Recruiting Forum Football Talk III

[Dudley Smith]

All I ever heard from people like Hank is "Tn ReCrUiTs ItSeLf" which by the way is total BS. TN is actually one of the tougher places to recruit in the SEC which is part of the reason their recruiting budget is always top 3. Schools like UGA, Florida, LSU, Auburn have an advantage when it comes to proximity to talent.

The talent in proximity to Knoxville is better than it has ever been, much better than it was in the 90's due to the explosion of growth in the Midstate and metro Atlanta.

 

[WarMachine]

We need some ballers who want to be here. I hope we can plug some holes with transfers inbound...

 

[SoonerVol]

Those guys will hurt, no doubt about it. But I still think we have talent on this roster and my hope is some real coaching pulls out potential that was left to die last year. I don’t expect us to beat Bama, UGA, or Florida, but I think it’s reasonable for us to expect wins vs teams that we have better talent then, and that’s quite a few on our schedule. 7 wins and CJH will build some heup.

I appreciate your continual positivity. Its rare on this board over the past year. I do not understand how so many could be so miserable and down trodden.

 

[Ace]

We need to approach recruiting like Clemson..... be in the 11-17 range.... get solid football players sprinkled with a few stars and very few misses.... in a few years our recruiting will be top notch bc we will be a solid program.

Exactly, look at how many misses CBJ and CJP had. That is the downfall of this program from a recruiting stand point.

 

[volbeast33]

If the QBs aren’t good, we will stink.

They will be good

 

[Newman]

SIAP

 

[Big Gucci Sosa]

Yes but in this case JH will be given 5 years minimum imo

We thought the same with Pruitt

 

[Kingston Vol]

We need to approach recruiting like Clemson..... be in the 11-17 range.... get solid football players sprinkled with a few stars and very few misses.... in a few years our recruiting will be top notch bc we will be a solid program.

My only problem with this line of thinking is that Clemson did not aim to be in the 11-17 range. They wanted to be higher and just weren't - subsequent classes show their true aim.

And we can't bet on Heupel's staff having the development and evaluation skills that Dabo and Co. have.

 

[volbeast33]

Those guys will hurt, no doubt about it. But I still think we have talent on this roster and my hope is some real coaching pulls out potential that was left to die last year. I don’t expect us to beat Bama, UGA, or Florida, but I think it’s reasonable for us to expect wins vs teams that we have better talent then, and that’s quite a few on our schedule. 7 wins and CJH will build some heup.

Unless our younger guys suck.... I don’t think our roster is that poor and has a lot of potential for improvement.

 

[Blake25p]

If the QBs aren’t good, we will stink.

Don’t think we’ll have that problem.

 

[Sleegro]

View attachment 352268

Except it's not just the renewable that froze and failed.

 

[volfaninpa]

SIAP

Burns has always been pretty kind to UT on SEC Network.

 

[itsme]

All I ever heard from people like Hank is "Tn ReCrUiTs ItSeLf" which by the way is total BS. TN is actually one of the tougher places to recruit in the SEC which is part of the reason their recruiting budget is always top 3. Schools like UGA, Florida, LSU, Auburn have an advantage when it comes to proximity to talent.

Tennessee is actually in a great area for recruiting. TN football talent is on the rise, the HS players just need to see a program on the rise. They within 4 hours from Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Ohio. The only way it could be better would be if they were that close to Florida. If a good product is put on the field things will pick up and in a hurry because great players want playing time.

 

[jakez4ut]

Yes but in this case JH will be given 5 years minimum imo

i agree. but you know that's not how it really works. many said the same thing when pruitt was hired, given the shape of the program, condition of the roster, the first year of the ESD and being behind the 8 ball on that cycle, his experience level, and the tutelage he would need from brand new AD w/no experience Fulmer etc.....

2 losing seasons in 3...he gone.

same basic deal here. new AD, new coach, behind the 8 ball in recruiting, potential "free" transfer stuff on the horizon for the first time....etc, etc, etc.

so we'll see. im hopeful. i do think the leadership structure is wholly different than what we've experienced for the majority of the last 15 years, so that's a plus. and for the first time in a long time, while i can't say i'm super excited about all these hires, they do NOT seem to be typical of what we've done in the past, i.e., being reactionary. There, at least on the surface, seems to be a more measured, deliberate, approach to it this time around. i don't feel like we "settled", at least because we had to react to poor results, a la Dooley, jones, pruitt, and many of the assistants along the way. i'm happy with the process so far. it hasn't necessarily netted the results we all wanted, but i can't argue with how they got where they landed. they had a plan, and executed it, i don't think they got surprised at any point. so if we can be a little patient, maybe this thing does turn around.

it'd be nice to get off to a good start this fall....i think that would help a lot in changing the perception.

 

[Ace]

SIAP

Over 60% of Neyland’s wins were by shutout - WOW -

 

[ACvol3]

But this year we have 7-8 seniors taking advantage of another year to play. Plus if one time transfer does not pass, Henry T, Wright and Crouch will still be on the team. And players like Gray and Morris will be sitting at OK.

I thought Wright was staying anyways

 

[RDU VOL#14]

Simpson will shock the world and put on the orange hat with the Power T and the floodgates of recruiting will open ... okay, the floodgates are dependent on how well we perform this season, but Simpson is a Vol two Fridays from now, IMO.

I honestly can’t recall a more prove it on the field season than this one upcoming. I don’t think it’s necessarily all about the wins and losses, because we are definitely going to lose a decent amount of game, but we have to look good doing it.

 

[volbeast33]

My only problem with this line of thinking is that Clemson did not aim to be in the 11-17 range. They wanted to be higher and just weren't - subsequent classes show their true aim.

And we can't bet on Heupel's staff having the development and evaluation skills that Dabo and Co. have.

That’s what the need to have.... you don’t drop where we have and recruit like Bama..... we have to build and grow to the point where we recruit like Bama.

 

[Ace]

i agree. but you know that's not how it really works. many said the same thing when pruitt was hired, given the shape of the program, condition of the roster, the first year of the ESD and being behind the 8 ball on that cycle, his experience level, and the tutelage he would need from brand new AD w/no experience Fulmer etc.....

2 losing seasons in 3...he gone.

same basic deal here. new AD, new coach, behind the 8 ball in recruiting, potential "free" transfer stuff on the horizon for the first time....etc, etc, etc.

so we'll see. im hopeful. i do think the leadership structure is wholly different than what we've experienced for the majority of the last 15 years, so that's a plus. and for the first time in a long time, while i can't say i'm super excited about all these hires, they do NOT seem to be typical of what we've done in the past, i.e., being reactionary. There, at least on the surface, seems to be a more measured, deliberate, approach to it this time around. i don't feel like we "settled", at least because we had to react to poor results, a la Dooley, jones, pruitt, and many of the assistants along the way. i'm happy with the process so far. it hasn't necessarily netted the results we all wanted, but i can't argue with how they got where they landed. they had a plan, and executed it, i don't think they got surprised at any point. so if we can be a little patient, maybe this thing does turn around.

it'd be nice to get off to a good start this fall....i think that would help a lot in changing the perception.

Good post
One big difference- experienced AD and HC
Our big mistake is summed up in one person - Fulmer

 

[preacherwebb]

Ok, some input on the various off-topic topics:

Wrestling- I was a kid of the 80s and grew up in North Carolina. I definitely had an awareness of WWF, but NWA was my jam. Road Warriors, Ivan and Nikita Koloff, Lex Luger (I think that was his name). But my favorites were Jimmy Morton and Robert Gibson...the Rock and Roll Express!

Cartoons- The 80s ones I’ve seen mentioned are all good. I’d add the Pink Panther, the Ant and the Aardvark, Rocky & Bullwinkle, Tom and Jerry, so many good ones.

Last one...someone mentioned everyone having pocket knives. We all had that one with the long blade that had all kinds of gadgets in it. It was a compass on the end of the handle. I’m sure many of you know which one I’m talking about.

Not a true fan IMO.

 

[VolGee4]

The direction of the program started being up in the air from the moment they announced the investigation before the A&M game. We still don't have a complete staff. There was no plan in place and it's been a mess.

I am not out on the current staff, but the state of the program is a mess. They can be successful, but they have a lot of obstacles to overcome in a short amount of time

I think it’s clear that there was a plan in place. Just not on your timeline.

 

[itsme]

We need to approach recruiting like Clemson..... be in the 11-17 range.... get solid football players sprinkled with a few stars and very few misses.... in a few years our recruiting will be top notch bc we will be a solid program.

One thing you missed is develop the talent, that's been the problem here for years. S&C staff may be the most important hire at any college. The great teams are studs in S&C. Mediocre and bad teams are not.

 

[jakez4ut]

You can speak better to this by being so close to UCF, but I heard a podcast where the hosts were talking about Heupel's offense, and how basically you need a QB who isn't afraid to sling the ball around and also put his head down and rush for 6 yards.

Basically they described it as a swagger position in this offense.

yep, which is why Maurer still has a shot. for all his apparent faults as a qb, being scared isn't one of them. it's also why i'm excited/hopeful for Salter. that kid has swag for sure...and could thrive.

HB...i'm not giving up on him either. on just total talent/physical make up, he could certainly do well in this offense. iirc, i don't think it's all together different from the offense they ran at Marietta, or am i remembering that wrong?

long story short, i'm looking forward to what should be a pretty competitive QB battle this off season.

 

[butchna]

I thought Wright was staying anyways

He is.

 

[Nashvegas31]

i think Key Lawrence hit the portal after JH was hired? but i don't think anyone else did, to your point. and most all of the transfers out were non factors, or known to be transfer candidates, except for maybe Wanya, Key, Eric Gray. they were the 3 that hurt the most, and really Key was the one that mattered the most out of all them. by all indications, wanya and Eric both had some external factors impacting their decision to transfer. Key, not so much. that was a "don't wanna be here" move as far as i can tell. still waiting on whether or not HT and/or Crouch come back. there's not been much reason to think either will return though, so those two would hurt as well, they seem to be all but "official" transfers....?

Key was before JH. Nobody has entered portal since he was hired that I recall.

I wouldn’t worry about these in state early decisions. Kids are being advised to grab a spot early and they can change mind later. It’s scary with no visits allowed, no camps, unknown. So kids have to grab best spot available then worry about the real decision later. I’m pretty sure there were a more than normal amount of decommits all over country this past yr so obviously kids change their mind.

Really my only concern is the narrow minded Nashville group that has a poster making it pretty clear he plans to steer his guys elsewhere and not willing to even listen to new staff. Hopefully it’s only his opinion and not Bucks. Guy is basing negative view of JH on a covid season with 10 opt outs which is massive for group of five yet makes excuses for pruitts covid 3 win season. He hasn’t even looked to see it’s all one possession losses and one play here or there and JH could have only 1 loss which is his only double digit loss of his career