High Expectations for 2012

Discussion in 'Vols Football' started by tvolsfan, Sep 22, 2011.

  1. tvolsfan

    tvolsfan Chieftain

    I've seen many Vols fans predict big things for 2012. Many seem to believe 10-2 or better is very possible. Just made me wonder what people here thought about that.

    Are those predictions:

    a) Realistic?
    b) Optimistic?
    c) Idiotic?
     
    Last edited: Sep 22, 2011
  2. JT5

    JT5 Super Moderator

    I think it's reasonable to think Tennessee's got a helluva shot to win the east. Offensive should be among the best in the country. Defense should return a ton of players, but we're not sure those guys are worth a damn at this point.
     
  3. JayVols

    JayVols Walleye Catchin' Moderator

    Pretty much sums it up for me.
     
  4. cotton

    cotton Stand-up Philosopher

    I think they are optimistic. Florida will be good. I don't know that anybody knows what to expect from UGa or South Carolina, and we will have to travel to both. We get Arkansas and Bama at home, and play at Miss St (?) in the west.

    Winning the East might be possible, but it certainly isn't the lock some folks on TOOS have predicted.
     
  5. fl0at_

    fl0at_ Humorless, asinine, joyless pr*ck

    Optimistic. Unless we are pinning our running troubles on the O-line, how does our ground game improve enough to compete in the SEC?

    Do we expect that much improvement with our running game in a single year? O-line should get better push downfield, and we should expect improvement in our running game... but hell, I figured we'd have more improvement this year as well. So far, I'm not seeing improvement.
     
  6. tvolsfan

    tvolsfan Chieftain

    Put me in the 'realistic' category. I think we'll have that kind of talent. My bigger concern is the coaching, to be honest.

    I think 10-2 is very possible, and I'm not normally a very optimistic person.
     
  7. tidwell

    tidwell Chieftain

    I'd probably go with optimistic. I just don't know if the offensive line and and entire defense can go from where they are now to being good enough to win 10 games next year.
     
  8. hmanvolfan

    hmanvolfan Member

    Lookee here, next year we gone whip they ass.
     
  9. tvolsfan

    tvolsfan Chieftain

    I don't think we would even have to be as good as most think to win 10. We should sweep the OOC and beat UK and Vandy. I believe Arkansas loses a good amount (but I could be wrong about that), and they're coming to Knoxville. I think South Carolina loses about half their team. We drop LSU for Mississippi State who loses a lot. Tennessee should simply be more talented than those 9 teams.

    I don't think Georgia loses too much, and they should have talent, but they will likely be dealing with a coaching change.

    That leaves Florida and Bama, both who come to Knoxville. I'm not sure who Bama loses, but I think they should lose a decent amount of their defense and probably Richardson and some others on offense. Florida loses Rainey, Demps, and Brantley. Driskel may be a prodigy, but Tennessee will be his first meaningful game and his first start outside of Gainesville.
     
  10. YankeeVol

    YankeeVol Member

    10-2 or better is very possible. The offense will be there, its the D I'm more concerned with. We need better athletes on that side of the ball
     
  11. justingroves

    justingroves supermod

    Bama loses a ridiculous number of linebackers and the majority of its secondary. Lacy replaces Richardson and they get back Hart (who went down with a knee injury). They also lose Marquis Maze, who's one of the most underrated WRs in the country.

    Bama will be extremely young next year but talent and coaching isn't an issue down there.
     
  12. bigpapavol

    bigpapavol Chieftain

    realistic to me. The guys we're competing with in the East are UF, SCe and UGA. UF and SCe will both be trying it with new QBs and at our house. UGA is a wildcard, but I don't like what I see them making of their talent right now. Our schedule is better and I expect the offense to be nasty. If we add patterson and he's half of what people think he can be, we'll be deadly and can use the short passing game as our ball control, which Chaney has done before and made Bill Walsh famous. If we don't add Patterson, I still like us with Dallas, Arnett and Croom as third fiddle.

    Couch will likely have become a difference maker in the middle and AJ Johnson will be where he should be with Lathers back on the outside and Harris as backup. Jacques is All SEC type on one side. Other side is question to me, but Miller is the worst option and that's decent. Hood should get better between now and then, but is lame to me. If we use Miller there because he has gotten bigger and is a better athlete, we'll have to work at the end (although AJ or Maggitt could seriously move there and matter, with Santos being what he's cracked up to be). Secondary, who gives a crap? Teams relying on good secondaries get their asses beat in college ball.

    Offense will be somewhere around best in the league and front 7 will be better (who know how much better). We'll at least be as good as the rest of the crowd with the issues they're facing.

    Best team in the conference is going to be LSU.
     
  13. tvolsfan

    tvolsfan Chieftain

    We'll be at South Carolina next year, I believe. But other than that, I agree.
     
  14. bigpapavol

    bigpapavol Chieftain

    good catch
     
  15. tvolsfan

    tvolsfan Chieftain

    Can someone fix my thread title?
     
  16. bigpapavol

    bigpapavol Chieftain

  17. Brinkley52

    Brinkley52 The Patterson Prophecies

    South Carolina loses the following starters
    OL: Kyle Nunn, Terrence Campbell, Rokevious Watkins (although he is in danger of losing his starting position to a Brandon Shell, true freshman)
    QB: Stephen Garcia
    WR: Alshon Jeffrey (he is only a JR, but I can't see him staying for his senior year)
    DL: Melvin Ingram (split's time with Jadeveon Clowney, but still a sizeable loss), Travin Robertson
    LB: Antonio Allen
    DB: CC Whitlock
    Stephon Gilmore could opt to leave early...but I don't think he has played well enough last year or this year to warrant that...plus he comes from a very good family that values his education..so count him in as staying
    so SCAR loses 4 starters on offense (assuming Jeffrey leaves) and 4 on defense..both the kicker and punter are back
    SCAR will return 16 of their 24 starters from last season....so they should retain some pretty good talent...especially considering LAttimore will be back and even better
     
  18. JT5

    JT5 Super Moderator

    South Carolina's not that great today. Take away Jeffery, Barnes, Garcia, and 3 seniors on the offensive line in 2012...I'm just not seeing the confidence in that offense next year, simply because Lattimore returns.
     
  19. Brinkley52

    Brinkley52 The Patterson Prophecies

    Barnes is about worthless (doesn't even start, got beat out by a redshirt freshman going forward)...so much potential..but very little talent...Garcia will be a big loss...the offensive line..not as much..because SCAR shuffles them so much as it is...I don't think there is too much of a drop-off there...and we will have to agree to disagree that as long as Lattimore is healthy, SCAR will hvae a decent offense..he is incredible..and incredible players make other players better...Shaw or McEvoy will have a much easier time adjusting to being the starter with a Heisman candidate in the backfield
     
  20. Brinkley52

    Brinkley52 The Patterson Prophecies

    that is correct..game is in Columbia in 2012
     

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