The season...

#26
#26
dcm3w said:
I agree with the article. Especially, if we win 7 or 8 games next seasom. Should do well for us selling the program.
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Completely agree. But there will be some that say if we only win 7 games this year, then Pruitt isnt the guy.
 
#27
#27
CINCYVOL said:
Butch really peaked out, he wasn’t made for leadership. The stories that you have heard that cat him in a bad light are just the tip of the iceberg. No integrity. Build your foundation on rock, not sand and Butch was quicksand.
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He had his shot and blew it.

I’m glad for what we have now.
 
#28
#28
BigOrangeTrain said:
Completely agree. But there will be some that say if we only win 7 games this year, then Pruitt isnt the guy.
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What do you think the number is to be able to know he is the guy?

For me 9 are very winnable games, Gumps , chumps and DTU are the toss ups. I do expect CJP&S to put game plans together to win those too. I don’t want to consider the disaster it would take to get him fired for 2019, but the bar is still high even tho it’s year 2 and he was left some mess.
 
#29
#29
Iam4utalways said:
What do you think the number is to be able to know he is the guy?

For me 9 are very winnable games, Gumps , chumps and DTU are the toss ups. I do expect CJP&S to put game plans together to win those too. I don’t want to consider the disaster it would take to get him fired for 2019, but the bar is still high even tho it’s year 2 and he was left some mess.
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Thats a tricky situation for me to answer. Because imo, Pruitt is facing a very unique situation that no coach in modern UT history has had to. I mean both lines are weak, bad and very little quality depth. He wants to incorporate the 3-4. Thats hard to do in a year or two because you havent got the guys yet to effectively run that. The guys he inherited were undisciplined, unconditioned and had a losing attitude.

Here is my realistic view. If there are no significant coaching changes, major transfers or injuries at key skill positions, players and coaches live up to their potential, then we should see 8+ wins by 2020. If that doesnt happen, then there is a very good chance that Pruitt isnt the guy.

I see no way we can win 9 games this year. Bama, UGA and UF are automatic losses. BYU is a toss up. I dont feel good about beating Missouri or Vandy. Right now we just dont have the horses to win 9.
 
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#31
#31
Iam4utalways said:
What do you think the number is to be able to know he is the guy?

For me 9 are very winnable games, Gumps , chumps and DTU are the toss ups. I do expect CJP&S to put game plans together to win those too. I don’t want to consider the disaster it would take to get him fired for 2019, but the bar is still high even tho it’s year 2 and he was left some mess.
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Do you forget who UT has at QB and on the offensive line? 9 wins? After two losing seasons with the same basic roster? Ok..
 
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#34
#34
TN_Transplant said:
Part of it is salesmanship. I'm going to tell to 2019 class, you're the foundation we will rebuild on. The 2020 class, you are the guys that are going to make us competitive again. The 2021 class is the one to put us back in the national conversation. Etc, etc.

You adjust the wording on how well you just did. Its salesmanship.
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I thought VN hated salemen...pretty certain that has been used as a derogatory statement for a couple of years now.
 
#35
#35
Amidst some of the “5-7 years before we’re almost back” declarations, I’ve posted that 2 good to great classes build your core. The best players who maintain their health are generally gone after 3, so if it takes 5-7, you’re in the negative. Two classes. Of course the more quality those are the higher you rise. Glad the staff has that mindset.
 
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#36
#36
GetYouSomeofThat said:
I thought VN hated salemen...pretty certain that has been used as a derogatory statement for a couple of years now.
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Recruiting is salesmanship. Hate to be the one to break it to ya. ☹️ Beyond THAT? Teaching, coaching and development determines the strength of your roster. And all this follows identifying talent that fits your model. Selling what you can’t deliver is what summed up our previous two HC’s. Grade’s TBD on our current.
 
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#37
#37
I think it might be bad for coaches to put out a timeline like this because Tennessee fans are not the most sane people. The coaches idea of getting where they want to be is probably different then where Tennessee fans want to be (competing for national championships baby!). What happens if we have a mediocre season now in 2021? Don't get me wrong, this could be a Babe Ruth pointing his bat into the stands type thing which would be awesome but it is risky. Still, I would expect to see progress as well by 2021 and if we are still finishing last place in the SEC I doubt I will be too happy about it.
 
#39
#39
BigOrangeTrain said:
Completely agree. But there will be some that say if we only win 7 games this year, then Pruitt isnt the guy.
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They could be right, its not a predestination, just their opinion. Your opinion is if he doesn't win 8 in 2020 he won't be "the guy" and there will be some that think that is crazy.

Some said he wasn't the guy the day he was hired. They could be right. Haha, nobody "knows".

I pretty much have the same thought as last year. Obviously I want to win all of them, but I'm more concerned with overall improvement than just win/loss record.

Kick, scratch and claw till the time clock shows 00:00 and the opponent has to help each other off the field. If that happens fear, respect and wins will follow.
 
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#40
#40
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#41
#41
Behr said:
They could be right, its not a predestination, just their opinion. Your opinion is if he doesn't win 8 in 2020 he won't be "the guy" and there will be some that think that is crazy.

Some said he wasn't the guy the day he was hired. They could be right. Haha, nobody "knows".

I pretty much have the same thought as last year. Obviously I want to win all of them, but I'm more concerned with overall improvement than just win/loss record.

Kick, scratch and claw till the time clock shows 00:00 and the opponent has to help each other off the field. If that happens fear, respect and wins will follow.
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Be competitive, make a game of it/don’t embarrass yourself in the 6 games in 2019 that you got blown out of in 2018. Take those 25+ point losses and make em a 7-14 point game....maybe even win 1 or 2 of those 6 games. That would be a huge step forward imo.
 
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#42
#42
terrypedigo said:
I looked at the schedule and we have a shot at 8 or 9 win season if somehow we could pull a 9 and 3 and win the bowl that would mean we won 10 and the elite will won't to come instead of us begging them if this happens then it on we will compete with the bama's and Dawg's in 21 if we can close this class out with Wright and T AND 1 MORE THEN WE MIGHT HAVE SOMETHING FOR THEM IN 20.
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Dude, I couldn’t read this. Mix in a comma, semicolon or period for God’s sake.
 
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#43
#43
Pride85 said:
I am very glad our coaches are realistic and put it all out there for the recruits. At least the ones in charge of the football team are far more rational than several of the fringe posters on this site. :D
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That timeline would put Pruitt and the Vols making significant improvement in year two and competing at a high level in year 3.

My contention has not been that a coach had to win in the first year... but that he had to make a serious impression within 3 years or else recruiting momentum and fan favor would be lost. That seems to be factoring into this timeline as well.


Just for clarification... who are the "fringe posters" expecting something more demanding than what I said above?
 
#44
#44
KBVol said:
The author states Tennessee’s staff has done “a great job with recruiting”..........they have?

No, not great.

Good? Yes. Very good/solid? Yes. “Great” in spots, like at OL (at least on paper right now)? Yes.

But “great job in recruiting”? No.
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I would argue at a minimum a better approach than Jones. They've recruited to position. Jones seemed more concerned with accumulating "stars" than having positional depth.

If I there's an area of pretty significant concern, it has to be DL.
 
#45
#45
BigOrangeTrain said:
Completely agree. But there will be some that say if we only win 7 games this year, then Pruitt isnt the guy.
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I'll take the bait. How do you measure improvement if not ultimately by wins? How many years does it take before a coach with the qualities to be "the guy" starts to prove it by beating the likes of Vandy and Muschamp? How long do you reasonably think a coach has before starting to show results in terms of wins before he can no longer sell the "great things around the corner" line?

The Vols finally get a break with both their difficult OOC game and their rotating West opponent. MSU should be bottom 3 in the West. BYU is a good mid-major. Not great.

If Pruitt is "the guy" then why is it unrealistic to expect 4 OOC wins plus 4 wins out of MSU, USCe, Vandy, UK, Mizzou, and possibly UF. UGA and Bama may still be out of reach talent wise... but what other than coaching necessarily keeps UT from competing in those other 6?
 
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#46
#46
sjt18 said:
That timeline would put Pruitt and the Vols making significant improvement in year two and competing at a high level in year 3.

My contention has not been that a coach had to win in the first year... but that he had to make a serious impression within 3 years or else recruiting momentum and fan favor would be lost. That seems to be factoring into this timeline as well.


Just for clarification... who are the "fringe posters" expecting something more demanding than what I said above?
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I would have to go back and find the quotes from the various members of the fringe. It does not take very long when reading essentially any post from any poster on this site to find the group to which I was referring.
 
#47
#47
Volfan2012 said:
I'll be happy if we can get on the add two wins program. 7 and 5 next season, 9 and 3, then 11 and 1, then 13 and 0
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Eerily similar to the Butch plan. 5-7 + 2 wins + 2 wins. Just hope we don't plateau at 9 again.
 
#48
#48
Winning 8 games is a possibility, but IMO not likely. Not to be too redundant, but being in the games that we lose goes along way. If the team passes the eye test every time they come out and lose some after playing a good game everyone (recruits included) see that the team is trending upwards. This could be especially true in recruiting the second solid class under CJP with CJC and Tee coming on board. I agree with a former post in part, that you really can only expect the have the really good players for 3 years. If that is true, then you need a couple of classes with depth and some stars before you really start reeling in the big fish.

As for playing a 3-4 this year, it may be risky but it does add a little to the depth if D-linemen are rotating more frequently. Although our line backers are going to be expected to play better because they are not the best tacklers as of the end of last season. There are some players that can be moved around to build the line backing corps and some recruits that can help too.
 
#50
#50
Devo182 said:
Eerily similar to the Butch plan. 5-7 + 2 wins + 2 wins. Just hope we don't plateau at 9 again.
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I agree, but if we did, I don't think Pruitt would be busy educating us about how long it's been since we've won 9 games, much less had two back to back 9 win seasons, much less won consecutive bowl games. Pruitt "only" wins nine games, he'll be hungry to continue to improve and win something bigger than "Champions of Life" and Battle of Bristol trophies. JMO.
 
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