Josh Heupel explains how Tennessee can close the gap on Florida, other elite programs
Josh Heupel and the Tennessee Volunteers went into The Swamp on Saturday night and hung tough in the first half.
However, after the intermission, it was all Gators, as Florida cruised to an easy 38-14 victory over an SEC East rival.
The game made it clear how much distance there still is between the Vols and other elite programs. So, how can Tennessee bridge that gap?
Heupel said it comes down to recruiting as much as it does on-the-field stuff (via 247Sports):
“It’s in everything that you do,” Heupel said when asked how Tennessee can close the gap on Florida. “There’s plenty of plays out there for us as coaches and players to close the gap tonight. Got a chance for it to be a tie ballgame going in (to halftime). It’s who we are and how we continue to develop as we build this program. It’s in recruiting, too. We’ve got to continue to grow. We’re in a race against ourselves.
“I said it last week, I said it the week before that: There’s things for us to do that we can be better than what we showed in the second half, in particular.”
The Vols have a great chance to pick up their first SEC win of the Heupel era on Saturday when they head to Columbia to take on a struggling Mizzou squad.
Geez Josh, you kinda just told your players they’re not good enough.
It’s pretty obvious to everyone including the players we are thin. He didn’t say they weren’t good enough. He said there aren’t enough of you.
You are an ignorant wretch.
Ah, a Vile. smh
Clean up some penalties, and botched plays and it could have been a one score game. Florida played pretty mistake free except for the WR getting stripped of the ball.
Our game stats actually mirror the AL-FL game very closely. AL did better on 3rd downs and allowed about 50 less yards but we held FL to less yards and rushing.
Could have been worse for a team with only 70 scholarship players. Team is not quitting like past squads were and is showing fight considering they were outgunned.
Hypel’s comments remind me of what Will Muschamp said about his SC players. “We’ve got to get better players”. That’s obvious, but to me it’s like throwing the team under the bus.
Huh? “There’s plenty of plays out there for us as coaches and players to close the gap tonight.” Not throwing them under the bus at all. Just need to keep working.
We’re 3-31 against Florida, Georgia, and Alabama since 2010. The program is such a joke that announcers are patronizing us as if we were Vandy or South Carolina. They actually called us “feisty” last night. I understand trying to find a silver lining, but let’s evaluate the game honestly. We had two good offensive plays, both I. The first quarter. One big defensive play before the half. No offense after halftime. Plenty of bonehead penalties. Dropped passes on crucial downs. No depth. A center who can barely stand up. Two apparently fragile retread QBs who can’t be the program’s future and aren’t doing its present much good, either. We lost by 24 to a competitive SEC team.
We’re now on our fourth straight coach who has followed the same pattern. This isn’t a Heupel problem; it’s an institutional one. We suck right now, and the attitude that we can close the gap by cleaning up execution and getting a couple more blue chip recruits is unrealistic. If we want the Vols to compete in the SEC as it exists now, it’s going to take rebuilding the Athletic Department from the ground up.
As bad as things are, nobody calls out 1998 when they see you walking around in a UT shirt.
You need a life. You must have a miserable existence.
That was to lawvol
This comment was pointless and nothing good comes from it. I’m just glad you’re not in charge.
You know what’s pointless? Keeping your head in the sand and acting like we’re still a good program. Kids we’re trying to recruit don’t even remember the last time we had back-to-back winning conference records (2006-07, under Fulmer), and they weren’t even alive the last time we won the SEC (1998, when we also won a national title).
We’re not going to catch up to the rest of the league by having a positive attitude. It’s going to require a commitment to excellence throughout the administration that I really don’t see. So I guess we’ll have to spend two years saying nice things about Heupel, a year saying it’s time for him to deliver, a year grumbling that it’s time for him to go, and then start the process over with someone new.
Convince me I’m wrong, somebody. I beg you.
I’m a Florida fan who was born in 1998. I have never seen Florida struggle for longer than the post Urban years, and those years sucked… but I cannot imagine your pain. I will say that you should feel different about Heupel. That team went out there and while they do not have anywhere near the talent of past Tennessee teams, they fought. You really cant say they ever gave up. That dude Cooper Mays was hobbling around out there like he was about to collapse at any second, but he stayed and lined right back up. This Tennessee team feels different than the teams of Pruitt and Jones, they have an identity. Heupel is a great offensive mind he just inherited a mess. You have to give him time to get some players and some depth but what I saw from Tennessee was far from a lot of the pathetic showings from the past. Pruitts teams were far closer in talent to Florida and got embarrassed worse. Give Heupel some time that’s all I’m saying, he can create something scary
Reply is to FlawdaBoy’s comment below. Thanks. I couldn’t have said anything mor accurate.
Well, make that above
Yes, UT still has a long way to go. A big part of that is finding a QB who can consistently throw accurate passes! But I do think they have finally found the right coach. Or at least the one who can get the program turned around and heading in the right direction. The energy just felt different Saturday. Pruitt was always a dumb choice, and Jones felt like a high school coach. I’m not saying Heupel is the guy, he has yet to prove himself with his own team that he assembled, but I think he is going to do a good job there.