Vols Have Played 40 True Freshman The Last Two Years

[sjt18]

There is an assumption on the part of many here that another year will mean that the youth excuse goes away.

There are OL's on this team including at least one starter who will probably see demotions by Jones as he promotes the current Fr. Some are almost sure to leave... so suddenly UT is young and inexperienced and thin again on the OL. Still waiting for that magical day when the whole OL is made up of 3rd, 4th, or 5th year players.

WR's aren't getting the ball. I'm not sure who... but it is possible if not likely that one or more transfer.

On D, LB will still be young and relatively inexperienced even if JRM decides to stay. The secondary will lose both starting S's and Sutton without much doubt.


So if you believe the "youth, depth, and inexperience" excuses are valid... they'll have them next year as well. And remember, Jones' has had very high turnover in his first two years so it could be much worse.

 

[warhammer]

There is an assumption on the part of many here that another year will mean that the youth excuse goes away.

There are OL's on this team including at least one starter who will probably see demotions by Jones as he promotes the current Fr. Some are almost sure to leave... so suddenly UT is young and inexperienced and thin again on the OL. Still waiting for that magical day when the whole OL is made up of 3rd, 4th, or 5th year players.

WR's aren't getting the ball. I'm not sure who... but it is possible if not likely that one or more transfer.

On D, LB will still be young and relatively inexperienced even if JRM decides to stay. The secondary will lose both starting S's and Sutton without much doubt.


So if you believe the "youth, depth, and inexperience" excuses are valid... they'll have them next year as well. And remember, Jones' has had very high turnover in his first two years so it could be much worse.

This is a good point. People think about losing players from the ongoing recruiting class when a coach leaves, but what about holding important parts of the last two years' recruiting classes together if he stays?

 

[paradox89]

When McElwain was asked about the problems on his roster he said and i quote....

"I think i can win with my dog, Clarabelle."

You can google that if you want.

God and VN forgive me for agreeing with a gator, but that's the kind of head coach that I want at Tennessee. I want a confident coach that expects to win, all else be damned.

 

[Orangeyeah]

I was excited about getting on this message board to interact with intelligent football enthusiasts? This is depressing to see how some of you spin the facts or details of the game so you can ***** and moan,, I never thought this was our year and why would you with the youth on the lines of scrimmage,, that's football 101 that you need seasoned lines,, anyway hide any sharp objects in your house and don't beat your dogs (no pun intended since its GA week) too bad,,,

 

[sjt18]

I was excited about getting on this message board to interact with intelligent football enthusiasts? This is depressing to see how some of you spin the facts or details of the game so you can ***** and moan,, I never thought this was our year and why would you with the youth on the lines of scrimmage,, that's football 101 that you need seasoned lines,, anyway hide any sharp objects in your house and don't beat your dogs (no pun intended since its GA week) too bad,,,

Well, if you weren't depressed by what you've seen from Jones in the 3 games vs opponents with a pulse... then you probably needed to come here and get smacked in the face with some reality.

There's no need to "spin" anything. Jones is NOT succeeding where it counts most. I don't think there's a soul here who doesn't want him to turn it around starting today. But many of us aren't blind. There are signs that he lacks the ability to elevate UT.

Youth on both sides of the LOS? Three upperclassmen at DT backed up by two very talented Fr. Only one Fr seeing any significant time at DE.

Fifth year Sr at LT. Jr at LG. Soph at C. Soph at RG. Third year Soph at RT.

Look around the SEC and country. That's pretty average on both lines.

There are plenty of intelligent football enthusiasts here. If you don't want to hear them.... that's your business.

 

[sjt18]

FWIW, it was "our year" to see coaching competency and the product of the last 3 years result in at least 8 wins vs a slightly weaker schedule than UT has had in the previous two years. Few were calling for championships. Some very "intelligently and enthusiastically" believed that there were 10 potential wins on the schedule... but realized that 8 was a more "reasonable" number. Most agreed that 7 would be a disappointment. Less would be unacceptable.

 

[jenkins76]

The talent excuse is getting old. You've got a stud CB, a stud LB, a senior safety, and a stud DE. That's all any defensive coordinator could ask for.

As for the offense, you've got a running back tandem that's probably top 5 (top 10 at worst) in the nation, one of the best scrambling QBs around, a highly touted group of wideouts, and a TE I'd bet money will be playing on Sundays. The weak spot is an OL that, in my opinion, isn't improving, but I think it's on the coaches to make them improve.

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

We can sit here and talk about playing true freshman, or youngest team, or "process" until we are blue in the face. The real FACT is, Jones' record speaks for itself here. You would figure that he would at least win more than 1, yes 1, meaningful game in that time frame. All he can hang is hat on is beating a demoralized and regressing USCe team, and barely squeaking by a horrible Vandy team. He needs to start showing he can win with the talent he has. McElwain sure doesn't use youth as an excuse.

 

[jenkins76]

Make a list of the guys you'd trade for these guys:

Derek Barnett
Jalen Hurd
Cameron Sutton
Jalen Reeves-Maybin

 

[jenkins76]

We can sit here and talk about playing true freshman, or youngest team, or "process" until we are blue in the face. The real FACT is, Jones' record speaks for itself here. You would figure that he would at least win more than 1, yes 1, meaningful game in that time frame. All he can hang is hat on is beating a demoralized and regressing USCe team, and barely squeaking by a horrible Vandy team. He needs to start showing he can win with the talent he has. McElwain sure doesn't use youth as an excuse.

He's coached for nine years. Six of those were at programs that were already championship caliber. He's got one win over a ranked team. One. South Carolina was the anomaly, not an indicator of things to come.

 

[VOL 4 Life 83]

He's coached for nine years. Six of those were at programs that were already championship caliber. He's got one win over a ranked team. One. South Carolina was the anomaly, not an indicator of things to come.

Exactly my point. Eventually you have to show that you can scheme better than the team on the other sidelines. So far, he hasn't shown he can do that. I get it, we are one or two plays from beating some good teams like Georgia x 2, Oklahoma, Florida x 2, etc. But damn, can he not do SOMETHING to win some games that are actually relevant? That still has yet to be seen. Maybe it starts today...:crossfingers:

 

[Other_Guy]

What does the chart say?

What the chart say!

Ring a ding ding dinga ding!