Highlights from Pruitt's talk at Knoxville Quarterback Club (Monday)

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Sara Clark

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#1
Highlights from Pruitt's talk at Knoxville Quarterback Club

First-year Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt held court for nearly 25 minutes at the meeting of the Knoxville Quarterback Club on Monday at Calhoun's on the River, talking everything from facilities to injuries, playing for pride and the importance of getting to a bowl game and even how he would have fared practicing with his team earlier this season.
Here are the highlights from Pruitt's annual talk with the club:


ON BEING AT TENNESSEE
“Since I’ve been here, I can feel the passion of Tennessee football. Somebody kind of growing up on the other side of the (Tennessee-Alabama) rivalry, it hasn’t taken me long to embrace the fanbase here, the tradition here, everything that Tennessee football stands for. I can tell you this, the men in our staff, we take a lot of pride in trying to restore the traditions to the way that it’s supposed to be. We know how it’s supposed to be here. And we’re not there yet. I think we’re headed in the right direction. We’re not going nearly as fast as I want to go, probably not nearly as fast as you want us to go. But I promise you we share the same disappointments and we’re going to work as hard as we can to get where it’s supposed to be.”

ON REPRESENTING TENNESSEE FOOTBALL
“I think our guys are starting to understand who we represent. I tell them all the time it’s our job — we’re just a small speck in the history of Tennessee football; they’ve been playing football a long time before we got here and they’ll be playing a long time after we’re gone — to kind of restore the order of where we’re supposed to be in the Southeastern Conference. I know this game this week (at Vanderbilt) is important to a lot of people in this state. I’m going to make sure as we go through this week that our kids truly understand the importance of what this rivalry means to everybody associated with Tennessee football.”

ON HIS TEAM’S PRACTICE HABITS
“If you came to watch our practice every day, you would see that our guys do know how to practice. When we first got here, we didn’t know how to practice. I probably could’ve gone out there without head gear and shoulder pads on and survived. Now I try to get out of the way a little bit. But we’re making strides when it comes to that. It hasn’t showed every Saturday, but I think if we just stay the course and continue to work, believe in what we’re trying to get done, our guys will continue to work, we’ll see that.”

ON HIS TEAM’S YOUTH, FINISHING THIS SEASON
"We need to do a really good job in recruiting. I think right now I think we’re playing five seniors on our football team, so we have a lot of guys coming back. So you take what we have coming back for next year, and you add 25 guys with that, we’ll be kind of heading in the right direction. But we have to finish this season off the right way. I think it’s important we have a good week of practice, preparation getting ready for Vanderbilt.”


ON PLAYING FOR PRIDE THIS SEASON
“I told the staff this morning I’m kind of in no man’s land when it comes to this. Because this is probably only the second time in my career where, headed into the last game of the season, we’re not playing for playoff implications or league championship or something like that. Just kind of talking about it, really since the Georgia game we’ve been playing for pride. And that might be the most important thing that is out there. We have to get our guys to play at a high level this week and hopefully we’ll play the way Tennessee is supposed to play.”

ON THE IMPORTANCE OF GETTING TO A BOWL GAME
“Football is something, I look at it like this, the simplest way to put it is I have a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old, ok? We have every ball you can possibly have in our house. Basketballs, golf balls, footballs, baseballs. We do it all. They can shoot a basketball. They like to dribble a basketball. We’ll throw and catch footballs. We’ll hit a golf ball. But we don’t get down and do form tackling. We don’t back pedal. We don’t scoop block and go to the next level. There are so many things to learn about being a football player, about position specifics, and it takes time. I think football is probably the most developmental game there is out there. You can go to the park anywhere across America and watch 9- and 10-year-olds play. You can see guys that can hit a baseball or throw a baseball right now. But if you go to a Little League park, you can pick out the guys that can run the ball, that are really skilled … but there are so many positions that you can play in football and develop as you get older. So I think the more we practice, and the way we practice, we take a lot of reps in practice. We actually probably play a game on Monday, play a game on Tuesday, we play a game on Wednesday and play a game on Thursday. And that’s probably everyone in our program. So we have to be conscious of how many yards our guys run so we don’t wear them out. That’s always been (that way) wherever I have coached. But I think our guys will continued to develop and learn how to play.”

ON HOW TENNESSEE’S FACILITIES STACK UP AGAINST THE COMPETITION
“When it comes to recruiting, we’re not behind. By no means. I think for a long time, everyone was trying to catchup to Tennessee. Being at the other schools, I had never (seen Tennessee’s facilities). I had stayed at the airport, rode down Alcoa Highway, turned on Neyland (Drive), turned by Thompson-Boling (Arena), went do that road, that visitor road (to the visiting tunnel at Neyland Stadium). So I that’s all I ever knew. But when you’re on the outside, and you recruit against Tennessee, all you heard about was the facilities … I think everyone is still trying to play catchup. I think we’re in a good spot there.”

ON THE HEALTH OF QB JARRETT GUARANTANO AND WR MARQUEZ CALLAWAY
"Callaway and Guarantano, they’ll be fine. They’re both tough guys.”

ON TARGETING CALLS
“I will say this about targeting: I completely support the rule. Completely support it. This is a fantastic game that has made a huge difference in my life and tons of peoples’ lives. I’m not sure what else we could do besides coach football. And the rule is there to protect the game and I get it. I think now, with that, we’ve had three players ejected for targeting. Going into this year, since the targeting rule was put into place, I don’t know how long that’s been, five or six years, I’ve had two. And both of them, they were playing the ball and actually ran into a defender and they hit head-to-head. It was not a shot (to the head). We pride ourselves in coaching the game the right way. I don’t want to lose a player to targeting. That means I’ve done a bad job preparing him to play and tackle the proper way. One of the biggest things is the kids who got kicked out of the game or Missouri on Saturday, for (the hit on) Marquez Callaway. The guys is covering a punt running, I don’t know, 20 miles an hour down the field. And right before contact, Marquez kind of makes a move, but Marquez lowers his helmet about this high. Well, the guy’s target was going to be about belt high, but because of Marquez lowered his helmet, they hit head-to-head. The kid gets ejected from the game. The same thing happened to Daniel Bituli at Auburn. So we have two guys that have a guy thudded up, he’s going to come hit the guy probably about chest high. The guy sees him, he lowers his head. So it’s definitely something we need because we need to protect our game, protect our players and the people getting hit and doing the hitting. It definitely needs to be there. I think somewhere along the way we have to figure out some way that we say, ‘Hey, this is how we need to coach it. This is what it’s going to be moving forward.’ There’s a difference to me in hitting somebody that’s not looking and you take a shot at somebody’s head. That, to me, is what the targeting rule is there for. It’s another thing when a guy is running a football and he actually lowers his head and you have head-to-head (contact). I don’t know the answer. But I would like to get it so we could do a better job preparing for it.”

ON HIM AND HIS FAMILY BEING AT TENNESSEE

“I just want y’all to know that me, my family, our coaches, we couldn't be more excited about who we represent and about living in the city of Knoxville. The city, the people, the fans have been fantastic for us, to us. I think if you get to know the men on our staff, you’ll see that most of us fit right in well with East Tennessee. We’re happy to be here. We want to be here for as long as y’all will have us. I can tell you this, no one wants this football program to be back where it’s supposed to be than the men in that program. So we’re going to do everything in our power to help all of of get what we want.”
 
#4
#4
Highlights from Pruitt's talk at Knoxville Quarterback Club

First-year Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt held court for nearly 25 minutes at the meeting of the Knoxville Quarterback Club on Monday at Calhoun's on the River, talking everything from facilities to injuries, playing for pride and the importance of getting to a bowl game and even how he would have fared practicing with his team earlier this season.
Here are the highlights from Pruitt's annual talk with the club:


ON BEING AT TENNESSEE
“Since I’ve been here, I can feel the passion of Tennessee football. Somebody kind of growing up on the other side of the (Tennessee-Alabama) rivalry, it hasn’t taken me long to embrace the fanbase here, the tradition here, everything that Tennessee football stands for. I can tell you this, the men in our staff, we take a lot of pride in trying to restore the traditions to the way that it’s supposed to be. We know how it’s supposed to be here. And we’re not there yet. I think we’re headed in the right direction. We’re not going nearly as fast as I want to go, probably not nearly as fast as you want us to go. But I promise you we share the same disappointments and we’re going to work as hard as we can to get where it’s supposed to be.”

ON REPRESENTING TENNESSEE FOOTBALL
“I think our guys are starting to understand who we represent. I tell them all the time it’s our job — we’re just a small speck in the history of Tennessee football; they’ve been playing football a long time before we got here and they’ll be playing a long time after we’re gone — to kind of restore the order of where we’re supposed to be in the Southeastern Conference. I know this game this week (at Vanderbilt) is important to a lot of people in this state. I’m going to make sure as we go through this week that our kids truly understand the importance of what this rivalry means to everybody associated with Tennessee football.”

ON HIS TEAM’S PRACTICE HABITS
“If you came to watch our practice every day, you would see that our guys do know how to practice. When we first got here, we didn’t know how to practice. I probably could’ve gone out there without head gear and shoulder pads on and survived. Now I try to get out of the way a little bit. But we’re making strides when it comes to that. It hasn’t showed every Saturday, but I think if we just stay the course and continue to work, believe in what we’re trying to get done, our guys will continue to work, we’ll see that.”

ON HIS TEAM’S YOUTH, FINISHING THIS SEASON
"We need to do a really good job in recruiting. I think right now I think we’re playing five seniors on our football team, so we have a lot of guys coming back. So you take what we have coming back for next year, and you add 25 guys with that, we’ll be kind of heading in the right direction. But we have to finish this season off the right way. I think it’s important we have a good week of practice, preparation getting ready for Vanderbilt.”


ON PLAYING FOR PRIDE THIS SEASON
“I told the staff this morning I’m kind of in no man’s land when it comes to this. Because this is probably only the second time in my career where, headed into the last game of the season, we’re not playing for playoff implications or league championship or something like that. Just kind of talking about it, really since the Georgia game we’ve been playing for pride. And that might be the most important thing that is out there. We have to get our guys to play at a high level this week and hopefully we’ll play the way Tennessee is supposed to play.”

ON THE IMPORTANCE OF GETTING TO A BOWL GAME
“Football is something, I look at it like this, the simplest way to put it is I have a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old, ok? We have every ball you can possibly have in our house. Basketballs, golf balls, footballs, baseballs. We do it all. They can shoot a basketball. They like to dribble a basketball. We’ll throw and catch footballs. We’ll hit a golf ball. But we don’t get down and do form tackling. We don’t back pedal. We don’t scoop block and go to the next level. There are so many things to learn about being a football player, about position specifics, and it takes time. I think football is probably the most developmental game there is out there. You can go to the park anywhere across America and watch 9- and 10-year-olds play. You can see guys that can hit a baseball or throw a baseball right now. But if you go to a Little League park, you can pick out the guys that can run the ball, that are really skilled … but there are so many positions that you can play in football and develop as you get older. So I think the more we practice, and the way we practice, we take a lot of reps in practice. We actually probably play a game on Monday, play a game on Tuesday, we play a game on Wednesday and play a game on Thursday. And that’s probably everyone in our program. So we have to be conscious of how many yards our guys run so we don’t wear them out. That’s always been (that way) wherever I have coached. But I think our guys will continued to develop and learn how to play.”

ON HOW TENNESSEE’S FACILITIES STACK UP AGAINST THE COMPETITION
“When it comes to recruiting, we’re not behind. By no means. I think for a long time, everyone was trying to catchup to Tennessee. Being at the other schools, I had never (seen Tennessee’s facilities). I had stayed at the airport, rode down Alcoa Highway, turned on Neyland (Drive), turned by Thompson-Boling (Arena), went do that road, that visitor road (to the visiting tunnel at Neyland Stadium). So I that’s all I ever knew. But when you’re on the outside, and you recruit against Tennessee, all you heard about was the facilities … I think everyone is still trying to play catchup. I think we’re in a good spot there.”

ON THE HEALTH OF QB JARRETT GUARANTANO AND WR MARQUEZ CALLAWAY
"Callaway and Guarantano, they’ll be fine. They’re both tough guys.”

ON TARGETING CALLS
“I will say this about targeting: I completely support the rule. Completely support it. This is a fantastic game that has made a huge difference in my life and tons of peoples’ lives. I’m not sure what else we could do besides coach football. And the rule is there to protect the game and I get it. I think now, with that, we’ve had three players ejected for targeting. Going into this year, since the targeting rule was put into place, I don’t know how long that’s been, five or six years, I’ve had two. And both of them, they were playing the ball and actually ran into a defender and they hit head-to-head. It was not a shot (to the head). We pride ourselves in coaching the game the right way. I don’t want to lose a player to targeting. That means I’ve done a bad job preparing him to play and tackle the proper way. One of the biggest things is the kids who got kicked out of the game or Missouri on Saturday, for (the hit on) Marquez Callaway. The guys is covering a punt running, I don’t know, 20 miles an hour down the field. And right before contact, Marquez kind of makes a move, but Marquez lowers his helmet about this high. Well, the guy’s target was going to be about belt high, but because of Marquez lowered his helmet, they hit head-to-head. The kid gets ejected from the game. The same thing happened to Daniel Bituli at Auburn. So we have two guys that have a guy thudded up, he’s going to come hit the guy probably about chest high. The guy sees him, he lowers his head. So it’s definitely something we need because we need to protect our game, protect our players and the people getting hit and doing the hitting. It definitely needs to be there. I think somewhere along the way we have to figure out some way that we say, ‘Hey, this is how we need to coach it. This is what it’s going to be moving forward.’ There’s a difference to me in hitting somebody that’s not looking and you take a shot at somebody’s head. That, to me, is what the targeting rule is there for. It’s another thing when a guy is running a football and he actually lowers his head and you have head-to-head (contact). I don’t know the answer. But I would like to get it so we could do a better job preparing for it.”

ON HIM AND HIS FAMILY BEING AT TENNESSEE

“I just want y’all to know that me, my family, our coaches, we couldn't be more excited about who we represent and about living in the city of Knoxville. The city, the people, the fans have been fantastic for us, to us. I think if you get to know the men on our staff, you’ll see that most of us fit right in well with East Tennessee. We’re happy to be here. We want to be here for as long as y’all will have us. I can tell you this, no one wants this football program to be back where it’s supposed to be than the men in that program. So we’re going to do everything in our power to help all of of get what we want.”

Yes, I honestly believe we finally have us a coach.........regardless of what happens this Saturday, we're heading back in the right direction, imo. For a variety or reasons, I think we'll see a big improvement next year in the win/loss record.
 
#7
#7
...
ON HIS TEAM’S PRACTICE HABITS
“If you came to watch our practice every day, you would see that our guys do know how to practice. When we first got here, we didn’t know how to practice. I probably could’ve gone out there without head gear and shoulder pads on and survived. Now I try to get out of the way a little bit. But we’re making strides when it comes to that. It hasn’t showed every Saturday, but I think if we just stay the course and continue to work, believe in what we’re trying to get done, our guys will continue to work, we’ll see that.”
...
That says a lot. Lack of intensity; prone to injuries; soft; etc. Changing that will be key to continued success.

GO BIG ORANGE
 
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#11
#11
This is a perfect example of why the mouth breathers on here make me sick

We have a COACH thats proven everywhere he has been has proven he knows what he is doing. AND has learned from the best HCs in the business how to be a HC
 
#15
#15
Just win coach. At the end of the day, that’s all you’ll be judged on.

This and only this. I personally don't care where he played, where he's from, if he was in the band or was a freaking balletrina. If he can coach this football team up and win enough to compete for the East, the SEC and the National Championship then I'm totally on board. At this point in time however there is zero indication from on field play and results that makes a rational person think those things are going to happen anytime soon. And when i say soon I mean within 5 years. I hope and pray I'm wrong and that by the end of his 3rd year of being a HC we are in Atlanta. However, realistically I don't think that will happen if this staff stays intact.
 
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#17
#17
This and only this. I personally don't care where he played, where he's from, if he was in the band or was a freaking balletrina. If he can coach this football team up and win enough to compete for the East, the SEC and the National Championship then I'm totally on board. At this point in time however there is zero indication from on field play and results that makes a rational person think those things are going to happen anytime soon. And when i say soon I mean within 5 years. I hope and pray I'm wrong and that by the end of his 3rd year of being a HC we are in Atlanta. However, realistically I don't think that will happen if this staff stays intact.
What are you basing this on?! He has been here less than one year inheriting a horribly prepared/coached team. If you can’t base your assessment on improvement over this year from spring ball till now then what is your criteria? Please tell me a single coach that has taken a train wreck like last year’s team and went more than .500 the next with an entirely new staff and system. I’ll hang up and listen.
 
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#18
#18
He seems like a solid guy that knows how to coach. Wins hide a multitude of faults.

Win and we can overlook so much annoying stuff tht it’s like it never happened.

Lose and every little thing will be nit picked.
 
#19
#19
What are you basing this on?! He has been here less than one year inheriting a horribly prepared/coached team. If you can’t base your assessment on improvement over this year from spring ball till now then what is your criteria? Please tell me a single coach that has taken a train wreck like last year’s team and went more than .500 the next with an entirely new staff and system. I’ll hang up and listen.
His point of view...just win....is pretty hard to argue with. It's a result oriented approach, where's the fault in that. That's what almost everyone truly wants. Everything is situational, sure, external factors, hurt feelings, bad hair days, sniffles, baby momma drama, and irritable bowel syndrome all play their part in the everyday lives of everyone.

But somehow....We never seem to hear bout them when the results speak for themselves. You dont have to explain a championship, or excuse dominance.

But Vol fans live in a state of denial where the results are always excused and explained, dressed up, and airbrushed. And we've heard them all before, in regards to this football program. People every day for 15 years have told us, tried to convince, sold us that, "We are much better than our (5-6) record indicates, You will see, because, well the excuses we most recently used seem to have all run their course."

One Year later...."Welp we still suck...if we could sort this Offensive Line out, those 5 star recruits we got coming will surely help, and we got a certified guru coach this time, so...."
 
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#20
#20
His point of view...just win....is pretty hard to argue with. It's a result oriented approach, where's the fault in that. That's what almost everyone truly wants. Everything is situational, sure, external factors, hurt feelings, bad hair days, sniffles, baby momma drama, and irritable bowel syndrome all play their part in the everyday lives of everyone.

But somehow....We never seem to hear bout them when the results speak for themselves. You dont have to explain a championship, or excuse dominance.

But Vol fans live in a state of denial where the results are always excused and explained, dressed up, and airbrushed. And we've heard them all before, in regards to this football program. People every day for 15 years have told us, tried to convince, sold us that, "We are much better than our (5-6) record indicates, You will see, because, well the excuses we most recently used seem to have all run their course."

One Year later...."Welp we still suck...if we could sort this Offensive Line out, those 5 star recruits we got coming will surely help, and we got a certified guru coach this time, so...."
I will accept your argument if you can tell me the way that any coach could have done a better job THIS year. We were extremely bad last year, can we agree on that? Having the unrealistic acceptance criteria of us being able to challenge Alabama this year are simply a pipe dream. In fact, I think some of those ideas come after smoking a pipe of some kind. Being a realist, and not a sunshine pumper nor a negavol, does not negate my opinion. It also does not mean I accept mediocrity either. I just use enough logic in my thought processes to understand that we can't magically get better in less than a year. I guess part of my mindset is that I was in school and went to every game in the early part of the 80's. Those teams did not have the best record, but they were fun to watch and I got to go to a bowl game every year.

You are correct on one fact, winning requires no explanations or excuses. But unrealistic expectations of a magical improvement of the team is no more defend-able than an overly optimistic one.
 
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#21
#21
This and only this. I personally don't care where he played, where he's from, if he was in the band or was a freaking balletrina. If he can coach this football team up and win enough to compete for the East, the SEC and the National Championship then I'm totally on board. At this point in time however there is zero indication from on field play and results that makes a rational person think those things are going to happen anytime soon. And when i say soon I mean within 5 years. I hope and pray I'm wrong and that by the end of his 3rd year of being a HC we are in Atlanta. However, realistically I don't think that will happen if this staff stays intact.

Overreaction much?

Not one thing on that field has said they cant get it done either. Considering the 2 options, and we all have been frustrated and it is mounting because of the last 10yrs, there isnt a rational person that hasn't seen some positive signs out of this staff and players that things can get better.

We suck on the lines. 12 of our 20 commitments are lineman. We need to be bigger, Pruitt has brought in one of the top strength coaches in America.. a guy who voluntarily resigned from a cush NFL gig mind you. 2 starting frosh corners are rated as 2 of the top 5 frosh corners in America.

You can choose to dwell on the negative or you can choose to acknowledge the negative and the positive and find a balance of thought and reasoning. Everyone said 5-7 to 6-6 this year, and here we are.
 
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#22
#22
His point of view...just win....is pretty hard to argue with. It's a result oriented approach, where's the fault in that. That's what almost everyone truly wants. Everything is situational, sure, external factors, hurt feelings, bad hair days, sniffles, baby momma drama, and irritable bowel syndrome all play their part in the everyday lives of everyone.

But somehow....We never seem to hear bout them when the results speak for themselves. You dont have to explain a championship, or excuse dominance.

But Vol fans live in a state of denial where the results are always excused and explained, dressed up, and airbrushed. And we've heard them all before, in regards to this football program. People every day for 15 years have told us, tried to convince, sold us that, "We are much better than our (5-6) record indicates, You will see, because, well the excuses we most recently used seem to have all run their course."

One Year later...."Welp we still suck...if we could sort this Offensive Line out, those 5 star recruits we got coming will surely help, and we got a certified guru coach this time, so...."

The previous coach was fired. That means he didnt do his job right. Hence, the program isn't in a good state. Hence, there is a hole for the new coach to dig out of.

In the end, results are all that matters. That we agree on. But we are at the very beginning. So what is the basis to get your panties in a wad now? Pruitt will get his mandatory 3-4yr, probably 4, opportunity. Something is going to happen. Hopefully what happens is good for TN. If it's not then at that time you all can whine and moan. There's no reasons to do it prematurely though.
 
#23
#23
What are you basing this on?! He has been here less than one year inheriting a horribly prepared/coached team. If you can’t base your assessment on improvement over this year from spring ball till now then what is your criteria? Please tell me a single coach that has taken a train wreck like last year’s team and went more than .500 the next with an entirely new staff and system. I’ll hang up and listen.


Thanks for hanging up..

Every team in Divison 1 football gets better as the year goes on barring injury or illness to key players. The fact that this team is better (how much better is debatable) is no different than pretty much all teams.

Real improvement will result in wins. Real progress will result in better offensive and defensive stats at a rate better than average.

So while we can debate how much this team has improved one thi g we cant debate is a 50-17 beatdown by a middle of the pack SEC team.
 
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#24
#24
Thanks for hanging up..

Every team in Divison 1 football gets better as the year goes on barring injury or illness to key players. The fact that this team is better (how much better is debatable) is no different than pretty much all teams.

Real improvement will result in wins. Real progress will result in better offensive and defensive stats at a rate better than average.

So while we can debate how much this team has improved one thi g we cant debate is a 50-17 beatdown by a middle of the pack SEC team.
Fine. If you are that disgusted, why bother worrying. If you cannot handle the reality of situation, which does not fit your narrative, life will continue to fall short of your expectations. We did not do well against Mizzou, that is correct. Of course the loss of the leading receiver and starting QB had nothing to do with it. Also the relatively disastrous perormance of the backup QB also had no bearing. The defense played well; until, just like last year, the wore out from being on the field WAAAY to much. Let's scrap the entire coaching staff again and find the one magical mystery staff that will give the instant gratification crowd what they need.
 
#25
#25
truth ain't pretty...
“When we first got here, we didn’t know how to practice. I probably could’ve gone out there without head gear and shoulder pads on and survived. "
That should speak volume to the ones who think this was going to be a 1 year turnaround
 

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