Recruiting Forum Football Talk III

[Jackcrevol]

I think Mike Keith was the popular suggestion among fans. But, yes, Bob was hired as a student by Ward and was Ward’s spotter for a while. Then, he did pre and post game shows for a long period of time. It was always going to be him to succeed Ward.

Bob was super well respected at IVK. Hammonds, Kessling, Hubbs, Denton. All those dudes came from radio, specifically Dick Broadcasting.

So, what you're saying follows.

 

[UpstateVol613]

Unpopular opinion, but screw football upgrades right now. I’d give Rick barnes and tony vitello whatever they want, football facilities are already top half in the SEC and they never have anything to show for it anyways.



Yes, they’ll have to if they want to keep him.

I think I have a way to garner funding. This board argued non stop people born as boys playing in girls sports. Since the NCAA has ruled gender is fluid we shouldn’t have a boys and girls basketball team. Just have a basketball team. Heck do that with all sports that both boys and girls compete in. That would cut a lot of your cost down. Problem solved.

 

[Vols4us]

I think Mike Keith was the popular suggestion among fans. But, yes, Bob was hired as a student by Ward and was Ward’s spotter for a while. Then, he did pre and post game shows for a long period of time. It was always going to be him to succeed Ward.

True. Which was an unfortunate decision IMO. Keith was/is clearly better at it.

I judge it by John Ward's own standard. Would I turn off the volume of the TV to listen to him on the radio as he called the game. Yes - for John Ward. No - for Bob Kesling. Yes - for Mike Keith.

 

[99Vol]

Fresh off my 2nd Pfizer shot. Ready for another shot or 2 by Evan Russell later today!

 

[UpstateVol613]

 

[UpstateVol613]

 

[Gilbert]

I keep posting this. Maybe some more folks will believe it coming from you. New park on-campus would be great, but where and how? LNS will never measure up to where even the rest of the conference has already gone with it.

As already pointed out - the majority of the season's schedule is not in conflict with the Smokies anyway.

Vitello isn’t a big fan of this.

 

[rocktopper16]

 

[MarcoVol]

Vitello isn’t a big fan of this.

Shouldn’t be. An SEC school shouldn’t have to share a stadium. That’s some second rate planning/program ish

 

[Rishvol]

Shouldn’t be. An SEC school shouldn’t have to share a stadium. That’s some second rate planning/program ish

It's one of the big talking points Boyd is using to try and get the baseball stadium built

 

[UpstateVol613]

View attachment 363053

Wendy’s is savage. Love it.

 

[mr.checkerboards]

Vandy has kind of built in recruiting advantage. I can't recall what it is. They can offer more scholarships or something. Never quite understood it.

Basically they can pay for most of a kids aid through academics and not use much if any of a baseball scholarship.

 

[mr.checkerboards]

Vitello has been pretty lukewarm on radio regarding the downtown ballpark. He’s all about an on campus stadium and making upgrades to LNS.

Good. Playing a few games or even a tournament at that stadium would be cool, but the stadium needs to be on campus.

 

[drvenner]

I think Mike Keith was the popular suggestion among fans. But, yes, Bob was hired as a student by Ward and was Ward’s spotter for a while. Then, he did pre and post game shows for a long period of time. It was always going to be him to succeed Ward.

I am trying to recall when Mike Keith got the Titans gig. He and John were terrific together on the baseball broadcasts.

 

[drvenner]

Shouldn’t be. An SEC school shouldn’t have to share a stadium. That’s some second rate planning/program ish

Not if you do it right. There is so much for fans to do, including students before and after the game downtown. I want what is best for the program, whatever that turns out to be.

 

[DarthVol1]

I am trying to recall when Mike Keith got the Titans gig. He and John were terrific together on the baseball broadcasts.

Year before Ward retired.

 

[Vols4us]

Folks- I am and have never been against a quality ballpark on campus. Would love to see it. However, for 15-20 years they have not been able to figure out how/where, or, are not willing to do it in the existing footprint of the campus. I'm sure they would be willing to listen to your suggestions. lol. They already have Voltello telling them what he wants. But even keeping him is not enough reason to significantly modify the long range plan of campus development if it messes up the primary purpose of being an elite school first.

As for me, I'll be thrilled to go to a quality minor league park within a mile of the campus in downtown until they do. Use LNS for practice, mid-week games, camps, etc.

 

[VolGee4]

I am trying to recall when Mike Keith got the Titans gig. He and John were terrific together on the baseball broadcasts.

I had to look it up, but he started with the Titans around the same time, specifically in 1999. Because of Ward’s plans, I assume plans were being prepared in late 1998 to officially make the hire.

Don’t know how much Keith makes or how much he would have made at UT, but there was a lot of discussion that he was very much interested in the UT job, if offered. Of course, the status of the program probably helped at time too.

 

[ChattaTNVol]

I was trying to get an understanding of how Heupel managed his QB situation at UCF in order to see if that might shed some light on what we could expect here.

Heupel started off with an inherited QB from Scott Frost, McKenzie Milton.

Milton, from Mililani high school in Mililani, Hi (Oahu), had been committed to play for Hawaii since early December 2014. Upon taking over the job at UCF in December of 2015 Scott Frost and company set out to find a QB. They settled on Milton and reportedly was able to flip him from the Warriors by promising him a path into coaching after his playing career was over. In late January of 2016, 2 weeks before signing day, Milton flipped to Frost, then signed 2 weeks later.

Milton started out in 2016 on the bench but got the nod for the 3rd game into the season against Maryland. It was a bit of back and forth at QB until week 6. McKenzie got the start against 23rd ranked Temple in week six and held the job until his gruesome leg injury against USF in late November 2018.

In 2019 Milton, after having recruited Dillon Gabriel from his former high school, Mililani, while doing 2.5 hours of rehab 5 days a week, was doing double duty as a QB coach at UCF. Heupel said he even had input into game planning.

Among other prospects, Frost had signed a dual threat QB in 2017, Darriel Mack Jr. In 2017 Mack ran the scout team for Frost but in 2018 he was Heupel’s backup to Milton and was the MVP of the conference championship game that year filling in for the injured Milton. He was the QB to face LSU.

Mack was the odds on favorite to be the starter in 2019 but he injured his ankle in fall camp and Heupel, having brought in Brandon Wimbush as a grad transfer from Notre Dame in January 2019, named Brandon the starter going into the season – but announced that Gabriel, the true freshman, also deserved to play so they would divide snaps in game one against Florida A&M.

In game two of 2019, Wimbush was unavailable. Heupel didn’t exactly say Brandon had fell on a helmet; he just said he wasn’t going to comment on any injury. I got the idea there wasn’t any injury to comment on. Gabriel had won the starting job. He went 7 for 19 against Kiffin in that his first start but the Knights won the game in a blowout. Mack came back about 5 games into the season but was apparently only used to run the ball for the most part. Brandon appeared in 4 more games over the course of the season but only threw one more pass after that season opener against A&M. Heupel tried to move him to WR but that apparently didn’t work out.

Wimbush went back home to Notre Dame for their 2020 pro day. He had given up on the position of QB and was trying to showcase his abilities as an athlete. Mack didn’t see any playing time in 2020 and in November entered the transfer portal, eventually returning to his home town and will suit up for Old Dominion in 2021 with a number of other returning home-towners.

Milton is in a hot two-way contest to earn the starting job at FSU. It looks like he’s coming along fine as he showed out a bit in their spring game but it’s still an uphill fight for him to win the job. After White and Heupel left UCF Gabriel took over the team while waiting for a new coach. His biggest accomplishment as the “interim coach” was on the recruiting trail, convincing fellow Hawaiian, 4-star receiver Titus Mokiao-Atimalala, to join him in Orlando, 3 days after Heupel had left for Tennessee. These days Gabriel is trying to reinvent himself from being a Ferrari driver into being a bus driver, the Gus bus. Apparently there is a learning curve. jmo.

That’s what I could find out about the UCF QB situation while Heupel was there. Milton to Mack to Wimbush to Gabriel. I won’t be surprised if we see multiple QBs get time on the field early in the season as Heupel starts his tenure here at Tennessee. I get the sense that his evaluation process may culminate in seeing how his guys perform on the field against opposing teams and that may be when he finally settles on his guy. jmo.

 

[VolGee4]

Folks- I am and have never been against a quality ballpark on campus. Would love to see it. However, for 15-20 years they have not been able to figure out how/where, or, are not willing to do it in the existing footprint of the campus. I'm sure they would be willing to listen to your suggestions. lol. They already have Voltello telling them what he wants. But even keeping him is not enough reason to significantly modify the long range plan of campus development if it messes up the primary purpose of being an elite school first.

As for me, I'll be thrilled to go to a quality minor league park within a mile of the campus in downtown until they do. Use LNS for practice, mid-week games, camps, etc.

I would play a mix, if possible. Renovate LNS as best as you can and play most of your conference series there later in the season. Play your early OOC games at the downtown park. First, the early weather doesn’t get as many students there, and you could probably also draw some intriguing opponents by offering the minor league park. Also, as you suggested, the minor league team is not playing that early. I think that’s what I would plan for.

 

[Girth Brooks]

 

[rekinhavoc]

I have honestly been thinking can we up our Women's bowling program so we can take that from Vandy to.

 

[DarthVol1]

I had to look it up, but he started with the Titans around the same time, specifically in 1999. Because of Ward’s plans, I assume plans were being prepared in late 1998 to officially make the hire.

Don’t know how much Keith makes or how much he would have made at UT, but there was a lot of discussion that he was very much interested in the UT job, if offered. Of course, the status of the program probably helped at time too.

He was doing color for them in 98, became main play by play in 99. "In 1996, Bud Adams, the owner of the National Football League’s Houston Oilers announced he would move his team to Nashville. That same year, while the team was in still in Houston, Keith began hosting a pre-game show for Tennessee stations that carried the Oilers games. He served as the network’s scoreboard host in 1997 before moving into the booth as color analyst in 1998. In 1999, Keith took over the play-by-play duties."

 

[SoilVol]

Evan Russell just described every single one of us

So going down the list:
John Fulkerson
Evan Russell
Juaun Jennings

Who else we got on the recent All-Vol, TN kid list?

 

[Rishvol]

ESPN having a little trouble