Now that we are all over last week’s defensive no-show against California in Berkeley (wait…..Cal just scored again), here are five things to mull over in preparation for Southern Miss.
* Tennessee must tackle, and tackle well. With Eric Berry moving to safety, the Vols instantly become a better tackling team. Also, Jonathan Hefney has too much pride to not bounce back from a sub par performance, so this area should improve from a secondary perspective. The Linebacker core has to play with more discipline. There was a lot of over pursuit against the Golden Bears.
* Third down and short must improve. This starts with playcalling. Teams that call runs run the ball. It is just that simple. I thought David Cutcliffe had a pretty good gameplan, but he lost me on some short yardage play calls. It was almost like he got caught up in the track meet. Second and Goal from the 2 against a Pac 10 team should be a run down. If Arian Foster gets seven or eight more carries, this team may have had a better fate.
* Somebody has to shed blocks in the front four. Take it from someone who was ten rows from the field in Berkeley, we have to find someone other than Demonte Bolden, who can get off a block and make a play. Bolden, while inconsistent, was fairly disruptive, but no one else on the front four was even visible. Hopefully Ben Martin can help shore up some deficiencies up front.
* LaMarcus Coker needs to give the Vols a boost. Coker, who was suspended for last week’s game, needs to be productive this week in multiple ways. His ability to make big plays could help in the draw and screen packages, as well as the return game. With Cutcliffe using the running backs as occasional wideouts, his speed should open some things up outside.
* Play with a sense of urgency. Last week, it seemed as though Cal had a sense of urgency, while Tennessee looked like a team that “hoped†to win, instead of going out there and taking it. Southern Mississippi has been a giant slayer for years and they aren’t to be taken lightly. The Vols need to come out firing early, so that this Golden Eagles team can’t get their confidence up. Ask Michigan what can happen when you don’t handle your business early against an upstart. And trust me, Southern Miss is much better than Appalachian State.
Even though last week hurt, there were some good things that came out of the game. Erik Ainge is as good a QB as there is in college football, Arian Foster is on a mission, the returning wide receivers have made a quantum leap, and Eric Berry is going to be a star. If one or two young receivers can step up, I think Tennessee could have their best offense since 2001. What Tennessee needs now are defensive answers, and to be honest, I’m not so sure those answers are in uniform right now.
2 responses to “Five Rocky Top ruminations”
Well, I agree with everything you’ve said. I can’t believe the technique fallouts on our defense. We constantly over persued, not once, twice, or even 10 times, but nearly every time Cal was in the open field. Tennessee’s D looked like a highschool D. I watched Tennessee Tech the other night, and was impressed at their fundamentally correct defensive attack. They played a running team (multi-option), and kept solid position, and followed their assignments. I thought, wow, if Tennessee could’ve done that(although Cal is a great team) Tennessee may have won. I also agree with the O Coordination in most cases for UT. The double Tight sets and play action will eventually pay off, once we can run the ball more effectively. I understand why he didn’t run so much (The front line couldn’t run block Cal’s D), but hope they will get fired up and play with more urgency against not only S. Miss, but all games. Tennessee hasn’t looked really good for any once season since 1998, a full decade. Coach Cutt will help change that, but we must stop the other team(s) on D. What happened to the Tennessee D? The problem looked like the guys on D were just not ready. Chavis made some good calls, but the guys just didn’t execute.Play in position tonight, or Tennessee will be bumped out of any chances left to win a Nat’l championship. Fulmer’s got a lot on his shoulders. Ainge is the best QB in America, but will go unnoticed if Tennessee can’t find a winning season. For Tennessee fans, only one loss is acceptable.
The first 25 minutes of the game against SMU were very concerning for many fans. Ainge and the O-line were doing ok, but the D looked unconvincing. seeing that I paid to watch the vols, I felt really concerned. Then, it happened; UT held the USM O, and Ainge and the O crew pushed down the field like they wanted a win, converting two third downs and a fourth and long. Ainge held under pressure(of situation, not rush from D)and Tennessee lit up the board, crowd, and suddenly, UT looked strong and determined.
The second half of the game showed what Vol fans NEEDED to see, execution and drive. MAYO came alive in the second half, as well as the entire D crew. Then here came the running game, as Foster plowed through the gaping holes punched for him by the O line. The ends and WR’s locked up on defenders, and away we go…TD Tennessee!!!! Suddenly, Florida must have felt queezy. Good job this week, making moves to win on both sides of the ball, and all over the field.
Bottom Line: Good improvments, and I hope they keep it up.