Jadeveon Clowney enters South Carolina already a legend in high school football. He is also picked to be on several preseason top 10 lists among all SEC defensive ends for 2011, and he hasn’t even stepped foot on the football field yet. Clowney virtually dominated every facet of the high school game, from defense to even taking one 99 yards to the house as a running back. YouTube it; it’s incredible.

As all of you know, Clowney elected to wait until after National Signing Day to make his college decision, and it had everyone foaming at the mouth, particularly South Carolina, Alabama and Clemson, wondering where he would choose to play college football.

As Clowney gets ready to suit up for the South Carolina Gamecocks, several predecessors who have delayed their college decision announement until after National Signing Day have all but excelled when they got to college – they fizzled out.

Exhibit 1 – Terrelle Pyror

Terrelle Pryor had all the hype that Clowney is receiving out of high school from Jeanette, Pennsylvania. He was the unanimous No. 1 prospect in the 2007 recruiting cycle. Pryor waited until after NSD to make his decision known between Ohio State and Michigan, and as we all know, he eventually chose to play at Ohio State. Once on campus in Columbia, he continually underwhelmed both on and off the field. As all of you know, he was the main reason Jim Tressel is no longer the Buckeye’s head coach, and Pryor has left school early to enter the NFL Supplemental Draft. His career at OSU will forever be remembered for tattoos and nine different cars in three years. He was a total cancer and one of the most selfish individuals I’ve ever seen in college football.

Exhibit 2 – Bryce Brown

Bryce Brown was a can’t-miss running back prospect from Wichita, Kansas. Brown exited the 2009 recruiting cycle as the No. 1 overall recruit at running back. He waited until after NSD to make his decision known between Tennessee and Miami. He chose Tennessee and Coach Lane Kiffin. Upon entering Tennessee, Brown had all the hype to be the next running back in a long line of greats in Knoxville. After seeing what a minimal impact he had his freshman season, coupled with the fact Derek Dooley took over for Lane Kiffin, he decided to transfer to Kansas State. He said he left Tennessee because he was dealing with family and personal problems related to his decision to come to Tennessee.

Exhibit 3 – Seantrel Henderson

Seantrel Henderson exited the 2010 recruiting cycle as the unanimous overall ranked offensive lineman. Henderson had all the athleticism, but he did have some baggage with his father trying to become a legit rapper. Crazy, I know. Anyway, Henderson signed with USC after NSD but wanted to transfer shortly thereafter. USC released him, and Henderson then ended up transferring to Randy Shannon and the Miami Hurricanes. Henderson has since been rumored he would transfer from Miami, but it has not happened yet.

Clowney’s Impact

Now, I am no way saying Clowney will have minimal impact at South Carolina or have a troubled future, but rather, explaining there has been some trouble with the consensus No. 1 overall prospects once they enter college. They have been looked up to their whole lives and virtually worshipped. It must be very tough knowing there are other football players who can have just as big of an impact as you can.

Anyway, I do think Clowney will do fine in college, but there are certainly question marks raised by his predecessors’ actions.

I think Clowney will have an impact at defensive end in year one, particularly rushing the quarterback off of the end. Now, I do think it will take him one or two years to handle a good SEC offensive lineman.

If Clowney does prove to show he is worthy as a freshman and can really get past a SEC tackle, I would line up and run the football right at him to take away his strengths in the pass rush game.

What impact do you think Jadeveon Clowney will have at South Carolina?

The Early Years….

The 3-star running back arrived at Tennessee as part of former coach Phillip Fulmer’s final recruiting class when he signed with the Vols in the spring of 2007 but was limited to 171 yards on just 32 carries during his first two seasons.  Prior to the 2010 season, Poole was likely more well known for a blowup with then coach Lane Kiffin when he refused to enter a game against Memphis.  With Tennessee up by 28 points and just three minutes remaining, Poole was summoned by running backs coach Eddie Gran to take the field.  Poole recalls respectfully telling Gran, “No sir, I don’t want to go in.”  When Gran informed Kiffin of Poole’s remarks a heated exchange ensued between the head coach and the overlooked sophomore.  Poole told Kiffin, “No.  I should have been playing all year.  I don’t want to go in there with three minutes left in the Memphis game.”  Kiffin replied by sending Poole off the field to the lockers for an early shower.  Poole later added, “I felt like I was done at Tennessee.”

The Toccoa, GA native had no shortage of support for his strong stance in regards to playing time as several teammates came to his defense.  Poole persevered, stayed the course and just over two months later, it was Kiffin, not Tauren, who was done at Tennessee as the brash head coach fled Knoxville in the middle of the night for his “dream job” at Southern Cal.  Also done, after Kiffin’s abrupt departure, was Bryce Brown and a year and a half later, David Oku would leave as well.  Amidst the debris left in Kiffin’s wake, a star was waiting to emerge for the Volunteers.

A Chance for a Fresh Start…..

When Derek Dooley was named Kiffin’s successor as head coach at Tennessee, it signalled a new beginning for Poole.  Dooley became Poole’s third head coach in as many seasons and was more than willing to give the 5’11″ 213 pound Georgia native the opportunity he had long awaited, to earn his spot as the Vol’s starting tailback.  Poole would more than take advantage of his shot. 

In Poole’s first spring practice under Coach Dooley, the hard working tailback was one of four Vols to earn The Fourth Quarter Award, given to players who compete and exemplify attitude, discipline, toughness, effort and teamwork.  Later, Poole was voted by teammates as the Vol’s player most likely to have a breakout year in 2010.  Poole reflected before the 2010 season began by saying, “Everything I have been through has been hard, but it’s shaped me as who I am today.  You have to work for it all.  Everything you get, you have to work like it’s your last.  You have to play every down like it’s your last because it’s not given.  Nothing is guaranteed.  It can all be taken away.”

1,034 Rushing Yards in 2010…..

Dooley called Poole’s number to the tune of 204 carries in 2010 and number 28 answered “yes” in a resounding way, amassing 1,034 yards for a 5.1 yard-per-carry average, while also leading the Vols with 12 touchdowns, 11 of which were on the ground.  Poole also put together six 100 yard games that included century-mark breakers against three of the top rushing defenses in college football in Oregon, LSU and Alabama.  The 117 yard performance against Alabama in Neyland Stadium halted the Tide’s streak of not allowing a 100 yard rusher at 41 games.  Dooley never wavered in his confidence in the sure-handed runner who has never fumbled at Tennessee in 236 rushing attempts.  Poole’s numbers are even all that more impressive when you consider the fact that Tennessee, as a team, finished dead last in the SEC in rushing offense and utilized an extremely young, inexperienced offensive line that had very little depth.  Poole’s game is far from one dimensional as the junior caught at least one pass in all but two of Tennessee’s 13 games, finishing the season with 22 receptions for 171 yards and a touchdown.  An encore performance of the 2010 season will also have Poole knocking on the door of the top 10 all-time ground gainers in Tennessee football history.

Poole’s Shot at History…..

As Poole prepares for his senior season, the once overlooked tailback will now have a shot at writing a few pages into the Tennessee record book.  Throughout the many years of Tennessee football, the list of outstanding running backs brings back some incredible memories, with names like Montario Hardesty, Arian Foster, Travis Henry, Travis Stephens, Jamal Lewis, Jay Graham, James Stewart, Charlie Garner, Chuck Webb and Reggie Cobb.   Poole has a unique opportunity, in 2011, to accomplish a feat that none of those mentioned were able achieve, back-to-back 1000 yard rushing seasons.  Remarkably, it’s happened just once before in Tennessee’s history and you have to turn back the clock 27 years to 1983-1984 to find Johnnie Jones lighting up the SEC for 1,116 and 1,290 yards in those respective seasons.  If Poole stays healthy, running behind a more experienced and deeper offensive line, he’s almost a lock to stand alongside Jones in the UT record books by season’s end.

Back to the Future…..

Poole’s tenure at Tennessee is almost a mirror-image of the uncertainty and change that has surrounded the Volunteer’s football program in the past three seasons.  Plenty of questions and doubt in the first two years, followed by answers and promise last season and optimism abounding for the future.  Dooley gave Poole the shot that he deserved and both have reaped the rewards.  Though much has changed during Poole’s career with the Big Orange, one thing seems almost certain.  If the Vols are to continue their resurgence to the top of the SEC East and a trip to Atlanta in early December, Tauren Poole will likely play a huge part in Tennessee’s quest to make a big splash in 2011.

My questions is, “would you rather win the Fulmer Cup or lose the Richt Cup?” The so called “wave” of arrests of football players at UGA must be taken in context. Below are two examples of what other teams fans have to deal with. I am NOT saying that any crime is ok; just we need to remember the spectrum varies greatly.

An example from that school down South

RONNIE “AK-47” WILSON
Charge #1: Aggravated assault, battery and use of display of a concealed weapon during commission of a felony in April 2007 for shooting a semiautomatic rifle after a dispute with another man.
Outcome: Wilson pleaded no contest to battery and discharging a firearm. The felony charge was reduced to a misdemeanor and later dropped. Wilson was placed on two year’s probation and given 100 hours of community service.
Charge #2: Misdemeanor possession of marijuana in January 2008.
Outcome: The charge was dropped despite serving probation for his original arrest.
Charge #3: One count of battery and one count of assault for an altercation at an apartment complex in October.
Outcome: Nothing has been ruled on the case, according to court records.
Team punishments: Wilson was suspended for the entire 2007 season stemming from the gun charge, including a full-year suspension from University of Florida academics. Wilson rejoined the team in 2008 but was suspended and eventually kicked off after the third charge.

An example from the University of Tennessee

According to Tennessee station WBIR, an NBC affiliate, three University of Tennessee football players were arrested early Thursday morning and charged with armed robbery. A Knoxville Police Department spokesman told WBIR that the three students, Nu’Keese Richardson, Janzen Jackson and Mike Edwards, plus female driver Marie Montmarquet, were being held at a detention center after allegedly attempting to rob three Maryville residents at a Pilot convenience store.

According to the victims, the men were sitting in their car when one of the students opened the driver’s side door and demanded money from the three, who reportedly showed them empty wallets. After the students left the scene, the victims described their car, which police then located, finding Richardson, Jackson, Edwards and Montmarquet in the process. An air-powered pellet gun, two black hoodies (which the victims described the alleged perpetrators as wearing) and a marijuana grinder were found by police. Montmarquet claimed that the grinder was hers and was subsequently hit with a drug charge.

This report is quite interesting in the fact that the RB Bryce Brown has been reported saying he wants to be released from his scholarship from Tennessee after complaining of what he considered “questionable behavior” from his teammates. Supposedly he was actually in the elevator when these three UT players were discussing the robbery planning.

Back To Georgia…

Now taken in light of these two examples and believe me there are many more out there, the “Scooter-Gate” at UGA seems pretty mundane.

Mark Richt is the longest tenured Head Coach in the South Eastern Conference….say that with me everybody…..10 years in the SEC. UGA has the current longest streak of 8 wins or more in the country.

Nobody else can say that, not Urban Meyer, not Nick Saban, not Les Miles, not Joe Paterno, not Mack Brown….nobody. And the Georgia fans want Richt run out town on a rail because some 19 and 20 year old young men can’t pay their traffic tickets?

Imagine if every other college kid in Athens got his/her arrest story splashed all over the media. Do we go after their professors or parents? Do we want to pull their scholarship? No…..So why does it make sense that a football player gets arrested and we want blood?

Imagine you are in charge of 100 young men; you are responsible for their grades, their care and feeding, their conduct on and off campus 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Every misstep played out in the National media. Imagine yourself on ESPN because your kid failed to pay a speeding ticket. Seems pretty easy? You couldn’t pay me the $4M per year to take on that kind of heat. …and I doubt not too many people would either.

Championships take some luck and a lot of hard work. Coach Mark Richt has certainly put this team in a position year-in-and-year-out to win championships.

I’m sure if you gave any Head Coach in college football this option, “You can win 8 or more games for 13 years OR you can roll the dice and see what you get.” Line forms to the left please…..

The 2002 team was a Terrence Edwards catch away from beating Florida and going to the BCS Championship game. They did beat FSU in the Sugar Bowl to finish #3 in the country with a record of 13-1. The most wins by a UGA team EVER….that was under Mark Richt’s watch.

The 2007 team was a win against either a South Carolina or Florida win away from the SEC Championship vs. LSU and possibly another BCS Championship Bowl appearance. The pineapple-crushing defeat they put on Colt Brennan and Hawaii in the Sugar Bowl that year was probably their most complete game. I would bet money they beat Ohio State (0-9 vs. SEC teams in bowls) in the BCS game if they had played. Remember LSU lost TWICE as the #1 team in the country and STILL made it to the BCS game. You need some luck….or a good Vanderbilt FG kicker…to get to the big game.

His record is 92 wins and 31 loses. 92 wins in ten years people….put the pitch forks away.

But “Hey Coach, can we beat Florida this year? Please……..”

“Upon arriving in Knoxville, I immediately felt like I was too far away from home,” Brown said in an affidavit signed Wednesday. “I would constantly call home to talk to my family, who thought I would overcome my homesickness once more players and students arrived on campus.

“Once other football players did arrive on campus, I quickly realized that I did not fit in with the other players in the football program. My teammates were involved in a range of activities that I was not comfortable being around.”

Really Bryce? Let’s take a little responsibility for our actions, shall we?

The Tennessee Volunteers open the 2010 season against Ohio Valley Conference team Tennessee-Martin. “New” is the storyline for the Vols coming into the season opener. Here are five things you need to know about Tennessee vs. Tennessee-Martin:

1. Derek Dooley enters his first year, first game coaching the Tennessee program. Dooley played wide receiver at Virginia and later became the head coach at Louisiana Tech where he had a career record of 17 – 20. Dooley will have to re-energize the fan base and the students to get excited about football in Tennessee. He will get that opportunity in game one against Tennessee-Martin.

2. This marks the first game without Jonathan Crompton at the quarterback position this year for the Vols. JUCO transfer Matt Simms and freshman early enrollee Tyler Bray will continue battle it out for the starting job. Simms will likely start, barring injury, and Bray will get to see some action in the second half when this one gets out of control. It will be fun to see Bray develop into what I believe to be a quality SEC quarterback.

3. I am particularly anxious to see the wide receiving core for Tennessee. This is a position for Tennessee that actually has some depth. Getting those wide receivers the football will be key though. Seniors Gerald Jones and Denarius Moore lead the veteran wide receivers, while freshmen Justin Hunter and Da’Rick Rogers will make for an exciting duo for Bray to work with.

4. Chuck Smith was Dooley’s final hire to complete the coaching staff. Smith is a former UT and pro defensive star and went to high school with Dooley. He has built a reputation on being a defensive line specialist with a couple of his former pupils playing professional football right now – Albert Haynesworth, Robert Ayers, and Shaun Ellis to name a few. Smith will have his hands full with a depleted defensive line to due to injury and the NFL. Chris Walker is the lone standout on the defensive line for the Vols and figures to have a big game against the smaller offensive line of Tennessee-Martin.

5. Tennessee-Martin’s rushing defensive last year was ranked 37th in Football Championship Subdivision. This should open the gates for junior running back Tauren Poole. Poole has sat behind Arian Foster and the Kiffin-promised starter Bryce Brown for the last two seasons. Poole has continually shown flashes of potential every time he touches the ball in practice and in the games. Tauren Poole looks to have a big season and it starts with the opener against Tennessee-Martin.

Practice has started and the Vols are already in full pads. With football season approaching, I thought you may like to read these comments from Chris Low of ESPN:

What’s new: What isn’t new? Derek Dooley is the Vols’ third head coach in as many seasons. He brought in Justin Wilcox from Boise State to run the defense, meaning Wilcox will be the Vols’ third different defensive coordinator in as many years. Jim Chaney was retained from Lane Kiffin’s staff and will coordinate the offense. The difference is that Chaney will call the plays this season, whereas Kiffin was the play-caller a year ago. This will be the fourth straight year that a different coach has called Tennessee’s offensive plays. David Cutcliffe had those duties in 2007, Dave Clawson in 2008, Kiffin in 2009 and now Chaney.

Sidelined: Four signees are still waiting to be cleared academically — defensive tackle John Brown, linebacker Martaze Jackson and defensive backs Eddrick Loften and Marcques Dixon. Redshirt freshman defensive back Naz Oliver is out while rehabilitating an ACL tear. Senior defensive end Ben Martin had arthroscopic knee surgery in June and will be limited.

Key battle: Junior Cody Pope will start out No. 1 at center, but junior college newcomer Darin Gooch and senior Victor Thomas, who moved over from defensive tackle, will also take their shots this preseason.

New on the scene: Get ready to see a ton of new faces in orange this fall. True freshman Ja’Wuan James is the starting right tackle, and redshirt freshman JerQuari Schofield is the starting left guard. The Vols are eager to see what true freshman Jacques Smith can do at defensive end. True freshman receivers Da’Rick Rogers and Justin Hunter look like they have what it takes to be big-play threats, and pair of true freshmen may wind up handling the kicking chores — Michael Palardy as the place-kicker and Matt Darr as the punter.

Breaking out: Junior tailback Tauren Poole never got a chance last season. He wasted away on the bench while Bryce Brown got all the second-team snaps behind Montario Hardesty. Hardesty’s in the NFL now, and Brown’s back in Kansas. Poole has endured and is hungry to make up for lost time. Several of his teammates felt like he should have been playing ahead of Brown last season.

Don’t forget about: Senior middle linebacker Nick Reveiz has feverishly worked his way back from a knee injury that ended his season a year ago in the fourth week. From a leadership, knowledge and production standpoint, Reveiz is one of those guys who’s extremely difficult to replace.

All eyes on: Junior quarterback Matt Simms. He’s the starter going into preseason camp, and Dooley has made that clear. Simms, who started his career at Louisville before stopping over at El Camino (Calif.) Community College, has gone out of his way this offseason to be a leader. Now, he’s got to prove it on the field and fend off a challenge from true freshman Tyler Bray, who went through spring practice. Bray has a nice upside, but still has some maturing to do before he’s ready to lead a team.

Quoting: “I think people on our team feel good about our program, and that’s important. If the team doesn’t feel good about where you are and the plan to get where you want to be, then you’ve got real problems. But I feel like our team does feel that way.” — Tennessee coach Derek Dooley

The combination of technology and college football is amazing. I mean, we have instant replays, facebook recruiting violations, and now a player transfers from his school through a text message. Read this quote from the article on Rocky Top Talk about Bryce Brown:

Bryce Brown told Derek Dooley today he would be leaving the program…not face to face, but via text message. Sure, he’s a young kid that probably doesn’t know Dooley very well…but if you’re big enough to call your own press conference two months after signing day to announce your school of choice, you should be big enough to tell your head coach you’re leaving face to face.

Dooley’s policy on releasing players has been unique to each situation, and he mentioned at media days that he does take into account how much the player’s departure hurts the team. So while Dooley and the Browns get to sort out how quickly he can play for Kansas State, we get to try and sort out exactly how much this departure will hurt.

The article went on to discuss Brown and it seems like Tennessee fans have a little buyer’s remorse over these star recruits brought in by the one and only Lane Kiffin:

Even if it isn’t fair to define him fully by the text message, it does serve as validation to a thought that many of us had coming into today: we’re tired of this, and maybe it’s just not worth it. Brown, no matter how talented, would’ve been a distraction on a team that’s led the nation in that category over the last two years. He would’ve been an outsider on a team that’s trying to rally together in the face of those distractions, especially for guys like Tauren Poole who’ve stayed and worked hard to play here. And even if Brown really is a good kid and a great running back…he lost our respect a little more each day this dragged on this summer, and each day it got a little easier to just carry on without him…and if he’s that quick to say goodbye, we’ll be that quick to move on.

What are your thoughts?

On the offensive side of the field, ball catching will be the strength if someone can get the ball to them. Led by the best pro prospect on this team, tight end Luke Stocker and crafty senior wide out Gerald Jones, this group has a number of young stars in the waiting. Freshman 5* recruit Da’Rick Rogers leads a group of freshman that are trying to reclaim the title ‘Wide Receiver U’ back to Tennessee. This group also includes three 4* WR’s: very athletic Justin Hunter, large and athletic at 6’6” Matt Milton, and speedy Ted Meline. The receiving core will also need significant help from senior Denarius Moore and Sophomore Marsalis Teague.

Junior College transfer and son of Hall of Fame QB Phil Simms, Matt Simms looks to be the leader of the offense going into the fall. Simms struggled in the spring game, but with reports of good performance at the Manning Passing camps this summer, opinions have recently become positive of this quarterback. Tyler Bray is the big name freshman quarterback recruit that will push Simms for his job. Bray comes in at 6’6’’ 175, a little frail to take the licks in the SEC this season.

Taurean Poole has received all kinds of pub this summer as the running back to watch. With the breakout year from Montario Hardesty, and the overhype of freshman Bryce Brown, Poole’s carries were limited last year. Some say Kiffin promised Brown carries in the recruiting process, giving Poole no chance. Poole is strong and explosive and will need to be big for the Vols this year. David Oku, a great receiving back, will provide relief at running back. Another quiet strength for this offense could also be the fullback Kevin Cooper, he is a horse and also can catch some balls out of the backfield.

It is very hard to produce in this league without a great offensive line. The Vols offensive line has little to no experience. Jarrod Shaw will be the leader of this bunch, as the only returning lineman with much experience at all. Several freshmen have proved that they can be relied upon early, but for them to stop Florida, Alabama and Ole Miss defensive fronts will be another story. A couple talented freshmen to look out for will be JerQuari Schofield and JuWuan James. This will be the story to watch early in the season. If the big boys up front come together and play well, the offense might actually score some points.

Daniel Lincoln might have seen his last day as the kicker for Tennessee. He is a sore subject for most Vols fans, as you could place the blame for multiple games on his shoulder pads. The career 65% place kicker has been known for his low kicks, often eaten by an animal with two 9’s on his crimson jersey. Michael Palardy comes in as one of the most talked about kicker recruits in recent memory. The strong footed lefty from Ft. Lauderdale is ready to fight for the place kicker job. Whoever wins the job will need to perform at a high level to help this team score enough point to be competitive.