Recruiting Forum Football Talk XVIII

[Aesius]

Overrated and underrated in 2015: SEC East edition

Reading articles like these is how I get my football fix.....it isn't enough.

Man, the fact that VP's status is still in limbo is beyond ridiculous.

Also, I don't think South Carolina has a legitimate shot of winning the East barring some crazy tie breaker scenario, but I do think people are downplaying them a bit. That's still a good team with a top 10 coach in CFB history at the helm. I'm glad Thompson is gone, though. He had a Bray-like season last year, but got no glory because of South Carolina's dip in their W/L record.

 

[volssam]

Man, the fact that VP's status is still in limbo is beyond ridiculous.

Also, I don't think South Carolina has a legitimate shot of winning the East barring some crazy tie breaker scenario, but I do think people are downplaying them a bit. That's still a good team with a top 10 coach in CFB history at the helm. I'm glad Thompson is gone, though. He had a Bray-like season last year, but got no glory because of South Carolina's dip in their W/L record.

Thompson has a future as a B-list actor. Terrible flop on the Barnett tackle and toss

 

[butchna]

Thompson has a future as a B-list actor. Terrible flop on the Barnett tackle and toss

It wasn't as bad as some of his earlier crybaby stuff. He had worn the refs out so much, Barnett would've had to perform a hysterectomy on him for the refs to throw a flag. :shades:

 

[volssam]

It wasn't as bad as some of his earlier crybaby stuff. He had worn the refs out so much, Barnett would've had to perform a hysterectomy on him for the refs to throw a flag. :shades:

So much complaining. Thompson just needed to get ovary it

 

[SeanJean]

Overrated and underrated in 2015: SEC East edition

Reading articles like these is how I get my football fix.....it isn't enough.

Silly write up on us, with seemingly little research.

#1: Who exactly is saying our passing game is going to be awesome enough to be overrated? Almost everything points to our ability to run (Dobbs included) and our defense.
#2: Since when is Von all but gone?
#3: Von, while very important to the passing game, is at best #3 on the depth chart behind a healthy North and Pig, as we all know. But saying he's 1a helps makes the point.
#4: Solid point on the OL, but duh, we all know this. Obviously the biggest question mark.

 

[Aesius]

Seems like this year's recruiting class got fun overnight.

Starting to think we finish with:

Brown - DT
Mathews - OL
Emmons - RB
Warrior - DB
Corley - WR
Davis - WR
Price/Dickerson - OL

Then if any of the Jersey Boys want to jump onboard the class will get REALLY fun. Top 10 potential with fewer than 20 commits will be crazy. Average star rating around 3.8, IMO.

 

[WarMachine]

So much complaining. Thompson just needed to get ovary it

Volssam, you must be from Iowa. Never seen so much corn.

 

[volssam]

Volssam, you must be from Iowa. Never seen so much corn.

Nah, I get all mine from a jar.

.

 

[triadvolfan]

Silly write up on us, with seemingly little research.

#1: Who exactly is saying our passing game is going to be awesome enough to be overrated? Almost everything points to our ability to run (Dobbs included) and our defense.
#2: Since when is Von all but gone?
#3: Von, while very important to the passing game, is at best #3 on the depth chart behind a healthy North and Pig, as we all know. But saying he's 1a helps makes the point.
#4: Solid point on the OL, but duh, we all know this. Obviously the biggest question mark.

Yeah, I thought the whole thing was a little odd.

I always find the overrated/underrated discussions to be dumb though unless you can point to something specific (poll rankings for instance). We're not talking about how good a team or person are, we're talking about how good they are relative to how they're perceived. If we don't define the 'who' of that perception then the whole discussion can just go in circles. Do I think the author is underrating UT's passing game or is he just misunderstanding how others perceive UT's passing game? It's just silly.

 

[ChismsHeadband]

I'll say this about our OL.

With Worley under center in 7 games (including FCS-level Chatt), our OL gave up 30 sacks.

With Dobbs, we gave up 13 in 6 games.

Mobility helps the crap out of our offense. Avoids pressure, creates misdirection, allows for the read-option. Blind extrapolation would say we'd give up 28 with no improvement throughout a 13-game season.

Last year teams like Kansas State, Boise State, Notre Dame, Ohio State (yes, THE OSU), all gave up 28.0 sacks throughout their entire season. Oregon and Ole Miss each gave up 31. But we never hear about their OL woes. Take it for what it's worth.

Source: cfbstats.com - 2014 National Team Leaders

 

[Aesius]

I'll say this about our OL.

With Worley under center in 7 games (including FCS-level Chatt), our OL gave up 30 sacks.

With Dobbs, we gave up 13 in 6 games.

Mobility helps the crap out of our offense. Avoids pressure, creates misdirection, allows for the read-option. Blind extrapolation would say we'd give up 28 with no improvement throughout a 13-game season.

Last year teams like Kansas State, Boise State, Notre Dame, Ohio State (yes, THE OSU), all gave up 28.0 sacks throughout their entire season. Oregon gave up 31. But we never hear about their OL woes. Take it for what it's worth.

Source: cfbstats.com - 2014 National Team Leaders

Agreed. Dobbs still got sacked a few times last year, but it went from being the biggest glaring weakness on the team to just another bad play that sometimes happens.

And considering how well Dobbs throws on the run, I hope we see him roll out of the pocket much more this season. Protect him at all costs, even if it costs him a few completions per game. Keep him moving and away from pressure.

 

[WarMachine]

Nah, I get all mine from a jar.

.

Liked. k:

 

[ChismsHeadband]

Agreed. Dobbs still got sacked a few times last year, but it went from being the biggest glaring weakness on the team to just another bad play that sometimes happens.

And considering how well Dobbs throws on the run, I hope we see him roll out of the pocket much more this season. Protect him at all costs, even if it costs him a few completions per game. Keep him moving and away from pressure.

I think Dobbs rolling out will really open things up, especially on short/intermediate outside routes where the CB's won't know what to cover.

The one knock on Dobbs' throwing is that he didn't really hit many receivers in stride (of course Von had a bad habit of stopping and starting once he made the catch).

Either way, the OL wasn't the only position group that thrived with a mobile QB.. Our RB ypc went from 3.80 under Worley (UTC not included), to 4.51 under Dobbs. This doesn't include Dobbs' 5.88 ypc for 552yds on 92 carries.

EDIT: Typed the wrong average at first. Rush average among RB's went up 0.7 ypc. I'd implore you to remember who was rushing behind Hurd, too. Lane, Summerhill, other walk-ons...

 

[Catbone]

I'll say this about our OL.

With Worley under center in 7 games (including FCS-level Chatt), our OL gave up 30 sacks.

With Dobbs, we gave up 13 in 6 games.

Mobility helps the crap out of our offense. Avoids pressure, creates misdirection, allows for the read-option. Blind extrapolation would say we'd give up 28 with no improvement throughout a 13-game season.

Last year teams like Kansas State, Boise State, Notre Dame, Ohio State (yes, THE OSU), all gave up 28.0 sacks throughout their entire season. Oregon and Ole Miss each gave up 31. But we never hear about their OL woes. Take it for what it's worth.

Source: cfbstats.com - 2014 National Team Leaders

The problem is they couldn't run block to save their lives either

 

[BigOrange15]

The problem is they couldn't run block to save their lives either

The were better at run blocking then they were at pass blocking. As they learn and get stronger together, they will improve. Even if they are just average, that will be a significant improvement from early last season and could make this team deadly.

 

[Catbone]

The were better at run blocking then they were at pass blocking. As they learn and get stronger together, they will improve. Even if they are just average, that will be a significant improvement from early last season and could make this team deadly.

Seemed like the majority of the time on runs up the middle got stuffed

 

[Aesius]

Seemed like the majority of the time on runs up the middle got stuffed

Most runs up the middle get stuffed unless you have an elite OL and an elite RB. Gotta call them though even if you know you're only going to get 2-3 yards.

 

[Fingers]

Not an insider, any details on the Vol portion?

16. Tennessee Volunteers
SEC FPR Rank: 6
Overall Score: 77.30
2014 Score: N/A


Welcome back, Tennessee. Butch Jones has created an air of hope in Knoxville. The results -- a 7-6 season that included a TaxSlayer Bowl win over Iowa -- were modest in 2014, but there's enough positivity for the panel to get on board with the Volunteers' rebound in the next two or three seasons.

Highlight: Recruiting

Luginbill: "[Jones'] process and blueprint are second to none. He has a plan and knows how to implement it. Now he has the resources from an administrative standpoint to execute the plan. He's been successful everywhere he's been. Kids want a plan and they want structure, and Butch Jones provides both. Tennessee's facilities are now second to none. From a football operations standpoint, they have the infrastructure needed to achieve and maintain greatness long term."

Lowlight: Title Path

As far as the Vols have climbed, what's next on the road to "back?"

"I want to see the Volunteers close games and beat some of the SEC's upper-echelon teams," Schlabach said. "We know the Vols are good enough to beat Kentucky and Vanderbilt, and they might have South Carolina's number, but they have to figure out a way to beat Alabama, Georgia or Missouri to show me that they've really headed in the right direction. We've heard all about their recruiting successes under Butch Jones the past three seasons, but it's time to start seeing some real results on the field."

 

[Catbone]

16. Tennessee Volunteers
SEC FPR Rank: 6
Overall Score: 77.30
2014 Score: N/A


Welcome back, Tennessee. Butch Jones has created an air of hope in Knoxville. The results -- a 7-6 season that included a TaxSlayer Bowl win over Iowa -- were modest in 2014, but there's enough positivity for the panel to get on board with the Volunteers' rebound in the next two or three seasons.

Highlight: Recruiting

Luginbill: "[Jones'] process and blueprint are second to none. He has a plan and knows how to implement it. Now he has the resources from an administrative standpoint to execute the plan. He's been successful everywhere he's been. Kids want a plan and they want structure, and Butch Jones provides both. Tennessee's facilities are now second to none. From a football operations standpoint, they have the infrastructure needed to achieve and maintain greatness long term."

Lowlight: Title Path

As far as the Vols have climbed, what's next on the road to "back?"

"I want to see the Volunteers close games and beat some of the SEC's upper-echelon teams," Schlabach said. "We know the Vols are good enough to beat Kentucky and Vanderbilt, and they might have South Carolina's number, but they have to figure out a way to beat Alabama, Georgia or Missouri to show me that they've really headed in the right direction. We've heard all about their recruiting successes under Butch Jones the past three seasons, but it's time to start seeing some real results on the field."

That's a fair assessment. Put up or stfu time

 

[Wickman]

That's a fair assessment. Put up or stfu time

9 this year, title next year

 

[Catbone]

9 this year, title next year

I'd creme fraiche

 

[Aesius]

The 2016 roster sets up to be ridiculously strong. 2017 could be even better depending on how many guys we lose to the draft. If we only lose a few, like Barnett and Kelly, we'll be fine heading into the next season. My concern (although it would indicate a spectacular next two years) is that we experience an LSU situation with a mass exodus of juniors and basically all the top contributors from the 2014 class leave.

 

[UT = Checkmate]

The 2016 roster sets up to be ridiculously strong. 2017 could be even better depending on how many guys we lose to the draft. If we only lose a few, like Barnett and Kelly, we'll be fine heading into the next season. My concern (although it would indicate a spectacular next two years) is that we experience an LSU situation with a mass exodus of juniors and basically all the top contributors from the 2014 class leave.

I think the scenario of a lot of guys leaving from the 2014 class is a possibility. Which is why the 2017 class is very important.

 

[Aesius]

I think the scenario of a lot of guys leaving from the 2014 class is a possibility. Which is why the 2017 class is very important.

Yep. At that point we will officially have the hand-wringing dilemma that Bama experiences every year of replacing All-SEC and All-America players with more top 100 recruits.

 

[engineerVOL]

Yep. At that point we will officially have the hand-wringing dilemma that Bama experiences every year of replacing All-SEC and All-America players with more top 100 recruits.

I could deal with it so long as they leave us with some hardware.