A few gameday thoughts

[Black Diamond Vol]

It's been one of the mildest summers I can remember.  And then of course it gets hot and humid this week, just in time for the game.  I won't be back until the S. Bammer game, so I hope it's cooler by then.  Yesterday was pretty miserable.  

As bad as Austin Peay is, I still believe they would've scored at least 2 TDs against last year's defense.  For this team to shut out anyone is a step in the right direction.

Worley and Peterman were throwing behind guys all night.  I think one of the freshmen will be our starter by the time October rolls around.  I think the only reason we didn't see one of them yesterday is because they want to redshirt one, but aren't ready to decide which one yet.  

Zero penalties is is great.  But zero penalties while playing their first game in a no-huddle offense, and playing a ton of inexperienced guys for the entire second half is astounding.  After years of watching veteran UT teams make stupid mistake after stupid mistake, it was almost a shock to the system.  This, more than anything else we saw yesterday, would suggest that this team is very, very well-coached.  

For a few years now, they've mic'd the band during pregame warmups.  Yesterday, they did so for the entire game.  This has to stop.  Now.  In the 3rd quarter, when the ref was trying to announce the results of the review of AP's (non) fumble, he couldn't be heard over the band.  Unacceptable.  

I can't believe no one has mentioned the DJ that was set up in the NW corner during warmups.  If some folks were rankled by the new uniforms, I would imagine this would send them into cardiac arrest.

EDIT:  One more thing.  If my team was called The Governors, I would totally make this guy my mascot.  

[PirateVOL]

Mark it down - I'm calling for Sousa's head.  His destruction do the Pride is complete

[Black Diamond Vol]

Mark it down - I'm calling for Sousa's head.  His destruction do the Pride is complete

Well, I'll give them a little credit- they DID change up the annual "salute to classical music" show.  They've been doing Firebird Suite for years, But Messiah and 1812 were new.  And they changed the drill too.  And they finally got a new PA announcer!  Bill Williams just wasn't cutting it anymore.

[VinnieVOL]

The DJ was cool... much better than the assortment of classic rock oldies as we all sleepily found our seats in years past.  Let me be clear, I'm not a hip hop fan and I def. prefer classic rock for my own personal listening, but it is not conducive to an amped up sports crowd.

I can't believe the band didn't add any new tunes to the in game repertoire.  

I thought it was pretty cool in the qb pregame warmups to see Furgeson's tatted up arms in a UT uni.  Idk why but just thought that was cool.

My bro in law in the lower south end zone said the new concessions smelled and looked AWESOME.  But imo games that hot it's really too hot in the stands and enjoy any type of hot food.

Marquez North looks like a grown man.

[Black Diamond Vol]

Well, I'll give them a little credit- they DID change up the annual "salute to classical music" show.  They've been doing Firebird Suite for years, But Messiah and 1812 were new.  And they changed the drill too.  And they finally got a new PA announcer!  Bill Williams just wasn't cutting it anymore.

Also, it looks like their numbers are coming back up.  10-15 years ago, they always had more players than they had spots on the field for pregame and halftime.  Remember how some of them would stay behind and form a power T in the otherwise empty band section while the rest were on the field?  That hadn't been the case in recent years.  But yesterday, there were about 20 or so of them standing on the sidelines while the rest were out marching.

[VinnieVOL]

And they finally got a new PA announcer!  Bill Williams just wasn't cutting it anymore.

Yes!

[PirateVOL]

Well, I'll give them a little credit- they DID change up the annual "salute to classical music" show.  They've been doing Firebird Suite for years, But Messiah and 1812 were new.  And they changed the drill too.  And they finally got a new PA announcer!  Bill Williams just wasn't cutting it anymore.

the new announcer needs to go back to high school, which is how his voice sounded to me.  We can do better

[Creek Walker]

Zero penalties is is great.  But zero penalties while playing their first game in a no-huddle offense, and playing a ton of inexperienced guys for the entire second half is astounding.  After years of watching veteran UT teams make stupid mistake after stupid mistake, it was almost a shock to the system.  This, more than anything else we saw yesterday, would suggest that this team is very, very well-coached.  

For sure. Butch's games run just like his practices...this staff puts an emphasis on organization and executing the game plan. After 3 years of Dooley's guys not being able to get lined up properly, it's very refreshing.

I'm looking forward to the WKU game next week. As disappointed as I was by the second half, it's just impossible to take anything away from last night's game (except that I still don't think Worley can win consistently in the SEC). WKU isn't Oregon or Florida but will be a much better test.

[Creek Walker]

Btw, I thought the DJ was kinda silly. And using him for pregame announcements even sillier, since you couldn't understand a word he said.

[Black Diamond Vol]

the new announcer needs to go back to high school, which is how his voice sounded to me.  We can do better

Well, I thought he was an improvement.  Williams couldn't even get through "Priiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiide" without his voice cracking. 

I don't remember the name of Williams' predecessor, but he was the gold standard IMO.

[Black Diamond Vol]

Btw, I thought the DJ was kinda silly. And using him for pregame announcements even sillier, since you couldn't understand a word he said.

Yeah, I don't know why they used him for the announcements.  Especially since he could only be heard over the on-field speakers, and not the stadium PA.

[Black Diamond Vol]

I can't believe the band didn't add any new tunes to the in game repertoire.  

Not only that, but I think they CUT a lot of tunes.  I don't remember hearing Immigrant Song, Gladiator, or Orange Blossom Special yesterday.  Not that I especially miss any of them.  But if you're going to get rid of them, at least replace them with something else.

They should find a good arrangement of the Game of Thrones theme and play it where Gladiator used to be.

[PirateVOL]

Well, I thought he was an improvement.  Williams couldn't even get through "Priiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiide" without his voice cracking. 

I don't remember the name of Williams' predecessor, but he was the gold standard IMO.

Claude "the cat" Tomlinson was the best announcer the Pride had

[Ridge Runner]

With the caveat that the opponent was vastly undermanned, I liked a lot of what I saw last night. As others have noted, no penalties, only one turnover, better sideline organization (did we burn any timeouts unnecessarily? I don't recall that we did in the first half, I wasn't paying much attention past about the midpoint of the third quarter). I just hope the fan base is patient, because as positive as things looked from the standpoint of being better coached, the talent and depth gap between us and the better teams on our schedule means that we are likely to take some lumps. We may pull an upset or two, and I have no doubt we'll be more competitive, but with this schedule 8 wins will be very difficult to accomplish, anything over that would almost have to be considered miraculous.  So let's give Butch a chance to coach and recruit. He certainly looks like he has more of a handle on things than Dooley ever did.

[BanditVol]

i]least[/i] 2 TDs against last year's defense.  For this team to shut out anyone is a step in the right direction.

Worley and Peterman were throwing behind guys all night.  I think one of the freshmen will be our starter by the time October rolls around.  I think the only reason we didn't see one of them yesterday is because they want to redshirt one, but aren't ready to decide which one yet.  

Zero penalties is is great.  But zero penalties while playing their first game in a no-huddle offense, and playing a ton of inexperienced guys for the entire second half is astounding.   

Agree about the penalties and that after last year, even a shut out against Bearden would be impressive  .  And Bearden got hammered 52-0 by Fulton, lol.

As for the qbs, I see it differently.  It's the first game of the season and the WRs are also very inexperienced.  It's going to take time for someone to gell.

UT fans seem very impatient with QBs...almost as if someone had raised the bar at some point.