This took me a few days to write in my spare time at work and it was pretty fun to write and really think about. This is all complete conjecture based on my own personal opinion of who our starting roster will be and how each game will go in 2014 along with year-ending stats and storylines. Its definitely a lot to read, but hey, theres not much else going on to read about right now. I do expect a higher scoring offense and I expect to throw the ball a lot more. I also think we have way too many offensive weapons to not be scoring close to 30 a game. Whether you agree or not, thats fine. The day everyone on VN agrees on one thing is the day General Neyland comes back from the dead so I dont expect a bunch of Great job! or Perfect predictions! This is all just for fun. If I missed something or you have your own take, post it. Anyways, heres my take
Enjoy!
Week 1: To start the season off, we host the Utah State Aggies who won their bowl game against Jordan Lynch and Northern Illinois. They are confident and definitely wont be the pushover that Austin Peay was in 2013. Worley gets the start and shows a little rust since getting hurt against Alabama. AJ Johnson, Curt Maggitt and Cam Sutton make the defense look much stronger than we have seen in recent years and keep pressure on the Aggies offense the whole game. Our offense makes a few big plays here and there but for the most part the Aggies defense hangs in there. Hurd shows big potential splitting carries with Lane while North and Pearson look like they could be real stars as the season goes on. Home field advantage plays a big part in this game and the Aggies are sent home with a loss. Vols win 31-16
Week 2: Like Utah State, Arkansas State also went to a bowl game in 2013. Granted they were 7-5 and second in the weak Sun Belt conference, but again, they shouldnt be treated lightly. However, to say this isnt one of the easier opponents of the season would be a lie. Worley starts to look a little better and connects with over 8 different Vols. Hurd starts to shine even more scoring his first touchdown and comes close to a 100 yard game. The duo of Hurd and Lane really starts to look good. Vic Wharton nearly takes a kickoff to the house and the defense causes multiple sacks and 3 turnovers. Vols win 38-14
Week 3: Team 118 goes on the road for the first time in the season to Norman, Oklahoma to take on the Sooners. Oklahoma will be hungry after losing to Alabama in their bowl game (my prediction). They will look to show they are more than capable of beating SEC teams and with the home field advantage, Butch Jones and company find themselves against a tough challenge. Worley really starts stepping up as the senior leader of the team and takes over on offense. Oklahoma keeps a steady pace of moving the ball while Tennessee leans on their big play makers to keep them in the game. The running duo of Hurd and Lane are contained a bit but the Sooners are really challenged by our plethora of receivers. The Vols play a much better game than many expect and give Oklahoma fans a scare. But the Sooners pull out the win in the fourth quarter 31-21.
Week 4: BYE
Week 5: The Vols continue their road game stretch heading into Athens for a rematch of the thriller overtime loss at Neyland in 2013. Without Andy Murray, the Bulldogs will lean on Hutson Mason at quarterback. Mason showed signs of potential in the last game of the 2013 season coming back to beat rival Georgia Tech and with an offseason under Coach Mark Richt, he will be just fine in time. But to say he will be top notch by week 4 is a little much. The Vols defense really steps up in this game. Sutton gets a pick six as the defense causes 4 total turnovers. Hurd gets 120 yards rushing and 2 touchdowns while Lane adds another 80 yards rushing as well. The Georgia defense cant keep up with Tennessees fast-paced offense and the Bulldogs are upset in Athens. Vols win 28-17.
Week 6: The Florida game, in Neyland. Words cant express how badly the Vols want to win this game. The fans show their support with a sell-out crowd (I will definitely be there) and the energy throughout the stadium is incredible. Worley steps up by stepping back. As the leader, he gives his teammates the opportunity to make plays and it pays off big. Jeff Driskel gets eaten alive by the Vols defensive front and gets injured midway through the third quarter giving another quarterback a shot but the damage on the scoreboard has already been done. Lane and Hurd score 6 a piece with Worley tossing 3 more to Pearson, Pig and Croom. Even freshman kicker Aaron Medley gets in on the fun with 2 field goals. After this game, Will Muschamps seat is so hot, he gets fired. Tennessee wins 41-17
Week 7: Hosting Chattanooga is the easiest game on the schedule. They are the only FCS team the Vols play in 2014. By now, Coach Jones is 4-1 after a big win against rival Florida. The momentum is huge for Tennessee and the Mocs wont be able to stop it. Tennessee scores twice on defense. Hurd and Lane continue to do their thing in a big way, both going over 100 yards rushing. Worley plays well for the first half but gets pulled with the rest of the starters after half time for our first glimpse of Riley Ferguson. Riley plays extremely well, throwing a touchdown, 110 yards and zero picks. Much respect for UTC, but UTK is the real UT. Tennessee wins 51-10.
Week 8: Tennessee hits the road again to take on Ole Miss in Oxford. The Rebels have improved vastly over the last couple of years and Coach Jones sees the improvement first hand. Worley struggles against the pass rush of Ole Miss and getting the run game going is a slow start. The game proves to be more of a defensive game and the lowest scoring game for the Vols up to this point. This game becomes a nail biter as neither team can really get a solid upper-hand. By now, Ole Miss will be ranked coming off a big win at Texas A&M. AJ Johnson collects nearly 20 tackles and Vic Wharton runs his first kickoff for a touchdown in this game
but two missed field goals by Medley in the hostile environment come back to bite us. Ole Miss squeaks it out 27-21.
Week 9: The third Saturday in October rivalry comes with Alabama visiting the Vols in Knoxville. And what a visit it is. Without AJ McAaron playing quarterback, the Tide have turned to Blake Sims. Unfortunately, Sims gets injured early in the season and true Freshman David Cornwell has taken over for Nick Saban. Cornwell shows definite signs of growing pains, but is more than capable of running the offense with all the weapons and protection around him. The Vols defensive front causes 3 sacks, including one for a fumble recovery. On offense, Worley shows moments of brilliance with other moments of head scratching plays. Hurd and Lane have a strong outing, but the real performers on offense are Marquez North and Pig Howard. They combine for over 200 yards receiving and are a big reason Tennessee isnt blown out by 30. Utlimately, the Vols have improved but are still another year or two away from really competing with Alabama. On the back of TJ Yeldon and Tides run game, Bama gets it done. Tide wins 31-17.
Week 10: Time for South Carolina to get their rematch. Tennessee goes on the road for this one and the Gamecock fans are talking
a lot. Connor Shaw has graduated leaving Dylan Thompson as the man under center for South Carolina. Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, he hasnt really showed any signs of stardom. And without Clowney, no real defensive leader has emerged. Last year the hero for Tennessee in this game was then-freshman Marquez North. He picks up right where he left off and pairs with freshman Josh Malone to blow up South Carolinas secondary combining for 200 yards. Worley plays extremely smart with zero turnovers and Marlin Lane shows Hurd hes not too bad himself racking up 110 yards rushing with a touchdown. South Carolina really struggles against an even better Tennessee team than the one that beat them last year. Vols win 28-14.
Week 11: BYE
Week 12: With three games to go and a 6-3 record, Tennessee has already won more games than last season and are now bowl eligible. Hosting Kentucky should be a cake walk but Tennessee finds that pesky Kentucky just wont go away and the first half ends at 17-10. Whatever Coach Jones says at halftime lights a fire under the Vols as they come out guns blazing. The first play of the half is a 40 yard run by Hurd and the momentum just keeps building. Hurd and Lane both finish over 100 yards rushing with Lane scoring once. LaVon Pearson comes up big with 130 yards receiving and Jason Croom scores twice as the Vols put the Wildcats away once again. Vols win 41-20
Week 13: By now Tennessee is 7-3 and ranked 24 while Mizzou is ranked 12 with a 9-1 record their only loss coming against Texas A&M. The Tigers would be ranked higher if they didnt open the season against four easy wins. Both teams desperately need a big win over a ranked opponent. James Franklin is gone but Maty Mauk has shown he knows how to play quarterback just fine. Our perimeter defense is really tested and the Vols make several mistakes in that area. Hurd and Lane stay relatively quiet against the Tigers defense and Worley throws 2 picks. Howard and North make multiple big plays for Tennessees offense and become the reason Tennessee stays in the game. With 5 minutes to go in the game, the Vols are down by 4. As they move down the field, trying to manage the clock perfectly, they get into the RedZone. With under 2 minutes to go, and the Vols knocking on the door, Mizzou causes a turnover. Tigers win 28-24.
Week 14: Tennessee is no longer ranked after the heart-breaking loss against Mizzou, but the team is still focused on beating Vanderbilt. Although James Franklin accepted a coaching job somewhere else during the offseason , Vandy fans have talked non-stop about beating the Vols in 2013. Coach Jones wants team 118 to show everyone that the University of Tennessee Volunteers own the state of Tennessee. Tennessees offense blows up, starting with Jalen Hurd who records nearly 150 yards rushing and two scores. The Vols defense holds Vandy to under 300 total yards and AJ Johnson has a huge game collecting 18 tackles and a sack fumble. Aaron Medley helps the Vols finish the regular season strong and goes 3 for 3 in field goals. Vols win 30-17
Missouri wins the SEC East, but a 5-3 conference record is good enough for the Vols to finish second in the division. With an overall record of 8-4, Tennessee finishes the regular season ranked 24th and earns a bid to the Music City Bowl against Virginia Tech
a preview of the Bristol game opponents in 2016.
On January 1, 2015 the Vols and Hokies square off at LP Field in Nashville. There are clearly more Vol fans in the crowd but plenty of VT fans are in attendance as well. The Tennessee seniors have been waiting for this moment
finishing their career with a bowl game win would be huge. Worley and the offense come out strong scoring on their first drive in only three minutes. The Hokies offense, led by new quarterback Mark Leal, takes a little more time off the clock but comes up with a field goal on their first drive. As the game goes on, the Hokies really struggle against the no-huddle, fast-paced Volunteer offense. UT finishes the half on top 21-6 and the Hokies desperately need to make some adjustments to slow down Tennessees offense. Virginia Techs tailback JC Coleman starts opening up in the second half and scores on the Hokies first drive but Tennessee answers right back by moving the ball down the field quickly and capping off the drive with a Marlin Lane touchdown. The Hokies start to find life, but it all comes too late. Marquez North and Tennessee receivers help Worley pick apart Techs secondary while Hurd and Lane balance out the passing game with a score each and over 150 combined rushing yards. The Hokies offense becomes one dimensional and Tennessee capitalizes. AJ Johnson goes out strong with 2 sacks and Sutton gets a pick. Vols win 38-23
Final Record: 9-4 (5-3)
End of the year stats:
-Passing-
Worley: 237/337, 65% Comp, 2865 yards, 27 TDs, 10 INTs
Ferguson: 12/19, 63% Comp, 110 yards, 1 TD
-Rushing-
Lane: 142 Att, 780 yards, 11 TDs
Hurd: 164 Att, 819 yards, 9 TDs
- Receiving-
North: 62 Rec, 780 yards, 8 TDs
Pearson: 42 Rec, 560 yards, 5 TDs
Croom: 33 Rec, 412 yards, 3 TDs
Howard: 30 Rec, 335 yards, 4 TDs
Malone: 24 Rec, 219 yards, 3 TDs
Helm: 18 Rec, 162 Yards, 2 TDs
Hurd: 13 Rec, 115 yards, 2 TDs
Young: 10 Rec, 92 yards, 1 TD
Lane: 9 Rec, 87 yards
Wharton: 5 Rec, 42 yards
Downs: 3 Rec, 21 yards
-Defensive leaders-
AJ Johnson: 124 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 FF
Cam Sutton: 37 tackles, 4 INTs (1TD)
Todd Kelly Jr: 21 tackles, 1 INT
Curt Maggitt: 73 Tackles, 1 sack
Corey Vereen: 45 tackles, 4 sacks
-Kicking-
Aaron Medley: 52/52 PAT, 15/19 FG, 79%
-Return Specialists-
Punts - Devrin Young: 34 punt returns, 14 yard avg, 0 TDs
Kickoffs - Vic Wharton: 28 yard avg, 1 TD
Recruiting: By the time NSD rolls around in 2015, Tennessee will have a top 10 recruiting class, including Preston Williams who was upgraded to a 5* receiver after his senior season. Butch Jones also lands a top ranked quarterback in the class and a 5* offensive lineman.
Storylines: Butch Jones is taken much more serious as the Head Coach. Assistants and Recruiting coordinators start getting offers to leave Tennessee. People begin wondering if Marquez North will go pro after his junior season. The debate of Dobbs or Ferguson replacing Worley goes into full force. The VolNation forums blow up with the I told you so threads about CBJ. AJ Johnsons NFL draft stock becomes a big topic and the experts have him slated as a possible second or third round pick.
Final Word: After the 2014 season, Tennessee will have seen incredible improvement. With much of the SEC East rebuilding, the playing field is a little more even. The biggest moment of the year was finally beating Florida after a 10 year drought. Neyland Stadium will be at capacity more than three times this season. The team and recruits continue to buy in on Coach Jones and what hes doing at UT. The biggest concern will be the assistants and recruiting coordinators sticking around. Many of them do a very good job and it doesnt go unnoticed around the NCAA. The wide receiver group, especially once Preston Williams joins the team in 2015, is considered one of the best in the country. The Vols are considered one of the favorites in the SEC East for 2015 and many experts feel Tennessee should enter the 2015 season ranked around 17th.
GO VOLS!
