Joel Klatt brings the truth

[JGS III]

Who started at offensive line in the bowl game? Who started in Gainesville? To me it’s that simple.

I agree with that to an extent but it wasn’t just the oline that looked bad

 

[BowlBrother85]

We didn’t look that great against Clemson in reality. Their QB just isn’t very good and kept making huge mistakes.

Clemson way outgained us by 484-375. First downs were 34-20. Time of possession was 36-23.

Tennessee had 8 punts in that game!

But Clemson had 2 costly picks and other bad mistakes in the red zone.

Pffft .... Tennessee won by 17 points. That is the only reality that matters. Just like it doesn't matter that Tennessee and Florida were about even in total yards - who cares?

 

[EZE]

Pffft .... Tennessee won by 17 points. That is the only reality that matters. Just like it doesn't matter that Tennessee and Florida were about even in total yards - who cares?

We’ll always take the win. But to say that Tennessee played lights out in that game simply isn’t true.

Clemson’s offense in that game was very similar to Tennessee’s second-half offense against Florida. Moved the ball very effectively to the red zone, and then imploded.

As an aside, Clemson did the very same thing against Duke to open this season. Looked like a carbon copy of the Orange Bowl.

 

[RDU VOL#14]

I agree with that to an extent but it wasn’t just the oline that looked bad

I agree. The defense that showed up against Clemson didn’t against Florida. The effort Saturday night was substandard, the coaching was not good. It was a bad game all the way around. I don’t know if anyone has used this stat, and it’s off the top of my head, it could be wrong, but I think we’ve only won 2 times in the last 50 years in Gainesville. That doesn’t mean we’ve lost 23 of 25 bc we didn’t play every year, but that is awful.

 

[1SmokinVol]

That guy is F O S- Duped? NO we have a QB that cannot process this offense. When timing is right it's easy, when QB see's 8 in the box and checks out of a run that will be stuffed, locates the mismatch and throws a catchable ball to the Receiver-IT WORKS. Look at our first TD at Florida, SCRIPTED. After that QB has to make plays, make reads, critical in this offense. Hooker was a perennial back up QB before Hype. We have options at QB, just do not know when Hype pulls the trigger but I am sure he has good reason why not.

 

[1974Vol]

Okay, we haven't been duped. And while I have arrived at the same place as Klatt to some degree his analysis is not accurate. If Hooker, Hyatt, and Tillman were the only reason for last year, then how did we boatrace Clemson, the ACC Champ, because none of those guys played. We have two problems right now that are killing this team. The first is we are a year away on our OL being where it was last year, but this years line can be serviceable when we get Mays and Mincey back. We started to see Joe and the receivers get on track late in the game against Florida, but the penalties and poor officiating just didn't allow us to get all the way back. I know its shoulda, coulda, woulda, but what if the ref doesn't kick the ball, they don't call that lame crack back block, and we get the DB hold on the last drive? Its a different ball game. All calls that should have gone our way not only by our likes, but attested to by multiple media.

Now, where I do agree with Klatt (about the team not being what we thought) but for different reasons is this. How do you go to Gainesville against a hated SEC rival and come out as flat as this team did? Florida just physically whipped us in the first half. The Gators came for a fist fight and we brought our pillows. By the time our guys got their feet under them and fought back in the 2nd half, we were just in too big a hole to climb out especially with the aforementioned issues. Football is at its core a physical game, apparently our guys forgot that on the plane ride down. After Florida smacked 'em in the mouth, then when we got mad and played some football in the 2nd half, it was just too little too late.

We haven't been duped though, this team still has a lot of potential. They've made enough plays to show us what can be done. For reasons that go more to what's going on between their ears than their athletic ability, we haven't played well consistently. If Mays can get back and the rest of the team starts to play consistently to their abilities, we can still be a 10 win team. If we don't then 8-4 or even 7-5 is a real possibility, But if the latter occurs it won't be because we were duped. This team has the talent and coaching to be successful. The question is can they find the chemistry and motivation.

 

[BowlBrother85]

We’ll always take the win. But to say that Tennessee played lights out in that game simply isn’t true.

Clemson’s offense in that game was very similar to Tennessee’s second-half offense against Florida. Moved the ball very effectively to the red zone, and then imploded.

As an aside, Clemson did the very same thing against Duke to open this season. Looked like a carbon copy of the Orange Bowl.

I'm just saying that it means nothing to point out that Clemson had more yards. Tennessee had more yards than Florida. So what? It doesn't change anything, and it's not that unusual for a team to lose badly despite having more total yardage.

 

[Orangeslice13]

It's not Golesh's system. It's the system that Heupel has been running since he was the OC at Utah State in 2015. Golesh wasn't even with Heupel until his 2nd season at Central Florida and it's unclear how much play-calling responsibility Golesh ever actually had.

This guy doesn't really say much except that Hooker isn't as good as Milton (duh) and Hyatt and Tillman haven't been replaced by quality WR's ... and our offensive line is not as good. While all true, it ignores the fact that we have a 5 star QB waiting in the wings (Iamaleava), and a 5 star WR committed (Mike Matthews).

I don't believe that Tennessee fans thought we had elevated to the point of being a program which reloads. We lost too much to attrition during the coaching change to have the kind of depth you need to lose quality talent without skipping a beat. The real test for Heupel will come with how the offense looks with players that he has signed (in other words, Iamaleava). Just like Tennessee fans, this guy is going overboard way too soon.

I don’t like agreeing with you.
You need to go back to being stupid

 

[Sandman 423]

That's a pretty tough pill to swallow. Hope he's wrong. The fear is CJH runs a 'gimmick' offense that can light you up, but once good d-cordinators figure out a solution, you're toast. FL figured out a solution. But it's also alarming that we were so out-manned and beat up on the O & D lines.

Show me where Florida had an answer when the Offense didn't shoot itself in the foot or receive a little help from the men dressed as criminals. Even with Florida using the new clock rules to shorten the game Tn should have put up 35 or better.

 

[volgr]

I don't know if duped is the right word, but he makes a great overall point. It's one thing to have a great season, but it is another to build a top tier winning program in the SEC.

Heupel's system, when it has the right pieces like it did last year, can win big. He proved that last season. The problem is, he has to build the program to the point where it isn't rebuilding but reloading, to have long term success.

Can Heupel build a top tier SEC program? That, he still has to prove.

 

[sami]

I’m extreme BVS but it’s your regular idiotic media extremist take when Klatt says stuff like the system is figured out. We have no offensive line and not a lot at qb. It’s players and coaching recruiting failures on offense and NOT a system problem. We don’t run nearly any of the same plays and the same level of speed and game mgmt because we literally can’t due to personnel limitations. Lazy hot take clickbait by a garbage “journalist”.

This x 1000. Perfectly stated.

 

[Pride85]

The only time people whine about the "gimmick" offense is when we lose. I know this is a time of "what have you done for me in the last 5 minutes", but this is silly. We struggled at times last year. Florida did not shut down our offense, we did. We had wide open receivers running field, just did not connect either through poor pass, defensive interference, bad attempts at blocks, or actual good defensive plays by Florida. The noise definitely affected both sides of the ball and the missing personnel in key positions (center, Mike LB) put us in even worse shape. If we beat either of our remaining rivals, then it will be back to CJH is leasing us back to permanent relevance again.

 

[Vol524]

That is one man's opinion. That doesn't mean he is the most knowledgeable person in College football. If he was, he would be coaching at a major team somewhere. He and I can agree to disagree.

 

[Credo2]

This guy is full of shiite. Bubba the produce manager at Food Lion says Tennessee is not only back but will be playing for a natty in the next couple years, so there

 

[C-south]

Everyone knew our success came down to Milton. If he had truly improved we would have success. If not we would be where we are now. The O-line shouldn’t have to be perfect. The defense sucked last year.

 

[b_gann]

Once again, he didn't have a signing class in 2021. It isn't really year 3 when you take that into consideration. Most coaches are hired at least 3 weeks he was. He had no time to put a class together. Should he have worked the portal for O-linemen more aggressively? Possibly.

Which is a fair argument but we just got whipped by a coach in year two that had a horrendous first offseason

 

[b_gann]

The downward trend each year at UCF was the biggest thing that concerned me when he was hired. First year was great with Frost’s players. Regressed every year after that. I know the last one was the COVID year, but thats no excuse since every program had to deal with that too. It’s still disconcerting to me.

Hope it’s not something we are looking back in 2-3 years and saying the signs were there. We shall see.

 

[KTrain]

I actually agree with what he said and he said he was duped as well. Based off last year we were on the rise but after 3 games in it’s obvious that we are not. I think he speaking facts.

We were always just holding on last year and this year. Pruitt left a dumpster fire and reductions in ships. Even last year we were good but not very deep or not even much help. The 1s were good but holding on by a prayer, we had a hiccup with Banks and USC junior but most teams that are deep would just absorb that. This year we had the early hiccup with Mays & Mincey and our 2s are 3 or 4s on top teams and it showed. We had no time of possession to speak of and our D is just so fragile. We needed our run game to get big chunks, but we had 3 runs for 12 yards Milton/Small & Wright had 1 each. J Wright came in the game averaging 9.3 YPC and just had 3.9 ypc. this game. Until we get the O Line straightened out to get the running game going the O will be stagnant, we have to be able to run it in this O to get the D on its heels. We desperately need Mays & Mincey back and need Crawford to correct his game or its going to be a long season.
I thought we could be on the rise, but I knew and know that/this team is bare bones it was almost a miracle season last year everything went well sans the Jermey Banks incident. we had the early injuries this year, Pili was going to be our best D player along with Beasley and the O Line injury & Mincey incident. it's just the cards are not falling our way and we are a shallow team that can't absorb it.

 

[JGS III]

Everyone knew our success came down to Milton. If he had truly improved we would have success. If not we would be where we are now. The O-line shouldn’t have to be perfect. The defense sucked last year.

In this offense the quarterback play is paramount, more so than any other offensive scheme

 

[JGS III]

We were always just holding on last year and this year. Pruitt left a dumpster fire and reductions in ships. Even last year we were good but not very deep or not even much help. The 1s were good but holding on by a prayer, we had a hiccup with Banks and USC junior but most teams that are deep would just absorb that. This year we had the early hiccup with Mays & Mincey and our 2s are 3 or 4s on top teams and it showed. We had no time of possession to speak of and our D is just so fragile. We needed our run game to get big chunks, but we had 3 runs for 12 yards Milton/Small & Wright had 1 each. J Wright came in the game averaging 9.3 YPC and just had 3.9 ypc. this game. Until we get the O Line straightened out to get the running game going the O will be stagnant, we have to be able to run it in this O to get the D on its heels. We desperately need Mays & Mincey back and need Crawford to correct his game or its going to be a long season.
I thought we could be on the rise, but I knew and know that/this team is bare bones it was almost a miracle season last year everything went well sans the Jermey Banks incident. we had the early injuries this year, Pili was going to be our best D player along with Beasley and the O Line injury & Mincey incident. it's just the cards are not falling our way and we are a shallow team that can't absorb it.

Maybe duped isn’t the right word but I think you can see where I was coming from.

 

[BowlBrother85]

Which is a fair argument but we just got whipped by a coach in year two that had a horrendous first offseason

We also played horribly against Austin Peay ... I'm not defending the way they are playing right now, but we have seen what Heupel can do with the right players ... and it's not like Hooker, Hyatt, Fant, Wright, Tillman and Carvin are generational talents either. They were good players who had been well-developed and fit the system.

 

[LadyVolette]

I don't totally agree with his take that losing a few mid-round draft picks is the reason that the team has fallen off a cliff this season. I think losing Golesh is what has really hurt the team this year.

I think it was a combination of factors maybe that all came together more-so than one particular thing lol.. put one factor back in, and we probably would be in a much better spot (thin Oline in general, Golesh gone, players who were drafted, Mincey suspended, Cooper injured, Interception and disrupted momentum, dumb penalties which we actually did, poor officiating, horrible tackling, little effort, no enthusiasm, puzzling game plan)..put them all together, and voilà… All if these things can’t happen when you go to the swamp, doesn’t matter what their record is

 

[Buddr]

Unbelievable people fall for this crap. This football team is 2-17 against Florida I mean its normal for UT to get beat at Florida was it so astounding Florida won this year. Hell every other coach has lost there in the last 19 years. It's a mental thing the talent is pretty much even and Tennessee has the edge in coaching IMO.

 

[GetYouSomeofThat]

You are entitled to your opinion, but if that is all you see that was wrong you probably need to get pick up another sport to watch. We got owned in all facets. Perf

With Mincey and Mays back the offense perfroms at an entirely different level.
And all the pissing and moaning goes away.

 

[EZE]

I'm just saying that it means nothing to point out that Clemson had more yards. Tennessee had more yards than Florida. So what? It doesn't change anything, and it's not that unusual for a team to lose badly despite having more total yardage.

You made a statement about “how much better we looked against Clemson than we have so far this year.”

What I’m trying to say (and maybe not so eloquently) is that we really didn’t look that much better against Clemson. We had 8 punts in that game.