Thoughts from UGA fan

[Catbone]

The fact is its going to take longer than anyone wants because we have been waiting for a decade and now we have to start over yet again.

 

[ALLVOL24/7/365]

I have a feeling a lot of ans are going to be upset at the end of the year. I have followed my beloved VOLS through CDD, CBB, CJM, CPF, CLK (much as I hate to say it, he could coach), DD, BJ and now CJP and the best I forsaw for us this year is 6-6 and possibly as bad as 4-8 the only way ai see 7 wins is if we get to a bowl somehow. Vol fans need to be realistic about how bad we were last year and then realize we are installing completely new O and D schemes with a new staff. This is going to take time to fix. I would rather suffer through this year and start to see rays of hope nextyear than keep trudging downthe same pathwe have been.

 

[G8rh8r]

We are all impatiently waiting for a miracle that isn’t going to come this year. I think we need 2-3 more years to be competitive like we want to be again. I do think Pruitt can get us there.

I told my husband I’d be happy if we were bowl eligible this year. That’s about the most I can hope for, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we fall one short.

 

[McDad]

Jeremy has never in his life, probably, had to coach a group of kids who lack self-confidence and an innate knowledge that they can win

Did this narrative that our guys lack self confidence and an innate knowledge they can win come from the coaches or AD?

 

[KeyVol14]

Not concerned about this season. We would have all liked to see improvements in some areas that didn't happen but we've got a QB so I'm content to wait for things to gel. Pruitt will be fine, he's doing a good job IMO.

Awesome point. We have a qb and that’s the most important position on the field. The DBs that played Saturday were mostly on freshman. Give them time to acclimate and we will see improvement. Need more bodies in the trenches unfortunately

 

[KINGSVOL]

Best post of the thread! We have a team that has no leader that expects to win every game! All it takes is a few, JJ, JG, DK, and Warrior! If those 4 can muster the confidence, this team could change on a dime, if they don't CJP is gonna have to wait to find some that will!

 

[KeyVol14]

Best post of the thread! We have a team that has no leader that expects to win every game! All it takes is a few, JJ, JG, DK, and Warrior! If those 4 can muster the confidence, this team could change on a dime, if they don't CJP is gonna have to wait to find some that will!

It takes one game we’re not supposed to win to spike confidence and propel a team to new levels. AKA penn state a few years ago

 

[SmokyRiverDog]

What’s the consensus on Pruitt? I’ve heard positives and negatives. Kirby had a rough first year and he had depth. UT has a decent starting 22, but not much after that.

JG showed up. Showed a lot more poise this game, in spite of the thin O-line. A couple of your RBs were tough. Jordan wants to play tackle football.

D looks porous. Pruitt just doesn’t have his kind of players on the field to execute. Having to throw those young kids in vs an explosive O like WV’s is a tough position to be in.

This is probably going to be a very trying season for the VolNation. But you have to give Pruitt some time to learn the job and implement his system. There’s not a coach in this country that could have taken UT’s players and beat WV last Sat.

The consensus on Pruitt is that firing Pruitt any time soon is suicide because we had to hire Pruitt because of doing stupid stuff too many times in recent history. Pruitt has the longest leash you can imagine and time to screw up a couple times before he is in trouble.

 

[MiramarVol]

The problem is that we were beaten by 26 points, NOT that we lost. Very disappointing that we couldn't stay within shouting distance. The frustration is that there is not much evidence that our D has improved one iota, even with what "elite" defensive coaches we presumably have. We did not have 22 excellent players out there. Our "elite" 4 and 5 * defensive players are only good at best. As some have said on another thread, we have at best 1 or 2 players on defense that would be on Alabama's 2 deep roster. This includes Taylor, Kongbo, Bituli, Kirkland, Warrior, Kelly, etc.

You can teach proper technic but over coming adversity that results from a defeated mindset takes time. They have been taught fundamentals by our current coaches. But, when adversity strikes. The team resorted back to what they kknow.The idea that they can't beat a ranked team.

 

[livefaith]

Today they do. This is where we'll find out what Pruitt and staff can do developmentally as the season moves along.

#6 & 20 physically look the part to me. #25 looks OK. If Pruitt can raise their level of knowledge and maturity by Mizzou etc, then we have a shot. If they are then like we saw Saturday, then USC, Mizz, and even Vandy are going to light us up too.

Edit:. Oh and a little pressure from that truckload of 4&5* defensive linemen and OLBs would go a long way to helping.

 

[hUTch2002]

What’s the consensus on Pruitt? I’ve heard positives and negatives. Kirby had a rough first year and he had depth. UT has a decent starting 22, but not much after that.

JG showed up. Showed a lot more poise this game, in spite of the thin O-line. A couple of your RBs were tough. Jordan wants to play tackle football.

D looks porous. Pruitt just doesn’t have his kind of players on the field to execute. Having to throw those young kids in vs an explosive O like WV’s is a tough position to be in.

This is probably going to be a very trying season for the VolNation. But you have to give Pruitt some time to learn the job and implement his system. There’s not a coach in this country that could have taken UT’s players and beat WV last Sat.

Yeah, it’s way too early to tell anything at all about Pruitt. He was and remains a coin toss like all coordinator hires. There are some things I definitely like though and we did improve in some areas. 6-6 is about right for year 1 but could be a game off that either direction.

I’ll be very curious to see if Kirby has the “Richt choke game” everyone talks about. UGA is better than every team on their schedule including Auburn so on paper they should run the table but I’m thinking they’ll trip up somewhere. As long as it’s just once and they win the SEC they’ll be back in the playoff though. If they lose 2 then that will not be a good look given the talent and schedule. It’s odd to me that people are so down on Richt when he actually had a better record after 2 years than Smart. Richt also won the SEC in year 2 and finished 3rd in the nation before bowl games. The difference is there was no playoff when Richt coached. Smart may be leaps and bounds better but it’s a little early to say that for sure. The main difference at this point has been better recruiting but Richt was pretty good there too. Smart has taken them from top 10 classes to top 3.

 

[Gary10ec1]

Consensus is that we forgot what last year felt like until Saturday. Better days ahead, I think...

 

[hog88]

Still in wait and see mode, he did nothing to impress me on Saturday but the next couple of weeks will tell whether we have a coach or Butch 2.0.

The talent is there to compete.

 

[1985Vols]

The offense doesnt have as far to go as I originally thought. I was very encouraged with JGs performance. He showed why there is no question Pruitt went with him as the starter. We are set at RB and WR. The OL still has a way to go, but when they settled in they started playing better.

On D, our secondary is green and with no depth. Taylor and Flowers I think will end up being good players but they're just young. Warrior needs to get better, didnt think he played well. I cannot believe how bad Osburne is. He was a top 100 player and top 10 DB coming out of HS, and he is just straight up terrible. Thought the LB play was pretty bad as well. That group has to play better. DL was good at times but has a way to go too. The DL and LBs have to play well to help this secondary out, that's all there is to it.

The UF game will tell the tale on this season, whether it will be 7-5, 8-4, or 5-7. JmO

Our offense scored 14 points against an average defense

 

[YankeeVol]

Did this narrative that our guys lack self confidence and an innate knowledge they can win come from the coaches or AD?

Neither I’m sure, but it helps with their agenda

 

[McDad]

Neither I’m sure, but it helps with their agenda

I'm not trying to stir the pot with the question. I've seen others post the same concept. I dont know if it originated on VN or inside the program.

 

[Remy]

Consensus is there is no consensus.
Speaking for myself I'm in the 'Prove it, Pruitt' camp.

My heart has and will always be a Vol homer. But I said it all along and am in that camp with you. CJP has to be evaluated by the product he puts on the field. That product will have to strain to win 6 games this season, it's perhaps a 5 win team, and easily could be a 4 win team. CJP and his staff have lots of work to do and I do not think they will shy away from giving it their best shot. Will it be good enough? Time will tell.

 

[Johnnyreb#VFL]

You can teach proper technic but over coming adversity that results from a defeated mindset takes time. They have been taught fundamentals by our current coaches. But, when adversity strikes. The team resorted back to what they kknow.The idea that they can't beat a ranked team.

Dude half the players playing were freshman

 

[Jack Burton]

Who the eff asked you? Go pound sand and enjoy winning the east until Tennessee starts kicking your arse all over the place year after year again here in a couple years.

I don’t think they’re too worried about us. In a few years they’ll have 2 rings and we might make a post New Years bowl.

 

[Schasz]

I think Missouri is a very long shot.

Have to agree especially if their starting QB is healthy when the Vols play them. They beat us bad at their place last year, and he is almost as good as the West VA QB who shelled us Saturday.

 

[BigOrangeFanatic]

Our offense scored 14 points against an average defense

Yep. Didnt say weve arrived. We had 2 drives where we should have got points and we didnt. The OL still needs work. But we are in a lot better shape at QB than i thought we'd be. I like what we have at RB and WR. Our biggest issues right now are not on the offensive side of the ball.

 

[Pruitt Will Do It]

What’s the consensus on Pruitt? I’ve heard positives and negatives. Kirby had a rough first year and he had depth. UT has a decent starting 22, but not much after that.

JG showed up. Showed a lot more poise this game, in spite of the thin O-line. A couple of your RBs were tough. Jordan wants to play tackle football.

D looks porous. Pruitt just doesn’t have his kind of players on the field to execute. Having to throw those young kids in vs an explosive O like WV’s is a tough position to be in.

This is probably going to be a very trying season for the VolNation. But you have to give Pruitt some time to learn the job and implement his system. There’s not a coach in this country that could have taken UT’s players and beat WV last Sat.

You hit it right on head!

 

[nomads-11]

Butch destroyed this roster

It will take Pruitt time to build it right

Still doesn't make losing any easier, but I can't blame Pruitt for it

It's been a colossal cluster muck in Knoxville for 10 years

I'm getting the feeling that I/we may have underestimated the hole Butch put us in. I never understood why he would say it's a line of scrimmage league yet, of all positions, the lines seem to be the weakest points. Not sure how you improve the DL except with time and recruiting.

 

[SmokyRiverDog]

I'm getting the feeling that I/we may have underestimated the hole Butch put us in. I never understood why he would say it's a line of scrimmage league yet, of all positions, the lines seem to be the weakest points. Not sure how you improve the DL except with time and recruiting.

The defensive line is bad at everything. Somehow you have to sacrifice one thing to be better at another. They need to overload to a strength of run defense or pass rush or find a substitution pattern that plays to each. They can't remain poor at both though. Somehow they have to get one aspect of the defensive game under control, even at the expense of the other.

 

[KeyVol14]

Def originated with some of the posters on here.