Three Years Ago

[jsc1973]

I was glad they got him because I knew what he'd done at Mizzou with their offense, and that when he had the 6-4 season at UCF, he'd done it with several starters out because of COVID. I figured if he could get a winning season out of a mess like that, maybe he could navigate what Pruitt had done to us.

And because he was White's guy, he'd get the time he needed to rebuild the program. But I never expected them to be that competitive right out of the gate. I told a friend midway through the season, when talking about the coaching staff, that for the first time in a very long time, Tennessee football was not at a schematic disadvantage every time it took the field.

There is still a ways to go to get back where we want to be, but the program is in a very good place right now.

 

[OrangeInKy]

Heupel is a HUGE improvement over what we've otherwise had since Fulmer. We need to give him time and let him build. He's a good coach, and continuity and patience usually pay dividends with a good coach.

I kinda thought we were doing all those things

 

[Volfan1000]

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We struck gold with Heupel and White.

Boyd and Plowman both were very cagey when they hired White away from Central Florida and nobody had a damn clue about the athletic director search at that time.

 

[tennesseeduke]

He’s been a solid hire and pleasant surprise. I have to admit I was less than enthusiastic when he was announced as our coach I wanted James Franklin but I’m glad we got Heupel now.

If you wanted James Franklin then you are never allowed to be part of the process of hiring a coach!

 

[unfrozencvmanvol]

I kinda thought we were doing all those things

I've seen not a few people on here who were disgruntled about going 8-4, and saying he had to meet win quotas next year. The bowl and Nico quieted most of it, but they'll be back after the first loss next year.

 

[tennesseeduke]

We hired the right guy at the right time. Cudo's to Danny and the UT administration for turning the $h!t show around at UT. JH has performed miracles to levels that most will never understand with what he was left with. Danny White has made the UT athletic dept a top 5 in every sport we have in a very short period of time. Great things on the horizon!

 

[The_topis_Rocky89]

I do just want to throw out there that Milton was not as bad as he is labeled. I truly believe we led the nation in drops last year. Keayton alone dropped at least 6 touchdowns.

 

[njvols]

SEC title? National Title? Beating Georgia? Here’s hoping

Definitely hoping we continue our progress. I do think that w/ Saban leaving, TX/OK coming in to SEC, and the changing of schedules where literally everyone, especially the top half of the conference now have at least 2 really tough SEC games will level the playing field, where it's been really UT and Auburn, who EVERY year had two probable losses coming at them w/ very little margin for error in balance of games. If our D continues to improve, and we get our offense back close to where we were with Hooker, we'll be in the top 4ish range in SEC...and once you're in that threshold, anything can happen.

 

[OffTackleVol]

We hired the right guy at the right time. Cudo's to Danny and the UT administration for turning the $h!t show around at UT. JH has performed miracles to levels that most will never understand with what he was left with. Danny White has made the UT athletic dept a top 5 in every sport we have in a very short period of time. Great things on the horizon!

Coach is a pretty damn good fiddle player as well. Google Jimmy Wayne sings Sara Smile Live from Daryl's House.

 

[Vols1891]

Really last year's Orange Bowl was the first major bowl since the 2001 Cotton Bowl against Kansas State. The Peach Bowl was a mid tier bowl in 2004 and there was no such thing as NY6 then.

We were also in the Peach Bowl the Kiffin season.

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

I predict Josh will be successful because he comes on this site and reads all of our comments/suggestions and then makes the necessary changes. Much of the credit goes to Volnations Keyboard coaches.

It is surprising how well you type after the orderlies take that straight jacket off.

 

[#1HomeGrownUTVOL]

Still my favorite Birthday present I’ve ever received!

 

[VOLINVONORE]

I kinda thought we were doing all those things

Most are, but you always have the trolls.

 

[Prayivm3rcy]

I’ll go on record stating that I absolutely loved the higher. The three guys I had in mine were Hugh freeze, Lane Kiffin, and Josh Heupel.

Admittedly, I didn’t know where Josh Heupel was coaching at that time or who Danny White even was. The moment Danny White was an announced I researched him to get his credentials etc and realized Heupel was his coach at UCF. So I knew at that time he would be the odds on favorite to become our new coach. I know a lot of our fans were saying the program had regressed since Scott Frost left. My favorable opinion of Heupel had nothing to do with the stent at UCF. It was I remembered back to Missouri coming to neyland stadium and hanging like 60 on us. I remember the high flying offense and Drew Locke becoming an NFL draft pick. Back when that happened, I of course remember Heupel from his playing days and was so impressed with the efficiency, creativity, and fluidity of the Missouri offense.

At that point I really felt that Josh Heupel was in the same class with a Lincoln Riley, or Lane Kiffin at offensive scheming. It was about five years after that season when Danny white took the job and I knew we had a dynamic offensive coach available. Like many others… I worried about his ability to run a SEC program and recruit at the highest level. But kiffin and freeze would’ve come with question marks as well. So I was just hoping and praying for any of those 3.

When your roster is subpar to all your main rivals… You can’t beat them at their game. You have to win big before you are going to be able to compete with them for elite recruits. That means you have to be able to win with subpar talent. The only way you can do that is by having a really dynamic offensive scheme. So that is the only type of coach that was going to be able to get us over the hump.

All that being said, Heupel hasn’t been perfect here. His inability to recognize that Milton wasn’t a good player has drastically minimized what the football world thinks of him as a coach. Just that one misevaluation essentially set the program back a step. But that chapter is now over with and we obviously have a freakishly talented qb (experienced in the system) for at least the next 2 seasons. Also, elite QBs are lining up to try to win the job after Nico.

If ever there was an off-season we could allow our expectations to run wild… This is that off-season. My hopes are higher at this moment than they have been in the past 10+ seasons.

To be fair a lot of elite programs have got the QB position wrong it's just that Heupel has had very little room for error. Still building the rest of the roster to overcome deficiencies at that position.

 

[LadyVolette]

We struck gold with Heupel and White.

Boyd and Plowman both were very cagey when they hired White away from Central Florida and nobody had a damn clue about the athletic director search at that time.

They were kinda sneaky snakes , but that’s okay, we forgive them

 

[chattavol420]

To be fair a lot of elite programs have got the QB position wrong it's just that Heupel has had very little room for error. Still building the rest of the roster to overcome deficiencies at that position.

Well said. And agree 1000%. Heupel has done more with less and I truly believe is one of the top 5–10 coaches in CFB. I think analyzing a quarterback prospects is the hardest position by a longshot. Their size and strength is all you can really assess. These coaches pour so much time and effort into coaching them up but ultimately you don’t know what they are until they are under the bright lives and bodies are flying around 1 million mph… It’s all about their mental capacity to manage tons of data at the same time.