*****2020 Early Signing Day Thread Tracker (19)

[rikberry31]

Pruitt's best case scenario is either keep TaM game close or win (would be a shock), and IF go to a bowl, win that. Use time to show audition/potential of air game w/ young QB's, and hope to bring over some TE/WR's in the transfer portal. We need some difference maker burners or Juan Jennings type in WR/TE game.

We did really well in the reciever department yesterday.

 

[njvols]

Honestly, I'm elated how the day turned out! I typically check the RF multiple times a day, but I've been scared to death to look at it for the last month. Salter had been public about being solid. Other than that, I wasn't so sure considering how the season has unfolded and I haven't been checking in. I was expecting a lot more to at least hold off and wait. Willis, K. Evans, C. Brown, Merrill, Nixon, etc were very good gets. Quite frankly, I'm surprised they all put pen to paper today. More proof that Tennessee recruits itself to a large extent.

Also, I don't probably follow recruiting like many, but didn't see much about Byron Young signing from JUCO ranks as #1 DE over SC, Aub, OM, FSt. Seems like a good addition at a position of need.

 

[volroadwarrior]

Good recruiting class. Beat (or be competitive) vs the Aggies. Win a bowl game. Get extra reps and practice for the young Vols and set the stage for next year. Pruitt will be back next year, but we need to make the best of it. New QB and maturation of young players and new comers give me a glimmer of hope. We were a couple of pick 6s and QB turnovers from having a much better season.

 

[sjt18]

So that is supposed to excuse fans recklessly putting stuff out on the internet in the days leading up to signing day? Not buying it. Fans are supposed to be fanatic supporters of a team.... nothing supportive about the referenced actions....

No. It is an answer to your non-sense that fan anger has a bigger impact on a recruits choice than the lack of performance by the coach.

 

[sjt18]

Obviously the fan base has an effect on a lot of things. If fans hadn't of lost their minds when it looked like we hired Schiano...he would be our head coach...and honestly we'd be better off record wise.... but the fans...social media definitely have an effect on how things go down on Rocky Top.

I doubt very seriously UT would be better off with him. That was a pretty awful choice.

 

[LowKey]

 

[sjt18]

After the addition of Marley, this is much better than I expected. Eight 4* players out of 16 and 4 or 5 in 247's top 250 isn't bad for a coach whose seat is as hot as Pruitt's.

Another thing to notice is that the OL's are big 3*'s... who were pursued by very good programs. OL's are the hardest for the recruiting services to get right. Few truly come in ready to play. Many times lower rated guys have a much steeper improvement curve and higher unrecognized ceiling.

Regardless of what happens with Pruitt, this class so far doesn't hurt the future of the roster. The additions will either be responding to a vote of confidence in Pruitt or a new coach. Both can help in recruiting.

 

[sjt18]

Good recruiting class. Beat (or be competitive) vs the Aggies. Win a bowl game. Get extra reps and practice for the young Vols and set the stage for next year. Pruitt will be back next year, but we need to make the best of it. New QB and maturation of young players and new comers give me a glimmer of hope. We were a couple of pick 6s and QB turnovers from having a much better season.

Good post. I think JG's impact went far deeper than a couple of pick 6's though. He's limited. Pruitt made the mistake of thinking "consistently limited" was better than inconsistent but with a high ceiling.

I think UT even with Covid and all could have committed to any of the other 3, played through their growth, and won more games this year. Nothing on O was as open as it should have been because opponents recognized JG's limitations and used it to stop UT's whole O.

 

[87&91ALUM]

First, negativity towards CJP, Fulmer, and team does not help recruiting. Whether we are being trolled or just bad fans, negativity does not help. Georgia, Bama, Florida and other teams do not eat their own, at least like VOLS do. Pruitt will turn things around next two years but, negativity today will keep many of top recruits away. As long as fans keep shooting themselves in the foot, don’t whine about losing to teams with positive fan support.

 

[yourstruly23]

First, negativity towards CJP, Fulmer, and team does not help recruiting. Whether we are being trolled or just bad fans, negativity does not help. Georgia, Bama, Florida and other teams do not eat their own, at least like VOLS do. Pruitt will turn things around next two years but, negativity today will keep many of top recruits away. As long as fans keep shooting themselves in the foot, don’t whine about losing to teams with positive fan support.

let UF, Bama and UGA have a decade of suck like we have and see how they act... get real

 

[TNRazor]

Also, I don't probably follow recruiting like many, but didn't see much about Byron Young signing from JUCO ranks as #1 DE over SC, Aub, OM, FSt. Seems like a good addition at a position of need.

That's the one that surprised me the most seems like a good pickup

 

[MWAVolfan]

After the addition of Marley, this is much better than I expected. Eight 4* players out of 16 and 4 or 5 in 247's top 250 isn't bad for a coach whose seat is as hot as Pruitt's.

Another thing to notice is that the OL's are big 3*'s... who were pursued by very good programs. OL's are the hardest for the recruiting services to get right. Few truly come in ready to play. Many times lower rated guys have a much steeper improvement curve and higher unrecognized ceiling.

Regardless of what happens with Pruitt, this class so far doesn't hurt the future of the roster. The additions will either be responding to a vote of confidence in Pruitt or a new coach. Both can help in recruiting.

I for one agree with this. I've seen what happens when Tennessee recruits 5* OLs. They end up trash and either not coached well or not able to play SEC football.

 

[miket4god]

It doesn't even have to be grad transfers, it will be an open portal to greatness for 2021.

Maybe

 

[OffTackleVol]

Good post. I think JG's impact went far deeper than a couple of pick 6's though. He's limited. Pruitt made the mistake of thinking "consistently limited" was better than inconsistent but with a high ceiling.

I think UT even with Covid and all could have committed to any of the other 3, played through their growth, and won more games this year. Nothing on O was as open as it should have been because opponents recognized JG's limitations and used it to stop UT's whole O.

Yes to this without a doubt. If we had just decent QB play, not great, hell not even good, just decent QB play we'd easily be 6-3 instead of 3-6. Gitmo's mistakes were all catastrophic.

 

[orangemadam]

JG made his hay at showcases.

Which is basically advanced "practice". Boy, he must be a totally different player when it doesn't really count.
Fooled a lot of people for a long time.

 

[orangemadam]

Considering all the negative vibes going around, this was a decent haul.

What is discouraging is the fact we are still being outrecruited by 5 SEC teams. We can only catch up by out coaching the others. Will that every happen?

We need significantly improved recruiting and coaching to become competitive again.

 

[njvols]

Good recruiting class. Beat (or be competitive) vs the Aggies. Win a bowl game. Get extra reps and practice for the young Vols and set the stage for next year. Pruitt will be back next year, but we need to make the best of it. New QB and maturation of young players and new comers give me a glimmer of hope. We were a couple of pick 6s and QB turnovers from having a much better season.

More than a couple, but agree with what you're saying. Coaching ability is certainly JOB 1, but a close second priority is keeping existing talent on the roster and bringing in good signing class. Don't know who Aub will sign as coach, but I honestly can't look at SC and say they're in any better position now vs where they were w/ Muschamp...plus being ranked dead last in SEC recruiting w/ 9 commits, 1 4 star and 8 3 star. Let's make the most of the rest of the season, close out strong in recruiting and see what 2021 gives us...At least that's how I'm looking at it.

 

[sjt18]

Yes to this without a doubt. If we had just decent QB play, not great, hell not even good, just decent QB play we'd easily be 6-3 instead of 3-6. Gitmo's mistakes were all catastrophic.

They were but honestly he didn't make a lot of "mistakes". It is what he can't do that held the O back more than actually trying and failing to do more. I think this helps explain why Pruitt was so reluctant to give up on him. He likes "safe" offensive even at the expense of points. He believes that "mistake free" O plus good D wins. He's hanging on to a failed "economy" with that philosophy.

What hurt UT far more is JG's inability to make quick reads or anticipate throws. D's recognizing this knew they could play run first and still recover in pass coverage quickly enough to be "tight enough" to keep JG from throwing. He only threw to "open receivers". He seldom threw any receiver open. The one exception is sideline throws. That goes back to his inability to process reads fast. Sideline throws are very often used with young QB's to minimize what they have to see and read. When the only thing he had to "see" was safety help... he did better. But that's just not nearly enough. Most QB's get past that in their first few starts. Those who don't are usually passed over simply because they do not get past it. Pruitt didn't make that call.

Can you ever remember anyone saying that JG "burned a D for blitzing"? I can't. Not in over 3 years.

All of this translates into defensive schemes designed to stuff the run, confuse blocking assignments, and force short throws on long yardage. It allows D's to play relatively "soft" and still be too tight for JG to attack tight windows.

One of the things I've liked about HB is his willingness to throw into tight windows. The skill and experience aren't quite there... but he sees the opportunities.

 

[sjt18]

Considering all the negative vibes going around, this was a decent haul.

What is discouraging is the fact we are still being outrecruited by 5 SEC teams. We can only catch up by out coaching the others. Will that every happen?

We need significantly improved recruiting and coaching to become competitive again.

Those 5 teams though... are in much better position to recruit than UT for various reasons. One is Bama. Three have significant home state recruiting advantages. Then.... LSU which has good home state talent and great access to talent within 200 miles.

The good news to me is that this is a good enough class IMO that giving Pruitt another year will not totally tank the roster. DL is a concern but overall there's very good talent so far. McNeill is the only one that confuses me. The rest have 4* or pretty good offer lists.

Coaching is a major, major concern. Pruitt shot himself in the foot in several ways. The QB position. Not adapting his defensive scheme. Not cutting Chaney loose to run a pass first O with his choice of QB was pretty huge.

 

[87&91ALUM]

let UF, Bama and UGA have a decade of suck like we have and see how they act... get real

I am real. Listen to the athletes. UT isn’t going to put as much into the football team as Bama or Georgia. Our last four coaches were not Div 1 P5 successful coaches. You sure aren’t coughing up the bucks required so take a seat and please quit running off our top recruits.

 

[87&91ALUM]

I for one agree with this. I've seen what happens when Tennessee recruits 5* OLs. They end up trash and either not coached well or not able to play SEC football.

Trey Smith five star and VFL. You don’t know what you are talking about. Since Fulmer/NCAA champs the negativity has poisoned the recruiting and good coaches do not want anything to do with UT.

 

[sjt18]

First, negativity towards CJP, Fulmer, and team does not help recruiting. Whether we are being trolled or just bad fans, negativity does not help. Georgia, Bama, Florida and other teams do not eat their own, at least like VOLS do. Pruitt will turn things around next two years but, negativity today will keep many of top recruits away. As long as fans keep shooting themselves in the foot, don’t whine about losing to teams with positive fan support.

It does not help. But it hurts a lot less than fans and programs with low expectations.

The easy answer to what we've seen so far is, "We have a fanbase with high expectations which is what you want if you're ready to compete at the highest level". There are no answers for, "Our fanbase just doesn't really care that much".

The "fan" impact is insignificant compared to negative recruiting based on coaching performance and results. A good opposing recruiter who wants to take a recruit from Pruitt will spend more time in the film room showing a recruit on the field failures than they will on a message board.

 

[sjt18]

Trey Smith five star and VFL. You don’t know what you are talking about. Since Fulmer/NCAA champs the negativity has poisoned the recruiting and good coaches do not want anything to do with UT.

Pure BS. It hasn't kept UGA, UF, Auburn, TAM, Clemson, or numerous other programs from getting good coaches or players. Having devoted fans is a two-edged sword. Coaches know that. Players know that.

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

No. It is an answer to your non-sense that fan anger has a bigger impact on a recruits choice than the lack of performance by the coach.

Quit putting words in my mouth... I did not compare and contrast the two points, just pointing out that this recruit was impacted per a a guy that speaks directly to them and he said the fan stuff was an impact. the more conservative branch of the fan base gets tired of the rhetoric that it does not have or should not have impact on recruits. Just trying to limit their responsibility for some of these loses. It is POSSIBLE IF NOT PROBABLE that a networking effect among recruits has others not pull the trigger as well.

 

[ABINGDON VOL FAN]

First, negativity towards CJP, Fulmer, and team does not help recruiting. Whether we are being trolled or just bad fans, negativity does not help. Georgia, Bama, Florida and other teams do not eat their own, at least like VOLS do. Pruitt will turn things around next two years but, negativity today will keep many of top recruits away. As long as fans keep shooting themselves in the foot, don’t whine about losing to teams with positive fan support.

Geez, talking about clueless. You win the prize today.