After the first game I still have no idea how good/bad this team is. How many

[volsboy]

conference wins do you see this team getting? Is a bowl game in the cards. We shall see.  Those first 5 conference games are going to be tough to get a win. I don't get our lack of talent. Aren't all these guys at least 3* players? Weren't they all at least recruited a little? Why do other 3* type teams do better than the Vols. Frustrating.

[crockettman]

I saw some good things from this game and a few not so good..
Although it was the first game of the year for the most part the penalties were few but the ones they had were costly at key moments.. That can be fixed.
This team will go as far as that young secondary will take it,they need to get better and fast.
There's no excuse for having 10 men on the field,they dodged a bullet with that play.
The positive is that it was a non conference game,a good learning experience.
WVU will win a lot of games this year and will give a lot of teams fits.
I don't see us beating Bama,Auburn or UGA but any of the remaining SEC games are fair game imo and we might just pull out a surprise win if this team stays healthy.. Go Vols!

[Tnphil]

We are what we are until we get play makers and some elite SEC type talent.....We are lacking on both. I'm watching the LSU game and the only player on our starting 22 that would have a chance at starting on LSU's starting 22 is Trey Smith. Think about that and you'll see why we are who we are.

[volpride]

Call me crazy but I still have the same amount of hope I did before the game started Saturday. Yes losing sucks but let's be honest, any realistic fan knew going in that would be a tough game to win. I would have liked to of played WVU in the 3rd or 4th game of the year. There's a lot to figure out and improve on but there's a lot of bright spots. I still think 6 wins is very doable, possibly 7 if we sneak up on somebody. As I've told everyone around me, call me after the UF game then we'll talk. I won't hit the panic button until after week 4 and may not even then. It's an uphill climb ladies and gentlemen and certainly not for the faint of heart. We'll be okay but patience is key (something i know i'm tired of being after the last several years).

[73Volgrad]

I think Trey Smith showed he is not in football shape, missed spring practice, and fall camp. The rest of the OL looked on TV like they still do not know who to block. JG has to show he can complete a deep ball before I feel better. Knew the DBs were freshmen, but they still could have played better. Until the players stop looking for a star to emerge and play like a team, they will lose the 2nd half of every game.

They will improve as the year goes on. I just hope they don't have 7 losses before Pruitt figures out what players can really help.

[Jedi Master]

conference wins do you see this team getting? Is a bowl game in the cards. We shall see.  Those first 5 conference games are going to be tough to get a win. I don't get our lack of talent. Aren't all these guys at least 3* players? Weren't they all at least recruited a little? Why do other 3* type teams do better than the Vols. Frustrating.

UT may beat UK and/or Vandy, IF the team hasn't mailed it in by then.  But UT will likely be a decided underdawg in the rest of its SEC games.   Talent level, new system (O and D), new coaches all add up to UT playing behind the 8 ball this season.  4-8 or 5-7 is likely.  7-5 and Pruitt has done a fine job.

WVU (L)
ETSU (W)
UTEP (W)
Florida (L)
UGA (L)
AU (L)
Bama (L)
USCe (L)
Charlotte (W)
UK (L)
Mizzou (L)
Vandy (W)

[BanditVol]

UT may beat UK and/or Vandy, IF the team hasn't mailed it in by then.  But UT will likely be a decided underdawg in the rest of its SEC games.   Talent level, new system (O and D), new coaches all add up to UT playing behind the 8 ball this season.  4-8 or 5-7 is likely.  7-5 and Pruitt has done a fine job.

WVU (L)
ETSU (W)
UTEP (W)
Florida (L)
UGA (L)
AU (L)
Bama (L)
USCe (L)
Charlotte (W)
UK (L)
Mizzou (L)
Vandy (W)

Agree that, and in response to volsboy, UK and Vandy are not only winnable, but should be wins.  Heck, Kentucky barely beat us last year with one of their better teams vs. our worst team ever, and it was in Lexington.  Vandy won convincingly, but our team quit in the third quarter and vandy has lost a lot from last year.   I see those as wins.

So to answer volsboy...we will very likely beat vandy and UK.

To push back a bit on the rest of your teams, we have a shot at UF.  We absolutely should have beaten them last year.  Scratch that, we should be on at least a 3 game win streak, if not 4.  I can't judge any improvement at Florida yet because Charleston is essentially a HS all star team, minus any D1 prospects.  In other words, the best of the rest from HS in the state of SC for the most part.  As usual, Tennessee will be Florida's first real test, and then the question is will Mullin be able to turn them around more than Pruitt?  I think the talent overall between Florida and Tennessee is about even (definitely so based on recruiting rankings and also on-field performance the last 3 years), but maybe Mullen got luckier in the sense that he inherited a better D than Pruitt and usually the team with the better D should be favored.  I guess we will see.

Furthermore I am anxious to see how Mizzou does with our ex and your son of ex.   I think Dooley might just be able to screw them up enough that our young DBs might have a shot come November.  And/or our offense can win a shooting contest.

Finally I wouldn't ever rule out SC, although I will reserve judgment till they have played a few SEC games.  they do have the potential to be really good this year, but we should have beaten them last year...again with literally one of our worst if  not the worst team ever and I am still not sold on Muschamp as a HC.

I give us a chance in any of those other three games. I think we can get to 6 and 6 and maybe even 7 5.  We'll just have to wait and see.

In the meantime, good luck wihout your two top NFL draftees and new stud at RB.  I think uga is down a notch this season and will drop at least 1, maybe 2 regular season games.  We will see.

[Jedi Master]

Agree that, and in response to volsboy, UK and Vandy are not only winnable, but should be wins.  Heck, Kentucky barely beat us last year with one of their better teams vs. our worst team ever, and it was in Lexington.  Vandy won convincingly, but our team quit in the third quarter and vandy has lost a lot from last year.   I see those as wins.

So to answer volsboy...we will very likely beat vandy and UK.

To push back a bit on the rest of your teams, we have a shot at UF.  We absolutely should have beaten them last year.  Scratch that, we should be on at least a 3 game win streak, if not 4.  I can't judge any improvement at Florida yet because Charleston is essentially a HS all star team, minus any D1 prospects.  In other words, the best of the rest from HS in the state of SC for the most part.  As usual, Tennessee will be Florida's first real test, and then the question is will Mullin be able to turn them around more than Pruitt?  I think the talent overall between Florida and Tennessee is about even (definitely so based on recruiting rankings and also on-field performance the last 3 years), but maybe Mullen got luckier in the sense that he inherited a better D than Pruitt and usually the team with the better D should be favored.  I guess we will see.

Furthermore I am anxious to see how Mizzou does with our ex and your son of ex.   I think Dooley might just be able to screw them up enough that our young DBs might have a shot come November.  And/or our offense can win a shooting contest.

Finally I wouldn't ever rule out SC, although I will reserve judgment till they have played a few SEC games.  they do have the potential to be really good this year, but we should have beaten them last year...again with literally one of our worst if  not the worst team ever and I am still not sold on Muschamp as a HC.

I give us a chance in any of those other three games. I think we can get to 6 and 6 and maybe even 7 5.  We'll just have to wait and see.

In the meantime, good luck wihout your two top NFL draftees and new stud at RB.  I think uga is down a notch this season and will drop at least 1, maybe 2 regular season games.  We will see.

Sure, UT could go 7-5.  But it could go 4-8 or 5-7 as well.  UF seems to have had UT's number over the years, and I don't see UT scoring enough to keep up with Mizzou or beating USCe.  Like you said, we will see.

UGA will change its offensive makeup this year, to be more balanced with the pass versus last year.   The defense is reloading, and it will take awhile to get our young talent some experience.  Wouldn't surprise me at all if UGA drops one in the regular season, but I would be surprised if we dropped two. Either LSU or AU could beat us, though.

[VinnieVOL]

What really bums me out is the fact that we're gonna see much better OL and DL in SEC play.  We made WV's line look like SEC caliber roadgraders.... I shudder to think what's gonna happen vs UGA, Bama and Auburn's lines if we don't get better fast.  JG won't last the year taking those kinds of hits vs. the SEC big boys.   

[BanditVol]

Sure, UT could go 7-5.  But it could go 4-8 or 5-7 as well.  UF seems to have had UT's number over the years, and I don't see UT scoring enough to keep up with Mizzou or beating USCe.  Like you said, we will see.

UGA will change its offensive makeup this year, to be more balanced with the pass versus last year.   The defense is reloading, and it will take awhile to get our young talent some experience.  Wouldn't surprise me at all if UGA drops one in the regular season, but I would be surprised if we dropped two. Either LSU or AU could beat us, though.

I'd say Junior could beat you also.  they have their best team in years, and play you tough even when they suxes.  So maybe three losses.   

[JeffCountyVolFan]

We have only 3 games that we should definitely win. We have 3 more games that we should be huge dogs. Of the remaining five games, I think that a 3-2 record would be an accomplishment, at least after watching us week 1.

I'm hoping for 6-6 at this point but concerned that it will be worse.

I hope that after week 4 I can revisit this topic with much more optimism.

[Jedi Master]

Agree that, and in response to volsboy, UK and Vandy are not only winnable, but should be wins.  Heck, Kentucky barely beat us last year with one of their better teams vs. our worst team ever, and it was in Lexington.  Vandy won convincingly, but our team quit in the third quarter and vandy has lost a lot from last year.   I see those as wins.

So to answer volsboy...we will very likely beat vandy and UK.

To push back a bit on the rest of your teams, we have a shot at UF.  We absolutely should have beaten them last year.  Scratch that, we should be on at least a 3 game win streak, if not 4.  I can't judge any improvement at Florida yet because Charleston is essentially a HS all star team, minus any D1 prospects.  In other words, the best of the rest from HS in the state of SC for the most part.  As usual, Tennessee will be Florida's first real test, and then the question is will Mullin be able to turn them around more than Pruitt?  I think the talent overall between Florida and Tennessee is about even (definitely so based on recruiting rankings and also on-field performance the last 3 years), but maybe Mullen got luckier in the sense that he inherited a better D than Pruitt and usually the team with the better D should be favored.  I guess we will see.

Furthermore I am anxious to see how Mizzou does with our ex and your son of ex.   I think Dooley might just be able to screw them up enough that our young DBs might have a shot come November.  And/or our offense can win a shooting contest.

Finally I wouldn't ever rule out SC, although I will reserve judgment till they have played a few SEC games.  they do have the potential to be really good this year, but we should have beaten them last year...again with literally one of our worst if  not the worst team ever and I am still not sold on Muschamp as a HC.

I give us a chance in any of those other three games. I think we can get to 6 and 6 and maybe even 7 5.  We'll just have to wait and see.

In the meantime, good luck wihout your two top NFL draftees and new stud at RB.  I think uga is down a notch this season and will drop at least 1, maybe 2 regular season games.  We will see.

Do you still like your chances against UK, Vandy, Mizzou?  What about Junior?

[BanditVol]

Do you still like your chances against UK, Vandy, Mizzou?  What about Junior?

UK appears much stronger at the moment, but is still at home.

Mizzou offense probably hard to stop.

South Carolina hard to say, but we almost beat them last year.   It is on the road though.

Best shot is Vandy.

Three  things. 

First, some of the teams you mention started hot last year and petered out (Vandy and UK in particular) while Mizzou was pitiful but finished strong.  So even four games in, I hesitate to think we know how any of those teams will end up.  It's a long season.

Two, yesterday's game with Florida, while awful, was made much worse by a bunch of stupid, and preventable mistakes.  If we turn the ball over to any of those four teams you mention teams 6 times, we will lose.  Had we not turned the ball over to Florida 6 times, it would have been much more competitive.

Three, We have to go through a gauntlet that is literally the worst 3-game stretch in all of college football this year, which includes both finalists in the NC game (one on the road) plus a team that beat them both last year on the road.  That could go one of two ways, but if our players and coaches take the right attitude it will strengthen them.  After playing that murderer's row vandy, uk, junior and mizzo will be much more manageable.

I am thinking our players will gain from the tough stretch, be better in November, and yes have a chance to win any of those games.

[volpride]

Call me crazy but I still have the same amount of hope I did before the game started Saturday. Yes losing sucks but let's be honest, any realistic fan knew going in that would be a tough game to win. I would have liked to of played WVU in the 3rd or 4th game of the year. There's a lot to figure out and improve on but there's a lot of bright spots. I still think 6 wins is very doable, possibly 7 if we sneak up on somebody. As I've told everyone around me, call me after the UF game then we'll talk. I won't hit the panic button until after week 4 and may not even then. It's an uphill climb ladies and gentlemen and certainly not for the faint of heart. We'll be okay but patience is key (something i know i'm tired of being after the last several years).

Yea i'm quoting myself lol. It's tough not slapping that panic button I spoke of. I guess I can't help but wonder how the game would have turned out without all the crazy turnovers and wild s!^t that happened. Still would have been a loss but might have looked a little better. I was hoping UF would be one of our wins because I know the next few are gonna be misery. Still behind this team but my 6 win confidence was shook a little Saturday night. We have to pull our pants up tight and keep digging. Make it through the gauntlet and get to a few winnable games late in the season. But unfortunately i'm afraid 4 or 5 wins may be the top for us this season. Hopefully i'm wrong and we hit our stride a little bit soon. GO VOLS

[volsboy]

I kind of cringe when people say "we have a new coach". So did UF. It is no excuse. They looked better prepared in my opinion.

[Creek Walker]

I kind of cringe when people say "we have a new coach". So did UF. It is no excuse. They looked better prepared in my opinion.

Except we really do have a new coach. Mullen may be new to UF and his players, but Pruitt is new, period. We don't expect freshmen to step in and play mistake-free so why is it fair to expect rookie coaches to? UF should've been better prepared; Mullen has a big experience advantage.

[BanditVol]

Except we really do have a new coach. Mullen may be new to UF and his players, but Pruitt is new, period. We don't expect freshmen to step in and play mistake-free so why is it fair to expect rookie coaches to? UF should've been better prepared; Mullen has a big experience advantage.

Yes

[volsboy]

I then ask, why didn't we pursue a Mullen type coach? They (UF) were the same 4-8 as we were. Tough for a rookie coach to inherit our dumpster fire.

[BanditVol]

I then ask, why didn't we pursue a Mullen type coach? They (UF) were the same 4-8 as we were. Tough for a rookie coach to inherit our dumpster fire.

LMAO! We did!!! In fact we literally approached Mullen himself. We're you hiding under a rock last year? Do you not recall our first 5 or 6 choices didn't pan out and we fired our AD?

Holy shizzle dude.  

[Creek Walker]

Tennessee was never going to beat out Florida for Mullen. The perception is that Florida is a better job. Is it really? I have my doubts. But that's the perception. I'm not sure how seriously we pursued other experienced coaches. With all the secrecy and the intentional misinformation that clouds these coaching searches, no one really knows outside the UTAD's tight-knit inner circle. But if we did seriously pursue and were turned down by experienced head coaches, that's for one reason: a decade of administrative ineptitude. At this point, I think the only way we turn it around is to hitch our wagon to Pruitt, give him 5-6 years and hope like the dickens that he fixes things.

With that said, Tennessee-Florida is an apples-oranges comparison. Mullen inherited a situation that was light-years ahead of what Pruitt inherited.

[BanditVol]

Tennessee was never going to beat out Florida for Mullen. The perception is that Florida is a better job. Is it really? I have my doubts. But that's the perception. I'm not sure how seriously we pursued other experienced coaches. With all the secrecy and the intentional misinformation that clouds these coaching searches, no one really knows outside the UTAD's tight-knit inner circle. But if we did seriously pursue and were turned down by experienced head coaches, that's for one reason: a decade of administrative ineptitude. At this point, I think the only way we turn it around is to hitch our wagon to Pruitt, give him 5-6 years and hope like the dickens that he fixes things.

With that said, Tennessee-Florida is an apples-oranges comparison. Mullen inherited a situation that was light-years ahead of what Pruitt inherited.

Agree that Mullen was Florida bound regardless.

The one coach we know for sure we pursued - Schiano - had HC experience at Rutgers FWIW.

I'll push back a bit on the Florida point while agreeing it's Apples to Oranges.  I don't see a huge talent disparity, particularly on offense. Put it this way.. their QB is Franks, the poster boy for million dollar arm 10 cent brain. I'd take JG over him any day.

I do think Florida is better at the key position of lineman, more so on OL but to a lesser extent on DL as well.

They got a key DL back from suspension in our game and he made a tremendous difference, which with all the turnovers has been overlooked a bit I think.

So Florida is better off than us but only because their talent is distributed better. Overall I think it's pretty even but we are top heavy on skill players

[volsboy]

LMAO! We did!!! In fact we literally approached Mullen himself. We're you hiding under a rock last year? Do you not recall our first 5 or 6 choices didn't pan out and we fired our AD?

Holy shizzle dude.  

I meant why didn't we keep pursuing experienced coaches. I knew Mullen wasn't coming here. Pruitt may turn out all right. It is tough to ask him to learn to be a head coach and fix our dumpster fire, all at the same time. Of course, Chip Kelly is experienced and look at how bad UCLA is right now.

[Tnphil]

Mullen was interested in UT...............................Until FL canned their coach and then it was over.

[BanditVol]

I meant why didn't we keep pursuing experienced coaches. I knew Mullen wasn't coming here. Pruitt may turn out all right. It is tough to ask him to learn to be a head coach and fix our dumpster fire, all at the same time. Of course, Chip Kelly is experienced and look at how bad UCLA is right now.

We allegedly pursued several experienced coaches.  Gundy at OSU for one, and that's one of the more definite ones as he publically confirmed it when he turned us down.  There were a few others but I am not sure how "confirmed" they were, but I think the NC State coach was one of them as well as Rich Leach (the guy who got fired from Texas Tech but was available at the time).

Like I said...get out from under that rock!

And let me get up on my soapbox.  The overwhelming negativity and unrealistice expectations from a portion of our fan base has led Tennessee to be percieved as a difficult,  almost impossible task.  That is why we have an inexerpeienced caoch. In the past this has been mentioned by guys like me, but a whole lot of people are saying this now, including almost every talking head to discuss it over the last 9 months.  Fan expectations in the recent past have been out of touch with reality. 

I'll also say this, keeping in mind I prowl Vol Nation frequently, I think a lot of the stupidty has finally been beat out of the more negative and unrealistic part of our fanbase.   I think the great majority of Vol fans, whatever their attitude pre-Pruitt, is that it's a long road back with a lot of bumps.  Finally maybe the expectations are realistic, and Pruitt will be allowed to do what he can without an excess of needless and unfounded whining.  God I hope so.