Editor’s note: Saturday Down South’s annual Crystal Ball series continues today with Tennessee. Last week, we predicted every game for every SEC West team. This week, we’ll predict every game for every SEC East team.
Tip of the cap, Josh Heupel. I don’t know how the rest of this turns out, but you surpassed my low Year 1 expectations for Tennessee.
In the fallout of the Jeremy Pruitt era, Tennessee’s roster appeared to be more like a “Year 0” instead of a “Year 1” for Heupel. The Vols ranked No. 122 out of 127 FBS teams in percentage of returning production after a disastrous 3-7 season in 2020. Even if there was hope that Heupel could turn the offense around, there was still doubt about whether the Vols had the personnel to execute his up-tempo, high-powered attack.
As it turned out, yes, they definitely did.
Following the decision to keep Hendon Hooker as the starting quarterback instead of Joe Milton, the offense took off. By season’s end, Tennessee finished with the No. 7 offense in the country. Only 3 Power 5 teams had more scrimmage plays of 40 yards (23) than Tennessee and Michigan was the only P5 team with more plays of 70 yards (5) than Heupel’s group.
Of course, it took a little while to get going. Tennessee never appeared in the AP Top 25 because of those 2 September losses. And even once it did get going, Tennessee still didn’t keep it within 23 points of Alabama, Florida or Georgia (more on that in a minute). The Vols’ lone win against a team with more than 6 regular-season wins came against Kentucky, which has lost 34 of the past 37 matchups to Tennessee.
But still, it was a nice proof of concept for Heupel. Even without a roster full of his hand-picked players, his offensive identity was obvious and the Vols weren’t a laughing stock like many predicted. What does that mean for 2022?
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STATES: NY, LA, AZ, TN, PA, NJ, CO, IL, WV, IA, IN, VA, MI
Yes, Tennessee can have the No. 1 offense in America. That’s not as far-fetched as some might think. For starters, Heupel and Lincoln Riley are the only 2 play-calling coaches who have 4 consecutive top-10 offenses. The only FBS teams that averaged 39 points per game and return their starting quarterback are Alabama, Coastal Carolina, Ohio State and Tennessee (Wake Forest would’ve been part of that group if Sam Hartman hadn’t been ruled out indefinitely with a non-football medical issue).
Let’s take it a step further. Here are where those offenses stack up in terms of percentage of returning offensive production:
And remember that Tennessee’s 2 best offensive players, Hooker and Cedric Tillman didn’t even step into bigger roles until multiple weeks into the season. Oh, and the Vols return 4 starters on the offensive line to block for Hooker and the talented backfield duo of Jabari Small and Jaylen Wright. Why can’t that yield a significant improvement?
Tennessee online sports betting officially launched on November 1, 2020, and many of the largest sportsbooks are live and operating in the volunteer state. Tennessee is only one of a handful of SEC football states with legalized sports betting.
What seems likely is that this group will pass the 1993 squad for the most prolific offense in school history. That Heath Shuler-led offense averaged 40.3 points per game, which was good for No. 2 in FBS. If Hooker is in the same conversation with Shuler by season’s end, 2022 will have been another smashing success for Heupel’s offense.
This isn’t the last time I’ll mention the fact that Tennessee is 4-35 against Alabama, Florida and Georgia in the post-Phil Fulmer era. That includes an active 16-game losing streak. The last time Tennessee kept it within single digits against one of those teams was, well, you know.
#PlayOfTheDay (2017): Florida QB Feleipe Franks throws an absolute bomb for the game-winning TD pass on the final play of the game against Tennessee. pic.twitter.com/bv8Ke2gk8t
— Pick Six Previews (@PickSixPreviews) September 23, 2020
Of those 16 defeats in a row, that was 1 of 2 instances in which Tennessee stayed within 21 points (the other was the 2020 Florida game).
So is progress just simply not getting blown out by all 3 of those teams? Eh, not really. The bar should be higher than that. Like, you know, beating 1 of those teams. That’s obviously the “yeah, but” any time Tennessee has expectations. The Vols did, however, just have their best offensive output against Alabama since 2003, and the only other team that hit 17 points against that historic 2021 Georgia defense was Alabama.
Progress? Maybe, maybe not. What’s fair is that the Vols are never going flirt with being a consistent East contender until they can do more than land moral victories against those 3 teams.
Dare I say, 2022 is as good a time as ever to turn that around.
I went on record saying I thought Tennessee was going to have the SEC’s worst defense in 2021. Why? It wasn’t just the players lost in the transfer portal. It was the fact that it took Heupel 3 weeks to hire a defensive coordinator after several reported rejections. And it was no secret that Heupel’s offense wasn’t exactly known for playing complementary football.
Kudos, Tim Banks. You proved me wrong.
Tennessee’s DC led a group that finished No. 12 in the SEC in scoring, but was actually in the top half of the SEC in yards per play allowed (No. 6, 5.43). Alontae Taylor, Matthew Butler and Theo Jackson were all studs. That’s why they got drafted. That’s also why I have more doubt about the Vols’ defense heading into 2022.
I won’t say they’re about to be the worst group in the SEC. Jeremy Banks, Tyler Baron and Byron Young all have legitimate All-SEC potential. It’s not a group that was decimated because the Vols actually ranked in the top half of FBS in percentage of returning defensive production. But the concern is about the limited ceiling of a group who’ll be on the field a ton, and what that will look like without a shutdown No. 1 corner like Taylor and a versatile, high-motor interior presence like Butler (he played 135 snaps more than the next-closest SEC interior defensive lineman).
That’s the bad news. The good news is that it’s 2022. Offense is king. You don’t necessarily need to have a top-20 defense to win games at the Power 5 level if you can score the way Tennessee does, though obviously it helps. Here are the Power 5 teams in the last 10 seasons who won 9 games even though they didn’t have a defense that ranked in the top 90 in FBS:
Of course, 2 of those teams overcame bad defenses because they had Johnny Manziel and Kyler Murray (that Vernon Adams-Royce Freeman duo at Oregon was also more fun than it got credit for). Can Hooker play at a Heisman-like level if Tennessee’s defense simply maintains its No. 90 ranking from a year ago?
That, we don’t know. We do know that Tennessee having a top-5 offense seems perfectly realistic. Shoot, for all I know, Tennessee’s defense will improve slightly and that stat will be for naught. We just watched Ole Miss fail to have a top-100 run defense, yet the program went 10-2 in the regular season. Whatever the case, the Vols could be in position to join some rare company in 2022.
This has “28-0 at the end of the first quarter” written all over it. Even if Hooker comes in a bit too hot and overthrows a few deep balls, I expect Small and Wright to do the heavy lifting in the ground game. My guess? Joe Milton gets at least a quarter’s worth of reps.
Some poor decision-making in the red zone cost Tennessee this game last year, wherein Hooker nearly led a late comeback. This time, against a Pitt squad that won’t have Kenny Pickett and Jordan Addison, I think we see the Vols flex those offensive muscles a bit more. Kedon Slovis tries to keep up with the Vols’ high-octane attack and forces a throw that Trevon Flowers picks off to squash the Pitt comeback attempt. Heupel gets a little revenge on Pat Narduzzi.
Shoutout to my guy Joe Moorhead. He’ll have the Zips turned around by Year 3. But in Year 1? He could recruit Akron’s finest, LeBron James, and it wouldn’t make a difference to keep pace with the Vols.
The Florida and Tennessee teams that faced off last year were unrecognizable by season’s end. Trying to keep pace with this Tennessee offense with the pieces it has returning will be a dangerous game. Tillman and breakout candidate Jalin Hyatt should both have their moments making home-run plays against a questionable Florida secondary. Points will be plentiful. Both defenses should have some rough days trying to slow down Anthony Richardson and Hooker. But for just the 2nd time in the past 18 matchups, the Vols prevail thanks to a go-ahead 50-yard Wright touchdown run.
Will we get a showdown like their 2005 game? It’s certainly possible, though I wouldn’t bank on it being a matchup of top-10 teams. But 2 teams fresh off emotional victories over rivals both look sloppy. Both quarterbacks get picked off early and turn to their legs to get their respective offenses going. What’s the difference? Or rather, who’s the difference? Kayshon Boutte. Tennessee can’t stay with him in the second half. He explodes for a 200-yard game and LSU squeaks out a wild 35-31 victory.
This 3-week stretch is going to tell us a lot about Alabama in 2022. I don’t think it’ll be quite at the level of that 2010 stretch that ended with a stunning loss to South Carolina, but is it possible that the Tide maybe struggle to put Tennessee away after facing Arkansas and Texas A&M? Absolutely. Eli Ricks vs. Tillman should be a fantastic individual matchup, and watching Hooker handle Will Anderson and Dallas Turner will be a treat. This game might stay a bit too close for comfort for Alabama fans, but ultimately, Bryce Young is too precise and he finishes with a 500-yard day to extend the winning streak to 16 against the Vols.
Tennessee quickly morphed into a team who is suddenly a joy to watch in these lopsided matchups. Having an explosive offense does that. Squirrel White scampers into the end zone multiple times in a blowout win on Rocky Top.
This is a measuring stick game for Kentucky’s defense after the Vols gashed them at will in Lexington last year. The battle for East runner-up honors follows a similar game script. Both quarterbacks put up video game numbers in what turns out to be a 2021 Arkansas-Ole Miss replay. But instead of a 2-point conversion that comes up short, Levis picks on Ohio State transfer Andre Turrentine, who makes his biggest play as a Vol with a game-ceiling interception. Kentucky’s bid to avenge last year’s shootout in Lexington comes up short.
I know, I know. Tennessee is 4-35 against Alabama, Florida and Georgia in the post-Fulmer era (I told you I’d bring that up again). That includes 16 consecutive losses to them, 5 of which came vs. UGA. So why is this time different? Tennessee’s offense. The Vols have the formula to put pressure on the UGA defense. Hooker attacks downfield with Tillman and Hyatt, and that young UGA defensive line can’t get pressure with 4 against a Tennessee offensive line that returns 4 starters. Heupel’s offense stretches the field with pace and balance. UGA can’t adjust until it’s too late. Stetson Bennett, even against a porous Vols defense, can’t quite rally the troops back late facing obvious throwing situations. Tennessee pulls off the upset of the year in the SEC.
Kris Abrams-Draine vs. Tillman should be a phenomenal 1-on-1 matchup. The problem for Mizzou is that Hooker is more than capable of working through his progressions and finding other weapons like Hyatt and Bru McCoy (who I assume will be eligible by this point of the year?). This game was so lopsided in Columbia last year — it was over at the end of the first quarter — that with so many of those pieces returning on the Tennessee offense, I can’t fathom a turnaround that drastic. An experienced Tennessee offensive line wins the battle up front and gives Mizzou a reality check coming off the Kentucky victory.
In a battle of red-hot teams who are clicking on all cylinders with the passing game, yeah, South Carolina’s November mojo continues. Hooker and Spencer Rattler go back and forth in a game that has plenty of NFL eyes on it. But the difference is Hooker is asked a little too much to bail out the Vols on the road. A raucous South Carolina crowd fuels a couple of late defensive stands. Jordan Burch and Jordan Strachan both get in the backfield to force key stops. The Gamecocks close out the home slate with their most impressive win at Williams-Brice of the Shane Beamer era.
Tennessee might not be playing for a division title, but it could very well still have a New Year’s 6 Bowl berth up for grabs. What the Vols do better than anyone in the country is get ahead from the jump. That puts pressure on Mike Wright to throw out of some obvious passing situations, and with a leaky offensive line, a turnover-happy Tennessee defense pounces. Gone are the days of Tennessee getting embarrassed by the less-talented in-state program. Make it 4 consecutive lopsided wins for Tennessee against Vandy.
At 9-3, Tennessee would be in the running for a New Year’s 6 bowl. There’s no chance at this time last year that I’d be talking myself into that kind of Year 2 projection for Heupel. I assumed we’d be debating whether the Vols were ready to make a bowl game. Maybe that’ll blow up in my face. Lord knows it’s not the first time that someone got a bit ahead of their skis about Tennessee.
But the difference is Heupel’s proven scheme and what we’ve already seen from Hooker in it. This isn’t some 2019 Jarrett Guarantano projection. Hooker was in the top 3 in FBS in quarterback rating and he was 1 of the top 10 rushers among Power 5 signal-callers. And that was in Year 1 in the system after a midseason takeover. The guy can play.
Heupel is in position to have his 5th consecutive season with a top-10 offense, so long as Hooker stays healthy. He’s gotta cut down on the hits he takes, but one would think that high sacks taken number (36) will decrease with more experience in the offense. Georgia will really be the ultimate test for that.
If this plays out and Tennessee does indeed win 2 rivalry games and finish with a legitimate case to reach a New Year’s 6 bowl, it’ll be hard to stop the hype train from going off the rails. That’s not a bad place to be. It sure beats the alternative.
Not all 9-win seasons are created equal — Tennessee might find that out in 2022.
Want to read about Tennessee’s rivals? The entire Crystal Ball series is here.
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Interesting. You have TN beating Georgia and losing to SC (which makes no sense). I will take that bet.
Agree totally. I hope I’m wrong but I think we will be lucky to hit 6 wins and make a bowl. The SEC DC’s have a year of tape in our gimmicky offense. I hope I’m wrong but this will be a long year I’m afraid.
The experts have TN and KY battling for 2nd in the East. TN has a very strong offense.
“TN has a very strong offense.”
Not against teams with an actual defense they don’t.
RonMexico, They put up quite a few on us down here in Bama last year.
“They put up quite a few on us down here in Bama last year.”
RonMexico1 How many did the rest of the nation? LOL Sorry you hate sports media liking TN lol. How’s Auburn’s offense look!? LOL Seethe and moan why don’t you? LOL
“How many did the rest of the nation? ”
TN didn’t play “the rest of the nation” you illiterate scumbag.
“LOL Seethe and moan why don’t you?”
That’s what you and your brother do in the trailer every night, ma’am.
Bill. RonMexico has a nasty attitude. Ron is always attacking others. Ron is Toxic.
Ronmexico is a bitter, miserable little boy. He should be thankful Auburn, who he is apparently ashamed to identify with, doesn’t play the Vols this year. No doubt TN would hammer them.
Sorry man. We are winning at minimum 8 games. Assuming Hooker is healthy. Your giving very little credit to the SEC’s DC’s. Don’t you think they planned for us after the first couple games. We didn’t hold anything back. It’s a matter of numbers. DC’s knew it last year too. It’s just a very hard offense to stop.
Literally the opposite of what’s actually going to happen
Why? Because that’s all you can remember about UT football? LOL UGA is retruning only 59% this season. If we can’t score 30 on that D, we need to re-evaluate. Last season we went for it 2 or 3 times on 4th instead of adding a field goal. That would have brought us up to 26 points. Also, take away the redzone INT and now its a one score game, 34 TN points. It was the worst coached game CJH had and he told us as much as the presser post game. Certain teams, you just take the points. NO way their D this year keeps us under 30. Can’t wait to see how UGA does against Oregon.
Wait, so if Tennessee had somehow managed to make it a one score game you think UGA would have played the same? They’d have probably not put the Cheerleaders in in the 3rd quarter and would have hung 60 on you guys. You act like they couldn’t have scored more. They were packing up the gear in the 4th quarter.
Correct Bill. He has it backwards
Losing at SC and LSU but winning AT Georgia. No credibility.
He’s only predicting the way UGA every year loses in the post season. SB fails to match the foe’s offensive output. If TN matches your regressed lines, even slightly less than half the time, your going to need to score 40 to beat us this season..lol It’s a valid prediction because it’s what happens every year to UGA at some point.
“He’s only predicting the way UGA every year loses in the post season.”
Guess I missed that postseason loss last year. I did see Tennessee’s though
dawgs2021, did you win the SEC title game last year?
I’m pretty sure that was in the post season.
Come on back when you can put a coherent thought together!
Upsets do happen,, but losing at SC winning in Athens? 8-4 and I will be ecstatic!!!! at Pitt,, LSU and SCarolina.. and the Dawgs.. a tough schedule,, who doesn’t in the premier conference in all of college football
I think the author severely underestimates UGA’s offensive coordinator.
No, we know who he is. He’s the former Bucks coachs that told the Bucks that if they got Brady, they wouldn’t win 8 games. The year after Monken left, Brady won the Superbowl with the Bucks..lol. He’s also the same coach that had no answer in 2020 to UF, and Bama. SB did the exact same ugly things in those games that he did in the SECCG. He put SB in a position of desperate heaves and sacks that lead to Bama blowing UGA out in the SECCG. The idea is to go out there and operate an offense that will answer with points in a shootout game. UGA never even made it a shootout game for the 4th year in a row post season. Bama simply beat you by keeping your D rush off Young, and beating your secondary. TN can do the same thing, “potentially” with more players and depth this year. Should be a fun game.
“Game-ceiling”? I think you meant “sealing”.
Anyhoo, while I don’t begrudge the UGA upset pick (hey, you have to pick some upsets), I think it’s convenient for you that the game is week 10. These game predictions, while fun, will most be long-forgotten by then.
First of all we’re not beating UGA, especially not in Athens. 2nd, if we do, we’re DEFINITELY not bad enough to lose to South Carolina.
WE have a better chance at beating UGA than we do of losing to SC lol. You got to look at the data Deiesel. This isn’t UGA 2017 by a sight, on both sides of the ball.
“WE have a better chance at beating UGA”
You also have a chance of moving out of your single wide, ma’am.
Ron Ron Ron. You are a nasty mouthed critter. A real sourpuss.
I find it interesting that gwhite thinks the Tennessee offense is so superior to ugas, when last year their first team offense played all four quarters in virtually every game and scored 39 ppg. Meanwhile, uga took their foot off the gas after halftime in most games and still scored 38 ppg. Also, if you want to move up to big boy football, you have to play defense. Tennessee does not.
Also, why do you keep bringing up the 2017 team? I loved that team but it was three or four transcendent players and a bunch of 3 star overachievers. The 2021 team would have beat the brakes off that team
Winning at Georgia would be a candidate for upset of the year. Unless Georgia just has a disaster in all three phases of the game (like 2004) I don’t see that happening. The warp speed offense will work for a little while, but late in the game, when both teams are tired, there’s no substitute for having the ability to just grind it out. I don’t think we’ll be able to do that to Georgia.
Losing at Carolina? No. Sir. Ree.
Like you have a clue..
RonMexico is a disgruntled sourpuss.
CrankE…You are a Vol fan with real expectations and understand what that ultra-fast-Heup-offense does to your defense. Georgia & Kentucky will beat the Vols this year. This year is Stoops most talented squad since he’s been there.
They say that every year about KY. While sure, I could see a loss to them, I doubt it.
If we beat UGA it won’t be an upset for two reasons. TN’s offense is better than UGA’s. Secondly, we’ll have the data to show TN’s stats are better offensively. The only way UGA can beat TN is if our D has not improved. Or if we coach an absolute desperation HS zero consequence caution to the wind game like CJH coached the game against UGA last season.. Don’t risk 4th downs and sacrifice points just because your not expected to beat that team. He was in this game and lead most of the first half but a little strategy would have gone a long way.
Please, stop it. They beat us by three scores last year, even with our “better offense”. Even though they lost a bunch of guys to the draft, they’ve still got plenty of talent. It will absolutely be an upset, unless they are on an unprecedented skid. Georgia is the defending national champions, are consensus top 5 this preseason, and are the third-favorite to win it all. They have lost at home like once in the past few seasons. They are picked to win the east. It will absolutely be an upset, arguably Tennessee’s best since the 2003 Miami game. Please, man, I’m running out of the ability to defend you.
9-3 would be an absolutely fantastic outcome considering the desert we have been wandering the last 15 years. I think this 9-3 record is about right, hard not to like what we have coming back on Offense and I’ll go out on a limb and say the Defense will be improved if not slightly. Go Big Orange!!!
“hard not to like what we have coming back on Offense ”
Yeah, that 7-6 2021 team was amazing. You gals really put up points on teams like UGA.
6-7. No room to talk about anybody’s record last year. Quit cherry picking lines from comments. We’ve discussed this.
TN will not beat Georgia. 8-4 is a realistic record for the season with the ceiling being the 9-3 stated in the article.
WOW, TN won ONE more game than AU!!!! AMAZING!!!!!
You’re on that sarcasm today. Whew.
You would be blowing loads all over your sister right now if you were able to comment about AU finishing with a better record than TN. But you can’t so you’re stuck with your uncle. Again.
“You would be blowing loads all over your sister”
I really don’t need to know what you and your brother do everyday in your single-wide, fatty.
Go sell your inbreeding fantasies elsewhere.
HAHAHA. Somebody obviously got their favorite toy taken away this morning. Dude, you couldn’t make it any more obvious that you are a child amongst men.
Yup. That’s what we call the Alabama trifecta.
I make a comment about your sister and you say my brother??? Again my guy, work on the comprehension. Didn’t you get at somebody earlier for not being able to read?
“Dude, you couldn’t make it any more obvious that you are a child amongst men.”
You’d know all about liking children, sicko.
Y’all really just need to stop responding to that pos. He trolls to get a rise out of Vol fans and you feed right into it.
“Y’all really just need to stop responding to that pos. He trolls to get a rise out of Vol fans and you feed right into it.”
LOL Hey ronald, how about showing us some AU stats from last season. C’mon, lets have a look at what your team has done..lol Did you know that even JG beat you all at home a few years ago? LOL It was more about taking risks than it was about your D. The SECCG proved we could boat row you with only a slight improvement on defense. lol Same scheme Bama used on you. Worked just fine like very post season when someone uses it on you.
“LOL Hey ronald, how about showing us some AU stats from last season.”
We had almost identical records, ma’am.
What was Auburn record Ronald? You know, that team you are ashamed to identify with.
I can’t wait to see how the East plays out. When it comes to teams 1-5, everything is on the line… everything. Nobody is a lock for anything. It is going to be a lot of fun.
Predictions are just predictions, and Connor certainly has a right to his guess (and that all these are). I think a Georgia loss is more possible earlier in the season while that young, super-talented defense is trying to figure things out. Oregon and South Carolina might be our biggest chances for an L. After that, the defense will start to gel and will look very good by the time Tennessee rolls around. I am not saying the Vols can’t win. I’m saying the timing behind Connor’s reasoning might be a little off.
“I am not saying the Vols can’t win.”
TN is overhyped by SDS. TN fans acting like Heupal is Nick Saban is hilarious. The guy’s claim to fame was going 12-1 in 2018 only to lose to LSU in a bowl game. TN has been subpar in recruiting as well.
TN is ALWAYS overhyped. It’s ridiculous. TN doesn’t deserve the hype.
Tennessee is still ahead of Auburn in recruiting
“Tennessee is still ahead of Auburn in recruiting”
And TN still won’t win the SEC.
Neither will Auburn f@ggot
The Big Orange is in Mexicos head…
“The Big Orange is in Mexicos head…”
CJH can personally develop a QB and offense. Saban personally can’t. So, he has to hire someone and hope they are as good as Heupel..LOL Saban is not even in the same class as CJH at coaching offense and QB development. Saban is a clipboard, keyboard coach LOL. Especially on offense.
How many TN QBs are in the NFL right now?
I can name 3 former Bama QBs currently starting.
UGA averaged 39.4 PPG last year and returns their starting QB too Connor…
285 pass attempts isn’t going to develop your WR’s or QB. This is why those offenses beat you every season. TN is just turning into one of those offenses. They are one decent D away from beating UGA. That is why so many are predicting a TN win.. 39.4 isn’t impressive against a schedule regular season that had no top 30 offenses other than TN. Those teams couldn’t move the ball, got into extended drives on d, than you poured on points late and any school can do that if you tire the D’s. TN played a much harder regular season with Pitt, Ole Miss and Bama and still averaged right at 39 per game. Than in November onward averaged 41 and UGA never caught back up. SB imo, isn’t going to win a shootout and hasn’t’. Not that kind of QB.
TN has been subpar at recruiting yet somehow will beat UGA which recruits top 5 every single year.
I’m curious to know how TN defense, which is complete garbage, shuts down UGA offensively.
I like your ideals. In fact, I think you have found the answer to injuries, concussions and all the other maladies that occur during a football season. And if one stops to think about it, the answer was in front of us all along: if your team’s recruiting ranking is lower than your opponent’s, than it obvious that the game is lost. We don’t even have to play the games any more. We’ll just look at the recruit rankings. You, sir, are an idiot! There is a famous saying (perhaps you have heard it) that goes: anything can happen on any given Saturday.
I believe you are an Auburn fan. They were ranked, what 21 or 22? Auburn may as well stay in the locker room most of this season, huh?
Although I like Auburn, I hope their season is dismal if only to shut you up.
“Although I like Auburn, I hope their season is dismal if only to shut you up.”
You can’t make me shut up, ma’am. Continue to cry, wet your depends and scream at the sky.
I’ve already stated that AU will not be good. Why retards like you can’t seem to read is beyond me.
Madam, you obviously lack a solid grasp on comprehension yourself. How about you grab yourself a soy oatmilk latte, attend a protest, and discuss your pronouns are and what triggered you today over elsewhere.
Name calling is for the lower class. Do better.
“Madam, you obviously lack a solid grasp on comprehension yourself. How about you grab yourself a soy oatmilk latte, attend a protest, and discuss your pronouns are and what triggered you today over elsewhere.”
Like what, ma’am? You spend more time trying to come up with insults.
WHAT exactly did I get incorrect.
“Name calling is for the lower class. Do better.”
Come on Ron. I know you’ve got more than that in you. You’re stooping to Kirkm territory with the Fat Phil comments on repeat. We get it. Fulmer is fat.
Discuss an entire comment. Don’t just pull 3-4 words. You’re awfully pent up with some aggression today. Do you have a yeast infection or something?
“Discuss an entire comment. Don’t just pull 3-4 words. You’re awfully pent up with some aggression today. Do you have a yeast infection or something?”
You’re the one talking about what you and your brother do every day, sicko.
Take the L and move on. Your comments have dwindled down to using Fatty at an alarming rate and referencing Fulmer a lot. Who isn’t even with the program anymore. And you called me a sicko. WTF is that? LOL
Take a break. Write down some good insults or whatever, and let’s revisit this at a later time when you’ve got your act together.
I believe in you. You can do this. Maybe you’re only qualified to handle the likes of GWhite.
“Take the L and move on. Your comments have dwindled down to using Fatty at an alarming rate and referencing Fulmer a lot. Who isn’t even with the program anymore. And you called me a sicko. WTF is that? LOL”
Stop saying Ma’am like you know what that means simp..lol. We want to make fun of your because AU isn’t good and we want your cry cry lib tears..lol Give them to us so we can laugh lol.
RonMexico1 Don’t say Ma’am like you know the meaning of it you lib s i m p lol. We want to see you cry about Auburn because your so cool and witty..lol We are going to have to make you face every single loss this season for Auburn lol. Every single stat they fail in compared to TN and make you honestly have to defend your delusion..Almost time! =)
“Stop saying Ma’am like you know what that means simp”
“your cry cry lib tears”
How am I a lib, crybaby?
“Don’t say Ma’am like you know the meaning of it you lib s i m p lol. ”
I see your brain fell out of your tiny head.
Fisher Mann…Legendary FSU Coach Bobby Bowden said this about recruiting…”The reason we coaches spend so much time recruiting is this; The team with the best players usually wins, unless we coaches screw it up”. There’s your Quote concerning Recruiting. Just pause & think about it for a moment.
What? Your on crack. lol. UGA has no offense, that’s easy lol. Not that can outshoot TN. We recruited ok last year and we have better offensive developing coaches than UGA by a mile. SB isn’t going to win a shootout. Never has, never will. Not that kind of QB and your WR room is non-existent. UGA has two good TE’s and that is about it offensively. If we beat them will be determined by how much we improve on D. we also are the only school with two top ten edge rushers in the class of 23. This season, we’ll be able to cover both sides of the offense with rushers. Lots more bodies.
It won’t be a shootout. UGA will score at will like last year and the Vols won’t…like last year
Beating UGA and UF but losing to LSU and USCe is not realistic. UGA, BAMA and UF should at this point should be pencilled in as a loss until Tenn beats them. But if you claim they will win 2 outta 3 then you should be projecting they will be 11-1. If you think they are losing to LSU and USCe then you should project 7-5 or 8-4 pulling off an upset of either UGA or UF.
This dude doesn’t write what he believes will happen, he writes what will get him clicks. His agenda is so transparent that he doesn’t even need windex. He has one formula when it comes to his takes on UGA, and this is his modus operandi in getting the most hits on his articles.
” he writes what will get him clicks.”
There’s no mileage in rationality. The contrarian gets the attention.
And if UGA loses the opener? LOL
“And if UGA loses the opener? ”
UGA is a 14 point favorite as of right now.
talking season with nothing to gage predictions on is almost over. 9-3 would make vol fans elated. i dont see it but today anything is possible for any team. vandy may win the natty! As everyone and their dog knows our success will be defined by how well the D plays. More depth and another year in the system helps but we’ll just have to see. I expect a better year than last but how much better I just dont know. I cant recall a year where there were so many teams capable of beating each other in the sec. Im sure there have been I just dont recall them. other than ga and bama we may all end up 6-6…
aint no way we lose to south carolina but beat uga
Overall, these predictions are drunk. Can’t wait for the Tennessee vs Kentucky game. No idea who will win, but one of these 2 teams will be 2nd in the east. It might not even be the winner of the game.
Seeing the Vols finish at 9-3 would not surprise me at all. But the games you’re predicting they win/lose are definitely far fetched. But I get that generates engagement, so job well done. A reasonable non-TN fan (we all know it’s hard to be objective to pick our own team) goes more like this:
Ball State: W Pitt: W Akron: W Florida: L LSU: W Bama: L TN Martin: W Kentucky: W Georgia: L Missouri: W SC: W Vandy: W
TN may take issue with the Florida prediction, but like TN consistently beating KY, it’s just how it is until you turn it around. LSU fans may take issue with the “L” prediction, and that could be wrong- just don’t see a new coach (as good as he may be) beating TN in week 5.
So there you have it!
thats as good a guess as any ville. I would compare this season ky v tn game to last seasons though, not ole miss ark as the writer suggests.
It’s not far fetched if you know offense vs UGA’s offense and what they lost on D. The UGA D regression will be real and no team loses 41% and walks back the next year without regular season losses. Bama didn’t even do that last season nd honestly, were lucky to get to the post season. These two teams just aren’t what they’ve been on either side of the ball. Plus, we are two seasons out now from the rona and many teams you saw last season, were still short on depth because of it. Should be interesting. But UGA and Bama are both beatable.. We even our rushed both teams last season..
Yes, UGA and Bama are both beatable…by each other. You Vols are SOL. You’ll be lucky to beat Pitt
That’s a pretty rational take there pal. You don’t fit in here. But seriously, UT was very fortunate to win that Kentucky game last year , so their luck may not be as kind this time around. I do agree with the sentiment of not counting a W vs Florida until it happens . We’ve far too often seen some mind blowing breakdowns by UT that should have won , but snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Unfortunately, they replaced one of their best receivers with a 5star transfer and have the others coming back, so they could be a real headache if their defense can just be mediocre.
Offense fills the seats, and with Heupel it looks like UT has that. It can get you to 12-0 and into the playoffs in the Pac-10 but I think 10-2 may be the ceiling in the SEC.
I just don’t see any good DC wanting to make that sacrifice. I don’t see the best defensive players wanting to pay that price either.
Heupel is a poor man’s Gus Malzahn. Gus had more success in the SEC than Heupel will because defenses like UGA will simply shut the gimmick offense down.
Gus also learned his lesson about the hyper speed offense. He may have got them to the line quickly, but he didn’t run plays at warp speed often after his 3rd or season or so. If you run the offense at that speed, you need to string 1st downs together, not just one, or the defense is going to tank.
Tidefan8x5…Truer words were not ever spoken concerning the ultra-fast offense. Fans love TD’s but defense can win some close games also.
Yep, TN doesn’t have the talent to do that. Gus did.
Rocky Top or Rocky Flop? Sooner or later Bama, UGA and Florida will eventually lose to the gaudy orange. Sigh. At worse UT 7-5 At best UT 10-2
“And remember that Tennessee’s 2 best offensive players, Hooker and Cedric Tillman didn’t even step into bigger roles until multiple weeks into the season.”
Where did this lie begin and why did it go unchecked? Hooker took over around halftime of game 2. I guess it helps the sunshine pumpers.
TN fans are notorious for making up history. They still claim Peyton Manning was the best player in 1997 when he lost to Charles Woodson.
He was, and it’s ridiculous to claim he wasn’t. Lemme guess, you think Johnny Majors didn’t deserve it, either?
” Lemme guess, you think Johnny Majors didn’t deserve it, either?”
I am not as old as you. I wasn’t alive in 1956, dumb@ss.
“He was, and it’s ridiculous to claim he wasn’t. ”
LOL Charles Woodson was a better football player.
“I am not as old as you. I wasn’t alive in 1956, dumb@ss.”
You think I was alive in ’56? My parents weren’t even born then. But you could, y’know, do some research instead of devolving into instant name-calling.
As for the second point, no. Peyton Manning is the best (not the greatest, but the best) player to ever step foot on the field. Woodson was great too. But not as good as Manning.
If Woodson deserved the Heisman, then Champ Bailey from UGa deserved it more the next year doing what Woodson did, only better.
Ron, as dumb as your unimaginative posts and flaccid insults make you sound, I doubt you were alive in 2006, much less 1956.
I’m not saying you’re mentally handicapped, just that you have to wear a helmet when you get out of bed.
Win at UGA then turn around and lose at SC?
But did you know that Spener Rattler is on SC now? Every year, just like with TN, SC will be back and challenge for the SEC. Every year.
Florida’s secondary is not questionable, it is very strong, what’s questionable is Tenn’s defense
That question has been answered.
And the answer is not very good
TN’s defense isn’t questionable. It’s bad.
Tennessee’s Defense ? What defense ? On Rocky top it’s all about Offense.
If UGA played at Tennessee week 1 or 2, then predicting them to win might not be too far fetched. By week 10 the defense will have its sea legs and the offense, barring injuries, should be a well oiled machine. Plus, Tennessee will have played a lot of important games, leaving all sorts of things on film for teams to study. However, I think 9-3 isn’t off base though.
It’s scary to think our DB’s will be more talented and significantly faster than the ones who started last year. Give them 9 games to prepare and UT might as call in sick for the trip to Athens.
No way the Pumpkin Heads beat Kentucky this year
I’d love to have that confidence…
Levis does after the most egregious no call facemask in the history of a ref watching the qb at all times.
Still mad about that? It didn’t matter in the end, because KY converter it anyways.
he doesnt have confidence. he is a troll and thats all he ever does on tn articles,like his girlfriend ronetta mexico. troll, troll, troll. if he doesnt know its a toss up game he should but he may just be too darn dumb.
“he doesnt have confidence. he is a troll and thats all he ever does on tn articles,like his girlfriend ronetta mexico. troll, troll, troll. if he doesnt know its a toss up game he should but he may just be too darn dumb.”
English ain’t yer thing huh?
Y’all said that last year and 2018 and 2019 etc
It’s Tennessee. Like I’ve said before, they could put the flag twirlers from the band in uniform and still probably beat us.
I am guessing 8-4 with losses to FL, LSU, Bama, and UGA.
I am not sure UT loses to LSU. Kelly will get them right, but LSU is a pretty thin team. They have great talent, just not enough of it outside the first team for that UT offense.
If LSU doesn’t make it out of Auburn unscathed, they could be in trouble for the UT game since UT will be coming off the bye. Should be a one score game. Kelly will need a least 2-3 seasons to get his footing in the SEC. I’m still not sold on him being a great coach because Notre Dame isn’t like anywhere else in the country. Hard to judge right now how he will fare down here.
“UT will be coming off the bye. ”
And will still suck. Sort of like how you and your brother…
I’d ask why you didn’t finish the sentence but you probably needed to change your britches first due to creaming them thinking about the incest you keep mentioning on every comment. Got your pee wee mind all discombobulated. You can be whatever you want to be in todays world big guy. You keep it up and someday, you’ll be all grown up.
“I’d ask why you didn’t finish the sentence”
I figured you’d be smart enough to understand that I was referring to you and your brother’s incestuous relationship, hillbilly.
Volbeef88,Back in your hole, troll.
TN not beating Georgia. Their defense cant stop Georgia’s running game and eventually UGA will get a few stops here and there. Hard to win with no defense.
We did for nearly one half the game last year. UGA is not going to have a dynamic running game and TN outrushed them last season vs the SEC. TN’s D has the bodies it lacked last season and will in the secondary. You can only do so much last season with 68 scholarship players. But still won the tackles for losses over UGA. Top 5 nationally, 2nd in the SEC. I think we’ll be shocked at UGA in the first game..lol WE’ll see.
It is funny to me that you point out UT outrushing UGA vs the SEC…UGA outrushed UT by 219 yards last year in the game they played against each other. Oh yeah, UGA also won 41-17…
Gwhite is SDS’s resident mentally handicapped Vols fan.
Is there something about this site that attracts mentally ill people?
If and that’s a big IF we beat GA or even Bama this year, not to mention Fla and Pitt, there is NO WAY we lose to SC. I like the 9 and 3 prediction but I don’t see it going down this way. If we beat GA we are looking at 10 and 2. Period. Spencer Rattler or not. WILLIAMS-Bryce is a kinda tough place but how to you have us beating GA, between the hedges no less, and losing to SC. Just don’t see that. If TN is playing that well we roll over SC.
Hahaha! Ain’t buying the hypel! Funny! MIZ!
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