Who do we think we are?

[zjcvols]

Sounds like you've got quite the Beard fetish going there, bud. You got any other examples or are you going to continue to drag that one out of your ass?

Just pointing out to the OP what Barnes is doing isn’t sort of miraculous, unbelievable rebuild job. He’s doing very well but plenty of coaches that run what we believe to be clean programs are doing just as well or even better.

 

[volfannbama]

I am confused, did we make it to the sweet sixteen of the NCAA tournament or the NIT? From these threads, I am not sure. I thought getting to a sweet sixteen was something that most college teams was proud of. Has everyone forgotten that this is only the 7th sweet sixteen in school history. We only have one elite eight and nothing beyond that. Quit acting like we make it to the final four every year and this year was a letdown. Grow up!

Werent we a -
Preseason top ten?
Ranked number 1 over a month?
2 seed, 5th team into the tourney?

Yet we should be happy being the 49 team to exit a tourney....nice
Program history has zero impact on the performance of this team.

I think had we won the regular season or sec tourney, this would have a much more positive view from more people..

 

[zjcvols]

Werent we a -
Preseason top ten?
Ranked number 1 over a month?
2 seed, 5th team into the tourney?

Yet we should be happy being the 49 team to exit a tourney....nice
Program history has zero impact on the performance of this team.

I think had we won the regular season or sec tourney, this would have a much more positive view from more people..

Yup. I’d be singing a different tune for sure

 

[cncchris33]

Just another excuse.
As much as I loved watching this team this season, the fact still remains that they never put together 2 complete halves of basketball. We waited and waited for that perfect game and it never came.
It has nothing to do with being a football school or the tradition of our sport.
Had we played our offense in the first half of this game (4 assists shows we didn't) and made just a couple more FTs we wouldn't have been in overtime and the game wouldn't have been decided by the refs.
I still love these guys, but they lost because they didn't play THEIR game for 40 minutes. And that's the story of their season.

It certainly has been the story since the Arkansas game.

 

[BigOrangeMojo]

Just a little perspective....

Two years ago, if I told you that we'd win 31 games this season and be #1 for a few weeks, everyone would be ecstatic

Two years ago, I thought we would be replacing Rick Barnes this offseason with Will Wade.....

 

[JVol76]

Just pointing out to the OP what Barnes is doing isn’t sort of miraculous, unbelievable rebuild job. He’s doing very well but plenty of coaches that run what we believe to be clean programs are doing just as well or even better.

I apologize for sounding like an ass myself

 

[VolGee4]

Chris Beard took over a bad program and has them in the EE for the second year in a row and he runs a clean program we believe.

As Gary Parrish says, I will never tell you any coach is clean. He has an idea, but you never know.

 

[Lizzard28]

Tennessee is lucky to have Barnes. He has Tennessee going in the right direction. It was the best hire we could have possibly made at that time. As great as this season was Tennessee did under achieve, even the players were saying that post game. For every Chris Beard there are 5 Avery Johnson type middling coaches which is what Tennessee usually gets. Right now it looks like the worst case scenario is that Barnes never reaches a final 4 here, but lays a foundation that makes this job appealing to proven high quality coaches. Next hire will not be taking a chance on someone.

 

[cncchris33]

Werent we a -
Preseason top ten?
Ranked number 1 over a month?
2 seed, 5th team into the tourney?

Yet we should be happy being the 49 team to exit a tourney....nice
Program history has zero impact on the performance of this team.

I think had we won the regular season or sec tourney, this would have a much more positive view from more people..

I doubt many, if any, of those complaining would tone it down if we had won the SEC regular season. Maybe if we won the SECT only because it had been 40 years since it happened. But we live in a "what have you done for me lately" society. The complainers were not going to be satisfied with anything short of a Final Four because they had convinced themselves that was the destiny of this team, and failing to meet that goal is the last thing etched in their minds. An SEC regular season or tournament win wouldn't remove that sting, and they'd still complain.

 

[Pride85]

Give me 2 nattys in 3 years and I won't care one bit what happens the next year

You honestly missed the whole point. Also, do you honestly think the outrage would have been less THIS year if we had the same results as 'Nova? We would see the same miserable group make the same miserable comments. The miserable minority can't deal with the small amount of success this team has had in the last two years. How insane do you think they would be under that circumstance?

 

[Pride85]

Werent we a -
Preseason top ten?
Ranked number 1 over a month?
2 seed, 5th team into the tourney?

Yet we should be happy being the 49 team to exit a tourney....nice
Program history has zero impact on the performance of this team.

I think had we won the regular season or sec tourney, this would have a much more positive view from more people..

Again, your complete disconnect from reality boggles my mind. Your are among that less than elite group I reference so often. If you can't enjoy a good team with a very good result, why bother following them. As I stated in another post, by your criteria, if you are not the CEO and chairman of the board of of the company for which you currently work, you are a failure in life.

 

[zjcvols]

I apologize for sounding like an ass myself

It’s cool, we are all testy right now

 

[Pride85]

anyone who doesn't see this year as a disappointment is blind

Being disappointed with the outcome and seeing the entire year as a disappointment are two very different things. A functioning brain would make that very evident.

 

[Sudden Impact]

Matt Painter and Tony Bennett both look to run a clean program and they were able to make the Elite Eight this year

Last year Tony Bennett first coach/team as a #1 seed -- FAILED to Reach 2nd Rd.
How many times has VA been to the FF, E8 S16. 21 appearances

FF 1981, 1984
E8 1981, 1983, 1984, 1989, 1995, 2016, 2019
S16 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1989, 1993, 1995, 2014, 2016, 2019

Takes time to establish a base and foundation.

Duke almost out this year and some losses several losses early rounds recently.

We will get there but the key is consistency.

CRB building base and will turn this around...

Takes time which a lot of fans want instant gratification.....

 

[Pride85]

I do want to apologize for my irritation on these posts to those who actually think about what they post before hitting enter. I get very tired of seeing the same mindless drivel by the same group in every thread for every team at UT.

 

[foxxvol]

I am so sick and tired of most of this fan base, you know the ones I'm talking to. I don't think that any player on this team ever promised you a banner to hang in TBA. Sure, some of them might have mentioned it as a motivational tool or a distant goal, but if you don't set unrealistic goals, you are underacheiving from the get-go. This team played against a stacked deck for the last two years and held their own.

No outright SEC banners. No SECT banners. No NCAAT regional championship banners. Don't ya'll realize what an honest coach is up against in today's world of NCAA Basketball. Do you think that only the addidas schools are the only ones that have been buying their players for years. What about Nike and Underarmor. They just didn't get caught red handed on a wire tap. They have been at this too long to pull an amateur stunt like discussing payments to players, their families or their handlers over a telephone. The NCAA, when they finally do address what has been common knowledge for nearly two years, will probably just slap a few wrists and hope and pray that the other companies and programs cover their tracks better. The NCAA knows who it's cash cows are in basketball. They know who the general public wants to watch on tv at tourney time.

An honest coach can only do so much with the right group of dedicated players, but in the end, it still boils down to the programs that buy the best talent year in and year out. Barnes is trying to change that by recruiting the 4 and 5 stars that have the character, heart, and dedication to come together for a common team goal. Sadly, in this world we live in now, those types are few and far between. Who in the hell are we to determine a team's goals and then judge it based on our uneducated beliefs of whether they acheived it or not.

I would much rather not have a new banner hanging from the rafters in TBA then have one dripping of snake oil.

Amen,

GREAT POST

 

[TMHoosierVol]

anyone who doesn't see this year as a disappointment is blind

I'm glad to see that I made some progress with this post. When I started reading all the posts after last nights game this morning, the general concensus was that this was the most underacheiving team in UT history. Now it's being downgraded to a disappointment, which is what it was, nothing more.

 

[CladInOrange]

Matt Painter and Tony Bennett both look to run a clean program and they were able to make the Elite Eight this year

Comments like this are nonsense. Literally a half foot difference in Lamonte’s jump you could say Rick Barnes is in the elite eight this year.

 

[The Crimson Cried]

"They are who we thought they were."

 

[OnlyGodForgives]

Look. The fan police are here

The team underperformed and underdelivered on its preseason hype. No biggie, happens all the time. After halfway through the season they were as painful to watch (except the Kentucky wins) as any other UT sports team. They steadfastly refused to put out for forty minutes each game, and the opponents eventually realized that they would have an opportunity to pounce at some point. So it goes. No need to microanalyze fan reaction, but when the team is this easy to summarize, people have to discuss some aspect of the Vol Experience.

 

[orangepridenation]

Even if you're annoyed by the bandwagon posters, there is no denying how disappointing a finish this was for this team. Everything was set up for them. Had a great season last year. Won a share of the conference. Returned pretty much everyone. Veteran, savior-type coach who's been around the block. Had excellent upperclassmen leadership. The personalities were magnetic. It 'felt' special. It was supposed to be special, but ultimately, it just wasn't. And yes, as a fan, that is probably the hardest pill to swallow.

Having said that, I still believe the program is in good hands, and the sun will rise again tomorrow. UT missed a really good opportunity with this group, and it's okay to point that out. It's also okay to be frustrated by it. But there will be other opportunities down the road, especially if Barnes can keep recruiting the way he is.

 

[volfannbama]

Again, your complete disconnect from reality boggles my mind. Your are among that less than elite group I reference so often. If you can't enjoy a good team with a very good result, why bother following them. As I stated in another post, by your criteria, if you are not the CEO and chairman of the board of of the company for which you currently work, you are a failure in life.

I've been very complimentary of this team, while acknowledging they probably underachieved and fell short of their own goals. (See players comments after seccg)
My main point was people view success by different standards, none are wrong, only opinions.

 

[Pride85]

I've been very complimentary of this team, while acknowledging they probably underachieved and fell short of their own goals. (See players comments after seccg)
My main point was people view success by different standards, none are wrong, only opinions.

I can agree with that assessment. I was a bit harsh with you (I know we have butted heads before) but the number of posts from "fans" on this board that will accept nothing NCs and undefeated seasons every year or else the team is a bust are annoying.

 

[NCVOL327]

Win, loose, or draw: We are the University of Tennessee Volunteers and I am proud to be an alum.

 

[Volsfaninva917]

I am confused, did we make it to the sweet sixteen of the NCAA tournament or the NIT? From these threads, I am not sure. I thought getting to a sweet sixteen was something that most college teams was proud of. Has everyone forgotten that this is only the 7th sweet sixteen in school history. We only have one elite eight and nothing beyond that. Quit acting like we make it to the final four every year and this year was a letdown. Grow up!

Why do people insist on telling other people how they should feel? Seriously, why does it upset you so bad just because people are venting their frustration? People are upset, UTs season is over in arguably the most successful men's sports team in the last 10 years. People wanted more because they to are invested in athletics, just on a different level than the student athlete. So you grow up, just because someone has a different opinion doesn't make them wrong or bad.