I think we're underestimating how down the SEC will be this year

[UTodd01]

OK. So in your post you quote Mizzou, Ole Miss, Vandy and UK as Exhibits A-D as to why the SEC will be down? Your joking, right?

I will give you Bama and UGA are big boys but have you seen the recruiting assembly line they both have? Give me a break. And the ole ball coach, well, under estimate him at your own risk.

Terrible analysis. Stick to your day job scrubbin' crappers.

How cute.

 

[fade route]

I refuse to accept that we do not have a chance to win Florida and UGA...and USC for that matter..

Not saying they are definite wins.. but those three games could easily put us into the 9-3 catagory.

Every one of those teams will be worse then they were last year.. we will be a good deal better..

We beat USC and came an inch away from beating UGA. And Florida will suck again..

So we could easily win all three, just as we could still lose them.. but we have a chance, So I am just not ready to just call it 6-6 and go on.

I just have a feeling our guys will surprise the rest of the country this year, and set the tone for next year

UGA and UF will not be worse than they were last year. How can it get any worse for UF anyway? Driskel will return and they still have a good defense. UGA is getting several key players back that were injured for the majority of last season, including Marshall and Malcolm Mitchell. Mason is at least as good as Worley. USCjr will be at least as good as they were last year. Clowney mailed it in for the most part last hear and they have plenty of talent returning from a team that's won double digit games 3 years in a row. There's no way we win 9 games this year....2015 maybe.

 

[BowlBrother85]

I am sorry, but if we are basing "the best" on actual production, clowney isn't close to the best. I mean that seriously.

Clowney had the occasional jaw dropping play. For all that talent, that's about it.

I never even saw Clowney take over a game. And I have seen several SEC defensive lineman (several at Florida alone) take over a game and be one man wrecking crews.

I don't think South Carolina misses a heck of a lot in losing Clowney. I think if you gave Spurrier the choice between having Connor Shaw back or Clowney, he'd take Shaw.

I agree in principle with all of this but would add that a DE only takes over a game if he is allowed to by an offensive staff trying to do something stupid like blocking Alex Brown with Josh Tucker and no help from a back. South Carolina will miss having such a marked man on their line this year.

 

[gunner]

I refuse to accept that we do not have a chance to win Florida and UGA...and USC for that matter..

Not saying they are definite wins.. but those three games could easily put us into the 9-3 catagory.

Every one of those teams will be worse then they were last year.. we will be a good deal better..

We beat USC and came an inch away from beating UGA. And Florida will suck again..

So we could easily win all three, just as we could still lose them.. but we have a chance, So I am just not ready to just call it 6-6 and go on.

I just have a feeling our guys will surprise the rest of the country this year, and set the tone for next year

Florida won four games last season with the talent they have on their roster, especially on defense, it's hard to be that bad again.

Georgia will go as their new starting QB goes, if he's good so are they, the same with SC. I think both teams will find adequate replacements and stay in the top 25 all season. UT will be an underdog on the road to both teams.

That makes home games against UF and Mizzou the swing games of the season.

 

[fossilfiction]

Somethings are for sure.
Beat Utah State an those who say they are tough will claim we can win 9. Lose and we stay home is what the other side will say.
Beat Oklahoma somehow and most will believe Bama goes down. Lose and some will call for CBJs job. Worst coaching they ever seen or he lost the players.
Beat Georgia and every post on this thread will brag about the victory. Few will claim it is a down year in the SEC and it doesn't prove a thing.
Beat Florida and we will be talking New Year's Day bowls. Lose and dear lord the servers will melt from threads about our QBs.
Beat Bama and most start looking for streets to name after CBJ because we are amazing. Lose bad and people question the teams effort. Lose by a close margin and some will claim a moral victory. Others will claim our coach had them.

This repeats every game.
The 7-5 prediction and 6-6 are hand in hand. Probably the only difference is a defensive stop or a big play for the win/lose to change in either direction. 7-5 looks better on paper and requires just a little orange koolaid. I will have a sip with mine and think 7-5 is very possible.

 

[GlockVol]

FWIW, Doug Matthews said on his show this morning that top 9 teams in the SEC may be stronger than they have been in a long time. Remember I didn't say it, just reporting. Flame away.

 

[volfan1231]

What about Tennessee? Sure a lot of the teams we play this year have new guys coming in but don't underestimate them.

Tennessee is replacing their entire OL & DL not to mention the uncertainty of QB play. Dobbs and Worley both showed signs of improvement during the spring game but let's be real we have a lot of uncertainty too.

Tennessee's schedule this year isnt much different than last year in terms of difficulty if anything might be a little tougher. The Vols face 8+ teams that just went to a bowl game the previous season.

Utah St and Arkansas St wont be cake walks for the Vols. Looking at both teams Utah St is certainly the better of the two teams and not a team to take for granted. Looking at preseason rankings they've got #7 Oklahoma, #12 Georgia, #22 Florida, #20 Ole Miss, #4 Alabama and #9 USC.

I think being rational 6-6 or 7-5 will be a good season for the Vols. If by some chance they did go 8-4 or better than Knoxville better name a street after Coach Jones.

 

[BowlBrother85]

FWIW, Doug Matthews said on his show this morning that top 9 teams in the SEC may be stronger than they have been in a long time. Remember I didn't say it, just reporting. Flame away.

I like Doug but unless you think that the SEC will have 5 teams finish in the top 9 and 7 in the top 23 as they did in 2012 that is just pre-season hype.

 

[livefaith]

Bama could beat us with an 8th grader at QB this year. With Kiffen tho, who knows?

 

[checkerboards09]

What about Tennessee? Sure a lot of the teams we play this year have new guys coming in but don't underestimate them.

Tennessee is replacing their entire OL & DL not to mention the uncertainty of QB play. Dobbs and Worley both showed signs of improvement during the spring game but let's be real we have a lot of uncertainty too.

Tennessee's schedule this year isnt much different than last year in terms of difficulty if anything might be a little tougher. The Vols face 8+ teams that just went to a bowl game the previous season.

Utah St and Arkansas St wont be cake walks for the Vols. Looking at both teams Utah St is certainly the better of the two teams and not a team to take for granted. Looking at preseason rankings they've got #7 Oklahoma, #12 Georgia, #22 Florida, #20 Ole Miss, #4 Alabama and #9 USC.

I think being rational 6-6 or 7-5 will be a good season for the Vols. If by some chance they did go 8-4 or better than Knoxville better name a street after Coach Jones.

6-6 or 7-5 is never a good season unless you're UK or Vandy. You can call it a step to climbing back to where we're supposed to be, but that's never a good season for UT.

 

[JohnVols]

We will be what we will be. Tennessee will be improved but I don't see us "coming into our own" until the season after. I believe we can beat anyone on any given Saturday. Also new to the forums. Go Vols

 

[Volstate]

I think our who entire season and how far we go rests solely on the shoulders of Worley or Dobbs. If either one of those guys can come in and shock the college football world with how improved they are from last year and take advantage of the weapons Butch Jones has brought in offensively we will have a very good season. If they are just average...we will be too. It doesn't matter how down the rest of the SEC is. It's going to come down to QB play in my opinion.

 

[Volador]

UK and Vandy will be our SEC wins. Mizzou is a coin flip. The rest are losses. let's go 6-6 and move on.

Well not that I disagree with you Mr. Grim Reaper, but couldn't ya soften up the blow just a little bit??...

 

[volfan1231]

6-6 or 7-5 is never a good season unless you're UK or Vandy. You can call it a step to climbing back to where we're supposed to be, but that's never a good season for UT.

6-6 or 7-5 is a better season than 5-7 or 4-8. I would love for the Vols to get back to 1,2 and 3 loss seasons but I also understand that those days are right around the corner just not this year. I think 2016 is the year if the next 2 recruiting classes go well.

I think 2016 is the year the Vols can break back into the Top 15 in rankings and be competitive in the SEC.

Right now a good season for UT will be making it to ANY Bowl Game.

 

[TNVolunteerGrad]

We will be what we will be. Tennessee will be improved but I don't see us "coming into our own" until the season after. I believe we can beat anyone on any given Saturday. Also new to the forums. Go Vols

Welcome to VolNation! :hi:

 

[UGADawg4Life]

I am sorry, but if we are basing "the best" on actual production, clowney isn't close to the best. I mean that seriously.

Clowney had the occasional jaw dropping play. For all that talent, that's about it.

I never even saw Clowney take over a game. And I have seen several SEC defensive lineman (several at Florida alone) take over a game and be one man wrecking crews.

I don't think South Carolina misses a heck of a lot in losing Clowney. I think if you gave Spurrier the choice between having Connor Shaw back or Clowney, he'd take Shaw.

Exactly. Might have been a different story season-before-last, but in '13 Clowney was a distraction.

 

[sameolvol]

We will be what we will be. Tennessee will be improved but I don't see us "coming into our own" until the season after. I believe we can beat anyone on any given Saturday. Also new to the forums. Go Vols[/QUOTE
I think a lot of folks are going to be surprised at the effectiveness of this year's O-line. If you include excellent execution within the quick reactions of the skill guys and block timing, then you'll see immediately improved results. The skill guys we've got are heads and shoulders above last year's group, and these new linemen--although less experienced---should be more on the same page, so their overall unified speed should make itself apparent from game one. Does anybody want to deny there have been "fresh new" programs that've made believers out of people. I'll believe that these guys will be better-than-touted until the season proves otherwise. Welcome to VN, JohnVols.

 

[HuntlandVolinColo]

Will our record be as bad as some think? The weakest SEC in over a decade says no.

New QB's at Alabama and UGA say no.

The loss of two great defensive lineman and a future all-pro WR at Missouri say negative sir.

James Franklin at PSU says naw, dog.

UK being well...UK - says nah.

Ole Miss never (and I mean never) living up to expectations when rightly bestowed upon them says an emphatic no.

A new QB, one tired ball coach, and the loss of maybe the best DE in SEC history at USC say nope!

Carry on, VolNation. Carry on.

But keep in mind, in any given season 30-40% of the new SEC stars will emerge from either a highly touted recruit or an unknown talent.

Here's hoping we dominate that list of new emerging studs!

 

[HuntlandVolinColo]

For Coker or whoever is bamer qb, all he has to do is handoff the ball successfully 80% of the time to Henry, Yeldon & Drake, run 10% of the time, make short passes 8% of the time and throw up a bomb 2% of the time. He must also avoid being sacked 100% of the time.

 

[vtvol98]

Will our record be as bad as some think? The weakest SEC in over a decade says no.

New QB's at Alabama and UGA say no.

The loss of two great defensive lineman and a future all-pro WR at Missouri say negative sir.

James Franklin at PSU says naw, dog.

UK being well...UK - says nah.

Ole Miss never (and I mean never) living up to expectations when rightly bestowed upon them says an emphatic no.

A new QB, one tired ball coach, and the loss of maybe the best DE in SEC History at USC say nope!

Carry on, VolNation. Carry on.

I'm sure Reggie White and Jevon Kearse would have something to say about that.

 

[ACvol3]

UK and Vandy will be our SEC wins. Mizzou is a coin flip. The rest are losses. let's go 6-6 and move on.

I don't see any reason we can't beat usce and mizzou. They lost an incredible amount of talent.

 

[allvol123]

I don't see any reason we can't beat usce and mizzou. They lost an incredible amount of talent.

Don't lump USC with Mizzou.

Spurrier has built a program, not a fly by night one season success story. They were and are not dependent on the likes of a superstar like Clowney.

 

[JohnVols]

We will be what we will be. Tennessee will be improved but I don't see us "coming into our own" until the season after. I believe we can beat anyone on any given Saturday. Also new to the forums. Go Vols[/QUOTE
I think a lot of folks are going to be surprised at the effectiveness of this year's O-line. If you include excellent execution within the quick reactions of the skill guys and block timing, then you'll see immediately improved results. The skill guys we've got are heads and shoulders above last year's group, and these new linemen--although less experienced---should be more on the same page, so their overall unified speed should make itself apparent from game one. Does anybody want to deny there have been "fresh new" programs that've made believers out of people. I'll believe that these guys will be better-than-touted until the season proves otherwise. Welcome to VN, JohnVols.

Thanks

 

[Vol logic]

[/B]

Exactly. Might have been a different story season-before-last, but in '13 Clowney was a distraction.

Guy was a distraction and ended up first in the draft? Really? The fact of the matter was lines had to adjust to compensate for him and other players benefitted which is what usually occurs. Clowney was a baller and the need of having elite players on each side of the ball will have to be filled to have a top ten team. He WILL be missed.

 

[Kook]

No mention of LSU, aTm, Aub or UF? Those are some pretty tough teams to beat on any given Saturday - especially at their house.

We only play one of those teams, and we play them at home. Your point...it is not strong.

So as far as I'm concerned, LSU, TAMU and Auburn can be as hard or easy as they would like. Additionally, UF is also allowed to be tough...down in the swamp.