Vols @ Bammer

#2
#2
I feel fine because people have said it all year about this team. Look how gunshy we have gotten about a late season collapse! I really think past history is driving your fears.

The "experts" said Ole Miss might get us b/c we were looking forward to UK. They also said we couldn't win @ UK. They also said UF would get us on our own court. Who predicted a blowout win @ TX?

We have lost @LSU and @Mem. There are not too many teams that could win those games back-to-back. bammer is no LSU or Memphis.

We are this good, you just need to relax and enjoy. Drink the kool-aid because it's good for you.
 
#3
#3
The only advantage Alabama has is in the post. I would even go as far as to say that their posts are not all that great. We have seen many better players this year and still won games. Not only that, but the posts are not going to make the difference in a track meet. To me, that will be the key...
 
#4
#4
(utvolpj @ Feb 17 said:
I feel fine because people have said it all year about this team. Look how gunshy we have gotten about a late season collapse! I really think past history is driving your fears.

The "experts" said Ole Miss might get us b/c we were looking forward to UK. They also said we couldn't win @ UK. They also said UF would get us on our own court. Who predicted a blowout win @ TX?

We have lost @LSU and @Mem. There are not too many teams that could win those games back-to-back. bammer is no LSU or Memphis.

We are this good, you just need to relax and enjoy. Drink the kool-aid because it's good for you.
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Very reassuring PJ, well done! My head says you are spot on and not to worry.
My gut is singing a different tune, and I really haven't felt this way since we started the big push.... but that could just be last night's Mexican food!

Still prefer sweetened ice tea to KoolAid, but I do have a tall glass of "Simply Orange" every morning! :D
 
#5
#5
(orange+white=heaven @ Feb 17 said:
JP Sports 4pm Eastern...

affiliates listing..
http://jpsports.com/index.php?s=&url_chann...hange_well_id=2

I've got a funny(not good) feeling about this game, with Florida on the horizon.
Somebody make some points that will alleviate my fears....
GO VOLS!! BEAT BAMA!!!
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I'm like you on this.........looking for reasons why it will continue, when everything tells you about TN bball that we'll falter.

But, and this is a big one, this team, this year, has gone against everthing i ever expected from a TN bball team. Normally when we'd go in a funk, we haven't. Normally when another good team would go on run, we'd fold, we haven't. Normally, whenver we stepped on an opponents home court, we got ran out of the building, this year we're running THEM out of the building.

So far this year, they have given us no reason to think that this can't continue.

It's only past bball flops that have VN wondering.....keep you head up and like they said earilier....get a cool glass of Orange Kool Aid.....and Beat Bama. :aggressive:
 
#6
#6
(orange+white=heaven @ Feb 17 said:
Still prefer sweetened ice tea to KoolAid, but I do have a tall glass of "Simply Orange" every morning! :D
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Someone in Knoxville used to make a killer orange tea but I can't remember the name. It's in that little shopping center next to my old church, Cokesbury UMC. I bet the KDoc knows.

I agree w/ jakez that we run them into the ground. I think we've showed how out of shape these mid-level SEC teams really are. Anyway, I get to watch the game this weekend so I'm very excited! I haven't watched a loss yet.
 
#9
#9
Could it be that Mr. Pearl is orchestrating his own worst nightmare?

This season is shaping up to be something very special. What happens if we win the SEC, Win the Tourney, then go well into the NCAA, say the Sweet 16 or perhaps the Elite 8 or, shall I say it, gasp ... the Final Four?

Where does Bruce go from there?

He is either a basketball genius who will dominate once he has better talent, or his team will come apart once the more talented egos begin to clash, or he will take the better talent and turn them into perennial Final Four and even National Championship contenders ala Pat Summit.

I'm hoping for the latter.

But you have to admit, he may be creating a Frankenstein he can't control with this year's success. What do you do for an encore?
 
#10
#10
(OldVol @ Feb 17 said:
Could it be that Mr. Pearl is orchestrating his own worst nightmare?

This season is shaping up to be something very special. What happens if we win the SEC, Win the Tourney, then go well into the NCAA, say the Sweet 16 or perhaps the Elite 8 or, shall I say it, gasp ... the Final Four?

Where does Bruce go from there?

He is either a basketball genius who will dominate once he has better talent, or his team will come apart once the more talented egos begin to clash, or he will take the better talent and turn them into perennial Final Four and even National Championship contenders ala Pat Summit.

I'm hoping for the latter.

But you have to admit, he may be creating a Frankenstein he can't control with this year's success. What do you do for an encore?
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I agree, it might be too much to overcome and then again, it might not be. As long as Pearl keeps them very competitive, I'll be satisfied.
 
#11
#11
(OldVol @ Feb 17 said:
Could it be that Mr. Pearl is orchestrating his own worst nightmare?

This season is shaping up to be something very special. What happens if we win the SEC, Win the Tourney, then go well into the NCAA, say the Sweet 16 or perhaps the Elite 8 or, shall I say it, gasp ... the Final Four?

Where does Bruce go from there?

He is either a basketball genius who will dominate once he has better talent, or his team will come apart once the more talented egos begin to clash, or he will take the better talent and turn them into perennial Final Four and even National Championship contenders ala Pat Summit.

I'm hoping for the latter.

But you have to admit, he may be creating a Frankenstein he can't control with this year's success. What do you do for an encore?
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I imagine similar thoughts were bandied about after Pitino's first season at UK went so very well.
I think the short answer is, a good coach is gonna be a good coach no matter what.
I certainly think Pearl is the kind of personality that is not about to get overwhelmed by the ego of a highly recruited athlete.
Pearl is only now in a program that has the wherewithall to bring his system together with top tier talent.
The sky really is the limit on the potential of Bruce Pearl.

Me, I'm voting for genius who goes on to dominate....
 
#12
#12
JP Sat :


Florida vs. Arkansas
Saturday - Feb 18, 2006 - 2:00pm

Georgia Tech vs. Maryland
Saturday - Feb 18, 2006 - 4:00pm


Tennessee vs. Alabama
Saturday - Feb 18, 2006 - 4:00pm

Virginia vs. Florida State
Saturday - Feb 18, 2006 - 4:00pm



 
#13
#13
What happens if we do get real far in the tournament this year? The one thing Im worried about is our expectations next year and the year after once he does get his talent in. I really like Pearl and I think he is great, but, with the sec and the rest of the nccaa being a little down this year it may have made it easier for him to have a great year. Like I said, I still think he is a great coach, but it will be hard to compete with this season, and as a UT fan I hope I dont expect this type of season year in and year out and not expect him to loose a couple more here and there. Other teams that are down will be back up, look at us, found the right coach and were winning. Other teams are going to have the same idea the next few years and it is just going to get tougher.
 
#14
#14
(ddubb76 @ Feb 17 said:
What happens if we do get real far in the tournament this year? The one thing Im worried about is our expectations next year and the year after once he does get his talent in. I really like Pearl and I think he is great, but, with the sec and the rest of the nccaa being a little down this year it may have made it easier for him to have a great year. Like I said, I still think he is a great coach, but it will be hard to compete with this season, and as a UT fan I hope I dont expect this type of season year in and year out and not expect him to loose a couple more here and there. Other teams that are down will be back up, look at us, found the right coach and were winning. Other teams are going to have the same idea the next few years and it is just going to get tougher.
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What happens is this. Our vocal minority will bitch, moan whine and complain because we should expect to win NCs every year. The internet boards will be as full of BS and hatred about the basketball team as they currently are about one freaking bad season of football. Sorry, but you asked.
 
#15
#15
From what I have seen so far from Pearl I don't think we have anything to worry about. For him to do what he has done so quickly I simply can't believe it. Last year we only won 15 games and we have already won 19. I think he will put us in the position to win every game. I might be dreaming but I think we may have a team that can compete for the title in the SEC every year. The problem is other Schools may try to take him away. Why has Coack K stayed at Duke for so long? Why did Dean stay at North Carolina his whole career? I can see this happening with Pearl. Tradition can be captured and re lived year after year. I can see that Orange jacket coming out every year for Kentucky and Vanderbilt. The bottom line is Mike Hamilton and UT will eventually have to step up to the plate. We will have to pay Coach Pearl as much as anyone in the SEC in order to keep him. We need to get an extension in writing before the end of the year!
 
#16
#16
I think you also have to temper your expectations for next year knowing that the SEC is in fact having a down year this year....there's really only 3 quality teams...Us, LSU and UF....the drop off after that is probably pretty significant.

The conf. will get better, and our team may in fact be better in the future, but the record may not reflect it as the competition gets better.....

so it's possible to have better teams with worse records, and it will happen. I'll say the same thing about bball as i do about football.

ARE WE IN THE DISCUSSION WHEN TALKING ABOUT CONF. CHAMPIONSHIPS? AND, for Bball, ARE WE GETTING IN TO THE TOURNEY REGULARLY? If the answers to either of those questions is yes, then you can't complain too much.

But for now, let's enjoy this little ride.....while it's still fun. I'm sure by next season we'll all be expecting the final four and anything short will be unacceptable.


I equate getting in to the tourney like i equate just going to a bowl game. I equate getting in to the sweet 16 to getting in a new years day bowl. i equate the final four with the BCS.

Right now, let's go bowling more often..... :cool:
 
#17
#17
I for one will enjoy every last moment of this season, wherever it takes us.

If its the beginning of something big, we're lucky to be witnessing it at inception. If not, well, at least we've had a fun year. Personally, I think if Pearl stays we'll be an SEC title contender most years.

Maybe the big variable is what Pearl will do with bigtime recruits. He's had a lot of success in obscure programs or with marginal/average talent. Most guys he has coached were not NBA bound. Once we start bringing in big time talent the egos will follow. Will he be able to get those guys to buy into his system and play so selflessly like he has to date? Or will the prima donnas wreck our program like they've done in football the past 4 years?

 
#19
#19
Remember Pearl beat Alabama last year in the Big Dance, which was his signature win, and probably pretty much got the ball rolling for Pearl to become a big time canidate for the UT job. Bruce has beat Bama once, I expect him to do it again. Bama is really lacking in depth. Look for the Vols to pull away at about the 4 minute mark and win this game by double figures.
 
#20
#20
I too have a bad feeling about the Bama game. Their inside people are more athletic than ours. This freshman kid Hendrix from Athens, Al. is really coming on (He almost entered the NBA draft last year). Also thir guards play good defense and are quick though not as good of shooters as our guys.

Remember Buzz beat Bama in the NIT before coming to UT and never beat them again. Though Buzz isn't in BP's class as a coach, history often repeats itself. A win by Bama would likely put them in a good position to go to the NCAA tourney. Therefore, the game means more to them.

Living in Bama, I hope I'm wrong!!
 
#21
#21
(rockydoc @ Feb 17 said:
Therefore, the game means more to them.
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I disagree with that. So far every game has seemed to mean more for the Vols than the other team. We have more hustle and work harder than most of the teams we've played. I don't see why this game would be any different.
 
#22
#22
Some of the post on this thread and others are amazing! Conjuring up all of the ways to loose, who will blame who, what the fans will say when we loose, what Bruce Pear will do if we loose, what the expectations will be like if we loose and on and on and absurdly on.............................................People, just enjoy winning, its been a long time coming!!!
 
#23
#23
Tomorrow will be a fun one. Alabama has a solid point in Ronald Steele and some quality young guys inside. Hopefully it'll be a classic like some of the old Mears/DeVoe vs Newton/Sanderson matchups.
 
#25
#25
(kxtop @ Feb 17 said:
Some of the post on this thread and others are amazing! Conjuring up all of the ways to loose, who will blame who, what the fans will say when we loose, what Bruce Pear will do if we loose, what the expectations will be like if we loose and on and on and absurdly on.............................................People, just enjoy winning, its been a long time coming!!!
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I'm with these guys win or loose.
 
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