We are a top 25 team in 13.

#102
#102
cjbongoinstructor said:
So how would you describe the defensive mishaps from last year? 3-4, dools, sal? Also saying we have 5 good qbs is a little bold at this point. all of them are unproven and only one has even played in a game for the vols. i think they have the potential to be great but lets not get ahead of ourselves. That being said, im praying your prediction comes true
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I saw our defense play last year, in person and on tv. I'm pretty sure they ranked towards the bottom of the SEC. Our biggest problem in my opinion was that there were no athletic leaders and we had no speed. There wasn't a leader on our sideline in my opinion, offense or defense or most of the coaching staff. I watched us beat Florida in the first half and as soon as they took the lead in the second half, we gave up. I saw players and coaches hang their heads on the sideline. It was over when we were only down by six. If this coaching staff can't coach that out of these players and don't let them infect the new class then maybe we have a winning season. I'm glad Bray and the recievers are going pro. We weren't gonna win more than 6-8 games with them anyway. Bray should've stayed tho. He will end up on a practice team in the NFL, then on to broadcasting at his former high school. Hunter is a great athlete but will get hurt in the NFL. Patterson is a beast and can play in the league, but he needs some great coaches to teach him how to run routes. Thats my 2 cents for this post. GO VOLS! :rock:
 
#103
#103
State of the Vols said:
I don't like the over-optimism. Problem is, when we don't live up to these kind of unrealistic expectations, "fans" start looking for scapegoats and start getting down on the players, coaches and program. Better to be a tad realistic from the get-go in my opinion.
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You mean like the negative nancy`s are already doing?
 
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#105
#105
TNHopeful505 said:
Here's what will make me happy as a recovering Dool-Aide drinker:

Butch needs to wipe the floor with WKU, Austin Peay, and South Alabama. No lee-way there at all.

I think Oregon, my only expectations truly are to come in and handle pressure well, and keep up with them tempo wise. I do think they will win ultimately, just looking at it on paper, and the fact that Autzen is a ridiculously hard place to play. But it we can hang close, and give them their money's worth, I will be okay with that, since it's so early in the season.

Florida is always tough playing in the Swamp. Plus, they just have such an insanely good defense. I think it will be a tougher game in some ways than Oregon will be. But, I think that having played Oregon the week before will help us to expose some errors and fix them before we go to Florida. I actually think no matter our performance in Oregon, we do well at Florida. I'm not saying that we win hands down, but I am saying that I could see us being a little more prepared to handle them than in years past.

Georgia worries me a lot because of how much they run the football, and how many people they have to do it. And that worries me because our front 7 is not the best in the SEC. Losing Sentimore didn't help either. We have good linebackers when they're healthy, and McCullers is good for about 30-35 snaps a game, and Mo is still there, but I'm hoping we discover some hidden beasts on the DL. Really need for O'Brien to turn out like we thought he would. If we can control the run game, and make Murray beat us, then we could win at home.

South Carolina should be a win for us. Tiny owned Clowney last year. No Lattimore either. We should be able to take that one.

Alabama. Sorry, I don't see it. Jones may have an outstanding gameplan and may keep us close, but the pure depth and talent factor alone just puts us at an immediate disadvantage. Especially with no true star playmaker on offense. Think about it, the last people to really beat Bama either had a Cam Newton, a Johnny Manziel, or a very very talented defense (LSU). We have none of those at the moment. Would be a hard win.

Missouri. I think this one is a no brainer. We would have taken this one last year, had it not been for Doofus. We win this one.

Auburn. It's hard to say. They have as unsure a QB position as we do. They have talent, but the question is will Malzahn be as good as they think he will be? If he is, then they win, based on the fact that the talent and depth is greater at Auburn. If not, then I think we might can take this one. What happened to Auburn last year was a huge coaching failure. But I don't think it's going to happen again. I'm going to chalk this up as a loss, just because I think Auburn will bounce back well this year.

Vanderbilt. After everything I've heard about Franklin, and what he has done and said, I hope Butch runs the stinking score up on him 100-0. Butch better win this game. Tennessee does NOT lose to Vandy twice. I dont think we ever have.

Kentucky. They will be a lot more competitive than in years past. Stoops will do a good job there. But they still have a lot of ground to make up before they're competitive in the SEC. UT wins this one.


My prediction: 7-5 and a bowl win. Losses against: Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Oregon, Auburn.

And I would be very happy with that if it came about. A winning season is no longer taken for granted in these parts.

But i'm not going to predict us being a Top 25 team, or even a 10 win season. I just think we are too far behind to do that. It's going to take a year or so for us to get the system down and get to flowing offensively and defensively. But once we do, we'll be alright.
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I agree this could happen but I would flip auburn and South Carolina. I think South Carolina is definitely the better team. If we go 6-6 and show improvement through the year I will be happy though. Win more each year until we get to double digit wins and would like to see us sustain that success for a while.
 
#106
#106
Let's not set Butch up for failure with insane predictions. I promise you, I'll be in all orange, living and dying with every call when we play Oregon, but that's a long shot. As a fan (and not a player), I'm allowed to be objective and think, "hmmm, we probably won't win this game. Oh well go Vols."

Having said that, I DO think we can have a top five recruiting year in 2014 like you said. Have a strong season and win a bowl. Win the games you're supposed to, including Vandy, Mizzou and Auburn and maybe one more plus a bowl. That's reasonable, that's progressive, and that could yield an Ole Miss-like haul.

I just think it's unfair to get all pumped up to the point where we get mad if Butch doesn't beat Oregon, go undefeated in Neyland, and finish #13. That would be unexpected, to say the least, but if he did it, I would name my first child, son or daughter, Butch.
 
#107
#107
daniel3417 said:
Let's not set Butch up for failure with insane predictions. I promise you, I'll be in all orange, living and dying with every call when we play Oregon, but that's a long shot. As a fan (and not a player), I'm allowed to be objective and think, "hmmm, we probably won't win this game. Oh well go Vols."

Having said that, I DO think we can have a top five recruiting year in 2014 like you said. Have a strong season and win a bowl. Win the games you're supposed to, including Vandy, Mizzou and Auburn and maybe one more plus a bowl. That's reasonable, that's progressive, and that could yield an Ole Miss-like haul.

I just think it's unfair to get all pumped up to the point where we get mad if Butch doesn't beat Oregon, go undefeated in Neyland, and finish #13. That would be unexpected, to say the least, but if he did it, I would name my first child, son or daughter, Butch.
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Due to SEC loyalty I'll be pulling for UT vs OR, but I wouldn't bet on it. New HC, new skill players, very iffy D, traveling 2,000 to play a top 5 team. If UT somehow finds a way to win, or at least be very competitive, fans will have something to hang their hats on. But I think UT will be at least a 10 pt dog when the line comes out. But if UT does win, please don't hang "Butch" on your daughter. This wouldn't be good for anyone!

BTW, good article on the hire: Butch Jones to Tennessee: The arguments for and against, but mostly for - SBNation.com
 
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#108
#108
Gotta love your optimism....but where is your rationale? We lost our 6 best offensive players....Bray, Patterson, Hunter, Zach Rogers, Rivera and Fulton. We also lost our best defensive player in Sentimore and we return a defense that was the worst in UT history....and now your predicting that we finish in the top 25? I wish I could share your optimism......but do you really think that with an unproven starter at QB and a prediction of a 3-4 win season we finish in the top 25?
 
#109
#109
photovol said:
Gotta love your optimism....but where is your rationale? We lost our 6 best offensive players....Bray, Patterson, Hunter, Zach Rogers, Rivera and Fulton. We also lost our best defensive player in Sentimore and we return a defense that was the worst in UT history....and now your predicting that we finish in the top 25? I wish I could share your optimism......but do you really think that with an unproven starter at QB and a prediction of a 3-4 win season we finish in the top 25?
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When did we lose Fulton?
 
#111
#111
photovol said:
Gotta love your optimism....but where is your rationale? We lost our 6 best offensive players....Bray, Patterson, Hunter, Zach Rogers, Rivera and Fulton. We also lost our best defensive player in Sentimore and we return a defense that was the worst in UT history....and now your predicting that we finish in the top 25? I wish I could share your optimism......but do you really think that with an unproven starter at QB and a prediction of a 3-4 win season we finish in the top 25?
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I agree with most of your post, but the defense can't be any worse this year. If we would have had 1/2 of Alabama's defense then we could have gone 8-4 or 9-3 easily last year.

I'm just waiting to see how everything plays out during the spring and make my decision in the summer. Too early to predict anything, especially whenever we have a Top 5 Offensive Line returning next year.
 
#112
#112
d3vols said:
I agree with most of your post, but the defense can't be any worse this year. If we would have had 1/2 of Alabama's defense then we could have gone 8-4 or 9-3 easily last year.

I'm just waiting to see how everything plays out during the spring and make my decision in the summer. Too early to predict anything, especially whenever we have a Top 5 Offensive Line returning next year.
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Boys,the Oline and RB position is where games are dominated and controlled. It`s called the line of scrimmage. We will have a top 5 Oline! We have Graham-tutored Lane and Neal to tote the pigskin! We ought to give Dyer or Crowell another shot. We all mess up when we`re young......GIVE THEM ANOTHER CHANCE IN BIG ORANGE! I`m going to believe we`re winning the NC till some team proves me wrong. GO VOLS!
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#114
#114
Really? OK we COULD beat Oregon, and I believe that we will win at least 9 games next year. The biggest diff I see is Mccullers having a year of SEC experience. Games are won and lost IN THE TRENCHES. I think we are going to be good with our front 7 on D and we prolly have one of the BEST o lines in the country. It all boils down to our QB-Who is it going to be? Johnny Heisman was a true freshman last year so you just never know, DO YOU???? YES WE CAN:good!:
 
#115
#115
Webbvol32 said:
I believe we will beat Oregon and upset a couple of big SEC teams too. We have talent. We now have a great staff and coach. We had an 11 win team last year if not4 Dools! We may lose to Bama,Fla,Uga,or Scar,but I honestly believe we get 1 or 2 of them. I think we can go UNDEFEATED AT NEYLAND! Plus 1 or 2 upsets on the road! BOOM! A Jan 1st bowl and a lot of swagger and momentum for the 14 signing class. I believe we will have a top 5 class in 14. We all need to back our team and EXPECT TO WIN! WE SHOULD NEVER EXPECT TO LOSE 6-7 GAMES! THIS IS NOT DOOLS! We HAVE A GOOD,SEC TEAM! If Butch coaches like I believe,we`ll be a top 25 team in 13. We addressed our positions of need. We got 5 good QBs,we have a great class of WRs. We have Lane and Neal and Lee behind the number ONE O-LINE! We got immediate help on D. We will probably add a few more JUCOs on D before the AP game. Our D is experienced and talented. AND SAL IS GONE! The sky is the limit. We need our fans to show up at the O&W game and all the games. We need excitement. We will wear cool unis vs Ore and WIN 35-27! we may beat Fla! GO VOLS!
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:lolabove: :lolabove: :lolabove:

Well don't stop there, keep riding the hallucinating pipe dream. Why not just go all the way and say we will immediately replace Alabama as No. 1 and go on a THREEPEAT of undefeated National Championships !!! I mean afterall we have the same chance of that as what you already mentioned.

Geez Louise, do we ever have some blind optimist morons among our fan base, with the emphasis on BLIND !!! :loco:
 
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#116
#116
I love the OP's optimism, but honestly I'd be happy copying what Ole Miss did. Go 7-6 with a bowl win and then sign a consensus Top 6 recruiting class.
 
#117
#117
An offense that lost all of its firepower combined with the worst defense in the history of football. Not seeing top 25 next year.
 
#118
#118
photovol said:
Gotta love your optimism....but where is your rationale? We lost our 6 best offensive players....Bray, Patterson, Hunter, Zach Rogers, Rivera and Fulton. We also lost our best defensive player in Sentimore and we return a defense that was the worst in UT history....and now your predicting that we finish in the top 25? I wish I could share your optimism......but do you really think that with an unproven starter at QB and a prediction of a 3-4 win season we finish in the top 25?
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That a sunshine pumper for you. They don't know what rationale means. It interrupts their wegottanewcoachgasm. The same phenomena happens to them with every new coach. First it was drinking the koolaid with Lame Kitten, then it was the giddiness of Mr. Shower Discipline, and now its the euphoria of Butchyball.

Now I will freely admit, as a fan, I had some hope with each coach, and still have plenty with Butch. But, it was and is NEVER blind, out of touch with reality hope, like we see regularly with some of the grossly optimistic idiots on these message boards.
 
#119
#119
1SmokinVol said:
Really? OK we COULD beat Oregon, and I believe that we will win at least 9 games next year. The biggest diff I see is Mccullers having a year of SEC experience. Games are won and lost IN THE TRENCHES. I think we are going to be good with our front 7 on D and we prolly have one of the BEST o lines in the country. It all boils down to our QB-Who is it going to be? Johnny Heisman was a true freshman last year so you just never know, DO YOU???? YES WE CAN:good!:
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Johnny was a RS freshman...not a true freshman
 
#123
#123
1SmokinVol said:
Really? OK we COULD beat Oregon, and I believe that we will win at least 9 games next year. The biggest diff I see is Mccullers having a year of SEC experience. Games are won and lost IN THE TRENCHES. I think we are going to be good with our front 7 on D and we prolly have one of the BEST o lines in the country. It all boils down to our QB-Who is it going to be? Johnny Heisman was a true freshman last year so you just never know, DO YOU???? YES WE CAN:good!:
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You gotta be high. This is a 6-6 or 7-5 at best team next year. I'll probably be reading about CBJ is not the man for the job when your unrealistic expectations have not been met.
 
#124
#124
Im smokin it , too. I agree. Come on fellas, you only need 6- 8 W's including the bowl for a top 25 ranking, especially in the SEC! GBO!
 
#125
#125
pualsline said:
I love this optimism, but I am going to try to not buy in like I have every year just to be disappointed. I hope I am proven wrong
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I buy in every year. I expect to win them all. When we lose a game, I expect to win all the remaining games. Yes, I have been disappointed many times, but that hasn't changed my optimism.
 
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