closing the talent gap

[Golfprovol]

We aren’t close to UGA, OSU and TX. And honestly I doubt we ever will be. Why? The only real way we can close the talent gap with those teams is for those teams to take a massive plunge in recruiting. And does anyone see that happening?

To say never is crazy, you obviously don't remember the Mark Richt era where UGA was "close" for years but did not have the talent we did. We use to have more talent than most.
UF use to have more talent than anyone in the SEC. Bama SUCKED during the Shula "year" and following. What goes up, comes down.

 

[DaddyChad]

Where were we four years ago? Where are we now? We have closed the gap just not completely. We likely never will. If money is the most important thing then wouldn’t the teams with the most money have the most talent?

 

[orangemadam]

Our ceiling is making the CFP once every 4-5 years.

We just don't recruit well enough nor do we have the coaching staff to overcome
our recruiting woes or our NIL deficiency.

We will have to be happy with 9-10 wins every year. Can't see our roster ever matching
the Ga, OSU, Tex. et al rosters as far as talent is concerned.

 

[Orange931]

They are 6th for d1 scholarships, 7th for NFL talent

Not sure Exactly what the definition of "great" is, but they are certainly up there and don't compete with anyone for their talent . Kids born in Ohio almost all want to play for OSU.

I don’t remember them being that highly ranked. I’ve been out of the loop for a while I guess.

 

[Rocky Top T]

I don't believe we're that far off. We outscored Texas on OSU, just 4 points behind Oregon. Improve some this year and we should be back in the playoffs. I'm a believer that the glass is always full. It's just sometimes half air and half water (or whatever beverage you consume.)

Texas was driving for the tying score when Ohio State stripped the QB and returned for a touchdown. Texas played them Much Better than we did!

 

[RockyTopTexas]

What if Nico sucks… what if this is all a waste.
So two nights ago I went through the last 20 recruiting classes.
Heup can’t recruit.. and Tennessee always recruits
It’s like really bad. We always have the same convo. We need to have quality depth. We won’t be good until that is achieved

 

[Hulavol]

Our ceiling is making the CFP once every 4-5 years.

We just don't recruit well enough nor do we have the coaching staff to overcome
our recruiting woes or our NIL deficiency.

We will have to be happy with 9-10 wins every year. Can't see our roster ever matching
the Ga, OSU, Tex. et al rosters as far as talent is concerned.

This isn’t true. We did it under coach Fulmer. It takes time, and we are getting there. Especially with the new ticket tax - we will have as much money as we need.

 

[Batman1948]

When will this happen? If not during Nico's time here, then when? I am concerned that we won't have the players to get into the top 4 of the CFP.

LSU, Auburn, and Florida are all a bit down right now, so it is the time to strike. Heup has showed he can win with inferior talent, but our recruiting classes are still fringe top 10.

what say you VN?

Don't be too concerned with Nico because we have the #1 QB coming in 26 and he looks better than Nico at that stage of his career

 

[LegionnaireOfTheMiserable]

We aren’t going to get there because we don’t prioritize the portal, and we load up on 3 stars 11-12 months before signing day.

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

Our ceiling is making the CFP once every 4-5 years.

We just don't recruit well enough nor do we have the coaching staff to overcome
our recruiting woes or our NIL deficiency.

We will have to be happy with 9-10 wins every year. Can't see our roster ever matching
the Ga, OSU, Tex. et al rosters as far as talent is concerned.

Nope, we have to get our talent close enough for our good efforts to be better than their bad efforts. Impacted by dynamic portal actions. You also have to factor in bounces and officiating. Oh, forgot about timely injuries.

Like always you have to play the games. Who knows what happens if we get the OSU team that played Michigan or maybe even Texas. Different score for sure. Momentum can do strange things;both ways.

 

[CAVPUT]

When will this happen? If not during Nico's time here, then when? I am concerned that we won't have the players to get into the top 4 of the CFP.

LSU, Auburn, and Florida are all a bit down right now, so it is the time to strike. Heup has showed he can win with inferior talent, but our recruiting classes are still fringe top 10.

what say you VN?

First game was '65. We've been chasing teams like Bama and Ohio State for a long, long time. Very, very rarely would one say our talent level is their equal much less superior. Personally, I don't see it happening. It's why Heupel's offense and schemes caught my attention. Thought it might allow us to compete with the big boys with less talent. The old doin' more with less adage. Not sure if we've just been figured out or our coaching staff can't get the best out of the kids we get or our evals stink....or a combination of those things. Regardless, my answer stands. Don't think we'll see it on a regular basis.

 

[volbound1700]

We need to have a 2019 LSU kind of setup to run it all to the title (i.e. a Quarterback that plays out of their mind in big games like Hooker did against 2022 Alabama). Nico is a decent QB but not Joe Burrow or Hendon Hooker (at least not yet).

As someone stated in this thread, we don't have the talent, nor will we, to match them every year. Georgia would have to fall off. Alabama has started to fall off.

EDIT: The thing is Heupel got us back to relevant. Kind of crazy to expand just a run to a National Title at this juncture.

 

[Ernie McCracken]

BUY ALL THE PLAYMAKERS!

Hilariuos.....Sad, but true...

GBO

 

[BigOrangeTrain]

Tennessee will close the talent gap whenever it keeps up with the spending of Ohio State, Texas, Michigan, Oregon etc.

That's it. That's what it will take. Money. Lots more money.

Not just for one year, either. You'll need time to bring in pieces, acclimate them, build team chemistry, etc. So we're talking multiple years.

But that's not the worst part. The worst part is, those schools that have already pushed the limit, will just keep pushing it higher, too.

This is my point. And this is what I argue when people say well we need a top 5 class. And I ask how do you realistically get there? OSU, Bama, and other teams aren’t going away and they have proven they will spend whatever it takes. Seems we don’t have that.

 

[EastTNVol6240]

We're still under scholarship restrictions for 2 years.
Yes, NIL should level that out some, but you still need spots to recruit players.

I don't feel that our 1st string talent is that far off from the others mentioned. It's when you get to that 2nd man in the position things drop off drastically.

We will still be blaming these restructions in 2036

 

[gobravesvols16]

And yet no movement on Kelsey Pope or the O Line coach

If CJH wants to make that jump to the next tier he may have to make some tough staff decisions. Will he be willing to?

 

[driscokid]

Our talent is good enough to get us in the top 10 group of playoff seeds but OSU looks to be the big dog and there is always a big dog that has more than the rest. Used to be Alabama but now everyone can pay em..

 

[Ned Ray McWorkher]

This is my point. And this is what I argue when people say well we need a top 5 class. And I ask how do you realistically get there? OSU, Bama, and other teams aren’t going away and they have proven they will spend whatever it takes. Seems we don’t have that.

We aren't likely to win either the SEC or the playoff until we outdo in recruiting somebody that's currently at the top. Even Notre Dame is proving that they can jump up to the top, as long as they come equipped with the requisite talent.
At some point we are going to have to get very close to having equal talent to the teams perennially at the top. It's not going to be a fair fight until we do.
Whining about a receiver coach or an oline coach is a waste of time. The on field talent wins these games. Nobody is coaching up a less than corner to keep up with Jeremiah Smith. You need his ass on your team. And next year they add Chris Henry.

 

[IndianaVol]

We will still be blaming these restructions in 2036

Welcome to Volnation...HAHAHAHAAAA

 

[fossilfiction]

It could be any year. That's the wonder of modern college football. Any team and flip from year to year with the right injections of talent.

 

[wmcovol]

Ohio isn’t that great of a recruiting state. Most of their players are from out of state. They just spent WAY more than everybody else this year.

Their defense is full of 3 & 4 year starters AT OHIO STATE. They paid those guys to stay plus bought the best DB in the country, best RB in the SEC, a good center & good experienced QB. Their defense is outstanding

 

[volbound1700]

It could be any year. That's the wonder of modern college football. Any team and flip from year to year with the right injections of talent.

Next year has the vibe it could be rough but as long as we have Heupel and Co., we have a shot.

 

[Golfprovol]

Our ceiling is making the CFP once every 4-5 years.

We just don't recruit well enough nor do we have the coaching staff to overcome
our recruiting woes or our NIL deficiency.

We will have to be happy with 9-10 wins every year. Can't see our roster ever matching
the Ga, OSU, Tex. et al rosters as far as talent is concerned.

Do you not remember the late 90's? We had way more talent than OSU, UGA, Texas. We fell off. They will as well. Same thing happened to UF, USC, and Nebraska. Oregon use to suck real bad, Bama was terrible.

Teams get on hot streaks and then fall backwards. It is all circular.

 

[Golfprovol]

And yet no movement on Kelsey Pope or the O Line coach

Maybe the guy who gets paid to run a college football program knows a little more about staffing than Volnation does....

 

[Volosaurus rex]

Texas was driving for the tying score when Ohio State stripped the QB and returned for a touchdown. Texas played them Much Better than we did!

Texas also had the advantage of seeing what Ohio State did vs. Tennessee and Oregon, particularly in the first half of those games. They fundamentally decided that "we will not put our cornerbacks in a position to surrender the deep pass." Keep everything underneath and make them move the ball methodically instead of surrendering points in bunches. Most notably, Jeremiah Smith had 13 receptions for 290 yards and 4 touchdowns in the first two playoff games. Against Tejas, he had exactly one catch for 3 yards.