https://x.com/tnvolstrashcan/status/1994882193609691456?s=46&t=-g4-4SHxx6dZ80rS7hnjTA This was the hold I was complaining about on their second touchdown. About as blatant as they come. Really is shitty that they missed this call on a Vandy TD and then called the BS roughing penalty to allow the 3rd.
This goes back to why the second half at Florida irked so many. The same approach to not straight up bury them is the same approach that blew it against Georgia is the same attitude that let Vandy bury us after halftime. The mentality is soft. The basic fundamentals aren’t there. (The receivers being unable to block anyone isn’t getting the attention it deserves….plus drops.) It’s just bad. Heupel has done enough to earn the ability to try to correct this, but I’ll be honest that I really don’t think he can. I’ve tried to come up with a P5 example of a coach having this happen and then turn around and fix it to get to the top level but I can’t.
We cannot and should not fire Heupel today or this year. It would be suicide. Unless we go the tOSU route and name a year long interim. Even then I don't think it is time. But, we better start drafting a plan TODAY and get ready, because it is happening. Heupel isn't winning anything here and he will be fired sooner than later. He has lost me. You don't let Vandy skull [uck fay] you like that.
Heupel did the dirty work digging us out of a deep hole in years 1-3. I am grateful for that. But I think he's hit his ceiling. Give him and the program 2026 and go from there.
And I’ll be damned if we didn’t end up with one of the negative outliers. He made the big jump in year 2 that coaches with long term success tend to make and now here we are in year 5 with him looking like a dead man walking.
This is what I assumed was happening based on lack of discipline and details and toughness on the field. You play like you practice.
His team reflects the way Heupel presents himself: sloppy; doesn't take care of personal details like diet and exercise; low to no energy...
Postgame win expectancy: 0%. Expected margin: -25. Goes without saying that’s the worst of the season. The only other times this year that Bill’s computers thought we got outplayed were Bama (-12) and Oklahoma (-4)
Shit like that is pathetic. It doesn’t look like a 5 o’clock shadow, it looks like he was just rescued from a disabled fishing vessel. Having the discipline to keep yourself looking halfassed sharp is part of an overall symptom of the general laziness we’ve all seen and called out. It bleeds into the program.
Going to assume without checking that this is our worst overall performance since Missouri 2023 and our worst home performance under Heupel
I hate to be that guy, but even if Heupel makes it impossible not to fire him next season, it would take extreme fortune to keep our football program from falling back in the gutter. I could see Danny White bolting in that scenario and then it’d be our boosters and admin looking to hire a coach and AD? We really would be in the desert for eternity. Listen, the playoff might be the standard for a good season but it’s still only gonna be 6-7 programs that are actually relevant and we really think the University of Tennessee and its boosters are capable of making a elite football hire in the year of our lord 2025? We’ve made two elite hires in over 100 years of operation. One of those was an alumnus. And that’s not me saying that this is good or that fans should want this, but I’m just telling you to gird your loins good and early. With expansion and NIL and TV contracts, and just the fact that we haven’t won anything in damn near 30 years means that not only would a coaching search be a farce, not only would we be decimated by the portal and have to rebuild our team again, not only would we have to hire the right guy who has the ability, the aptitude, and the scheme to win big but also the belief in himself and the big money people at this school to look at 7 programs that have won hardware since we last did, 3 of them certified blue bloods, three of them having won multiple nattys this century, and be like, “Yes. We are going to vault above them and be the new standard in this conference.” Take off the orange tinted glasses, step back and really think about what you’ve seen from this University over the last 25 years and tell me with a straight face that we’re ready to take that step.
The fanbase and resources are top 5-10. Knoxville isn't on the dark side of the moon like Lincoln or even Norman. But it can't be done without the right head coach.
In this looking back 100 years scenario, we’ve had 8 coaches for 5+ seasons. Today Heupel has a better record than 3 of them. * edit: and Johnny Majors has a big fat asterisk next to his overall record.
You can name an interim in this day and age I think with the portal. It's better than showing commitment to a loser.
