Bill Connelly ESPN -- Vols ceiling 11-1; floor is 7-5

#28
#28
stolitonic said:
Honestly, I'm expecting like an 8-4 type season. I will not complain if we hit that mark as long as we are competitive in every game.

What I really want though is to beat the everlasting snot out of SC. No mercy. They have gone up there with the Alabama and Georgia blowhard fans in terms of annoyance. At least the other two have something to crow about.
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South Carolina has to live off of the Tennessee & Clemson wins forever. Other than the few Spurrier years, South Carolina has no football history. Their only claim to fame was George Rogers Heisman Trophy.
 
#29
#29
Boston Vol said:
My God they are absolutely atrocious
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Hulavol said:
This cannot be stated strongly enough. (And yes, 8-4 is fine given the challenges with depth we still have, but I hope for better). SCarolina needs to be beaten into absolute oblivion. I mean flat obliterated. I mean, make them literally question if they can continue to even have a football season.
Beat. Their. Ass.
.
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B T A. B T A . Should be the battle cry during the game and the game plan. No let up. No prisoners taken, leave their broken spirit on the field.
 
#31
#31
I love Milton. His canon arm is fun to watch but I’m not sure he has consistent touch for this offense. I’m no football coach and hope I’m wrong. I root for him to lead the offense all year and be a Heisman finalist!
 
#34
#34
I wouldn't at all be shocked with 7-4 up to 10-2. I believe we'll get the Milton we saw in the Orange Bowl but nearly all year. Think he puts up some gr8 numbers. Not anywhere near a Heisman but big none the less. Just hope we get 2 see him lower the shoulder and destroy some backers
 
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#35
#35
Vol8188 said:
Based on?
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Only possible if there are serious injurys.
Vol8188 said:
Based on?
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What 6 teams on our schedule can beat us?

UGA and Bama sure

Austin Peay? No
UVA? No
Vandy? No
UTSA? No
UConn? No
Missouri? No
Kentucky? No

Do we really think there's a chance in hell South Carolina who just lost a ton of production, is going to come into Neyland and beat us while we are out for revenge? Not a chance in hell.

Florida is in shambles.

A&M is desperate and they have no quarterback

In what world is the team you just saw beat Clemson going 6-6? 0% chance of happening. 0% chance we go 7-5.
 
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#36
#36
stolitonic said:
Honestly, I'm expecting like an 8-4 type season. I will not complain if we hit that mark as long as we are competitive in every game.

What I really want though is to beat the everlasting snot out of SC. No mercy. They have gone up there with the Alabama and Georgia blowhard fans in terms of annoyance. At least the other two have something to crow about.
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Where are the four losses and how can you rationalize picking us to lose them other than just thinking something goes terribly awry.

UGA and Bama of course can beat us straight up.

But who else can even come close to beating us on our A or even B game?
 
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#37
#37
PlanetVolunteer said:
Only possible if there are serious injurys.

What 6 teams on our schedule can beat us?

UGA and Bama sure

Austin Peay? No
UVA? No
Vandy? No
UTSA? No
UConn? No
Missouri? No
Kentucky? No

Do we really think there's a chance in hell South Carolina who just lost a ton of production, is going to come into Neyland and beat us while we are out for revenge? Not a chance in hell.

Florida is in shambles.

A&M is desperate and they have no quarterback

In what world is the team you just saw beat Clemson going 6-6? 0% chance of happening. 0% chance we go 7-5.
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Florida isn’t as bad as you’d like to think. SC has replaced a lot of production. A&M still has one of the best rosters in the sec

The Clemson game was a great performance. Just like the Bama game. But everyone has off games. Any of those teams are good enough to beat us
 
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#40
#40
LordBolton said:
8-4 is the absolute floor, barring sonething crazy (whole team has the flu and forfeits, or the like). Bama and UGA are big asks, but should be favored in every other game.
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Being favored doesn’t mean you win. We have 6 teams that could beat us
 
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#42
#42
PlanetVolunteer said:
Only possible if there are serious injurys.

What 6 teams on our schedule can beat us?

UGA and Bama sure

Austin Peay? No
UVA? No
Vandy? No
UTSA? No
UConn? No
Missouri? No
Kentucky? No

Do we really think there's a chance in hell South Carolina who just lost a ton of production, is going to come into Neyland and beat us while we are out for revenge? Not a chance in hell.

Florida is in shambles.

A&M is desperate and they have no quarterback

In what world is the team you just saw beat Clemson going 6-6? 0% chance of happening. 0%e chance we go 7-5.
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The problem is everybody is acting like Hendon Hooker is coming back. I have high hopes for Milton this season but that's all they are...hopes! Milton has yet to prove that he's ready to lead this team for 12 games. Yes he played decent against Clemson in the bowl game but that doesnt always translate to an entire season and I still have my concerns with him. And if he gets hurt we have a true freshman behind him that looks like he weighs about a buck eighty soaking wet!

Some people dont yet realize just how special Hooker was here and I'm afraid they're going to realize it in Gainesville.
 
#44
#44
Brave Volunteer said:
The problem is everybody is acting like Hendon Hooker is coming back.
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I don't think that's what everyone is acting like.

I think everyone is acting like Josh Heupel is a very, very good offensive coach who does a genius job of amending his playbook and game plans to fit his players' skill sets.

Yes, Hendon was special for us. And a big part of the reason he was special for us was Josh Heupel being his coach. Hendon's natural talent is huge. But just as big a factor is Josh's talent--as a coach.

I agree with you that Joe Milton coming on gangbusters should not be taken as a given. However, as long as Heupel is his head coach, the chances are very strong that he's gonna do just fine.

It bears repeating: from this point on, our ceiling every year is 15-0, and our regular season floor most years is gonna be somewhere around 8-4. Because with this coaching staff, we can play with anyone in the country. Our lads just gotta be up for it, focused, driven. They will certainly be developed, trained, and prepared.

Go Vols!
 
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#45
#45
PlanetVolunteer said:
Where are the four losses and how can you rationalize picking us to lose them other than just thinking something goes terribly awry.

UGA and Bama of course can beat us straight up.

But who else can even come close to beating us on our A or even B game?
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We will drop one out of Florida and A&M

Yeah, I know both were train wrecks last year. A&M has the talent. I see them (sadly) taking a leap back to decent this year.

Florida, yeah they seem like a dumpster fire right now but I wanna wait to see a game before I throw any more dirt on their name. It's still Florida. In Gainesville. Maybe the last game of the yearly rivalry. Blah blah blah

We will also drop one game we have absolutely no business losing. We will bring our "C-" game at best to a game for whatever reason. Best hope is that we have that game vs Georgia or something where we already have slim chances. That happens, we might to to 9-3 but I'm not betting on it.
 
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#46
#46
Missouri seems tricky, like they could do what South Carolina did to us this past year.

I do think we will win the 4 OOC, Vandy, and UK.

After that, we can easily win but not guaranteed: South Carolina, Florida, Texas A&M, and Missouri. I do feel like there is a great chance we drop one of those.

Then you have @ Alabama and home against Georgia. Split that, and we are looking at 10-2 again. Don't split and we look like 9-3.

9-3 seems like the most logical pick but there are several scenarios that could see us do better:

1. Joe Milton take off and we play like we did against Clemson. If we do that, 11-1 or even 12-0 is possible
2. Alabama is going to be hard pressed to replace Bryce Young but they will be out for blood against us so who knows
3. If Georgia has hard time replacing OC and Stetson Bennett
4. South Carolina becomes South Carolina again and underachieve
5. Missouri doesn't live up to hype
6. Florida continues to struggle
7. Texas A&M continues to struggle

All 7 variables are likely and if so, we could be in for a good season.
 
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#47
#47
Gators are bait,
Rattler can’t skate,
Jimbo and Saban had a blind date,
Stoops and Eli evacuate,
Bulldogs urinate,
Vanderbilt are champs of debate,
Don’t matter, Vols by Fiddy.
 
#48
#48
We're going to need some 3* and non-contributing4* (to this point) to step up a make a difference. Depth wins during the dog-days of the SEC.
 
#49
#49
stolitonic said:
Honestly, I'm expecting like an 8-4 type season. I will not complain if we hit that mark as long as we are competitive in every game.

What I really want though is to beat the everlasting snot out of SC. No mercy. They have gone up there with the Alabama and Georgia blowhard fans in terms of annoyance. At least the other two have something to crow about.
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#50
#50
BigOrangeTrain said:
Doubt their defense is better next year. You saying replacing Bennett is gonna be tough well replacing Jalen Carter and Kylee Ringinwill be even harder. I see UGA upgrading significantly at QB. The guys they have are really good. I can see UGAs defense taking a small step back.
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Jalen Carter and Kelee Ringo are about all their losing, I think one other starter maybe, and they have tons of guys that were freshmen and sophomores who cut their teeth this year and are going to be better. Kirby gets the absolute most out of the defense every year. This year they were just talented but mostly inexperienced outside of a couple of positions, next year they will be talented and experienced.

I think their offense is more likely to take a step back if anything. People poop on Bennett but he was pretty good when the bullets were flying. He kicked our arse three years in a row. I am glad he is gone. Whoever they replace will be green, and that is often a problem.
 
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