Vol football doubts are creeping in

#28
#28
lilesrt said:
Good to know our starting QB is “alert”. Yay..
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Yeah, If we pass him on the street, and say, "Hi", He might just have the manners to say, "Hi" as well. Really important info I did not know.. Glad I stopped by for that.
 
#29
#29
"Doubts"?

What are we doubting? Another Playoff appearance? Okay. A Natty? Good call. Winning the SEC? Agreed. Just making the SECCG? Yep.

I think the O/U is at 7.5 - 8.5. So 8-4 would be the "baseline". Anything above is a plus. Anything below means we dropped a game, or two, we might have and maybe should have won. If we stand on history under Heupel, then...

UT will win a game as an underdog, and lose a game as a favorite. It's a wash.

8-4, maybe 9-3. And I think Aguilar has his best year as a QB...if he sees the field. Personally, I think he will. And I think his legs win a game.

And his arm might lose one. Again, a wash.

Here's what I don't doubt: UT will be a tough out this year. Home, away, Atlanta. Heupel will have them ready to play. Why do I think this?

Nico gone, chemistry better. That's worth a +1 in the win column.

Go Vols.
 
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#30
#30
BruisedOrange said:
And in the tongue-in-cheek fashion of a seasoned veteran. West--having covered probably sixty Junes before football season--is reacting to what fans always feel and ask this time of year (after the football mags have been consumed) while laying out the facts, and the limits of what is actually known or knowable.

AND he could probably submit the same article next month, with maybe a few extra tidbits along the line of "receivers who've been participating in voluntary practices say Aguilar throws a [pick one: nice, catchable, consistent] ball, and is adjusting well to the variety of receivers on hand."

July should also produce a generic quote from the Strength & Conditioning coach that (hopefully) says he is pleased with everyone's effort and commitment to their nutritional regimen. If he says that "most players are meeting their weight goals so far" speculation will begin among fans on who is not among the "most," and we will post which players we suspect are "still too skinny" for SEC ball and which ones we suspect are "still too fat" to be a factor late in games.

In the social media era, we've also come to expect short videos of player workouts (including basketball players) with whatever the latest trendy workout equipment is. Years ago it was flipping huge tires, then there was flipping those huge ropes up & down. Maybe this year they'll combine workouts with community service and be flipping houses.
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Thank goodness some DO understand how to read a well written article.
 
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#33
#33
Things I want to hear in August;
JA is clear number one QB and is exceeding expectations.
Brazell and Matthews look great at WR
Bishop clear #1 RB looking great
Satterwhite and Sanders looking great
Kitselman and McCoy dressed and expect to play vs Syracse
 
#34
#34
Sarms58 said:
We have a talented roster - it’s really a matter of how well they gel together, injuries, and breaks…I’m optimistic because Heupel has done a great job getting the team aligned and pulling together…we have some games we’re supposed to win, some games we’re supposed to lose and some games that are toss ups. Win the ones we’re supposed to win, steal one or two of the ones we’re supposed to lose and find a way to win all those toss ups…
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Talented compared to who though? Are we in the top 1/4 of the league in roster talent? Are we talented enough to be a playoff team? Are more talented than last year's team or less talented?
 
#35
#35
Vfl2407 said:
Things I want to hear in August;
JA is clear number one QB and is exceeding expectations.
Brazell and Matthews look great at WR
Bishop clear #1 RB looking great
Satterwhite and Sanders looking great
Kitselman and McCoy dressed and expect to play vs Syracse
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I think all of those will be true minus McCoy. I doubt we see him play until Oct at the earliest. The timing of his ACL tear sucks because they will be extra cautious of him getting back to full speed in the fall.
 
#36
#36
Brave Volunteer said:
Talented compared to who though? Are we in the top 1/4 of the league in roster talent? Are we talented enough to be a playoff team? Are more talented than last year's team or less talented?
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Hard to tell. Yes, the talent is there from a few years of hovering around top 10 in overall rankings, but in the SEC that means we are still a middle of the pack team.

Talent level last year was also difficult to tell as we went 10-2 against a rather soft schedule. So yes, we were good, but a lot of those games were against pretty poor competition.

Similar theme this year as we have basically the same schedule, but the bottom feeders will be tougher. Arkansas, Oklahoma, and even Miss State will not be gimmies like last year.
 
#37
#37
Nico ee-ah-MAH-LAY-ah-va said:
I think all of those will be true minus McCoy. I doubt we see him play until Oct at the earliest. The timing of his ACL tear sucks because they will be extra cautious of him getting back to full speed in the fall.
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Yikes, so no McCoy for Georgia? Ouch.
Really need him for Bama in October.
 
#38
#38
Brave Volunteer said:
Talented compared to who though? Are we in the top 1/4 of the league in roster talent? Are we talented enough to be a playoff team? Are more talented than last year's team or less talented?
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Be a while before the roster rankings for 2025 come out. The 2024 team was ranked 8th in the SEC. We beat three teams ranked higher and lost to one team ranked lower. Team chemistry can make a team play above (or below) their combined talent level. I think Heupel and his staff have established a good culture and has gotten the team to perform at a high level.
 
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#39
#39
dobre_shunka said:
"He is alert" WTF is that supposed to mean? He's not passed out in the gutter with an empty bottle of Thunderbird next to him?

And Puerto Ricans are Americans so I'm not sure that counts as "immigration" especially when there are way more Puerto Ricans living in the 50 states than in Puerto Rica.
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Im glad you said this. "He's Puerto Rican, is like sayign, 'hes from Missouri,'" ok......and your point......?

What all the migration stuff goin on? not relevent
 
#40
#40
Welp I spent two hours writing, accidentally hit the refresh button, and poof.

I will just say this, I hope they are all alert :)

—-

Seriously though, we have ? marks almost everywhere. I have very low expectations because of this.

I think Aguilar has it and will be hungry, but our O and WRs have to turn it around. If they do, and our D reloads, we will be surprised.

If they don’t, Aguilar and our run game will suffer and we will not have the chance to know if our receivers are worth a darn, because we will be stuffed at the line and Aguilar will be running for his life.

That said my expectations are between 7-9 wins this year—mostly because I expect our run game and pass game to be worse than the previous two years and all that because of an even worse OL. This will keep our D on the field for much of the game and they will be gassed.

Not what I want to see, but if so that should be the end of Elsrbee at Tennessee.

If Huepel and company along with this cast are able to scrape together a 10 win season with this team, I can’t say I would be that surprised, but I can say I will become a lifer.

I prefer the latter scenario, but the downward trend over the past two years at OL and no clear answer for Mays’ replacement leaves me skeptical at best.
 
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