Give Butch Time - Great Reasons to Be Optimistic

[DiderotsGhost]

We're all passionate about UT football and that's one reason why UT is a special place. I'm tired of reading gloom and doom after every single loss, so I want to make the case why there are lots of reasons for optimism about the future, and why the coaching staff deserve some time.

It's difficult to succeed in a dysfunctional environment. I've worked in and managed dozens of teams at school and at my jobs. I've seen strong leaders with well-managed teams, and I've seen weak leaders who create a chaotic environment with little cooperation. When you're in a dysfunctional environment with poor leadership, it doesn't matter how smart, talented, or hard-working you are, you'll look dumb and incompetent. It's hard to come into a dysfunctional organization and turn it around. It takes a really strong leader, motivator, and organizational guru. The good news is that Butch has all those qualities in abundance and we're already seeing signs of a major "culture shift."

We had three years of "coaching down" under Dooley. We had three years of a team that didn't look like they cared. We had five years of utter chaos and instability at this program. It takes time to fix that.

I'm not going to say that "Year 1" isn't important; it's absolutely vital, but results don't always reflect great progress at first. Take a look at Saban in Year 1 at Bama, where he went 7-6 and lost to Louisiana-Monroe. That Bama team looked top 25 at times and like a mid-tier mid-major team at others; not that different from our Vols. Same deal with Harbaugh at Stanford. His first team went 4-8, but beat USC.

Why should we be optimistic in spite of another losing season?

1. Culture shift We might be 4-7, but our guys have played hard 90% of the time. That's a dramatic improvement from what we saw in the Dooley years, where the team seemed to quit at halftime. I saw this same "play hard" attitude from Jim Harbaugh's first Stanford team which finished 4-8. Harbaugh didn't achieve major success till Year 4, but with time, he took a cellar dweller and made them a national title contender. Even if we're still struggling on the field, the culture has definitely changed and we should be happy with that.

2. Signs of greatness. We've seen some signs of greatness this year. Coaches that turn around programs often look wildly inconsistent in the first year. We've seen games where our defense has looked brilliant (South Carolina, Vandy, and even UGA to an extent), and we've also seen games where our offense looked good (Georgia, South Carolina, 1st half vs Auburn). But we've also seen games where offense and defense have looked atrocious. That's pretty normal in a turn-around job.

3. Depth in critical areas. If you asked me what our biggest problems areas have been this season, I'd say secondary, lack of pass rush, wide receivers, and inconsistent QB play. But we're also seeing progress in many areas, with guys like Marquez North, Pig Howard, Justin Worley, and Cam Sutton. Plus, we have a great recruiting class coming in that should definitely address many of these issues. WRs may be a weakness in 2013, but we look poised for a return of "Wide Receiver U" in the next few years, and we've grabbed some guys to help on the line and in the secondary, as well. That will help a lot, and may even be enough to start seeing some significant improvement in 2014.

4. Justin Worley's Development How many times has Worley been thrown under the bus this season? And yet, he got us a win vs SC, and if not for a fumble in OT, we would've won vs UGA, as well. He's been inconsistent, but he's improved dramatically. Our younger guys may get there with time, but I think we saw a huge drop off after Worley was injured. Dobbs shows a lot of potential, but he's also making a lot of mistakes still, but that can be improved with experience and coaching. Not saying we would've beat Auburn or Mizzou w/ Worley, but I think we would've at least kept those games much closer. And I do think you have to factor in that we've been playing the back-half of this season with a 4th string QB.

5. Better than Last Year. We sucked last year, even with a good QB, and two of the most talented receivers in Vol history. We have lesser talent this year (especially on the offense), but we're a better team. It's true we'll probably finish about the same as last year, but we beat South Carolina, and this year's schedule was even more brutal than last year's. Also, while it sucks to lose to Vandy, it sucks even more to get blown out by them. The guys didn't quit this year.

It's tough to look at a 4-7 record and be happy as a UT fan. I know I'm disappointed we're not making a bowl game. And I'm certainly not saying that the coaching staff hasn't made its share of mistakes in games. But what they've been good at is player development, recruiting, leadership, and organization. What they've lacked is talent, depth, and speed on defense.

I can't pretend to say I know how the Butch Jones era will go down in the history books, but I do know the guy has done a hell of a lot to turn around a dismal situation in a short time. It may not show on paper yet, but we certainly have reasons to be optimistic for the next 2-3 years. In another 24 - 36 months, we'll have a much better idea of how this coaching staff is doing.

It takes time.

Go Butch! Go VOLS!

 

[orangefreak21]

Rednecks!
Posted via VolNation Mobile

 

[TennesseeOrange]

I like the positivity, but you're overstating the improvements. Let's just avoid 8 losses and hopefully get better in the off-season.

 

[DiderotsGhost]

I like the positivity, but you're overstating the improvements. Let's just avoid 8 losses and hopefully get better in the off-season.

Nah.

It's not that I'm "overstating the improvements." It's that I'm focused on the positive, rather than the negative. Clearly, we haven't had the best game plans at times. Play calling has been questionable at other times. But those are the things people always focus on after losses. Coaches look brilliant when things work and like idiots when they don't.

Maybe poor calls lost us the game versus Vandy, but good calls won us the game versus South Carolina. I don't honestly think that "better playcalling" or "better gameplanning" would've helped us much against Auburn, Mizzou, or Bama. 90% of the game is decided by the things that happen beforehand: bringing in talent, players being coached right, working hard in the weight room, understanding the schemes, etc. All coaches have dumb play calls and strategies here and there, but coaches that can teach and develop talent rise to the top over time. If you want living proof, see Les Miles: the king of "dumb calls". Yet, his teams are always good, if not great.

I see player development as "night and day" between Butch and Dooley. Under Dooley, players rarely seemed to improve, and even regressed over time. Under Butch, we've see freshmen like Marquez North and Cam Sutton go from hapless newbies to contributors very quickly. The most progress has been seen with Worley, who looked absolutely horrendous under Dooley. Compare that with Tyler Bray, who never seemed to improve in his three years as starting QB.

I'm not saying I know whether Butch will ultimately be successful. What I am saying is that (a) we've seen good progress this year and (b) results on the field don't always immediately show that progress. Player development is key, and from what I've seen, that has been very good under Butch in spite of the struggles.

 

[TNnative]

Being optimistic is all well and good, but the nausea that comes with a loss to Vanderbilt by any score in any sport (including, but not limited to football, basketball, women"s basketball, baseball, track, swimming, soccer, golf, rugby, backgammon, or tiddly winks) is more than modern medicine can cure.

 

[VolFootballlover]

take those glasses off! no excuse to lose at home to vandy with 2 weeks to game plan! Butch needs to grow some nuts and sit dobbs after the 2nd INT .

 

[ETNVol]

People need to be honest with themselves and admit the obvious: the last month is the worst month of football we've ever seen from a UT team. Since the upset of SC, the team has been a complete mess.

Vandy was banged up, wasn't that good to begin with, and Jones had the team nowhere near prepared to play. If we hadn't been playing a very poor opponent last night, we'd have been blown out again.

The only thing that saves Jones' job is this is his 1st year. After the Dooley mess, I doubt Jones will survive to year 3 without vast improvement next year. He needs to spend less time inventing cheesy slogans and more time trying to get his team ready to play. Last night was the worst display of UT football I've seen since the Kentucky loss.

 

[Freak]

We're all passionate about UT football and that's one reason why UT is a special place. I'm tired of reading gloom and doom after every single loss, so I want to make the case why there are lots of reasons for optimism about the future, and why the coaching staff deserve some time.

It's difficult to succeed in a dysfunctional environment. I've worked in and managed dozens of teams at school and at my jobs. I've seen strong leaders with well-managed teams, and I've seen weak leaders who create a chaotic environment with little cooperation. When you're in a dysfunctional environment with poor leadership, it doesn't matter how smart, talented, or hard-working you are, you'll look dumb and incompetent. It's hard to come into a dysfunctional organization and turn it around. It takes a really strong leader, motivator, and organizational guru. The good news is that Butch has all those qualities in abundance and we're already seeing signs of a major "culture shift."

We had three years of "coaching down" under Dooley. We had three years of a team that didn't look like they cared. We had five years of utter chaos and instability at this program. It takes time to fix that.

I'm not going to say that "Year 1" isn't important; it's absolutely vital, but results don't always reflect great progress at first. Take a look at Saban in Year 1 at Bama, where he went 7-6 and lost to Louisiana-Monroe. That Bama team looked top 25 at times and like a mid-tier mid-major team at others; not that different from our Vols. Same deal with Harbaugh at Stanford. His first team went 4-8, but beat USC.

Why should we be optimistic in spite of another losing season?

1. Culture shift We might be 4-7, but our guys have played hard 90% of the time. That's a dramatic improvement from what we saw in the Dooley years, where the team seemed to quit at halftime. I saw this same "play hard" attitude from Jim Harbaugh's first Stanford team which finished 4-8. Harbaugh didn't achieve major success till Year 4, but with time, he took a cellar dweller and made them a national title contender. Even if we're still struggling on the field, the culture has definitely changed and we should be happy with that.

2. Signs of greatness. We've seen some signs of greatness this year. Coaches that turn around programs often look wildly inconsistent in the first year. We've seen games where our defense has looked brilliant (South Carolina, Vandy, and even UGA to an extent), and we've also seen games where our offense looked good (Georgia, South Carolina, 1st half vs Auburn). But we've also seen games where offense and defense have looked atrocious. That's pretty normal in a turn-around job.

3. Depth in critical areas. If you asked me what our biggest problems areas have been this season, I'd say secondary, lack of pass rush, wide receivers, and inconsistent QB play. But we're also seeing progress in many areas, with guys like Marquez North, Pig Howard, Justin Worley, and Cam Sutton. Plus, we have a great recruiting class coming in that should definitely address many of these issues. WRs may be a weakness in 2013, but we look poised for a return of "Wide Receiver U" in the next few years, and we've grabbed some guys to help on the line and in the secondary, as well. That will help a lot, and may even be enough to start seeing some significant improvement in 2014.

4. Justin Worley's Development How many times has Worley been thrown under the bus this season? And yet, he got us a win vs SC, and if not for a fumble in OT, we would've won vs UGA, as well. He's been inconsistent, but he's improved dramatically. Our younger guys may get there with time, but I think we saw a huge drop off after Worley was injured. Dobbs shows a lot of potential, but he's also making a lot of mistakes still, but that can be improved with experience and coaching. Not saying we would've beat Auburn or Mizzou w/ Worley, but I think we would've at least kept those games much closer. And I do think you have to factor in that we've been playing the back-half of this season with a 4th string QB.

5. Better than Last Year. We sucked last year, even with a good QB, and two of the most talented receivers in Vol history. We have lesser talent this year (especially on the offense), but we're a better team. It's true we'll probably finish about the same as last year, but we beat South Carolina, and this year's schedule was even more brutal than last year's. Also, while it sucks to lose to Vandy, it sucks even more to get blown out by them. The guys didn't quit this year.

It's tough to look at a 4-7 record and be happy as a UT fan. I know I'm disappointed we're not making a bowl game. And I'm certainly not saying that the coaching staff hasn't made its share of mistakes in games. But what they've been good at is player development, recruiting, leadership, and organization. What they've lacked is talent, depth, and speed on defense.

I can't pretend to say I know how the Butch Jones era will go down in the history books, but I do know the guy has done a hell of a lot to turn around a dismal situation in a short time. It may not show on paper yet, but we certainly have reasons to be optimistic for the next 2-3 years. In another 24 - 36 months, we'll have a much better idea of how this coaching staff is doing.

It takes time.

Go Butch! Go VOLS!

Good well-written post. All are fair points. :hi:

 

[OrangeMagic]

I thought it would be impossible to come here this morning and find something to feel better about, but you have somehow managed to do it. Thanks, and great screen name....

 

[thevolwalker]

Since I am new I can't start a new thead but I wanted everyones opinion on our offense as a whole. We all know we need more talent but I want to talk about scheme.

I have seen several of you call our scheme a high school offense yet every spread team out there does the same thing and most score a bunch of points. What do you want our offense to look like and what is your definition of a high school offense? Do you really think the offense needs to be more complex? All opinions appreciated.

Bonus question: what offense do you use on NCAA 14?

 

[asoldierswife]

CBJ had to come into an environment that was like someone said--in utter chaos, and try to make something work. Ok he tried in his first year. This didn't work. So I want to believe that he's going to go back and look at what can be done to improve next year. One possible improvement is the roster of new commits.

Many have taken to "let's beat down the Dobbs kid." True this kid is a freshman. True he is inexperienced, but he's now been stung by the SEC and it's time to play like you're in the SEC. Which leads to my next question.... Who could CBJ have put in to replace Dobbs last night if he had pulled him?

Hey, I'm just a passionate girlie UT FB fan (had to say that since someone last night called me a guy...lol) and I have to give a shout-out to a baby I held in my arms and watched him grow up to stand on the orange checkerboards as a national champion...He once said..."you have to be passionate about the game. You have to play the game with all the guts and glory as if its the last game of your life. You got to play it hard! You got to give it all you got".... Well said... #27 Al Wilson, Jackson, TN!!!! If our boys can just do that, maybe next season won't be 4-8 or 5-7 but .... anything is possible!

 

[lilesrt]

Nah.

It's not that I'm "overstating the improvements." It's that I'm focused on the positive, rather than the negative. Clearly, we haven't had the best game plans at times. Play calling has been questionable at other times. But those are the things people always focus on after losses. Coaches look brilliant when things work and like idiots when they don't.

Maybe poor calls lost us the game versus Vandy, but good calls won us the game versus South Carolina. I don't honestly think that "better playcalling" or "better gameplanning" would've helped us much against Auburn, Mizzou, or Bama. 90% of the game is decided by the things that happen beforehand: bringing in talent, players being coached right, working hard in the weight room, understanding the schemes, etc. All coaches have dumb play calls and strategies here and there, but coaches that can teach and develop talent rise to the top over time. If you want living proof, see Les Miles: the king of "dumb calls". Yet, his teams are always good, if not great.

I see player development as "night and day" between Butch and Dooley. Under Dooley, players rarely seemed to improve, and even regressed over time. Under Butch, we've see freshmen like Marquez North and Cam Sutton go from hapless newbies to contributors very quickly. The most progress has been seen with Worley, who looked absolutely horrendous under Dooley. Compare that with Tyler Bray, who never seemed to improve in his three years as starting QB.

I'm not saying I know whether Butch will ultimately be successful. What I am saying is that (a) we've seen good progress this year and (b) results on the field don't always immediately show that progress. Player development is key, and from what I've seen, that has been very good under Butch in spite of the struggles.

I actually thought the officiating crew did a fine job. Tennessee had no business winning this football game, and has no business going to a bowl. I am happy for the seniors, 4 straight losing seasons. You have to know if they could do it all over again, they would have signed elsewhere. Somewhere is East Tennessee Phil Fulmer gets another chuckle. This NEVER happened on his watch.

 

[tnwayback]

I actually thought the officiating crew did a fine job. Tennessee had no business winning this football game, and has no business going to a bowl. I am happy for the seniors, 4 straight losing seasons. You have to know if they could do it all over again, they would have signed elsewhere. Somewhere is East Tennessee Phil Fulmer gets another chuckle. This NEVER happened on his watch.

His watch was what started all this sh**. whatever you are taking, it matches you perfectly.....:crazy:

 

[TNnative]

CBJ had to come into an environment that was like someone said--in utter chaos, and try to make something work. Ok he tried in his first year. This didn't work. So I want to believe that he's going to go back and look at what can be done to improve next year. One possible improvement is the roster of new commits.

Many have taken to "let's beat down the Dobbs kid." True this kid is a freshman. True he is inexperienced, but he's now been stung by the SEC and it's time to play like you're in the SEC. Which leads to my next question.... Who could CBJ have put in to replace Dobbs last night if he had pulled him?

Hey, I'm just a passionate girlie UT FB fan (had to say that since someone last night called me a guy...lol) and I have to give a shout-out to a baby I held in my arms and watched him grow up to stand on the orange checkerboards as a national champion...He once said..."you have to be passionate about the game. You have to play the game with all the guts and glory as if its the last game of your life. You got to play it hard! You got to give it all you got".... Well said... #27 Al Wilson, Jackson, TN!!!! If our boys can just do that, maybe next season won't be 4-8 or 5-7 but .... anything is possible!

Well, "Sir", Coach Jones DID walk into utter chaos. I look at the last ten years, which has been a slow suffocation of a once proud program. I could sit here and give you my view on the last ten year, but it would be fodder that some folks on here don't want to read right now.

You asked who Jones might have replaced Dobbs with last night. There was only one viable option. Worley was going to be out for the rest of this season, back by bowl game time MAYBE if we won out. Riley Ferguson, from what I have heard, is still nursing a leg injury he got in practice. In any case, they are keeping him as a red shirt this year. The only option left is Nathan Peterman, who just got cleared this week after his thumb injury against Florida. Now, with all these arm chair coaches calling for Dobbs to be benched, I wonder what the reaction would have been if Jones had gone with that option. With these folks, the coach is damned if he does, and damned if he doesn't. I will relent with those folks on one important point; it WAS Vanderbilt. And losing to those hacks is Never EVER acceptable.

Do I think Butch will get it done? Yes, I do. Right now, I am as mad as hell at him, but I still believe in him and his entire staff. But I also believe in order for that to happen, we need stability in this coaching staff. Compare the coaching roster for the last six or seven years. I believe you will find we have changed assistant coaches more than some folks have changes of underwear. Want to lose one of the best recruiting classes in the history of college football? Fire a few of the men who have busted their butts over the past year to get them here, and see how many of them bolt.

 

[wolfe]

People need to be honest with themselves and admit the obvious: the last month is the worst month of football we've ever seen from a UT team. Since the upset of SC, the team has been a complete mess.

Vandy was banged up, wasn't that good to begin with, and Jones had the team nowhere near prepared to play. If we hadn't been playing a very poor opponent last night, we'd have been blown out again.

The only thing that saves Jones' job is this is his 1st year. After the Dooley mess, I doubt Jones will survive to year 3 without vast improvement next year. He needs to spend less time inventing cheesy slogans and more time trying to get his team ready to play. Last night was the worst display of UT football I've seen since the Kentucky loss.

Jones will be gone after next year. I don't think Hart will give him 3 years. UT football is on life support.

 

[LA Vol]

I think CBJ gets 5 years, because UTAD is shell-shocked with coaching changes and too cheap to fork out the big bucks it would take to get an elite coach to come here now. The brand is now severely damaged and it will take mega-millions to bring in a fixer-- and we're still paying millions to Dooley, our last coaching debacle. Butch will stubbornly cling to his "family" of coaches and system, because they are the "best" and he won with them in lower-tier conferences. Hopefully, he can recruit well and get us back to midpack SEC.

 

[DiderotsGhost]

Vandy was banged up, wasn't that good to begin with, and Jones had the team nowhere near prepared to play. If we hadn't been playing a very poor opponent last night, we'd have been blown out again.

Long-term, we should be beating Vandy 9 out of 10 times, but you have to look at where we were last year. And last year, we went 5-7 with a team that had much more talent than this year's team.

Vanderbilt is not the door mat they were 10 and 20 years ago. Like it or not, James Franklin is a great coach. This was a very evenly matched game and this is a Vandy team that destroyed Florida, beat Georgia, and hung in there with SC and Ole Miss.

No one should be happy with 4-7, but people also need to be realistic about expectations. It's rare for a coach to turn around a trainwreck of a situation in one year. A lot of great coaches in history have had poor first years on paper, with Nick Saban and Jim Harbaugh being recent examples. Johnny Majors also struggled in Year 1.

Player development is key. We'll know more in 12 and 24 months. If we're 4-8 or 5-7 at the end of next year, that's probably a bad sign. If at the end of Year 3, we're still 6-6, that's also a bad sign. But too many great coaches have had poor W-L records in their first year. Butch's team actually looks similar in some ways on player development to some great coaches, but we need to see more.

 

[asoldierswife]

Well, "Sir", Coach Jones DID walk into utter chaos. I look at the last ten years, which has been a slow suffocation of a once proud program. I could sit here and give you my view on the last ten year, but it would be fodder that some folks on here don't want to read right now.

You asked who Jones might have replaced Dobbs with last night. There was only one viable option. Worley was going to be out for the rest of this season, back by bowl game time MAYBE if we won out. Riley Ferguson, from what I have heard, is still nursing a leg injury he got in practice. In any case, they are keeping him as a red shirt this year. The only option left is Nathan Peterman, who just got cleared this week after his thumb injury against Florida. Now, with all these arm chair coaches calling for Dobbs to be benched, I wonder what the reaction would have been if Jones had gone with that option. With these folks, the coach is damned if he does, and damned if he doesn't. I will relent with those folks on one important point; it WAS Vanderbilt. And losing to those hacks is Never EVER acceptable.

Do I think Butch will get it done? Yes, I do. Right now, I am as mad as hell at him, but I still believe in him and his entire staff. But I also believe in order for that to happen, we need stability in this coaching staff. Compare the coaching roster for the last six or seven years. I believe you will find we have changed assistant coaches more than some folks have changes of underwear. Want to lose one of the best recruiting classes in the history of college football? Fire a few of the men who have busted their butts over the past year to get them here, and see how many of them bolt.

I know this might seem trivial, but seriously, stop calling me a guy..."please".... I am a woman--a soldier's wife. I'm not a "sir" or a "bub"... I come in here and share with my injured hubby who got hurt in the Iraqi war all the VN opins and news since he's unable to do so for himself. So please..... With that said.... I agree with everything you said, that's why I asked who could have replaced Dobbs. I'm not down on this kid. I think he's got a lot of potential. He just needs some strong coaching. I believe in CBJ and I believe 2014 will prove it!:girl1::cheer:

 

[uberVol]

Didn't Butch go 4-8 his first year at Cinci? I agree...this first year is a freebie....especially considering the epic recruiting job he did. We're sitting at freaking number two in the nation.

 

[volfanjustin]

Didn't Butch go 4-8 his first year at Cinci? I agree...this first year is a freebie....especially considering the epic recruiting job he did. We're sitting at freaking number two in the nation.

No such thing as a freebie, is it reasonable to think we would beat Bama, Georgia, Auburn or Missouri? No. It is reasonable to think that UT should beat Vandy every season no matter what. It is reasonable to expect to see the team improve over the season. This team is no better and maybe even worse than they were on opening day.

 

[40Cap]

We're all passionate about UT football and that's one reason why UT is a special place. I'm tired of reading gloom and doom after every single loss, so I want to make the case why there are lots of reasons for optimism about the future, and why the coaching staff deserve some time.

It's difficult to succeed in a dysfunctional environment. I've worked in and managed dozens of teams at school and at my jobs. I've seen strong leaders with well-managed teams, and I've seen weak leaders who create a chaotic environment with little cooperation. When you're in a dysfunctional environment with poor leadership, it doesn't matter how smart, talented, or hard-working you are, you'll look dumb and incompetent. It's hard to come into a dysfunctional organization and turn it around. It takes a really strong leader, motivator, and organizational guru. The good news is that Butch has all those qualities in abundance and we're already seeing signs of a major "culture shift."

We had three years of "coaching down" under Dooley. We had three years of a team that didn't look like they cared. We had five years of utter chaos and instability at this program. It takes time to fix that.

I'm not going to say that "Year 1" isn't important; it's absolutely vital, but results don't always reflect great progress at first. Take a look at Saban in Year 1 at Bama, where he went 7-6 and lost to Louisiana-Monroe. That Bama team looked top 25 at times and like a mid-tier mid-major team at others; not that different from our Vols. Same deal with Harbaugh at Stanford. His first team went 4-8, but beat USC.

Why should we be optimistic in spite of another losing season?

1. Culture shift We might be 4-7, but our guys have played hard 90% of the time. That's a dramatic improvement from what we saw in the Dooley years, where the team seemed to quit at halftime. I saw this same "play hard" attitude from Jim Harbaugh's first Stanford team which finished 4-8. Harbaugh didn't achieve major success till Year 4, but with time, he took a cellar dweller and made them a national title contender. Even if we're still struggling on the field, the culture has definitely changed and we should be happy with that.

2. Signs of greatness. We've seen some signs of greatness this year. Coaches that turn around programs often look wildly inconsistent in the first year. We've seen games where our defense has looked brilliant (South Carolina, Vandy, and even UGA to an extent), and we've also seen games where our offense looked good (Georgia, South Carolina, 1st half vs Auburn). But we've also seen games where offense and defense have looked atrocious. That's pretty normal in a turn-around job.

3. Depth in critical areas. If you asked me what our biggest problems areas have been this season, I'd say secondary, lack of pass rush, wide receivers, and inconsistent QB play. But we're also seeing progress in many areas, with guys like Marquez North, Pig Howard, Justin Worley, and Cam Sutton. Plus, we have a great recruiting class coming in that should definitely address many of these issues. WRs may be a weakness in 2013, but we look poised for a return of "Wide Receiver U" in the next few years, and we've grabbed some guys to help on the line and in the secondary, as well. That will help a lot, and may even be enough to start seeing some significant improvement in 2014.

4. Justin Worley's Development How many times has Worley been thrown under the bus this season? And yet, he got us a win vs SC, and if not for a fumble in OT, we would've won vs UGA, as well. He's been inconsistent, but he's improved dramatically. Our younger guys may get there with time, but I think we saw a huge drop off after Worley was injured. Dobbs shows a lot of potential, but he's also making a lot of mistakes still, but that can be improved with experience and coaching. Not saying we would've beat Auburn or Mizzou w/ Worley, but I think we would've at least kept those games much closer. And I do think you have to factor in that we've been playing the back-half of this season with a 4th string QB.

5. Better than Last Year. We sucked last year, even with a good QB, and two of the most talented receivers in Vol history. We have lesser talent this year (especially on the offense), but we're a better team. It's true we'll probably finish about the same as last year, but we beat South Carolina, and this year's schedule was even more brutal than last year's. Also, while it sucks to lose to Vandy, it sucks even more to get blown out by them. The guys didn't quit this year.

It's tough to look at a 4-7 record and be happy as a UT fan. I know I'm disappointed we're not making a bowl game. And I'm certainly not saying that the coaching staff hasn't made its share of mistakes in games. But what they've been good at is player development, recruiting, leadership, and organization. What they've lacked is talent, depth, and speed on defense.

I can't pretend to say I know how the Butch Jones era will go down in the history books, but I do know the guy has done a hell of a lot to turn around a dismal situation in a short time. It may not show on paper yet, but we certainly have reasons to be optimistic for the next 2-3 years. In another 24 - 36 months, we'll have a much better idea of how this coaching staff is doing.

It takes time.

Go Butch! Go VOLS!

I'm getting dizzy from all that spinning. What culture shift are you referring to? I don't see anything different. And you gotta be more specific when you cite "signs of greatness". The only thing on this team that I would put in that category is Cam Sutton, please feel free to add more examples. And better than last year, again you gotta give some examples. Other than the SC game, this year is really no different than last. after falling apart against Missou last year, they knew their coach was fired and had nothing left against Vandy.

I'm not blaming Butch, and I support him and hope like hell he gets it worked out, and would much rather have him than the last guy, but let's all be real honest w/ ourselves, if it weren't for the good things he's done in recruiting, a lot of people would be calling for his head already. Of course that would be irrational this early on, but equally irrational is people acting like he's the savior simply because of a promising recruiting class, because he has shown NOTHING else to support that idea.

 

[Wylo]

let's hold off on how awesome our culture has become while losing 7 games this year.

 

[tm3]

if Randy Sanders (remember him?) can coach up Ric Clausen to play 2004 Auburn (one of the strongest SEC defenses that I have seen) to a tie through 3 quarters of the SECC game then it is certainly reasonable to expect Barcalounger and the rest of the Greatest Coaching Staff in America to be able, with two solid weeks of prep time, to coach up their hand picked freshman QB to a competitive level against iffing Vanderbilt.

 

[Adam2014]

Since I am new I can't start a new thead but I wanted everyones opinion on our offense as a whole. We all know we need more talent but I want to talk about scheme.

I have seen several of you call our scheme a high school offense yet every spread team out there does the same thing and most score a bunch of points. What do you want our offense to look like and what is your definition of a high school offense? Do you really think the offense needs to be more complex? All opinions appreciated.

Bonus question: what offense do you use on NCAA 14?

On NCAA 14 I use Cinci's multiple offense. This is Butch Jones's playbook I think. It is a multiple set offense and I really like it. I of course have not lost a game, so it is hard to know if the offense is any good or if I am just good at the game. I like using the tight ends in this offense to rack up passing yards and then with a mobile QB I can run the Read Option with efficiency.

 

[Sudden Impact]

I like the positivity, but you're overstating the improvements. Let's just avoid 8 losses and hopefully get better in the off-season.

Seriously if you bothered to read the OPs comments, what was overstated?

Add to the list APR, discipline, and S&C program back into place.

At this point who cares about 8 loses. Sometimes you have to break something totally to fix it.

We have only experienced 1/100th of the pain this senior class has endured. These kids were told they were great, the fans were awesome, and they had NFL potential by coaches that had no idea of how to get them there.

Look at UTK we have the best of everything, come play for us and you will make it, but once you are here you are on your own. That is the coaching we have experienced since Kiffin stepped on campus.

This is not going to change overnight or in one season. We want to hold coaches accountable that is great. Our OL 4 yrs under Jones or Fulmer or Cutcliff would have made a difference in short yardage situations. That line has been manhandled all year long.

I don't think we really know how bad of a coach Dooley was and the fact he had no clue how to put a complete team on the field. Think really really bad and take it 3 level downward.

The positive is we now have a coach that knows how to build teams, sets standards, embraces the Tennessee tradition, and is a workaholic.

However the cautionary question that we must be aware of is when he gets to the point where he states "we are there". Will it be SEC worthy without the caveats or excuses?


Give him time, look at his final product, make the decision at the appropriate time. Yes depth may have been an issue, S&C trumps it all in the SEC over the season.