Who Deserves the Blame?

#51
#51
Well, maybe Jones read it in a magazine article (ha!). However, Fulmer has said the same.

I hope you're right, though.
Depends on the OL. But that's true of any other position. Some good QB's come in too raw to contribute then become really good by year 3.

To the extent it is true... it is true of any position. But now more than ever OL's are coming in ready to play within the first couple of years. The question in my mind concerning the current OL is how much was talent and how much was development.

PS- Fulmer started young OL's also.
 
#52
#52
If Pruitt somehow doesn’t get us 6-7 wins into a Bowl game this season, is it fair to blame Pruitt or the Administration for putting the program in bad position for the future HC’s of Tennessee?

Say what you want too but I believe even the best proven coaches, would have a hard time recruiting this year due to having zero draft picks in the NFL and poor development from Butch Jones.

Pruitt was used to being at a place where they put their program in the best position to win. Bama is serious about winning, we were not.

This is why I’m hoping Fulmer can turn this culture around, someone who truly cares about Tennessee athletics and not just the money in their pockets.

Pruitt is a really knowledgeable guy who understands football. He’s said over & over again that he wants to win right away but it seems like he’s having a lot of negative things going against him right now.

I don’t think it’s entirely his fault because I don’t think even he knew, it would be this hard of a job to win here considering the circumstances.
He is a very knowledge guy. But also has major personality issues. A bit anti social and I have no doubt that the cancellation of the caravan was due to this. If he wins he’ll be fine, but I can’t imagine his cold, lifeless personality will play well for long.
 
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#53
#53
If Pruitt somehow doesn’t get us 6-7 wins into a Bowl game this season, is it fair to blame Pruitt or the Administration for putting the program in bad position for the future HC’s of Tennessee?

Say what you want too but I believe even the best proven coaches, would have a hard time recruiting this year due to having zero draft picks in the NFL and poor development from Butch Jones.

Pruitt was used to being at a place where they put their program in the best position to win. Bama is serious about winning, we were not.

This is why I’m hoping Fulmer can turn this culture around, someone who truly cares about Tennessee athletics and not just the money in their pockets.

Pruitt is a really knowledgeable guy who understands football. He’s said over & over again that he wants to win right away but it seems like he’s having a lot of negative things going against him right now.

I don’t think it’s entirely his fault because I don’t think even he knew, it would be this hard of a job to win here considering the circumstances.
Could you point out the negative things for me?
 
#54
#54
If Pruitt somehow doesn’t get us 6-7 wins into a Bowl game this season, is it fair to blame Pruitt or the Administration for putting the program in bad position for the future HC’s of Tennessee?

Say what you want too but I believe even the best proven coaches, would have a hard time recruiting this year due to having zero draft picks in the NFL and poor development from Butch Jones.

Pruitt was used to being at a place where they put their program in the best position to win. Bama is serious about winning, we were not.

This is why I’m hoping Fulmer can turn this culture around, someone who truly cares about Tennessee athletics and not just the money in their pockets.

Pruitt is a really knowledgeable guy who understands football. He’s said over & over again that he wants to win right away but it seems like he’s having a lot of negative things going against him right now.

I don’t think it’s entirely his fault because I don’t think even he knew, it would be this hard of a job to win here considering the circumstances.
Blame him in his 2nd yeast and just fire everyone. That’s what we should do, after all it has worked the last 10 years
 
#55
#55
If Pruitt somehow doesn’t get us 6-7 wins into a Bowl game this season, is it fair to blame Pruitt or the Administration for putting the program in bad position for the future HC’s of Tennessee?

Say what you want too but I believe even the best proven coaches, would have a hard time recruiting this year due to having zero draft picks in the NFL and poor development from Butch Jones.

Pruitt was used to being at a place where they put their program in the best position to win. Bama is serious about winning, we were not.

This is why I’m hoping Fulmer can turn this culture around, someone who truly cares about Tennessee athletics and not just the money in their pockets.

Pruitt is a really knowledgeable guy who understands football. He’s said over & over again that he wants to win right away but it seems like he’s having a lot of negative things going against him right now.

I don’t think it’s entirely his fault because I don’t think even he knew, it would be this hard of a job to win here considering the circumstances.

I believe in God...so it would be God's fault.
 
#56
#56
If Pruitt somehow doesn’t get us 6-7 wins into a Bowl game this season, is it fair to blame Pruitt or the Administration for putting the program in bad position for the future HC’s of Tennessee?

Say what you want too but I believe even the best proven coaches, would have a hard time recruiting this year due to having zero draft picks in the NFL and poor development from Butch Jones.

Pruitt was used to being at a place where they put their program in the best position to win. Bama is serious about winning, we were not.

This is why I’m hoping Fulmer can turn this culture around, someone who truly cares about Tennessee athletics and not just the money in their pockets.

Pruitt is a really knowledgeable guy who understands football. He’s said over & over again that he wants to win right away but it seems like he’s having a lot of negative things going against him right now.

I don’t think it’s entirely his fault because I don’t think even he knew, it would be this hard of a job to win here considering the circumstances.


I'm getting tired of this "IF" crap. Find something better to do. There is NO WAY that we get less than 6 wins. First off, you fail because IF we get 7 wins (we will get 8 or 9), it could be for umpteen number of reasons. Why are you even talking about this?
 
#57
#57
Sadly, I'm thinking 2020 at the earliest, with a marginal improvement this year at most. Generally, it takes about three years to develop a lineman, and that position is still the weakest link . . . and it's the link that holds everything together.

O-line very well may not be weakest link. Times change in seasons. New season. You'll see.
 
#58
#58
The right coach will overcome the circumstances... or be the beneficiary of divine providence. It doesn't matter who you blame. It only matters what standards you demand and how decisive you are when they aren't met. "Patience" with Jones is a major contributor to the hole Pruitt inherited. If someone had been bold enough to recognize the fatal weaknesses in Jones after he won 8 games with an 11 win roster... and take action... someone else might have built on that talent. But it is hard to fire a coach that wins 9 games. Hard but in retrospect the right thing to have done.

This thread and conversation are deja vu all over again. When Jones arrived, people blamed Dooley for Jones lack of success. Only us "traitors" dared to cast a critical eye toward what Jones was doing with what he was left. Now... a significant number who once excused Jones are blaming him. The truth is that every coach since Fulmer ran the program into the ditch has inherited a crappy situation. The roster Kiffin inherited was downright awful. It had a few really good players with some bad players to compliment... and no depth. Dooley inherited a roster completely dependent on youth then handed Jones one that was similar to what Kiffin inherited. Now Pruitt has inherited a roster with lots of issues. Hopefully some of those issues were just development rather than talent. We'll know soon.

But the bottom line is that great coaches, coach great. They coach great when they have Bama talent. They coach great when they have bottom level talent. A great coach gets more out of a roster than the sum of its raw talent. Because they do, players want to play for them.

I like Pruitt. I like him better than any of the previous 3. I think he's a better "coach" of the game than the previous 3. UT has poured more money into hiring a top shelf staff than at any point I can remember in the last 30+ years. But he has to show significant results within 3 years or the chances are he never will. There's a momentum to turning a program around that relies on a good start to sustain recruiting among other things.

Good. I don’t even have to respond. This reflects my view perfectly.
 
#59
#59
This is big boy football in the sec. no excuses. It’s all on Pruitt from here on out. Hamilton, kiffen, Dooley, Hart, Butch, and —- brain fart —- can’t even remember the clowns name who tried to hire sciano. Anyway they are all gone. Time to quit making excuses related to the past. It’s time for Pruitt to be held accountable. He got his mulligan last year.
 
#60
#60
the new America....let's find someone/something to blame for anything happening that we don't like
 
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#61
#61
Are fans asking too much for 6 or 7 wins and a lower tier bowl appearance this upcoming season? Not really IMO. The 2019 schedule is far less brutal than the 2020 schedule. So yeah Pruitt deserves the blame if we don’t reach that win total. He also needs to show some improvement to recruits and the fan base. I am not exactly going to do backflips for a 6-6 type of year either.

Pruitt has never coached a team that is not loaded with talent >vs his competition. At Hoover 2 State championship Florida State, UGA& Bama. Coaching a bottom feeder is whole different experience. Not sure how this is going to turn out the six 25+ blowouts are very humbling for a coach that hasn't tasted defeat much in his life. I'm sure in his inner brain he's thinking coordinator at a blue blood sure was good.
 
#62
#62
Who to blame? Probably preselecting blame hunters like you. Who hide behind fake supportive bushes with an AK-47, a 188mm Howitzer, and planted claymore mines to blast coaches and blow up players for farting when you preferred they sneeze instead. Thus injecting an element of negativity before the first game of the season.

You've got an interesting mind my friend 🙂
 
#63
#63
I'm getting tired of this "IF" crap. Find something better to do. There is NO WAY that we get less than 6 wins. First off, you fail because IF we get 7 wins (we will get 8 or 9), it could be for umpteen number of reasons. Why are you even talking about this?

^^^Tired of IF. Uses IF.
 
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#64
#64
You've got an interesting mind my friend 🙂

I suppose it's due to my falling head first onto the pointed end of a dropped ice pick decades ago. Pulled the darn thing out myself and never sought medical attention. Since then, those who know me personally, refer to me as "The Prick." :)
 
#65
#65
I'm not the President of the Jeremy Pruitt fan club, but it's not his fault our administration gave football the bird by consecutively hiring 4 cheap head coaches.....

It takes more than 1 year to overcome a decade of administrative indifference...
Well it may turnout for the best, but Pruitt wasn’t a big money hire by any way you compute it. Maybe we couldn’t hire a big name coach due to our inept administration, but Pruitt was not a homerun hire. Let’s hope he turns out to be.
 
#66
#66
I think we need to blame Fulmer. He is the one that began using the "injury" excuse. Butch just picked it up and carried it further. So, since Fulmer was the one that ran the program into the ground, and he started to "blame" it on injuries, that is where all of our problems lay!
 
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#67
#67
What “Majors built”? Lol. What exactly was that? 4 awful seasons followed by 8-9 up and down seasons, followed by, FINALLY, 3 good to very good seasons in a row before being the head coach on the sidelines responsible for all 3 losses his last season while the interim coach goes 4-0?

Majors did build it. It took him too many years, but he won 3 SEC Championships in his last 6 years. Fulmer won 2 in 17. When Fulmer was fired nobody was going to hire him because they knew he never built a program.
 
#68
#68
The administration is solely to blame. They either didn't want to commit to winning , which meant opening up the check book or doing whatever it is ( use your imagination) Bama, Clemsuck and a few others are willing to do. There is no magic. They do whatever it takes to keep up with the Jones's and Tennessee has either been unwilling to do so or didn't want to spend the money necessary.. I'm hoping Fulmer has put all the liberal dipshats in their place and has educated them on how big boy football is played and conducted. It's either that or remain in the rear view mirror.
 
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#69
#69
I have my issues with how Fulmer left the program, he had it at low tide when he left. As AD though i can only see him as a benefit. He was a micro manager, it ultimately cost him is job as head coach. I can see where those traits actually benefit us as AD. I'm not going to elaborate, figure that out for yourself.
 
#70
#70
I'm getting tired of this "IF" crap. Find something better to do. There is NO WAY that we get less than 6 wins. First off, you fail because IF we get 7 wins (we will get 8 or 9), it could be for umpteen number of reasons. Why are you even talking about this?

We won’t get to 8 or 9. 6 wins aren’t a given with this team either.

It’s a 5 year rebuild and we’re only about 1.5 years in so far.
 
#71
#71
I think we need to blame Fulmer. He is the one that began using the "injury" excuse. Butch just picked it up and carried it further. So, since Fulmer was the one that ran the program into the ground, and he started to "blame" it on injuries, that is where all of our problems lay!
Okay, it's all his fault.

Now what?
 
#72
#72
We won’t get to 8 or 9. 6 wins aren’t a given with this team either.

It’s a 5 year rebuild and we’re only about 1.5 years in so far.

So are you saying we can't win more than 5 or 6 until the rebuild is complete?
 
#74
#74
My only concern is that there IS a "Minnesota Inflection Point", that being the point in time where a traditional power stays so far down for so long that coming back is next to impossible due to imbedded culture, there being no memory of the program's greatness in the minds of potential recruits, and rivals seizing on the opportunity to eclipse the program.

I don't think we are there yet, but we are getting close enough to walk.
 

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