgia
Oct. 23 Alabama
Oct. 30 at South Carolina
Nov. 6 at Memphis
Nov. 13 Mississippi
Nov. 20 at Vanderbilt
Nov. 27 Kentucky

Just looking at the schedule...I can say honestly that I only see 4 should be guaranteed wins (UTM, UAB, Memphis, Vandy)...

On offense...we will be breaking in another QB with either Stephens, Simms (my pick), or Bray...We do return a deep RB game with Brown, Oku, Poole and newly signed R.Neal...Our WR corps will be ok...Cant expect too many of the fresman to have an deep impact although i think D.Rogers if eligible will have some kind of impact...G. Jones and D. Moore are ok but nothing spectacular...And our OL is very very young and inexperienced which will be the unit that will be our undoing...

On defense...we lose McCoy, Williams, Wes Brown, Rogan, and most important E.Berry...Our DE are solid with C.Walker and B.Martin with freshman C.Miller and J.Smith probably able to somewhat contribute, but our DT are thin and again in the SEC could be our undoing on defense...

So even though Dooley doesnt think this will be a rebuilding year, it is in many ways! Do I think we could surprise some teams and finish bowl eligible, you bet your bottom dollar I do...But I also want to keep it real and others to realize, we are not setup quite yet to compete with Alabama or Florida just yet! So please fans, dont get down on Dooley if we do not see immediate results this season! I believe we got a smart coach, one who thinks before he speaks, one that will get on it on the recruiting trail (still surprised he pulled a top 10 class after the kiffin fiasco), and one of the most important qualitites, one that cherishes integrity and character!!!

Good Luck Vols...Im going to be rooting for you...No matter how this season turns out..

Oh by the way here is a link from Chris Low predicting UT will finish 9th in the SEC only in front of Miss St, Kentucky, and Vandy, which got me to write this thread:

SEC pre-spring power rankings - SEC Blog - ESPN
 
#2
#2
I agree this team is in a tough spot and we shouldn't think Dooley is a failure if this year doesn't go great. But all the teams in the East have big question marks so don't give up the season just yet!
 
#3
#3
Every team in the East has question marks and I think the West is already played out. I don't think we will know how our season is going to be until after the FLA game.
 
#4
#4
Oh by no means am I giving up the season yet, we still have 12 games to play...But Im just keeping it real...Given our ??? we could definitely struggle at times this season! And didnt want the fans to give up on Dooley after one season!
 
#5
#5
I might have to agree with this thread. We have a very hard schedule next year for sure.
 
#6
#6
Concerning the East...

For UF the biggest question mark is whether or not the rising 5* players they have will be good enough to replace their 5* going to the NFL.

UGA will 'hound' us this time around.

South Carolina has a better program.

We've got a shot at both UK and Vandy as long as Palardy stays healthy.
 
#7
#7
Here are my very early predictions on the SEC next year...

Alabama
Florida
LSU
Arkansas
South Carolina
Auburn
UT
Ole Miss
Georgia
Miss St
Kentucky
Vandy
 
#8
#8
So long as it's not a night game, I think we have a fighter's chance at beating LSU...
 
#10
#10
This might be a little much......but I seriously hate Chris Low, I wouldn't ever wish AIDS on the man but he could damn sure get marooned on an island.....Nothing he ever says makes sense and he is always putting us near the bottom.....I know we haven't been special lately but jeez we are still UT right???
 
#11
#11
If Kiffin can win some games that we weren't expected to win, then I expect Dooley to do that also. So 6-6 will be a lot better for me. If we only win what we are expected to win then Dooley isn't a great coach.
 
#12
#12
At worst I see us 7-5, I don't see where people are coming from that are saying 4-8 or 5-7.
 
#13
#13
It's funny how someone can start a thread about how we might make the SEC Championship, and everyone agrees (unless they are closet USC fans and hate UT, of course)...and then someone can start a thread like this, and everyone agrees with this too...
 
#14
#14
yea im not thinking we're going to be that bad honestly.. i expect 7-5, will accept 6-6, anything less is a failure
 
#15
#15
5-7...possible. 7-5....a little more probable. I think we beat Martin, UAB, Memphis, and Vandy for sure. And I think we'll win 3 of the following; Kentucky, Ole Miss, UGA, USCjr, LSU, UF. I think Bama and Oregon are our only two sure fire losses on paper. But still, that's just on paper. I see another 7-5 with a possible 8-4 if we get some lucky bounces.
 
#16
#16
Stonewall83 said:
This might be a little much......but I seriously hate Chris Low, I wouldn't ever wish AIDS on the man but he could damn sure get marooned on an island.....Nothing he ever says makes sense and he is always putting us near the bottom.....I know we haven't been special lately but jeez we are still UT right???
Click to expand...

We are still UT, but 27-24 the last four years doesn't instill a lot of confidence.
 
#17
#17
VKAman said:
It's funny how someone can start a thread about how we might make the SEC Championship, and everyone agrees (unless they are closet USC fans and hate UT, of course)...and then someone can start a thread like this, and everyone agrees with this too...
Click to expand...

I think just about every reasonable person thinks anywhere from 5-7 wins is what to expect...
I think we beat UTM, UAB, Mem, Vandy, UK, Miss, and get 1/4 of LSU/UGA/USC/Oregon. I'd be OK with that
 
#18
#18
Stonewall83 said:
This might be a little much......but I seriously hate Chris Low, I wouldn't ever wish AIDS on the man but he could damn sure get marooned on an island.....Nothing he ever says makes sense and he is always putting us near the bottom.....I know we haven't been special lately but jeez we are still UT right???
Click to expand...

We haven't been UT in a long time.
 
#19
#19
burhead - you say at worst we lose 5 games...Well I will give you those 5 losses right here: Oregon, Florida, LSU, Bama are 4 losses right off the bat...and between Georgia, South Carolina, Ole Miss, and Kentucky...I can see us losing 2 of those games...

Listen Im not trying to be Debbie Downer or Nancy Negative...
I just wanted to let people aware that is all hype over this recruiting class and excited about Dooley and the coaching change, not to give up on him b/c next season was going to be a struggle with Kiffin here...I hope we win all 12 of our games and win the NC but that is what being a fan is all about!!! I just wanted to be a realist and know we are not in the best situation to compete for a National Championship or an SEC championship quite yet!
 
#20
#20
Honestly...

I think we go 6-6...

Wins:
UTM, UAB, Georgia, Memphis, Vanderbilt, Kentucky

Losses: Oregon, Florida, LSU, Bama, South Carolina, Ole Miss
 
#21
#21
I was looking at the Ole Miss depth chart; they lose (of their starters) their K, P, 3/4 of the defensive backfield, 1 LB, 5/9 of their DLine, QB, RB, TE, WR, and 3/5 starting OL. I think we will be about the same caliber team, but we get them at home this year without Mcluster
 
#22
#22
Massey said:
burhead - you say at worst we lose 5 games...Well I will give you those 5 losses right here: Oregon, Florida, LSU, Bama are 4 losses right off the bat...and between Georgia, South Carolina, Ole Miss, and Kentucky...I can see us losing 2 of those games...

Listen Im not trying to be Debbie Downer or Nancy Negative...
I just wanted to let people aware that is all hype over this recruiting class and excited about Dooley and the coaching change, not to give up on him b/c next season was going to be a struggle with Kiffin here...I hope we win all 12 of our games and win the NC but that is what being a fan is all about!!! I just wanted to be a realist and know we are not in the best situation to compete for a National Championship or an SEC championship quite yet!
Click to expand...

Do I expect either a national title or SEC championship berth in say the next year or two? No, but I do see us staying above .500.

Sept. 4 UTM - Win
Sept. 11 Oregon - Loss
Sept. 18 Florida - Loss (Florida has serious question marks though at its at home... Upset? Who knows?)
Sept. 25 UAB - Win
Oct. 2 at LSU - Loss
Oct. 9 at Georgia - Win (Will be Dooley's first big SEC road win)
Oct. 23 Alabama Loss
Oct. 30 at South Carolina - Win (The Gamecocks don't impress.)
Nov. 6 at Memphis - Win
Nov. 13 Mississippi - Toss up (I give the edge though to us since they lost Snead and McCluster)
Nov. 20 at Vanderbilt - Win
Nov. 27 Kentucky - Win

That puts us at 7-5, possibly 8-4 if we win against Ole Miss. An 8-4 season in Dooley's first year isn't exactly out of the question.
 
#23
#23
VKAman said:
It's funny how someone can start a thread about how we might make the SEC Championship, and everyone agrees (unless they are closet USC fans and hate UT, of course)...and then someone can start a thread like this, and everyone agrees with this too...
Click to expand...

Welcome to the offseason on Volnation!:hi:
 
#24
#24
I can see that...

Maybe not 8-4 but definitely 6-6 or 7-5...But I also could see us going 5-7 as well...We will at least win 5 games...

I just think our O-Line will give us fits this year...

And Florida will have one of the best defenses in the nation...And Brantley will be very good if he can find somebody to throw the ball to...I dont see too many ??? with that team! Except WR...
 
#25
#25
Oh yeah...

If Dooley gets us to 8-4 next year with that schedule...He deserves COY votes!!!
 
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