silerme

That's easy to say if you are only looking at that game before they have even played, Zack. But lets think about that for a second. Tennessee has struggled to be relevant since the early 2000's and this is the first year that they have been nationally recognized as a potential New Year's 6 team and dark horse for the CFP. But you can't say that Tennessee fans will be "on the couch with a psychologist" after losing two games to a team that has been arguably the best in college football for the better part of a decade. The author of this article wrote about his over-reactions after week 5, sounds like you are over-reacting too. And dare I say, it sounds like you're even a little threatened by the notion that Tennessee will do more than worry Bama the way that a much less experienced team did last year. If Tennessee loses twice to Bama, no big deal, its almost expected. But its hardly a reason to say that those losses are all it takes to ruin an already successful season and a likely SEC East Championship.

First of all, I agree that there are some definite coaching issues that need to be overcome. One thing to keep in mind though, is that Nick Saban didn't make it to the level that he is at now in one season. Coach Jones is a good coach, and he has room to grow and a lot to learn. The last two years have been full of learning points for the entire coaching staff. I see that Jones has grown as a coach, case in point, the hire of Coach Shoop. He still has plenty to learn, but I see strides being made. The growth of a program starts with coaching and recruiting and at least one of those are a check in the box, even if next year's class isn't top 5. Time will tell, but I see this season as a big leap forward and a chance to put words into action.

I can see the Tigers having a stronger defense for sure this year. The biggest unknown for them is how potent the offense will be. I feel like as Leonard Fournette goes, so too will the offense go. He is arguably one of, if not THE best back in the country. I just hope that the weight of the season doesn't get in his head and make him play too conservatively. We will see in a week. Good luck to the Tigers this season... Unless they play Tennessee for the SEC title. I guess that goes without saying, but lets not get too far ahead ourselves.

I can see that someone has done their research ^^^ that guy. All pre-season rankings are based on returning starters, performance and improvement throughout the course of the preceding season, and the strength of schedule both the prior season and the current one. There is no other way to rank teams before games are played. Anyone who thinks otherwise hasn't paid much attention to pre-season ranking criteria. And the biggest thing to remember is that these are pre-season rankings that are not intended to be true at the end of the season. That's why the CFP rankings don't come out until 8 weeks into the season, and are updated weekly thereafter.

Short of statements to address the issues at hand, there isn't much that the university can do to players alleged to have committed crimes. The fact that there have been so many accusations means that at least a couple if them will likely end in either conviction or a settlement. Those students will undoubtedly be subject to expulsion. As for the culture at the school, there is some validity to statements regarding the universities lack of proactivity vice reactivity. I think it would go a long way for Tennessee to install a policy that removes student's eligibility to participate in sports until the resolution of cases involving sexual assault allegations. Although in doing so the athletic department may set a dangerous precedent for future allegations weather factual or otherwise. And that doesn't even begin to address the obvious character deformation issues that would certainly follow accused players for the rest of their lives i.e. Payton Manning. The long and short of it is... there are more drastic measures that could be taken by the University of Tennessee and their athletic department, but there are no easy answers here and with that the decision on how to proceed isn't as simple as some feel it should be. Anyone who disagrees, please post in response. But I think that anyone invested in college sports enough to post on this thread is likely to agree that the media attention being paid to these issues does nothing but add fuel to an already nasty situation and aren't intended to help, they are intended to throw mud and drive up ratings.

Don't be too let down V4LinPA, I'm kind of an optimist but I see 2 prospects from Knoxville and it reminds me that we still have a wealth of talent on RockyTop. I see a draft and a combine in the future with several more Tennessee players after we win the SEC this year and head to one of the Big Six Bowl Games or maybe the CFP. Our NCAA day is here and the NFL will notice, guaranteed.

Grover and BamaTime are the only two who mentioned it, but its worth remembering that every team reports some minor violations every year. The other half of that story is that every team in a conference as competitive as the SEC is doing everything that they can to gain a competitive edge over all the other teams. The minor violations and the occasional big scandal are just par for the course in the premier conference in the country with the money and the media attention that are always around. Not to say that I condone it, but its really naïve to believe that they aren't all guilty, some more than others.

Another consideration that has not been mentioned is that great downfield passing stems not only from off-season development, but also great pass protection. The off-season development will come, provided the offensive scheme is geared that way... I think it will be a little more runcentric this year between Hurd, Kamara, and Dobbs and frankly, why wouldn't it be. But the real story behind short passes and bubble screens is a lack of confidence in our offensive line. If the offensive line, now more seasoned and confident, shows the growth that they have the potential to achieve in the off-season and the early part of the 16 season, the downfield passing game will be a more realistic expectation, and we will see that toward the middle of the season in 16.

And while we're at it, we can dig out our old UK jerseys and pretend that ya'll are good for the first time EVER!!! This is exciting stuff.