05_never_again
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I don't have much doubt Pruitt will recruit well and vastly improve the defense. However, it is fair to be skeptical at his ability to manage an offense and build a good offensive staff. He's never had to do that before, and breaking that skill in at a big job like Tennessee isn't easy. Ultimately, I think his success or failure as a coach here will be determined by what happens with the offense. If he is able to develop a consistent offense, whether it be primarily on the ground like at Alabama or Georgia or a more QB-centric one, I think he will be a very good coach. If we get into year 3 and we are losing games because our defense is always on the field, he'll be in trouble.
I would be disappointed but not necessarily stunned if the offense never comes around. I'll be disappointed and stunned if the defense doesn't get much better over time.
i'll buy that, at least in that it's the same thing that torpedoed Muschamp at UF. seems to have learned his lesson the 2nd time around.None, at least not yet. I would have liked to have seen us get an OC with a little more play calling experience, but Helton does have a decent enough pedigree.
I wasn't drawing a conclusion that the offensive staff is going to be bad. That remains to be seen. All I'm saying is that if Pruitt doesn't succeed here, I think it would be because of the offense because of his inexperience there.
Dooley just completely gave up during the May before his firing. I don't think he even bothered dialing a telephone after that trying to finish out his job in the proper wayYa know that Dooley recruited Justin Hunter & Da Rick. Both should have been super good players but after Hunter was injured against Florida, he played a little soft. Da Rick was the opposite and was aggressive as a player, but he could not stay out of trouble with the urine tests.
Dooley did have some recruiting success' though.
Agreed. As time goes on, I'm more worried about Fulmer meddling with Pruitt than Pruitt meddling with his assistants.i'll buy that, at least in that it's the same thing that torpedoed Muschamp at UF. seems to have learned his lesson the 2nd time around.
we won't know for a couple years one way or the other, all i can say is that i think he went out and hired guys he trusts, so i think while he has an overall philosophy he wants instilled, he'll let Friend, Helton, Johnson, etc...do their jobs. now all we have to find out if they're good at their jobs. LOL.
ugh. i'm not as worried about that as i was when his name started floating around way back when Hart announced his retirement plans. i think Fulmer, in the time he's had the job, has been pretty hands off. at least to the point of inserting himself in to the day to day of how the football program operates (practices, philosophies, personnel, schemes/systems etc...).Agreed. As time goes on, I'm more worried about Fulmer meddling with Pruitt than Pruitt meddling with his assistants.
I think that comment was made as a critique of his managerial skills, or the fact that we don't really know exactly how good his managerial skills are because he's never been a head coach before. Coaches are teachers, but a head coach, especially at a place like Tennessee, has to be much more than just a good teacher. That's only one aspect of the job. The dude we fired last year was good at only one aspect of the job too, and you see how that turned out.
I hope that guy ends up being dead wrong and his comments looks foolish in hindsight, but it is a fair comment to make at this point.
I did not mean a hands-off approach is what he needs to take. A head coach, by definition, is the "CEO" of the football team. That does not mean they are or need to be hands off; some CEOs are very hands-on. I meant that being a head coach is way more than just teaching guys technique, and a head coach cannot have a narrow perception of their job description. This is Pruitt's first go as the manager of an entire team, and it is unknown how good he'll be. That's all I'm saying.That is nonsense, the notion that a college coach must be a CEO type of manager and less hands on is a false notion. Maybe in the NFL where players are more prepared and better conditioned but not college football. Nick Saban is extremely hands on and is very abrasive as is Urban Meyer. Most successful college football coaches are extremely hands on and are great teachers. Phillip Fulmer was an outstanding o-line coach, Steve Spurrier was a great qb coach and offensive coordinator, and Jim Harbaugh is extremely hands on not to mention being very abrasive. Who are these CEO, non hands on coaches in the NCAA with great success? Butch Jones was sub par at every facet of coaching and couldn’t manage the players or staff. To suggest that CJP will be a failure because he likes to be hands on with coaching is nearly comical
I don't think there's any doubt Pruitt is more prepared than those other guys, although that's a low bar, especially when you're talking about Kiffin and Dooley.I can't imagine Pruitt being less prepared to be an SEC coach than the last three. No way.
Yeah them boys really made their mark.Ya know that Dooley recruited Justin Hunter & Da Rick. Both should have been super good players but after Hunter was injured against Florida, he played a little soft. Da Rick was the opposite and was aggressive as a player, but he could not stay out of trouble with the urine tests.
Dooley did have some recruiting success' though.
A man's got to know his limitations.It's a somewhat justifiable opinion, especially if you are a Bammer. If by "disastrous" they mean like the Dooley era, I don't thin he'll be that bad. If they mean like the Butch era, it's possible.
I don't have much doubt Pruitt will recruit well and vastly improve the defense. However, it is fair to be skeptical at his ability to manage an offense and build a good offensive staff. He's never had to do that before, and breaking that skill in at a big job like Tennessee isn't easy. Ultimately, I think his success or failure as a coach here will be determined by what happens with the offense. If he is able to develop a consistent offense, whether it be primarily on the ground like at Alabama or Georgia or a more QB-centric one, I think he will be a very good coach. If we get into year 3 and we are losing games because our defense is always on the field, he'll be in trouble.
I would be disappointed but not necessarily stunned if the offense never comes around. I'll be disappointed and stunned if the defense doesn't get much better over time.
Not quite, not to be a butch supporter but the special teams were really good and the academic side was excellent. Unfortunately the offense and especially the defense were substandard.Butch was below average at every aspect of the job except recruiting. And even within recruiting, there were big flaws.
That's fair. Breakdowns in punt and kickoff coverage were rare, Daniel was a great punter, Medley was a good kicker as long as you were 45 or closer, and we had returners that could make stuff happen in the kickoff/punt return game (Berry, Sutton, Kamara, Callaway).Not quite, not to be a butch supporter but the special teams were really good and the academic side was excellent. Unfortunately the offense and especially the defense were substandard.
Kick offs/Touch backs and Punting were great. FG kicking was abysmal imo.Not quite, not to be a butch supporter but the special teams were really good and the academic side was excellent. Unfortunately the offense and especially the defense were substandard.
Basically any non-Georgia fan had doubts about Kirby too, and precisely for the same reasons.Funny how Kirby was in Pruitt’s shoes a couple years ago and everybody said great things about him but since it’s TN they claim he’s is going to be awful. This article is probably the most arrogant thing I’ve read all offseason...Florida winning the east? Are you joking!
I did not mean a hands-off approach is what he needs to take. A head coach, by definition, is the "CEO" of the football team. That does not mean they are or need to be hands off; some CEOs are very hands-on. I meant that being a head coach is way more than just teaching guys technique, and a head coach cannot have a narrow perception of their job description. This is Pruitt's first go as the manager of an entire team, and it is unknown how good he'll be. That's all I'm saying.
Like I said I expect Pruitt to be good at managing the defensive side of the ball, because that's his background, and I expect him to be a good recruiter, because he's demonstrated ability in that area over multiple years at multiple schools. For him, the managing the offensive staff and that side of the ball is a total wild card. He's never done it before. That's why I think his success or failure as a coach will be determined there, because he's already demonstrated he's pretty good at most of the other stuff.
some still do, despite last year's run. i do think it's safe to say that as long as they recruit like they have been it'll be virtually impossible for them to be average/mediocre.Basically any non-Georgia fan had doubts about Kirby too, and precisely for the same reasons.