The Morning After – Sober Reflections Week 8

[UTFranklinVol]

My first thought: I took a day off from writing this because yesterday was just too early to talk about it. In what was maybe the biggest meltdown I’ve ever seen at a Tennessee game we played a near-perfect first half followed by Alabama scoring 27 unanswered points and Tennessee couldn’t break the streak of 20 years of losing in Tuscaloosa. It was for the most part a tale of two halves and so that’s how I’m going to break this down this week.

First half:

1. For the first time since week 1 Tennessee dominated in all phases of the game.

2. Joe Milton finally played up to his potential and was rocket hot to start the game. He hit on his first 9 passes and had 175 passing yards and 59 rushing yards. It was a truly commendable effort and Milton was showing respect for the gravity of the game.

3. The defense was smothering. Three sacks and big redzone defense including an interception in the endzone. Sacks. Interceptions. Fumbles. This half had it all. Alabama had few offensive yards and just 7 points at the half.

Second half:

1. Anything that could have gone wrong went wrong. Miscues on special teams put us deep in a hole early in the second half.

2. Big defensive failures led to Bama regaining all the momentum in the second half.

3. The offense looked clueless. Tennessee’s first drive featured three straight run plays totaling 8 yards. The OL which struggled all game to get the running game going allowed Milton to be sacked twice including a devastating fumble returned for a TD.

4. Milton’s passing fell off slightly in the second half but not surprising given Bama’s defensive pressure and the lack of a running game.

Final thoughts:

1. Milton was not the problem this time. He had one of his most complete games passing, rushing the ball and putting his shoulder into it and one of his highest QBRs of the season.

2. Josh Heupel needs to learn to read the room. I dig the offensive aggressiveness but you can’t keep going for it on 4th down when it’s not working. The team was put in some VERY bad situations due to poor play calling and execution but mostly play calling.

3. We got outcoached completely in the second half. People want to cry about the refs but the same exact refs were there in the first half when we dominated the hell out of the Tide. The same exact players were there in the first half when we dominated the hell out of the Tide. The difference was coaching and not keeping your players focused on not letting up. The Vols thought they had the game won at halftime and completely went limp in the second half. Not explainable other than poor coaching effort.

4. Without proper coaching we are in big trouble on the road in the SEC. A night game in Lexington is next. All I hear is “UT is a better team than UK, settle down we aren’t losing to UK” but UK wont be the reason we lose, if we lose. It will be UT’s fault for not being properly prepared for road games and the crowd being against them and big momentum shifts. And Mizzou will be just as tough. As I said last week this would be a tale of 2 seasons. The first half of the year was a complete cake walk filled with lots of home games and sub-par competition (Yes Florida sucks and so does TAMU and USC). Without some major fire being lit under this team they are in for a beating the rest of the way. Hopefully we get out sh!t together and win all the rest of our games.

 

[Oldvoldad]

My first thought: I took a day off from writing this because yesterday was just too early to talk about it. In what was maybe the biggest meltdown I’ve ever seen at a Tennessee game we played a near-perfect first half followed by Alabama scoring 27 unanswered points and Tennessee couldn’t break the streak of 20 years of losing in Tuscaloosa. It was for the most part a tale of two halves and so that’s how I’m going to break this down this week.

First half:

1. For the first time since week 1 Tennessee dominated in all phases of the game.

2. Joe Milton finally played up to his potential and was rocket hot to start the game. He hit on his first 9 passes and had 175 passing yards and 59 rushing yards. It was a truly commendable effort and Milton was showing respect for the gravity of the game.

3. The defense was smothering. Three sacks and big redzone defense including an interception in the endzone. Sacks. Interceptions. Fumbles. This half had it all. Alabama had few offensive yards and just 7 points at the half.

Second half:

1. Anything that could have gone wrong went wrong. Miscues on special teams put us deep in a hole early in the second half.

2. Big defensive failures led to Bama regaining all the momentum in the second half.

3. The offense looked clueless. Tennessee’s first drive featured three straight run plays totaling 8 yards. The OL which struggled all game to get the running game going allowed Milton to be sacked twice including a devastating fumble returned for a TD.

4. Milton’s passing fell off slightly in the second half but not surprising given Bama’s defensive pressure and the lack of a running game.

Final thoughts:

1. Milton was not the problem this time. He had one of his most complete games passing, rushing the ball and putting his shoulder into it and one of his highest QBRs of the season.

2. Josh Heupel needs to learn to read the room. I dig the offensive aggressiveness but you can’t keep going for it on 4th down when it’s not working. The team was put in some VERY bad situations due to poor play calling and execution but mostly play calling.

3. We got outcoached completely in the second half. People want to cry about the refs but the same exact refs were there in the first half when we dominated the hell out of the Tide. The same exact players were there in the first half when we dominated the hell out of the Tide. The difference was coaching and not keeping your players focused on not letting up. The Vols thought they had the game won at halftime and completely went limp in the second half. Not explainable other than poor coaching effort.

4. Without proper coaching we are in big trouble on the road in the SEC. A night game in Lexington is next. All I hear is “UT is a better team than UK, settle down we aren’t losing to UK” but UK wont be the reason we lose, if we lose. It will be UT’s fault for not being properly prepared for road games and the crowd being against them and big momentum shifts. And Mizzou will be just as tough. As I said last week this would be a tale of 2 seasons. The first half of the year was a complete cake walk filled with lots of home games and sub-par competition (Yes Florida sucks and so does TAMU and USC). Without some major fire being lit under this team they are in for a beating the rest of the way. Hopefully we get out sh!t together and win all the rest of our games.

I believe you are still drunk. Milton was, is and will be the problem. We had missed TD's in the first half and had to settle for field goals. The coaches don't trust him is why we are running the ball three times in a row. With an average QB, this offense is back to scoring 35 plus a game. Of course, the decision to keep playing him is all on Hype. Along with going for it on fourth down. Just Dumb.

 

[bigorangekicksazz]

My first thought: I took a day off from writing this because yesterday was just too early to talk about it. In what was maybe the biggest meltdown I’ve ever seen at a Tennessee game we played a near-perfect first half followed by Alabama scoring 27 unanswered points and Tennessee couldn’t break the streak of 20 years of losing in Tuscaloosa. It was for the most part a tale of two halves and so that’s how I’m going to break this down this week.

First half:

1. For the first time since week 1 Tennessee dominated in all phases of the game.

2. Joe Milton finally played up to his potential and was rocket hot to start the game. He hit on his first 9 passes and had 175 passing yards and 59 rushing yards. It was a truly commendable effort and Milton was showing respect for the gravity of the game.

3. The defense was smothering. Three sacks and big redzone defense including an interception in the endzone. Sacks. Interceptions. Fumbles. This half had it all. Alabama had few offensive yards and just 7 points at the half.

Second half:

1. Anything that could have gone wrong went wrong. Miscues on special teams put us deep in a hole early in the second half.

2. Big defensive failures led to Bama regaining all the momentum in the second half.

3. The offense looked clueless. Tennessee’s first drive featured three straight run plays totaling 8 yards. The OL which struggled all game to get the running game going allowed Milton to be sacked twice including a devastating fumble returned for a TD.

4. Milton’s passing fell off slightly in the second half but not surprising given Bama’s defensive pressure and the lack of a running game.

Final thoughts:

1. Milton was not the problem this time. He had one of his most complete games passing, rushing the ball and putting his shoulder into it and one of his highest QBRs of the season.

2. Josh Heupel needs to learn to read the room. I dig the offensive aggressiveness but you can’t keep going for it on 4th down when it’s not working. The team was put in some VERY bad situations due to poor play calling and execution but mostly play calling.

3. We got outcoached completely in the second half. People want to cry about the refs but the same exact refs were there in the first half when we dominated the hell out of the Tide. The same exact players were there in the first half when we dominated the hell out of the Tide. The difference was coaching and not keeping your players focused on not letting up. The Vols thought they had the game won at halftime and completely went limp in the second half. Not explainable other than poor coaching effort.

4. Without proper coaching we are in big trouble on the road in the SEC. A night game in Lexington is next. All I hear is “UT is a better team than UK, settle down we aren’t losing to UK” but UK wont be the reason we lose, if we lose. It will be UT’s fault for not being properly prepared for road games and the crowd being against them and big momentum shifts. And Mizzou will be just as tough. As I said last week this would be a tale of 2 seasons. The first half of the year was a complete cake walk filled with lots of home games and sub-par competition (Yes Florida sucks and so does TAMU and USC). Without some major fire being lit under this team they are in for a beating the rest of the way. Hopefully we get out sh!t together and win all the rest of our games.

I don’t mind the going on 4th down, the problem is why we do so with QB in the gun. Line up under center and have two people push him. He is freakin 6”4…

 

[cyclevol]

I don’t mind the going on 4th down, the problem is why we do so with QB in the gun. Line up under center and have two people push him. He is freakin 6”4…

What pissed me off was that Bama's back ran into the middle and bounced it outside for a TD after our back on the same play on 4th down just ran into the pile when he could have bounced it outside.

 

[b_gann]

What pissed me off was that Bama's back ran into the middle and bounced it outside for a TD after our back on the same play on 4th down just ran into the pile when he could have bounced it outside.

It's easy to say it from the couch but I felt like Jabari Small left a lot of yards on the field by not seeing the cut lane.

 

[BernardKingGOAT]

I believe you are still drunk. Milton was, is and will be the problem. We had missed TD's in the first half and had to settle for field goals. The coaches don't trust him is why we are running the ball three times in a row. With an average QB, this offense is back to scoring 35 plus a game. Of course, the decision to keep playing him is all on Hype. Along with going for it on fourth down. Just Dumb.

Dumber post

 

[UTFranklinVol]

I believe you are still drunk. Milton was, is and will be the problem. We had missed TD's in the first half and had to settle for field goals. The coaches don't trust him is why we are running the ball three times in a row. With an average QB, this offense is back to scoring 35 plus a game. Of course, the decision to keep playing him is all on Hype. Along with going for it on fourth down. Just Dumb.

Milton had not played up to expectations but Saturday he was arguably the best player on the field (both sides). He is not the reason we lost the game, not even close. Other weeks you can make a good argument but not Saturday.

 

[jimed1]

I think going on 4th and being stopped energizes the other team and puts undue pressure on the defense. Obviously there are times where you have no choice but twice Saturday it was not the best decision and I thought that before the play was run, not after the failed attempt. Better to punt or take 3.

 

[UTFranklinVol]

I don’t mind the going on 4th down, the problem is why we do so with QB in the gun. Line up under center and have two people push him. He is freakin 6”4…

Going for it on 4th down on your side of the field when you hold a lead on the road in the SEC is playing with fire IMO. It's not like Bama's offense was doing anything special. We pin them down deep and they go 3 and out while wasting clock time and we hold our lead for longer. Aggressive play calling is nice but there is such a thing as too much for the situation at hand.

 

[aRmo]

3. The offense looked clueless. Tennessee’s first drive featured three straight run plays totaling 8 yards. The OL which struggled all game to get the running game going allowed Milton to be sacked twice including a devastating fumble returned for a TD.

This is the only thing i think that Joe can improve on. It was his fault, he waited to long. He had two WRs in the same area. Usually that means a WR ran the wrong route. If that happens he needs to toss it in the stands and live to play another down. That awareness is one of the things Joe hasnt improved on. He waits and hopes he can make a play when there is not play to be made.

 

[jimed1]

It's easy to say it from the couch but I felt like Jabari Small left a lot of yards on the field by not seeing the cut lane.

There was one series that I thought Small should not have been in the game. He's fine if he has a hole but not the best choice in this game where Wyatt (stronger) and Sampson (more elusive).

 

[UT Hill Man]

My first thought: I took a day off from writing this because yesterday was just too early to talk about it. In what was maybe the biggest meltdown I’ve ever seen at a Tennessee game we played a near-perfect first half followed by Alabama scoring 27 unanswered points and Tennessee couldn’t break the streak of 20 years of losing in Tuscaloosa. It was for the most part a tale of two halves and so that’s how I’m going to break this down this week.

First half:

1. For the first time since week 1 Tennessee dominated in all phases of the game.

2. Joe Milton finally played up to his potential and was rocket hot to start the game. He hit on his first 9 passes and had 175 passing yards and 59 rushing yards. It was a truly commendable effort and Milton was showing respect for the gravity of the game.

I agree with most everything you say UTF and I'll just add that after the sparkling 1st half by Milton, CJH coached scared. Our first series of the 2nd half set the tone for the rest of the game. We were pinned deep after they cut it to six but Milton was not given a chance to make a play, as there were 3 straight handoffs.

It's as if the only halftime adjustment made was to get away from what worked in the first half.

 

[UTFranklinVol]

I agree with most everything you say UTF and I'll just add that after the sparkling 1st half by Milton, CJH coached scared. Our first series of the 2nd half set the tone for the rest of the game. We were pinned deep after they cut it to six but Milton was not given a chance to make a play, as there were 3 straight handoffs.

It's as if the only halftime adjustment made was to get away from what worked in the first half.

I think instead of making adjustments they just decided to ride it out and keep the same game plan while Bama figured out how to defeat that game plan and play better. Once we started to get punched in the mouth we were dazed and confused and it was too late.

Having a half time really killed us in this game. Wish they could have just played 60 straight minutes.

 

[PEPPERJAX]

My first thought: I took a day off from writing this because yesterday was just too early to talk about it. In what was maybe the biggest meltdown I’ve ever seen at a Tennessee game we played a near-perfect first half followed by Alabama scoring 27 unanswered points and Tennessee couldn’t break the streak of 20 years of losing in Tuscaloosa. It was for the most part a tale of two halves and so that’s how I’m going to break this down this week.

First half:

1. For the first time since week 1 Tennessee dominated in all phases of the game.

2. Joe Milton finally played up to his potential and was rocket hot to start the game. He hit on his first 9 passes and had 175 passing yards and 59 rushing yards. It was a truly commendable effort and Milton was showing respect for the gravity of the game.

3. The defense was smothering. Three sacks and big redzone defense including an interception in the endzone. Sacks. Interceptions. Fumbles. This half had it all. Alabama had few offensive yards and just 7 points at the half.

Second half:

1. Anything that could have gone wrong went wrong. Miscues on special teams put us deep in a hole early in the second half.

2. Big defensive failures led to Bama regaining all the momentum in the second half.

3. The offense looked clueless. Tennessee’s first drive featured three straight run plays totaling 8 yards. The OL which struggled all game to get the running game going allowed Milton to be sacked twice including a devastating fumble returned for a TD.

4. Milton’s passing fell off slightly in the second half but not surprising given Bama’s defensive pressure and the lack of a running game.

Final thoughts:

1. Milton was not the problem this time. He had one of his most complete games passing, rushing the ball and putting his shoulder into it and one of his highest QBRs of the season.

2. Josh Heupel needs to learn to read the room. I dig the offensive aggressiveness but you can’t keep going for it on 4th down when it’s not working. The team was put in some VERY bad situations due to poor play calling and execution but mostly play calling.

3. We got outcoached completely in the second half. People want to cry about the refs but the same exact refs were there in the first half when we dominated the hell out of the Tide. The same exact players were there in the first half when we dominated the hell out of the Tide. The difference was coaching and not keeping your players focused on not letting up. The Vols thought they had the game won at halftime and completely went limp in the second half. Not explainable other than poor coaching effort.

4. Without proper coaching we are in big trouble on the road in the SEC. A night game in Lexington is next. All I hear is “UT is a better team than UK, settle down we aren’t losing to UK” but UK wont be the reason we lose, if we lose. It will be UT’s fault for not being properly prepared for road games and the crowd being against them and big momentum shifts. And Mizzou will be just as tough. As I said last week this would be a tale of 2 seasons. The first half of the year was a complete cake walk filled with lots of home games and sub-par competition (Yes Florida sucks and so does TAMU and USC). Without some major fire being lit under this team they are in for a beating the rest of the way. Hopefully we get out sh!t together and win all the rest of our games.

It is probably time to have drunk reflections.

 

[UTFranklinVol]

I don’t mind the going on 4th down, the problem is why we do so with QB in the gun. Line up under center and have two people push him. He is freakin 6”4…

If it's 4th and less than 1 then I agree Joe should sneak it every time he's so big. But some of these were not that close and questionable that we should have even attempted them.