There was an exchange between Rob Lewis and Coach Pruitt after the Bama game that is interesting...

[MiramarVol]

I don't believe him when he says that.

I did, but after seeing him make the same mistakes 3 years now ...
I did, but after seeing him implode against UGA in the 2nd half, and then walk right into Neyland, and pick up where he left off (at UGA) against UK ...
I did, but after seeing the whole team quit after JG led the team to 3 and out on the 1st drive of the 2nd half against UK ...

I don't believe JG gives us the best chance to win.
I don't believe 10% of the fanbase believes it either.

Lastly, I can't understand why Pruitt believes it.

Who knows, maybe against the (hopefully) weaker back half of the schedule, JG will look like a world beater.
That's what it'll take for me to believe and understand.

(by the way @MiramarVol ... no offense to you or anything ... )

Naw, Preacher we are good. Be blessed.

 

[Kinglberry]

Practice matters. It isn't the only measure of an athletes abilities. Performance matters. Without practice you can't improve your performance. Unfortunately, football isn't a game of practice with perfectly timed occurrences that can be repeated. It's a random counter attacking melee. Some players can handle and thrive in the chaos. Others freeze up and fail. A good coach can understand that and know when a player isn't ready for the field, like Jamal Lewis and needs to learn the basics before he can go in. That coach also knows that Jamal is also very talented and needs to be in the game. Jamal wasn't perfect on his blocking when he finally got in, but he had the basics down enough to not be a liability. Pruitt thinks this is Alabama with top shelf starters and if you want to be on the field you have to be perfect in practice. In 5 years, if he is still here and this team is a top contender, he can do that. Until then, talent and ability need to be pushed as quickly as possible to the front of the line, or the losses mount, the recruiting falters, his job.....disappears.

 

[Spawn]

Even if you want a player to prove it in practice, when the wheels fly off with a TO machine at QB, you have to give the young guys a shot. 2nd happy half of Bama should have been BM our HB. It was obvious the game was over and the defense have up on Pruitt and JG.

 

[TJVol95]

The answer was a little vague, but I agree that you don’t use games for development just for development’s sake. You play players who put in you in the best position to win a game.

Yes but this is the perfect year to give Bailey game experience since he will be a freshman next year.

 

[m1al]

Pruitt's answer does not make a lot of sense. Pruitt's answer tells me that the way in which he frames his approach to coaching is built upon an outdated mindset where we value seniority over ability and talent. when you look at the programs that are winning consistently, they have accelerated or abandoned this old fashioned notion, which I would maintain relies upon the old rules that A - students commit to a school, cannot transfer, and persist to graduation, and B - transfer students is a rarity and not dignified. You have to earn your playing time.

This framework for understanding coaching in the SEC will result in Pruitt circling back to DC job in a few years.

That is NOT what he said, merely what you wanted to hear.

What I heard was he/they value players that actually see what the hell is happening on the field and know what they're supposed to do when it happens, above all else.

 

[lifeVol]

I think this sheds some light on why many Tennessee fans are frustrated with Pruitt. Many of us (including myself) want to see younger guys plan more because we want to accelerate this rebuild. Rob has expressed on VQ's podcast that he thinks the younger guys should play more and asked Pruitt about it after the game. While I agree that they should be playing more, I thought Pruitt's answer made a lot of sense...

Rob: "Jeremy, as a coach is there ever a time where you may have a freshman or a sophomore who you know is more talented than the upperclassman who is playing, but he's not quite as ready, and you throw him out there to speed up his development, or is it all about the practice thing?"

Pruitt: "Well I don't believe in that. You have a purpose when you practice. I don't think that's the right way to build a program because the players know who's earned the right opportunity to play on Saturdays. They know that. There's no secrets in this game. They can see it. We watch film every day. They know who plays hard. They know who makes mistakes. And if you start (playing guys) just because he's bigger or stronger or faster or whatever and he's not done the right stuff through the week then I think you're sending the wrong message to the people within your program..."

The question was asked at around 14:27 if interested

Thanks for posting this, I almost posted it as well. I agree with CJP on this, as painful as it may be in the short term at least he has a solid (imo) philosophy of who gets to play and is sticking to it. I only wish the JG would practice as poorly as he plays (most of the time). Listening to his presser today convinces me even more that the coaching up has been sorely lacking for the juniors and seniors on this team.

 

[kell7517]

Not saying it was you. But I see people talking about discipline and Pruitt not instilling it. But when Banks made his mistake, people on here were glad that he kicked Banks off the team so fast.

 

[kell7517]

Not saying it was you. But I see people talking about discipline and Pruitt not instilling it. But when Banks made his mistake, people on here were glad that he kicked Banks off the team so fast.

Sorry. This was supposed to be a response to cbatey’s comment.

 

[05_never_again]

No I’m pretty sure it’s true. I remember reading practice reports of him missing throws like crazy. How else do you explain the fact that it took Worley going down and Peterman getting benched before we put Dobbs on the field in 2014, only to discover he was by far our best option?

Butch is a football idiot, but at least he did figure out that his offensive line sucked so he should probably play a mobile QB.

 

[Race City Vol]

Pruitt’s answer is why we will always suck under his reign. If I recall correctly Josh Dobb’s and Tyler Bray weren’t exactly known for their great practices but they played well when the lights came on. So apparently, Josh Dobbs would sit behind JG.

JG supposedly practices well but my eyes tell me he sucks in games. Pruitt is an idiot. I’m not really interested in most anything he says until JG is gone or riding the pine. Next coach please.

Josh Dobbs was really bad as a freshman and not much better as a sophomore. I wonder, would he have been so good the next two years if he hadn’t been given the opportunity to play early on?

 

[finn]

Wasn't that one of the criticisms of Fulmer too? That he would play a senior over a soph regardless?

Jamal Lewis road the bench for 3-4 games because he didn’t know blocking assignments. Granted, if they just gave him the ball for a 10yrd gain, those assignments quickly became irrelevant.

Fulmer always played favorites with Seniors because they ‘earned it’ vs simply getting the best guy on the field.

I really am starting to wonder/worry just how much ‘wisdom’ Phil is dumping on Pruitt and how much of it CJP is taking to heart.

 

[feathersax]

So k is basically say it would send the wrong message to the team to play Bailey at quarterback because JG has been here for five years working hard. That’s his perspective. Here’s the other thing that sends a terrible message to the team… Playing a very bad player at the most important position. The entire team suffers. Clemson’s players seem to get over it when Kelly Bryant was replace with Trevor Lawrence. Bama’s players seemed to get over it when they named Jalen hurts starter as a true freshman and again...those Bama players hung in there when hurts was replaced by Tua. Either Bama has the most emotionally resilient group of players ever or Pruett is wrong. One or the other. Lol

You might spell the name correctly, sir.

 

[LucidZ]

I get what he's saying, but I just don't see practice and a game as the same thing. In practice it's kinda easy to look good because nobody is really out there challenging you like team's will do on game day. There are limitations to how physical things get in practice to preserve the health of the players. There's no real threat, say, for a QB during practice. They know that no matter what happens during practice, nobody is out there to kill them. Which isn't how a game is at all. I've said it before and I'll say it again, sometimes you have to give people a chance to perform when the pressure is the greatest to really get a sense of what they are capable of. Because well, some people perform better under that kind of pressure. Game film is more valuable than evalutating someone at practice, imo. Also, one could say a game is a way of practicing. You're still getting reps, but you're doing it when the challenge is the toughest.

 

[photovol]

When I witnessed Tennessee football players giving up against Kentucky, I knew right away this team’s in trouble...... in more ways than one!

 

[Roustabout]

I think this sheds some light on why many Tennessee fans are frustrated with Pruitt. Many of us (including myself) want to see younger guys play more because we want to accelerate this rebuild. Rob has expressed on VQ's podcast that he thinks the younger guys should play more and asked Pruitt about it after the game. While I agree that they should be playing more, I thought Pruitt's answer made a lot of sense...

Rob: "Jeremy, as a coach is there ever a time where you may have a freshman or a sophomore who you know is more talented than the upperclassman who is playing, but he's not quite as ready, and you throw him out there to speed up his development, or is it all about the practice thing?"

Pruitt: "Well I don't believe in that. You have a purpose when you practice. I don't think that's the right way to build a program because the players know who's earned the right opportunity to play on Saturdays. They know that. There's no secrets in this game. They can see it. We watch film every day. They know who plays hard. They know who makes mistakes. And if you start (playing guys) just because he's bigger or stronger or faster or whatever and he's not done the right stuff through the week then I think you're sending the wrong message to the people within your program..."

The question was asked at around 14:27 if interested

What about the coaches?

If there was a "philosophical" differnece, I'd sure like to know what's the philosophy of getting 5 star Olinemen to block.

 

[papatomany]

Pruitt's rational sounds eerily like Butch's.

 

[GAVol21]

Earned? Earning it isn't just spending time in weight room, film study and practicing... It is also performance based. This is a business and you don't spend time on employees that show up every day and can't perform. You also don't get to heaven by sitting on the pew every week. "Know them by their works..." Participation trophy anyone?

 

[VolArmy74]

Jamal Lewis road the bench for 3-4 games because he didn’t know blocking assignments. Granted, if they just gave him the ball for a 10yrd gain, those assignments quickly became irrelevant.

Fulmer always played favorites with Seniors because they ‘earned it’ vs simply getting the best guy on the field.

I really am starting to wonder/worry just how much ‘wisdom’ Phil is dumping on Pruitt and how much of it CJP is taking to heart.

There's a lot of Phil out there. The shuffling offensive linemen positions from drive to drive is also something Fulmer did often 25-30 years ago.

 

[Rememberthe1990s]

He said it wasn't about who's bigger or stronger, its about who practices the best, understands the game plan and can execute the best. Regardless of class. Wants started as a true freshman last year. Was there no upperclassmen on the OL. It's not making sense for some because you don't like the fact that JG still starts. What part of he gives us the best chance to win don't you understand? We all want to win and be a successful tip tier program and I know JG isn't the best. It's hard to believe no one has stepped up in practice enough to unseat him. It speaks to preparation, covid, and the overall understanding of the offense and where to go with the ball. I know JG isn't a gamer, but it doesn't look like the others practice very well to take the spot.

Well he would not be talking about tootoo then.

 

[photovol]

He said it wasn't about who's bigger or stronger, its about who practices the best, understands the game plan and can execute the best. Regardless of class. Wants started as a true freshman last year. Was there no upperclassmen on the OL. It's not making sense for some because you don't like the fact that JG still starts. What part of he gives us the best chance to win don't you understand? We all want to win and be a successful tip tier program and I know JG isn't the best. It's hard to believe no one has stepped up in practice enough to unseat him. It speaks to preparation, covid, and the overall understanding of the offense and where to go with the ball. I know JG isn't a gamer, but it doesn't look like the others practice very well to take the spot.

The talent at Tennessee for QB’s is very poor, compared to SEC teams. (Pick any SEC team)
And Tennessee is at the bottom

 

[robtom]

I think this sheds some light on why many Tennessee fans are frustrated with Pruitt. Many of us (including myself) want to see younger guys play more because we want to accelerate this rebuild. Rob has expressed on VQ's podcast that he thinks the younger guys should play more and asked Pruitt about it after the game. While I agree that they should be playing more, I thought Pruitt's answer made a lot of sense...

Rob: "Jeremy, as a coach is there ever a time where you may have a freshman or a sophomore who you know is more talented than the upperclassman who is playing, but he's not quite as ready, and you throw him out there to speed up his development, or is it all about the practice thing?"

Pruitt: "Well I don't believe in that. You have a purpose when you practice. I don't think that's the right way to build a program because the players know who's earned the right opportunity to play on Saturdays. They know that. There's no secrets in this game. They can see it. We watch film every day. They know who plays hard. They know who makes mistakes. And if you start (playing guys) just because he's bigger or stronger or faster or whatever and he's not done the right stuff through the week then I think you're sending the wrong message to the people within your program..."

The question was asked at around 14:27 if interested

Rob Lewis never played a DOWN of football......

 

[volmandu]

As a Pruitt supporter, this is the one thing that concerns me.

Dobbs was notoriously bad in practice, but when the lights came on he was the baller you wanted taking snaps. JG is obviously a beast in practice, but there’s a whole study on this I watched a few years back that takes a brain’s panic (fight or flight) sensors into play in high pressure situations. Pruitt is ignoring what goes on between the ears on game day and basing his lineup solely off efforts in practice.

For example: I am not a good golfer for the most part, it really depends on where I am mentally that day whether I have a good day on the course. But I can absolutely crush the ball on the range when it doesn’t matter. I can shape shots, hit high, hit low, etc. But put me on the course and I can make it look like I have no idea what I’m doing some days.

Pruitt is not accounting for this.

I do not know where Dobbs got that rep from. His freshman year, he was behind fellow freshman Riley Furgeson in passing. Riley went on to break passing records at Memphis. Butch did not value scrambling QBs until he had no choice with Worley and did not value Dobbs skills with legs and his ability to sense pressure (none of which can be simulated in practice). You did not get full spectrum of Dobbs capabilities in practice but he was not 'notoriously bad' as a lot of Ktown media claims.

 

[Volsfaninva917]

I think this sheds some light on why many Tennessee fans are frustrated with Pruitt. Many of us (including myself) want to see younger guys play more because we want to accelerate this rebuild. Rob has expressed on VQ's podcast that he thinks the younger guys should play more and asked Pruitt about it after the game. While I agree that they should be playing more, I thought Pruitt's answer made a lot of sense...

Rob: "Jeremy, as a coach is there ever a time where you may have a freshman or a sophomore who you know is more talented than the upperclassman who is playing, but he's not quite as ready, and you throw him out there to speed up his development, or is it all about the practice thing?"

Pruitt: "Well I don't believe in that. You have a purpose when you practice. I don't think that's the right way to build a program because the players know who's earned the right opportunity to play on Saturdays. They know that. There's no secrets in this game. They can see it. We watch film every day. They know who plays hard. They know who makes mistakes. And if you start (playing guys) just because he's bigger or stronger or faster or whatever and he's not done the right stuff through the week then I think you're sending the wrong message to the people within your program..."

The question was asked at around 14:27 if interested

I'm sorry but this is a BS high school coach mentality with a losing record

 

[VFLCodyGBO]

Pruitt's answer does not make a lot of sense. Pruitt's answer tells me that the way in which he frames his approach to coaching is built upon an outdated mindset where we value seniority over ability and talent. when you look at the programs that are winning consistently, they have accelerated or abandoned this old fashioned notion, which I would maintain relies upon the old rules that A - students commit to a school, cannot transfer, and persist to graduation, and B - transfer students is a rarity and not dignified. You have to earn your playing time.

This framework for understanding coaching in the SEC will result in Pruitt circling back to DC job in a few years.

I disagree, he doesn’t value seniority, he values effort. Or claims to anyway. If the guys on the field are out “effort” guys, we are in trouble.

 

[JohnnyJava]

Practice matters. It isn't the only measure of an athletes abilities. Performance matters. Without practice you can't improve your performance. Unfortunately, football isn't a game of practice with perfectly timed occurrences that can be repeated. It's a random counter attacking melee. Some players can handle and thrive in the chaos. Others freeze up and fail. A good coach can understand that and know when a player isn't ready for the field, like Jamal Lewis and needs to learn the basics before he can go in. That coach also knows that Jamal is also very talented and needs to be in the game. Jamal wasn't perfect on his blocking when he finally got in, but he had the basics down enough to not be a liability. Pruitt thinks this is Alabama with top shelf starters and if you want to be on the field you have to be perfect in practice. In 5 years, if he is still here and this team is a top contender, he can do that. Until then, talent and ability need to be pushed as quickly as possible to the front of the line, or the losses mount, the recruiting falters, his job.....disappears.

I think where Fulmer blew it with Jamal early in 97 is worrying too much what could happen negatively vs what could happen positively. UT should have been able to scheme better protections than to need to depend on Mark Levine to keep Manning alive. Levine as your fail safe is pie-in-the-sky optimism anyway. UT needed that tough running that Lewis could provide. Miraculously, two weeks later (maybe 8 practices) Lewis knew enough. Of course what he really knew was how to freight train defenses and make them look silly.