I hope that your neighbors have stopped shooting off their July 4 fireworks. Unfortunately mine haven’t…..I am still hearing them every night around 10:30. Oh well. I guess they figure if they have to travel 130 miles over the Jellico Pass they may as well buy a three weeks supply for their celebrations.
Usually when it comes to the State of Tennessee, most Kentuckians have no use for it. If I have heard “nothing sucks like a big orange” once, I have heard it a million times. However, on July 4th and on New Years Eve, the people of Kentucky worship and the feet of the giant dragon off of I-75. They know when it comes to fireworks that Tennessee is the place to be.
Once the football season gets underway, one way or another the UT football program will live up to the State’s explosive reputation.
If Dave Clawson, Jon Crompton, Gerald Jones and Arian Foster prove to be an effective combination and the scoreboard in Neyland stadium begins to light up for the home team good things will happen for this program. The fans in turn will light up like the fourth of July. For most of us that saw the spring game we cannot wait to put the match to the fuse.
But…if this team brings sparklers to a fireworks fight I have a feeling that the Tennessee fans will be celebrating the Chinese New Year as early as September.
Given Fulmer’s raise and extension if this football team is not competitive don’t be surprised if things start to blow up around the state. Sure, UT played for and SEC championship last year, but I don’t need to remind anyone that the championship drought continues. Everybody knows that drought and fireworks cannot co-exist peacefully.
Say what you will about UT’s non-conference schedule this year. It is really not that strong. The conference schedule on the other hand is absolutely brutal. From where I sit, it will take a special football team to turn in a 9-3 year with the Vol’s conference schedule. That would almost certainly mean that UT would continue its long conference championship drought.
Many who visit and frequent the Volnation would be happy with 9-3. As a fan and 9-3 year can be a good season assuming that it is on the heels of an SEC championship.
This begs the question. What did Mike Hamilton really mean when he set forth the job expectations for the head coach at the University of Tennessee? When he said he expected two SEC championships every ten years did he expect that the fans would ignore his standard? Was he hopeful that his expectations wouldn’t go to print?
Whatever the case may be football season gets closer everyday. If the UT football team is prepared perhaps they can squeeze ten wins out of their unmerciful conference schedule and make it to another championship game. Weirder things have happened in the SEC East. The Volnation will relish the Neyland fireworks. If things go south, don’t blame the posters who are exploding in the drought. They are simply be lighting the fuse under Mike Hamilton’s chair. Until next time, Go Vols!
5 responses to “Guitar Shots to the Head 7/9”
8 wins. That’s the real barometer Lex. 🙂
Our schedule is not near as bad as you may think, since UGA and Auburn are way overrated; not to mention we will play much better against Bama this year. UK will not be nearly as good this time around also.
no way the Vols win 10, book it.
we found out about the expectation with the 8 wins clause in the contract. all the other stuff aside, i thought that was a joke with a 12 game schedule.
i do disagree that it would take a special team to go 9-3. 9-3 is likely losing to GA, FL and AUB. which most will expect anyway.
the swing games then become Bama and SC.
that’s not special.
anyway, 9-3 is my bare minimum this season. i still think they can squeeze 10 out of this season. the home schedule is favorable. and i still think SC and bama are winnable games.
the swing games then become: GA, FL and AUB.
we won’t win all three, we won’t lose all three. 2-1 would be great. 1-2 would be ok. 0-3 would suck….and would virtualy mean we’d have to beat everyone else on our schedule to have an semblence of a ‘good’ season.
Consensus among the Vol Nation I keep in touch with is: eight wins is not an acceptable season, why lower the standard? We all wish/hope/imagine/want a 10-11 game winning season every year. Being a realist though…when you can’t stop the Gaytors from dropping 60 on you it just means they have no fear about any payback in the near future…we may beat someone by 60…I’d rather beat Florida, Bama, or Vandy by one than have 60 dropped on us anytime! Need to find some defensive studs and plug the holes.