Outscored 88-7 last four games in the 2nd half

[Tnphil]

Great coaching

[JeffCountyVolFan]

We would be a much better team if there were no halftime.   

[murfvol]

We would be a much better team if there were no halftime.   

A fine point. 

That's an incredible stat.

[wtkvol]

Great coaching

Pruitt cannot get them to play the whole game. Probably the worst problem you an have.
And, you cannot win without a QB. The season is lost. It needs to end with an experienced Harrison Bailey.

[JeffCountyVolFan]

LSU is a home game next week.  I think UT should cancel halftime and go straight from the end of the 2nd quarter to the beginning of the 3rd quarter.  It would maybe give us a fighting chance!

[PirateVOL]

umm, we wish we were playing L$U
We are playing aTm

[JeffCountyVolFan]

Yep.... brain fart on the LSU post. 

[Coupe De VOL]

umm, we wish we were playing L$U
We are playing aTm

[Creek Walker]

Just thinking out loud, but is this the most spectacular collapse by any team in the recent history of Tennessee football? I can't think of another that comes close. Obviously Tennessee had some bitterly disappointing seasons in 2005 and 2008, but there were a lot of close games in those seasons. The collapse of Butch Jones' team in 2017 ranks up there, but there were a gazillion red flags re: Butch's coaching ability before that 2017 season even started, and I don't think anyone was totally surprised.

This year, though, there were plenty of fans who weren't completely sold on Pruitt's abilities as a head coach, but everyone was generally encouraged by the direction the program was taking and there were very few people who would've said "fire Pruitt" coming into the season — or even after that second half meltdown against UGA. Now though? It's not just that Tennessee has lost four straight. It's the style of those losses as much as the substance. This team is getting absolutely steam-rolled by teams in the second half. You halfway expect that against teams like Georgia and Alabama; I even defended Pruitt after the second half collapse against UGA. It's hard to stand toe-to-toe for 48 minutes with teams that have superior depth. But it's happening against teams with inferior talent and depth, too.

There is so much about this 4-game losing skid that's just mind-boggling and every bit of it can be pinned on the man in charge. Did anyone catch the remark by the SEC Network crew that Pruitt had told them he still doesn't know what Harrison Bailey can bring to the table because he hasn't seen enough out of him in practice? Okay, so there was no spring ball. Okay, so there's the covid excuse that Pruitt has used over and over for the limitations in fall camp. But now we're over halfway into the season and you STILL DON'T KNOW WHAT YOUR 5-STAR FRESHMAN CAN DO? Holy freakin' cow! As has already been pointed out here, Pruitt used the off-week to prepare JG as starter for Arkansas instead of using that valuable two weeks of practice time to get HB ready. Okay, fine, if you truly think he's the best option and you're going to use him accordingly. But then Tennessee comes out with a game plan that leads to 42 yards passing in the first half. That is coaching malpractice!

Throw in the bizarre comment about not attempting the field goal because Cimaglia was a "game time decision" and you scratch your head even more. I wasn't totally opposed to going for it on 4th down. In hindsight, we clearly should've tried the FG, but hindsight is always 20/20. But feeding the media and fans a BS line about how a 42-yard FG is unmakable for your kicker when he's already made kicks from 48 yards and 50 yards IN THE SAME GAME is just completely nuts. I'm not sure that even Butch Jones was that dumb.

We knew Will Friend was a liability, and we suspected Chris Weinke was a liability. As for Jim Chaney, he was a good OC at Tennessee and Georgia. How has he suddenly become a subpar play caller? It doesn't make sense unless Pruitt is micromanaging him. And besides the fact that Pruitt has zero experience as an offensive coach, why are we paying $1.6 million for an OC that is going to be micromanaged? At this point, I would rank this as the most inept coaching performance — by the entire staff — in Tennessee football history. Yes, worse than Butch and worse than Dooley. Because this team is more talented (far more talented than Dooley's teams), because of the way it's happening, especially in the second half, and because of Pruitt's inane excuses that he offers after every game. There's not a single unit on this team, in any aspect of the game, that's executing at a high level.

[PirateVOL]

Agree Creek

Pruitt did mention he would go for the FG today, but couched it in stupid (IMO) rhetoric

Give Hubbs credit for asking a tough question on QB play but a BS response from the HC.

[Creek Walker]

For what it's worth, which is very little, this is my take on the matter. I don't know when the move will be made or even when it should be made, but it just seems inevitable at this point.

https://benwgarrett.medium.com/as-jeremy-pruitt-stumbles-and-tennessee-fans-grumble-its-only-a-matter-of-time-until-the-389f0a1c28ab

[BanditVol]

Just thinking out loud, but is this the most spectacular collapse by any team in the recent history of Tennessee football? I can't think of another that comes close. The collapse of Butch Jones' team in 2017 ranks up there, but there were a gazillion red flags re: Butch's coaching ability before that 2017 season even started, and I don't think anyone was totally surprised.

 But then Tennessee comes out with a game plan that leads to 42 yards passing in the first half. That is coaching malpractice!

Actually I would say the end of 2016 had some similarities, but in a way was worse because we arguably were a much better team in early 2016 than what we have now.  We beat Florida and Georgia early in the season, were ranked in the top ten, then backed out of the SECCG by losing to South Carolina and Vandy.  The 45-20 loss to Vandy was only slightly less embarrassing than the loss to Kentucky this season. 

As for 2017, no comparison yet.  We were 0-8 in the SEC that year, the only time Tennessee has gone winless in the SEC in it's entire history.  But give it time.  We might lose to Vandy.  Then you can say it's the worst. 

(note to TnPhil...I am not defending Pruitt above, just stating my opinion that 2017 was definitely worse than this season. So far.)

As for your second statement, we only attempted 8 passes in the first half, but had over 100 yards rushing and led 13-0. I don't call that coaching malpractice.  The malpractice is the failure to adjust the game plan in the second half.