The Official “Regular Posters of the Basketball Forum” Thread

[calban]

It genuinely feels at times like religion where they convince themselves every new coach is the prognosticated lord and savior and to challenge that belief would be blasphemy and all who questions the lord and savior are heathens who must be banished.

Until that savior proves he was a false prophet.

Then it’s on to the next savior and this time, it’s really him!

And this has been going on for 13 years now

I'm not convinced Pruitt is the man yet but I do think he's building his team the SEC way. Strength in the trenches. OL is definitely better and high quality reserves coming. Don't think we've seen this much pressure up front or scoreless quarters on defense in the last decade. Forget the bricks, but keep building.

 

[zjcvols]

Jarrett Guarantano is not a winner. Tough as nails, but he is a bad QB who makes terrible decisions, late decisions, and losing decisions. He' is, and I mean this in the literal sense, a loser. That isn't changing. The sooner Pruitt figures that out, the better.

Lmao his 8-5 record and bowl victory says he is not a loser but real classy comment there.

 

[zjcvols]

The hate that Guarantano has received this year show how sad and creepy this fanbase can be.

 

[bleedingTNorange]

Lmao his 8-5 record and bowl victory says he is not a loser but real classy comment there.

One of the rare times you and I agree...I understand frustration with him and the head scratching moments, but do I think without him on the roster this team is 8-5? Not a chance. So is he less of a loser than Maurer or Shrout?

 

[zjcvols]

One of the rare times you and I agree...I understand frustration with him and the head scratching moments, but do I think without him on the roster this team is 8-5? Not a chance. So is he less of a loser than Maurer or Shrout?

Oh, we don’t make a bowl game and Pruitt goes into year 3 on the hot seat if he doesn’t grind out playing with a fractured hand. That kid might not be super talented and he’s frustrating as hell sometimes, but that decision solidified him (along with the outgoing support his teammates give him) as someone I would want to go to battle with. He’s also a college graduate in three years, so no he’s not a loser.

It feels good to agree with ya BTO lol

 

[IndianapolisVol]

The hate that Guarantano has received this year show how sad and creepy this fanbase can be.

Never thought we’d agree on something

 

[bleedingTNorange]

Oh, we don’t make a bowl game and Pruitt goes into year 3 on the hot seat if he doesn’t grind out playing with a fractured hand. That kid might not be super talented and he’s frustrating as hell sometimes, but that decision solidified him (along with the outgoing support his teammates give him) as someone I would want to go to battle with. He’s also a college graduate in three years, so no he’s not a loser.

It feels good to agree with ya BTO lol

Agree on all fronts...add in how quickly kids today pack it in and I tip my cap to him. Most would’ve left when their HC left, then he gets benched, then he plays reliever off the bench and the whole team is a good teammate and helpful to the younger guys. Could’ve easily stopped playing after the injury and grad transferred, touched it out and has stated he’s coming back, I have a hard time bashing the kid.

 

[zjcvols]

Agree on all fronts...add in how quickly kids today pack it in and I tip my cap to him. Most would’ve left when their HC left, then he gets benched, then he plays reliever off the bench and the whole team is a good teammate and helpful to the younger guys. Could’ve easily stopped playing after the injury and grad transferred, touched it out and has stated he’s coming back, I have a hard time bashing the kid.

Yup. I’d say 95% of kids would have left. He had a fractured hand, easily could have sat out and protected himself for a new team next year, and instead led this team to a bowl win. It’s remarkable. And knowing he could easily lose his job to Bailey and doesn’t care, gonna come back and try it again. Dude is tough as nails as a person.

 

[zjcvols]

Never thought we’d agree on something

See, I’m not all terrible

 

[cardvolfan]

Lots of talk about how we’d beat OU next year as well.

Your average fan is just unable to separate the emotional fan part of their brain from the rational part.

The reality is we are a team that lost to GA st. and BYU that has played better at the end of the season and beat middling SEC teams.

That’s really all you can say.

It’s nice but pump the brakes. Let them actually prove something.

Well put. But don't dare tell them we won't beat Oklahoma. Emotional decisions and rationale just don't equate.

 

[JelloPuddinPup]

Agree on all fronts...add in how quickly kids today pack it in and I tip my cap to him. Most would’ve left when their HC left, then he gets benched, then he plays reliever off the bench and the whole team is a good teammate and helpful to the younger guys. Could’ve easily stopped playing after the injury and grad transferred, touched it out and has stated he’s coming back, I have a hard time bashing the kid.

I have a hard time bashing kids in most any situation but for all the reasons you listed, he has my respect and admiration.

 

[walkenvol]

See, I’m not all terrible

Don’t sell yourself short!

 

[cardvolfan]

I don't consider 2015 that bad. It felt like the natural step forward even though we did have the shoulda-coulda losses against OU and Florida. We went toe to toe with Alabama at Alabama and to me after that it felt like we were almost back.

2016...now that one felt weird. We started 5-0 but it started with the first game were we easily could have lost to App St. And then the Florida game we actually won but the way we did was actually rather frustrating because UF was rolling early and it felt like we were getting run out of Neyland. Then we win at Georgia on a hail mary after giving up a hail mary. Then we lost a TAMU and again it felt weird because it was 2OT but we should have won. Then we play Alabama and get destroyed and that game told me we weren't as good as I thought. And of course the inexcusable losses to SC and Vandy, which at that point sealed Butch's fate IMO.

I'm just amazed at how quickly it fell apart for Butch. I mean the end of 2015 I'm thinking "We're almost there" and halfway through 2016 we actually were going to win the East and it went to crap, and 1 year later he's out after it completely went to crap.

There's been a history of things falling apart quickly for UT head coaches. Same thing for Johnny Majors, as an example.

 

[MoCo_Vol]

Honestly...I'm excited to see what Jarrett can do with the same OC in back to back years. This will be the first time in his entire UT career that he gets the same OC/system.

I think it'll be easier for Chaney to teach him having a full 12 games of footage of Jarrett running the system to film study with, rather than what he (the OC) did with a different QB at their previous stop. I also think Bailey will be legit competition, Maurer & JT get that "backup QB" love our fanbase is so bad to give out. But neither have really done anything to prove they should be starting, Maurer had 1 drive and hit Indiana players on 3 of his passes...

Jarrett & Bailey on the same roster should only help both young men be better.

 

[cncchris33]

Lmao his 8-5 record and bowl victory says he is not a loser but real classy comment there.

First of all, I was clear to say I meant “loser” in the literal sense, not in any inflammatory or derogatory measure. He is a loser in the sense that he just doesn’t make winning plays and he has never led his team to greatness, even going back to high school. You may not find there to be a distinguishable difference in that diction, but it is the same as calling someone ignorant as a means to insult them, and then using the word in its literal meaning, which is to say someone is “uninformed”. Maybe the kind way to say it is to simply say he’s not a winner, but in saying so, aren’t I inherently implying that he is a loser?

Secondly, if you want to carry water for JG, then that is on you. His record as a starter at Tennessee is abysmal, and that goes back to high school days, as well, at a storied Bergen Catholic program.

His numbers, both collegiate and prep, are pedestrian. He threw 19 TDs and 8 INTs as a HS junior and senior, combined, and his team was 15-7 with him as a starting QB. That same team won a state championship two years after he left.

Against our 3 biggest rivals (Florida, Georgia, and Alabama), he is a combined 58-110 (52.7%), 606 yds, 2 TDs, 5 INTs, and 4 lost fumbles. Also, we are 0-8 in those games (he didn’t play vs UF as a rFR).

Last night alone, he was late on the majority of his throws, as he typically is, and he was incessantly critiqued by a former NFL QB (Tim Hasselback) for that trait during the broadcast. He had 2 INTs (one a pick 6), and should have had 2 additional.

He isn’t awful, but the reason he is beaten on so hard, is that he hasn’t shown hardly any improvement in the areas of concern in two years; mainly accuracy, timing, and field awareness. He takes decent care of the football, but he just doesn’t have a high football IQ, and he doesn’t make winning plays because his anticipation is almost non-existent. And when the field shrinks, his negative traits are even more greatly magnified, exhibited by our 6 points in 3 red zone trips in the first half. Without looking, I wouldn’t be surprised if he failed to complete a single pass inside the red zone, last night. So, pump the sunshine all you want about his bowl victory, but we won in spite of his play, not because of it.

 

[zjcvols]

First of all, I was clear to say I meant “loser” in the literal sense, not in any inflammatory or derogatory measure. He is a loser in the sense that he just doesn’t make winning plays and he has never led his team to greatness, even going back to high school. You may not find there to be a distinguishable difference in that diction, but it is the same as calling someone ignorant as a means to insult them, and then using the word in its literal meaning, which is to say someone is “uninformed”. Maybe the kind way to say it is to simply say he’s not a winner, but in saying so, aren’t I inherently implying that he is a loser?

Secondly, if you want to carry water for JG, then that is on you. His record as a starter at Tennessee is abysmal, and that goes back to high school days, as well, at a storied Bergen Catholic program.

His numbers, both collegiate and prep, are pedestrian. He threw 19 TDs and 8 INTs as a HS junior and senior, combined, and his team was 15-7 with him as a starting QB. That same team won a state championship two years after he left.

Against our 3 biggest rivals (Florida, Georgia, and Alabama), he is a combined 58-110 (52.7%), 606 yds, 2 TDs, 5 INTs, and 4 lost fumbles. Also, we are 0-8 in those games (he didn’t play vs UF as a rFR).

Last night alone, he was late on the majority of his throws, as he typically is, and he was incessantly critiqued by a former NFL QB (Tim Hasselback) for that trait during the broadcast. He had 2 INTs (one a pick 6), and should have had 2 additional.

He isn’t awful, but the reason he is beaten on so hard, is that he hasn’t shown hardly any improvement in the areas of concern in two years; mainly accuracy, timing, and field awareness. He takes decent care of the football, but he just doesn’t have a high football IQ, and he doesn’t make winning plays because his anticipation is almost non-existent. And when the field shrinks, his negative traits are even more greatly magnified, exhibited by our 6 points in 3 red zone trips in the first half. Without looking, I wouldn’t be surprised if he failed to complete a single pass inside the red zone, last night. So, pump the sunshine all you want about his bowl victory, but we won in spite of his play, not because of it.

Don’t try and hide behind “definitions”. You used that word for a reason. And meant it. You could have chosen a plethora of other words but choose loser for a reason.

And he does make winning plays. Did I imagine the Kentucky and Missouri wins? The Auburn game in 2018? He also led Tennessee down to two scoring TD’s when they needed him last night, even with his previous struggles. Is that a loser? Last I checked he was the main QB for an 8-5 team, that’s not the definition of a loser. You mention his 15-7 high school record, is that a losing record? Or are you bad at math?

JG is inconsistent. He struggles. He’s an average FBS QB. I’m not going to sit here and act like he’s better than that (though he finished 4th in SEC passer rating and was higher than Jake Fromm, whose “winning intangibles” get praised all the time). But if he also had packed up like every person here would have and saved Jeremy Pruitt, because if he had left that would have a been a 3-9 season or if he had shut down after the hand injury a 5-7 season. Oh he’s also a college graduate and never been in trouble at UT and has done everything asked of him, but yeah he’s a loser.

 

[cncchris33]

One of the rare times you and I agree...I understand frustration with him and the head scratching moments, but do I think without him on the roster this team is 8-5? Not a chance. So is he less of a loser than Maurer or Shrout?

1. Maurer and Shrout were freshmen with zero playing experience. JG is a redshirt junior.

2. I never suggested Maurer or Shrout were better players. The two arguments aren’t mutually exclusive. Maurer and Shrout can both be worse options, and JG still not be a good one.

3. I have no doubt we likely don’t finish 8-5 without him. I admire the kid for sticking thru the hard times, I really do. I just don’t think he is a winner. That could change next year, but he loses his top 2 WRs and starting TE, and they bailed him out of a lot of bad throws in their careers. Do I think JG suddenly gets smarter as a rSR with less talent at the WR position? I wouldn’t bet on it.

 

[zjcvols]

This isn’t directed at Chris because he’s not one to act like but the amount of fans that get triggered by JG is borderline creepy and makes me wonder why outside of football reasons. I get it, he’s not great but Justin Worley was worse than JG and the amount of hate he has received is downright weird.

 

[cncchris33]

Don’t try and hide behind “definitions”. You used that word for a reason. And meant it. You could have chosen a plethora of other words but choose loser for a reason.

And he does make winning plays. Did I imagine the Kentucky and Missouri wins? The Auburn game in 2018? He also led Tennessee down to two scoring TD’s when they needed him last night, even with his previous struggles. Is that a loser? Last I checked he was the main QB for an 8-5 team, that’s not the definition of a loser. You mention his 15-7 high school record, is that a losing record? Or are you bad at math?

JG is inconsistent. He struggles. He’s an average FBS QB. I’m not going to sit here and act like he’s better than that (though he finished 4th in SEC passer rating and was higher than Jake Fromm, whose “winning intangibles” get praised all the time). But if he also had packed up like every person here would have and saved Jeremy Pruitt, because if he had left that would have a been a 3-9 season or if he had shut down after the hand injury a 5-7 season. Oh he’s also a college graduate and never been in trouble at UT and has done everything asked of him, but yeah he’s a loser.

I’m not hiding behind anything. I stand behind every word of it. Sorry if you see the word “loser” and it takes you straight to the same place you’d be if I called him the n-word.

I clearly defined what I meant by the term. Either choose to take my word on what I meant, or don’t. I don’t care. I have been around here long enough, and you know it, to have earned a reputation as a straight shooter. I don’t fire off in the heat of the moment and make inflammatory and/or personal comments about players or coaches. I don’t and never have called Fulmer, “FatPhil”, or Tyndall, “Butterball”, or take any other unwarranted shots. And I’m not calling Guarantano a “loser” in that manner either. My comment was strictly chosen for what he does on the football field. We have had plenty of players who were losers on the field. A lot of them were probably great guys, college grads, and never were in trouble off the field.

I don’t need a math lesson, either. 15-7 at a program like Bergen Catholic would be akin to Trevor Lawrence going 15-7 at Clemson, or Joe Burrow going 15-7 at LSU. Is going 8-5 at Tennessee suddenly considered banner-worthy?

I’d love for JG to turn it all around and make me eat my words. Believe it or not, I want him to be a winner on the field. And while, yes, technically, 8-5 is “winning”, much of that winning, last night included, came in spite of his play, not because of it, and I don’t believe either of us aspire for Tennessee to be an 8-5 program, annually. This isn’t Kentucky football.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Basilio has been on an endless campaign to run off Guarantano. Half of his sheep callers think they're cute calling him Gitmo and more than half have joined the campaign to run him out of Knoxville before next fall.

All of those knuckle draggers think they know better, than the coaching staff that studies hundreds of hours of practice video of TN's QBs, which one should be taking snaps.

Great point made above... is it 4 OCs in 4 years? Plus is this the first season that the OL didn't let him get hit on the majority of plays all year? And... a broken wrist resulted in how much missed practice and disrupted timing even on simply hand offs?

It's highly unlikely that Santiago Vescovi can carry TN to the 2020 NCAAT and the true freshman Bailey will be able to run the offense better than the 5th year senior "Gitmo". But hating is how we roll, Aight?

Butch Derangement Syndrom is real. JG is a Butch recruit.

I kind of hope that he does grad transfer. Not because I think that TN is a better team without him. He doesn't deserve the crap that he's been taking from the dumb faction of the fan base and it will only get worse with the freshman in the wings.

 

[omghulkhands]

This isn’t directed at Chris because he’s not one to act like but the amount of fans that get triggered by JG is borderline creepy and makes me wonder why outside of football reasons. I get it, he’s not great but Justin Worley was worse than JG and the amount of hate he has received is downright weird.

I’m gonna get heat for this but I don’t care.

Justin Worley was white.

 

[bleedingTNorange]

1. Maurer and Shrout were freshmen with zero playing experience. JG is a redshirt junior.

2. I never suggested Maurer or Shrout were better players. The two arguments aren’t mutually exclusive. Maurer and Shrout can both be worse options, and JG still not be a good one.

3. I have no doubt we likely don’t finish 8-5 without him. I admire the kid for sticking thru the hard times, I really do. I just don’t think he is a winner. That could change next year, but he loses his top 2 WRs and starting TE, and they bailed him out of a lot of bad throws in their careers. Do I think JG suddenly gets smarter as a rSR with less talent at the WR position? I wouldn’t bet on it.

So do you consider Maude & Shrout losers?? Imo if you are winning games then you aren’t a loser, nobody is claiming him to be elite, but I definitely don’t think “loser” is accurate.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I’m not hiding behind anything. I stand behind every word of it. Sorry if you see the word “loser” and it takes you straight to the same place you’d be if I called him the n-word.

I clearly defined what I meant by the term. Either choose to take my word on what I meant, or don’t. I don’t care. I have been around here long enough, and you know it, to have earned a reputation as a straight shooter. I don’t fire off in the heat of the moment and make inflammatory and/or personal comments about players or coaches. I don’t and never have called Fulmer, “FatPhil”, or Tyndall, “Butterball”, or take any other unwarranted shots. And I’m not calling Guarantano a “loser” in that manner either. My comment was strictly chosen for what he does on the football field. We have had plenty of players who were losers on the field. A lot of them were probably great guys, college grads, and never were in trouble off the field.

I don’t need a math lesson, either. 15-7 at a program like Bergen Catholic would be akin to Trevor Lawrence going 15-7 at Clemson, or Joe Burrow going 15-7 at LSU. Is going 8-5 at Tennessee suddenly considered banner-worthy?

I’d love for JG to turn it all around and make me eat my words. Believe it or not, I want him to be a winner on the field. And while, yes, technically, 8-5 is “winning”, much of that winning, last night included, came in spite of his play, not because of it, and I don’t believe either of us aspire for Tennessee to be an 8-5 program, annually. This isn’t Kentucky football.

I don't think that anybody has called Donnie "Butterball", but "ButterBean" earned every bit of ridicule thrown in his direction. He's the biggest cheater that TN has ever had running the football and basketball programs. I'm not a huge fan of Cuonzo, but it's comical that "Bama Dave" ran him off and hired that "Loser" to take over our program.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I’m gonna get heat for this but I don’t care.

Justin Worley was white.

As you should. Some of TN's most loved QBs weren't crackers. Condredge, Jimmy, Tee, Tony (the GOAT), and Josh especially. Jerry could have been had he not had a career ending injury in his first start.

 

[cncchris33]

I’m gonna get heat for this but I don’t care.

Justin Worley was white.

Ehh, it had crossed my mind, too. I think the main issue has more to do with recency bias, than anything.