Who here is reluctant to go on record with a bold prediction of even modest success for 2014? Who here responds to a "predict the Vols 2014 record" with a range of wins? Who here qualifies every optimistic-leaning statement with a generic caveat about "two years" or the "future" or "once we get the horses in places", or some other such tripe. Who here still has a sack of balls in their pants? Who here doesn't need testosterone replacement therapy because their T floweth freely? Who here isn't afraid to boldly predict that Tennessee is about break on through to the other side like our frontman was Jim Morrison? Nobody raised their hand after the last three questions. All hands were raised after the first three. Don't be afraid of this program's growth. Don't be afraid of kicking ass. Don't be afraid of banging the prom queen and blowing your load in her. We're Tennessee. This is how we roll. Mark Richt is a mediocre football coach whose team barely beat us last year and lost BY FAR their best player. Steve Spurrier has entered the stage in his career where he'd rather fill out a scorecard than draw up a new play. And he just lost his three best players. And we beat his team last year. Will Muschamp is arguably the worst coach in all of college football. Vanderbilt will blow for years to come. Mizzou's 2013 season was an outlier. 2014 is the regression back to the mean. UK always always blows at football. Tell me why UT can't win the East? Hell, tell me why we shouldn't. Compare this team to last year's. DL: improved LBs: improved Secondary: improved Receivers: improved RBs: improved QBs: same or slightly improved OL: worse, but not by as much as many think. Special teams: way way better. UGA: worse than last year. USC: worse than last year UF: still has the worst coach in CFB Mizz: worse than last year Vandy: way worse than last year UK: still reeks worse than my nuts do. Our baseline for 2014 is 8-4. Don't tell me I'm delusional. Tell me why. And good luck squeezing that analysis in between testosterone therapy. Get your swag on!
I think Gurley is UGA's best player by a smidge. UGA also lost 3 starting dbs to dismissals and transfers. Spurrier has two horses at rb he can ride to the east title while golfing. I agree with you about everything else. Quarterback play is what will keep Tennessee from winning the east.
I will feel much better after we get this upcoming year out of the way. 2015 and 2016, so long as recruiting stays on the same track, should see us right in the middle of the SEC East race. But then you still have to deal with coaching. I have no doubt we'll have good enough players to win games.
Your OL and qb breakdown tell me we aren't going to have some miraculous 9-3 season. Battling for another lame bowl berth this year
Not sure I agree the OL drop will be so minimal or that the DL will be any better. As for the running backs, an injury to Marlin (who seems to stay banged up) would be really bad. Behind him is a really talented freshman, a Mizzou transfer, and another freshman. Also, our zero contain technique by the DEs really limits how good our outside linebackers can be.
I predict the ol will be equal or better this year. Never have I seen a more overrated group. Product of kiff and dools
I don't know if I'd call it a miracle to win 6. Much past that and we're getting into that territory though.
7 wins isn't unreasonable. Tennessee was a pig fumble and an overturned spot from 7 last year. This more of the east being down than Tennessee being good
I can see our season swinging 3 games depending on how the plays fall for us. That said, I think we get 7 this year. I just feel good about it.
Hard to blame Kiffin for that. The OL probably overachieved while he was here and the only 2 of the 5 that got drafted were his early enrollees. James Cregg was evidently a lot better OL coach than we realized and Jim Chaney a hell of a lot worse. Losing the GA who routinely pumped out good OLs at Minnesota probably didn't help either. Blanking on his name.
Cregg is a really good coach. Hell, he's probably had the best career since leaving Tennessee. Mitch Browning was the ga
