Really, Why does ESPN hate Tennessee

#1
USAF_Vol

USAF_Vol

Let there be BEER
Joined
Aug 1, 2005
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18
#1
I noticed it throughout the years, but what is everyones take on this. What does everyone think is the main reason. This ought to be fun just to see the opinions.
 
#3
#3
ESPN is only out to get ratings. Otherwise, they just cover who is winning and who draws ratings. Good records and big offense. Train wrecks and dynasties in all sports.

The reason they don't cover Tennessee and tout us highly is that, despite the great record, Tennessee football is generally boring to watch because of the slow grinding offense and lacks enough championships to make up for it. It's kind of a state of limbo to be stuck in -- Just good enough to be recognized but not winning quite enough titles to be recognized highly.

So yeah... I think ESPN is just biased towards whoever is winning and/or whoever is the most exciting to watch. The only team in all of sports they are clearly biased towards is the Yankees. Every night, it's 10 second clips for the other teams around the country then a 15-minute exposee on what George Steinbrenner ate for lunch.
 
#4
#4
Milo, you the man, thats the kind of opinion I was looking for. Keep them coming
 
#5
#5
Originally posted by USAF_Vol@Aug 19, 2005 8:42 PM
Milo, you the man, thats the kind of opinion I was looking for.
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And MINE wasn't???

:unsure:
 
#6
#6
I also think the CFB writers on ESPN.com can get a little bit ridiculous... Whether it be Mark May just being Mark May, or Ivan Maisel trying to present the idea that the Big East is still a power conference without looking like a loon. However; Their draft coverage is impeccable, they have Bruce Feldman who is a genius and Mel Kiper who is practically all-knowing.
 
#8
#8
ESPN hates us cause LIO sends them nasty emails once a day...
 
#9
#9
LIO put it obvious...We win too much. I honestly thought there may be another reason why. As plain as day as it is, we do have a better season than ESPN would like. And I do mean that, as they like. They look for every reason to dog us.
 
#10
#10
Originally posted by Orangewhiteblood@Aug 19, 2005 9:14 PM
ESPN hates us cause LIO sends them nasty emails once a day...
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:lolabove: :lolabove: :lolabove:
 
#11
#11
Originally posted by LadyinOrange@Aug 19, 2005 7:11 PM
And MINE wasn't???

:unsure:
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I agree with what you said, LIO.

Take Georgia's last season for instance; They try way too hard to prove themselves right in retrospect. UGA clearly underachieved last season; They were supposed to be the shoe-in SEC Champs, but even after we beat them and it was looking unlikely they would win the division, much less the conference, they just called the game a fluke and still pushed a high ranking on them. They called the game a "fluke" to justify it. By the end of the season, UGA had a top-10 ranking they didn't deserve after they barely pulled off a win over a terrible Wisconsin team to wedge in win number 10.

They didn't exclude Tennessee from the top-10 and put UGA in because they don't like us -- They did it because that's the way things were supposed to be preseason, and they had to keep with what they predicted.
 
#12
#12
Originally posted by USAF_Vol@Aug 19, 2005 7:16 PM
LIO put it obvious...We win too much.  I honestly thought there may be another reason why.  As plain as day as it is, we do have a better season than ESPN would like.  And I do mean that, as they like.  They look for every reason to dog us.
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They don't dog us; We just don't get respect from the media. We do have a great record and all, but I think it would help if there were a few more division championships to go with it. Our great record basically has amounted to squat because we couldn't beat Georgia for a good long while and it kept us out of the SECCG too much. Add to that we're not fun to watch because we have probably the most conservative offense of any major program in the country, and Phil Fulmer has the same amount of media savvy as a post-it note... It just amounts to low media attention.
 
#13
#13
True about the UGA thing Milo. Never thought about the preseason polls coming back at the end of the year. What's your take on the ESPN outlook on this year since we are No 3 on the coach polls (I think it was the coaches poll)??
 
#14
#14
So tell me Milo how are we so boring to watch, how many games do you get to see way out in Orygun? What makes us so conservative?
 
#15
#15
I like watching Tennessee football as a fan... And my favorite style of football is the grind-it-out kind that UT plays. Run it up the gut every time, all the time. I believe that is the way football was meant to be played. But as far as mass appeal, most casual viewers like air-it-out, big offense, high-scoring games which UT does not do.

And last year, I had to miss just Vandy and Kentucky. I think it was just because the media was having a love affair with Brent Schaeffer, because he represents the kind of football that gets high ratings. This season, I will probably have to miss UAB, Memphis, Vandy, Kentucky and maybe Ole Miss.
 
#16
#16
well as a die hard Vol fan I could care less about mass appeal and ESPN can bite a big one for all I care. To me there is nothing more exciting than UT football 1st and SEC football second.
 
#17
#17
My love is for the game overall. I just thank god for the game. Whether it's Tennessee or Alabama, or Florida or Miami, or Ohio State or Michigan, or the Rose Bowl down to even the Division III Championship (Go Linfield! Repeat National Champs!). I just love the game, more than I even love any team.

As for market appeal... I normally wouldn't care except market appeal has gotten to the point now where it affects our rankings because we don't play explosive enough football. The only way we could make up for it is if we won a whole bunch of championships, but the fact that we couldn't beat Florida in the 90's then Georgia after Spurrier's reign has kept the Vols relatively hype-free. Hopefully it's the Vols time
 
#18
#18
milo you are killing me tonight. :spank: :spank: :spank:

You are calling our offense a team that runs it up the gut every time, all the time? If that's true then how in the world did we have more passing yards than rushing?
 
#19
#19
He's young, he's from Oregon (See Pac-10) and he has NEVER seen the Vols play live.

No offense to one of our beloved Mods, but I don't put much stock in his opinions of our team.
 
#20
#20
He's young, he's from Oregon (See Pac-10) and he has NEVER seen the Vols play live.

No offense to one of our beloved Mods, but I don't put much stock in his opinions of our team.

LOL, and I feel so strongly about it, that I had to say it twice.
 
#21
#21
Let's see, starting not one but 2 freshmen, winning in the final momements against Fl, squashing Ga's NC hopes against a QB that had never lost to us, final minutes TD to beat Ole Miss, knock down drag out defensive battle with ND, nail biters against your 2 favorite examples of our defensive woes (KY and Vandy) , a Gerald Riggs running Clinic against a team that should have played for the NC., and a Cotton Bowl performance that earned a third string QB MVP honors all from a team that was suppossed to finish 3rd maybe 4th in the SEC East......how much more excitement can you stand and how damn obvious can it be after Ga being ranked higher than us that we get no respect from the media.
 
#22
#22
Originally posted by volmanjr@Aug 19, 2005 11:17 PM
Let's see, starting not one but 2 freshmen, winning in the final momements against Fl, squashing Ga's NC hopes against a QB that had never lost to us, final minutes TD to beat Ole Miss, knock down drag out defensive battle with ND, nail biters against your 2 favorite examples of our defensive woes (KY and Vandy) , a Gerald Riggs running Clinic against a team that should have played for the NC., and a Cotton Bowl performance that earned a third string QB MVP honors all from a team that was suppossed to finish 3rd maybe 4th in the SEC East......how much more excitement can you stand and how damn obvious can it be after Ga being ranked higher than us that we get no respect from the media.
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:rock:
 
#23
#23
Originally posted by vol_freak@Aug 19, 2005 7:59 PM
milo you are killing me tonight.  :spank:  :spank:  :spank:

You are calling our offense a team that runs it up the gut every time, all the time? If that's true then how in the world did we have more passing yards than rushing?
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But almost as many rush yards. 2418 rush yards last season and 2775 pass yards. It's about 53% of our yards were from passing and 47% were from rushing.

Then you can also count in attempts, which I think is far more telling of a team's style than total yards gained. Last year, the Vols had 520 total rushing attempts compared to just 376 pass attempts. That's nearly a 3:2 ratio, so basically a 60/40 balance towards the run. Quite a disparity there.

Most of the more "media-friendly teams" were closer to a 50-50 balance.
 
#24
#24
Originally posted by volmanjr@Aug 19, 2005 8:17 PM
Let's see, starting not one but 2 freshmen, winning in the final momements against Fl, squashing Ga's NC hopes against a QB that had never lost to us, final minutes TD to beat Ole Miss, knock down drag out defensive battle with ND, nail biters against your 2 favorite examples of our defensive woes (KY and Vandy) , a Gerald Riggs running Clinic against a team that should have played for the NC., and a Cotton Bowl performance that earned a third string QB MVP honors all from a team that was suppossed to finish 3rd maybe 4th in the SEC East......how much more excitement can you stand and how damn obvious can it be after Ga being ranked higher than us that we get no respect from the media.
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I know. I personally found it a very exciting season. I love watching Tennessee football. The media loved the freshmen part, if you didn't notice. Go back and read the media bits about Ainge and especially Schaeffer last season.

The kick against Florida was unfortunately diluted by a bad call, so the initial reaction was one more of questioning the game rather than excitement over the actual finish.

Georgia was supposed to be better than the Vols; They were coming off a big win at LSU. ESPN and the rest of the media just brushed it off as a fluke win for us, and continued to vote Georgia high. I agree with you, we didn't get any respect there.

And as for the SEC Champiosnhip, yeah Riggs had a big game. Everybody knows it. The only problem is that was the only aspect of that game we had going for us. Auburn and their connection to the "who should be in the Orange Bowl" was a far bigger story than the SECCG itself.

Yes, we did get disrespected last season. But I believe it was more a result of circumstances rather than ESPN having anything out against the Vols.
 
#25
#25
Originally posted by BeltwayVol@Aug 19, 2005 8:09 PM
He's young, he's from Oregon (See Pac-10) and he has NEVER seen the Vols play live.

No offense to one of our beloved Mods, but I don't put much stock in his opinions of our team.

LOL, and I feel so strongly about it, that I had to say it twice.
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Well that's fantastic. You don't have to put any stock in my opinions.
 
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