Why are people mad at Heupel?

[ShelbourneVol]

I submitted a comment on their site about their doom and gloom articles this AM and they would not post it.

I ran into that same issue, but my understanding of their comments section is that you have to put in your name and email address or you comments won’t post.

 

[bpalmer28]

 

[OrangeTsar]

I wouldn’t say I am “mad” as much as I am “concerned”. Keep what we got now if that is what Heupel plans to do; but if the offense doesn’t show real improvement next year than something needs changing.

 

[RockyTopTexas]

If you make it to the playoff, you completed. We have depth. Just not elite depth. As in " we don't have 4 star recruits 3 men deep at every position". There's about 4 teams in the country that have that. They also have a NIL budget north of $20m. We are working with $15m+/-. Pass the hat........

We didn’t really tho… we got waxed
Everything else you said is spot on

 

[bpalmer28]

I wouldn’t say I am “mad” as much as I am “concerned”. Keep what we got now if that is what Heupel plans to do; but if the offense doesn’t show real improvement next year than something needs changing.

Speaking of change, can you spot the difference between the two boxes in this image?

 

[BernardKingGOAT]

Heupel has done an admirable job given the challenges facing the program he inherited. The frustration comes in because we all know that the conference is down to a much more level playing field but for how long? How much longer will Alabama, Florida, LSU and Auburn be down? Historically speaking, these programs go through a lull but eventually cycle back to prominence.

The OSU beatdown should have been an eye opening opportunity. My hope was that Heupel and Danny White would have seen what it will take to be elite and win a championship and make the changes to the organization that needed to happen.

The response shows they were just happy to get to the playoffs….

The response? Can you detail it for us

 

[OrangeTsar]

Speaking of change, can you spot the difference between the two boxes in this image?
View attachment 715217

Hey, I am VERY happy with the job he has done.
But did you notice that in four games this year (I believe) we went scoreless for the first half.
If that doesn’t give you at least a little concern, then more power to you.
Something isn’t clicking in the passing game. And I don’t think it is only a question of talent.

 

[Golfprovol]

Rushing record isn't the only story, I felt like the Offensive Line improved a lot as season went on (although they really sucked it up against Ohio State). The penalties were cut down and the line held up better. Line was great when we called rushing plays but did struggle at pass blocking.

Not really....according to stats, the OL gave Nico more time than Hendon had, problem was Nico held the ball almost a second longer than Hendon did.

2024 OL held up better against blitzes and stunts than 2022 and graded almost 7 points better than 2022.

 

[BernardKingGOAT]

Hey, I am VERY happy with the job he has done.
But did you notice that in four games this year (I believe) we went scoreless for the first half.
If that doesn’t give you at least a little concern, then more power to you.
Something isn’t clicking in the passing game. And I don’t think it is only a question of talent.

It has absolutely everything to do with talent

 

[volbound1700]

Not really....according to stats, the OL gave Nico more time than Hendon had, problem was Nico held the ball almost a second longer than Hendon did.

2024 OL held up better against blitzes and stunts than 2022 and graded almost 7 points better than 2022.

I am going off what opposing coaches and experts said. They cited the offensive line would actually set up different when we passed which tipped them to the play. They also, stated it did not hold up well.

In 2022, the line wasn't very good either. You are right that Hooker improvised. Put Hooker on a more talented team (or give us a few breaks) and he likely pulls a 2019 LSU or 2011 Auburn kind of run together to a title.

I do think our offense is predicated on having a Hendon Hooker, Cam Newton, Joe Burrow, or Johnny Manziel like playmaker to compete at a high level.

 

[Golfprovol]

I am going off what opposing coaches and experts said. They cited the offensive line would actually set up different when we passed which tipped them to the play. They also, stated it did not hold up well.

In 2022, the line wasn't very good either. You are right that Hooker improvised. Put Hooker on a more talented team (or give us a few breaks) and he likely pulls a 2019 LSU or 2011 Auburn kind of run together to a title.

I do think our offense is predicated on having a Hendon Hooker, Cam Newton, Joe Burrow, or Johnny Manziel like playmaker to compete at a high level.

I don't care what other coaches say, stats are stats. They say 2024 OL was better than 2022, this should lead everyone down a different path to find the issue of the passing game (hint: Nico and receivers can't process information fast enough, so offense had to be simple)

2022 passing game was a ton better with a worse OL. Why?? Hendon! So that should let you know Nico needs to be better.

 

[volbound1700]

I don't care what other coaches say, stats are stats. They say 2024 OL was better than 2022, this should lead everyone down a different path to find the issue of the passing game (hint: Nico and receivers can't process information fast enough, so offense had to be simple)

2022 passing game was a ton better with a worse OL. Why?? Hendon! So that should let you know Nico needs to be better.

Your post is basically like stating you don't care what a doctor says, you want to move forward without having surgery for cancer or you don't care what your lawyer says, etc.

Kind of idiotic to ignore the experts.

It is also hard to compare 2022 vs 2024 based on competition. I felt like 2022 Tennessee played a lot tougher teams: LSU, Alabama, Kentucky, Pittsburgh, etc. In 2024, we really only beat Florida and Alabama and lost to Georgia and Ohio State (two best teams we played).

I also thought the 2022 offensive line was better. We had both the Mays brothers and we had Trey Smith.

 

[columbia vol]

I have seen many people getting upset at Heupel for not firing his staff, but he has not had to. The defense has improved, so he has not had to fire anyone on that side of the ball. On the offensive side, we have regressed, but we had a QB last year that could not hit a mid-range ball and a Qb this year in his first year of playing and he rarely hit deep balls. This severely limits offensive playcalling and gives defensive an advantage because they do not have to worry about the deep ball, etc. Also, I am just going to say Heupel's achievements so far again.

Came into a 3-7 team with the entire team transferred out and scholarship limitations (that we still have)
Only UT coach to beat Saban and ended the 15-year streak against the former Heisman-winning QB.
Ended the streak vs Florida
Undefeated vs Florida and Bama at home
Two #1 rated Qb out of highschool in the last 3 classes.
Has had two top ten recruiting classes which is the best sense 2014 and 2015.
First TN coach to make playoffs
One loss at home in last 3 years.

I know we got blown out by OSU and are losing players in the transfer portal. But, I trust Heupel running the program

Some people would bitch if they made a million a year as a taster at a pie factory

 

[RockyTopTexas]

To begin with, his statement is incorrect. We were three deep in defensive linemen and we played them to keep everyone fresh. We were not very deep at LB and Safety and that is where we were attacked. We will be stronger at both positions this Fall, barring injuries.

Buddy… you clearly are lost. We have no depth in this roster except for the Dline and that is all gone now. We have no RBs no WRs no OLine no dline
No linebacker no secondary NO DEPTH AT ANY POSITION. We cannot have this idea we are a championship team with the way our roster looks. It’s just silly to think that

 

[OrangeTsar]

It has absolutely everything to do with talent

Our WRs were great but they were serviceable. I wondered a lot of Bru never really recovered from his injury and Squirrel was banged up for much of the year. But we should have been able to connect on more downfield balls

 

[Volfan76]

Some people would bitch if they made a million a year as a taster at a pie factory

Of course we would...have you heard of diabetes and cholesterol? Who is going to pay these medical bills? My life would be shortened by 15 years.

 

[Golfprovol]

Your post is basically like stating you don't care what a doctor says, you want to move forward without having surgery for cancer or you don't care what your lawyer says, etc.

Kind of idiotic to ignore the experts.

It is also hard to compare 2022 vs 2024 based on competition. I felt like 2022 Tennessee played a lot tougher teams: LSU, Alabama, Kentucky, Pittsburgh, etc. In 2024, we really only beat Florida and Alabama and lost to Georgia and Ohio State (two best teams we played).

I also thought the 2022 offensive line was better. We had both the Mays brothers and we had Trey Smith.

That reply has zero thought attached. If my Dr said I needed chemo without running any test or having backup data then yeah, I would probably ignore him. The stats are the backup data to the 2024 OL being better.

What makes other coaches "experts" on our OL? The stats say that 2024 line was better, you can ignore them if you want but that doesn't make the stats go away.

 

[IndianaVol]

Speaking of change, can you spot the difference between the two boxes in this image?
View attachment 715217

CJH has never been below .500 in SEC play...but that probably leads to people being mad too.

 

[loservol]

The bigger problem is, I don't hate him. At the same time, I have very little respect and a whole lot of doubt he has what it takes to deliver the Vols to the promised land. Like the best Militry Generals, the best football coaches are by a rule of thumb unlikeable people. Heupel lacks that win at all costs killer instinct needed to take the next step.

Ask yourself, Would you like to have a beer with Heupel?" You would probably answer, yes. Now ask yourself, Would I like to have a beer with Saban or Kirby Smart?"

For those who don't like equating football to a war game, then take it up with the ghost of Gen. Neyland.

 

[FlyFishnVol]

.
If we did all of that they would still complain. Didn't win by enough, missed a tackle, water boy was too slow, etc.
.

Exactly!

 

[FlyFishnVol]

Nah, there would still have been something to complain about.

True

 

[columbia vol]

Of course we would...have you heard of diabetes and cholesterol? Who is going to pay these medical bills? My life would be shortened by 15 years.

Ok maybe a tester at a condom factory? Wait, that would lead to carpel tunnel and Arthritis, I give up

 

[vol94]

Because some people are just dumbarses.

And others are trolls.

And others don’t understand the game.

 

[VOLINVONORE]

I don’t get paid to coach, but my opinion is that the offensive woes was one of 2 things. Either the receivers were not good enough to get separation making the qb hold it too long, or the offensive play calling was too predictable allowing the defense to get in position to not let the receivers get open. Maybe some of both.

Probably both

 

[utvols74]

We went 3 consecutive games with 0 points in the 1st half (school record). While we won 10 games, that stretch indicated something is wrong - severely wrong on offense. We became very predictable on offense and it caught up with UT when they played serious talent - UGA and OSU. I'm not mad at CJH, I just wish that there would be a meaculpa from him and he would state what the problem(s) were and what he's going to do to resolve it. If fans and alumni can be asked for ever increasing amounts of money - then fans/alumni have a right to ask a few questions too. This is nearly the only forum to do so.