NighthawkVol
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2007
- Messages
- 13,358
- Likes
- 47,332
Sorry for the late post on my thoughts. I've been out of town and can just now take the time to organize my thoughts.
-This was by far Hooker's worst performance as UT's starting QB. Give Georgia a lot of credit for that, but he also missed a lot of open opportunities, either by not seeing them or just missing on the throws. Then one knock on Hooker since he became starting QB has been holding the ball too long and that bit him worse than ever in this game. Maybe he's not coached to throw the ball away because he can so often make a play with his legs when things break down. Who knows. Regardless, I love Hooker, he's one of my all-time favorite Vols, and I believe he'll bounce back. He's also the reason I think Tennessee would stand a much better chance in a rematch. I believe he'll address what he did wrong and not make the same mistakes in a rematch.
-This was also the OLine's worst game, especially in pass pro. I have to think the crowd was a huge reason. The clearly got rattled and lost focus, as evidenced by Crawford jumping before the ref even moved off of the ball. They were better at run blocking, I thought.
-Speaking of running the ball, once of the most disheartening things to happen was Jaylen Wright's fumble. It didn't end up hurting because hey fumbled right back, but it signified that he hasn't fixed the fumble issues and he may never. That's bad because he's clearly our best RB otherwise. He was way better than Small against Georgia and got more than the line blocked on a few occasions. Wright gives us the extra running dimension we need against really good teams, but if he can't be trusted not to fumble, he won't play. Now, to be fair, he kept playing after the fumble (and ran well at times), but I don't know if that was the staff trying to pick him up or because Small was banged up.
-Are we better without Tillman in there because Hooker forces the ball to CT and doesn't look at others? That seemed to be the case early in the year and seemed to be the case in Athens. That's not a knock on CT, but if it's the case, it's something Hooker needs to fix. I thought going so long without CT would have done that. Maybe it's not really an issue, but it's something to keep an eye on.
-I wanted Slaughter and Turnage to start at CB. Well, they did and they got roasted. I still think those two have a lot of ability, but they're inexperienced. That's one reason I expect the defense to be much better next year. Those guys (as well as Hadden and Charles) all return with experience and will be much better.
-Jeremy Banks looked like he came to play. The Dline was decent. Holding Georgia to 3 points in the 2nd half was encouraging. Yes, I know Georgia probably took its foot off the pedal a little in the 4th, but they were still trying to score in the 3rd. I think Tim Banks made some quality adjustments.
-Georgia hit a couple of long bombs they normally don't hit. Tennessee missed a couple of long bombs we normally do hit. Georgia got a fortuitous roll on a great punt to back Tennessee up. If those 5 plays go the other way, Tennessee probably wins. Football really does come down to a small number of swing plays in games like this.
-Most of these thoughts aren't positive, which stands to reason in a game like this. But there are some positive takeaways: 1) Tennessee will learn and get better from this. Georgia highlighted what Tennessee needs to fix. 2) Tennessee will likely still make the CFP. Sometimes a loss is good in the long run to make a team better. 3) Georgia has been on cruise control and pointing to this game for awhile. Tennessee has had to get on emotional highs against Pitt, Florida, LSU, Alabama, and to a lesser degree, Kentucky (yes, I know Pitt and Florida didn't turn out great, but at the time, they were big games that we geared up for). It's hard to be mentally sharp for that many games. We were due a bad game and got it. Georgia was due a great game and got it. Sometimes, you just have to tip your cap. They're a great team that played a great game.
-I wonder how many of the younger guys are ready to start playing in these last 3 games. Obviously, some of that depends on the score, but also, I'm guessing we may see some younger guys who have developed enough to see meaningful minutes when the game is still in doubt. Has Sampson picked up pass pro? Will Miles Campbell get some time? Squirrel? Another thing to keep an eye on.
Moving on. Let's whip Missouri, South Carolina, and Vanderbilt, and go into the CPF on a roll. We will have the luxury of sitting at home, resting and healing while others play in their conference championship games. That may end up being a benefit. And giving Heupel extra time to scheme is something that excites me.
Go Big Orange!
-This was by far Hooker's worst performance as UT's starting QB. Give Georgia a lot of credit for that, but he also missed a lot of open opportunities, either by not seeing them or just missing on the throws. Then one knock on Hooker since he became starting QB has been holding the ball too long and that bit him worse than ever in this game. Maybe he's not coached to throw the ball away because he can so often make a play with his legs when things break down. Who knows. Regardless, I love Hooker, he's one of my all-time favorite Vols, and I believe he'll bounce back. He's also the reason I think Tennessee would stand a much better chance in a rematch. I believe he'll address what he did wrong and not make the same mistakes in a rematch.
-This was also the OLine's worst game, especially in pass pro. I have to think the crowd was a huge reason. The clearly got rattled and lost focus, as evidenced by Crawford jumping before the ref even moved off of the ball. They were better at run blocking, I thought.
-Speaking of running the ball, once of the most disheartening things to happen was Jaylen Wright's fumble. It didn't end up hurting because hey fumbled right back, but it signified that he hasn't fixed the fumble issues and he may never. That's bad because he's clearly our best RB otherwise. He was way better than Small against Georgia and got more than the line blocked on a few occasions. Wright gives us the extra running dimension we need against really good teams, but if he can't be trusted not to fumble, he won't play. Now, to be fair, he kept playing after the fumble (and ran well at times), but I don't know if that was the staff trying to pick him up or because Small was banged up.
-Are we better without Tillman in there because Hooker forces the ball to CT and doesn't look at others? That seemed to be the case early in the year and seemed to be the case in Athens. That's not a knock on CT, but if it's the case, it's something Hooker needs to fix. I thought going so long without CT would have done that. Maybe it's not really an issue, but it's something to keep an eye on.
-I wanted Slaughter and Turnage to start at CB. Well, they did and they got roasted. I still think those two have a lot of ability, but they're inexperienced. That's one reason I expect the defense to be much better next year. Those guys (as well as Hadden and Charles) all return with experience and will be much better.
-Jeremy Banks looked like he came to play. The Dline was decent. Holding Georgia to 3 points in the 2nd half was encouraging. Yes, I know Georgia probably took its foot off the pedal a little in the 4th, but they were still trying to score in the 3rd. I think Tim Banks made some quality adjustments.
-Georgia hit a couple of long bombs they normally don't hit. Tennessee missed a couple of long bombs we normally do hit. Georgia got a fortuitous roll on a great punt to back Tennessee up. If those 5 plays go the other way, Tennessee probably wins. Football really does come down to a small number of swing plays in games like this.
-Most of these thoughts aren't positive, which stands to reason in a game like this. But there are some positive takeaways: 1) Tennessee will learn and get better from this. Georgia highlighted what Tennessee needs to fix. 2) Tennessee will likely still make the CFP. Sometimes a loss is good in the long run to make a team better. 3) Georgia has been on cruise control and pointing to this game for awhile. Tennessee has had to get on emotional highs against Pitt, Florida, LSU, Alabama, and to a lesser degree, Kentucky (yes, I know Pitt and Florida didn't turn out great, but at the time, they were big games that we geared up for). It's hard to be mentally sharp for that many games. We were due a bad game and got it. Georgia was due a great game and got it. Sometimes, you just have to tip your cap. They're a great team that played a great game.
-I wonder how many of the younger guys are ready to start playing in these last 3 games. Obviously, some of that depends on the score, but also, I'm guessing we may see some younger guys who have developed enough to see meaningful minutes when the game is still in doubt. Has Sampson picked up pass pro? Will Miles Campbell get some time? Squirrel? Another thing to keep an eye on.
Moving on. Let's whip Missouri, South Carolina, and Vanderbilt, and go into the CPF on a roll. We will have the luxury of sitting at home, resting and healing while others play in their conference championship games. That may end up being a benefit. And giving Heupel extra time to scheme is something that excites me.
Go Big Orange!
