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"HAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAAAAIII"
UH, HOLD THAT THOUGHT
Posted: Thu, November 6th, 2014, 10:12 PM
by Beano
• Permalink
SINCE WE LAST SPOKE: 11-6-14

BRUTAL BREAKTHROUGH: In the end it was all worth it but the rollercoaster ride that was Tennessee’s biggest win since 2007 was anything but enjoyable. Full disclosure here; I’m not sure I’ve experienced a Tennessee football game that I died a thousand deaths watching like last Saturday night since the 2001 SEC Championship Game. I realize the magnitude of those events are in different universes but I was a complete wreck. I was surprisingly hopeful, then anxious, then angry, then shamefully profane, then exhilarated. The Vols appeared to be poised to continue their practice of doing whatever it takes to lose a football game. There were the enduring short yardage failures such as Jalen Hurd’s two failed attempts inside the 1; Marlin Lane and Josh Dobbs combining for two yards on two carries from the 3 leading to a desperate Pig Howard reverse from the Gamecock 1 yard line; Lane’s later 10 yard east-to-west jaunt for zero yards leading to Hurd gaining nothing on 3rd and 1; that led to Medley’s second ill-fated appearance of the 3rd quarter; that led to my cussing binge that continued for almost the game’s entirety; that led to Sheno going to bed with a “you’re a complete moron” look on her face; but I digress. There were also the signature defensive lapses at the worst possible times such as Pharoh Cooper’s (please tell me there are no more Coopers on our schedule) inexplicably single-covered 85 yard -3rd and 11- TD catch seconds after the announcer’s brilliant summation of the Gamecock’s 4th quarter struggles. If that wasn’t enough the “fleet” Dylan Thompson was allowed to scramble for 13 yards on 3rd and 11 and to show that was no fluke on the next play the Vols watched as reserve RB Brandon Wilds sprinted 70 yards to give South Carolina a seemingly insurmountable 14 point lead with only 4:52 remaining. Then of course there were the questionable decisions from the sideline such as the FG attempt mentioned above that has me wearing the knees out of my blue jeans in prayer for forgiveness for the language that followed.

Then either the funding ran out or someone decided to pull the plug on the decade-long government experiment to see just how much the Big Orange Nation could take without completely snapping. Either that or they were observing me and decided their mission was complete. Regardless of how it happened the Vols flipped the script. In the last five minutes of regulation and the OT period they not only salvaged their season -with 160 yards worth of TD drives in regulation and two sacks for minus15 yards in OT- but potentially altered the course of the program for years-to-come. The Tennessee Football Program –fans, players and coaches alike- had learned to lose and even more disturbing, expected to do so. Maybe the 2014 South Carolina Gamecocks were the perfect hosts who were simply better at giving away close victories than we are but I believe it is more than that. I believe that Tennessee broke through a barrier in Columbia that was seemingly impenetrable for 7 of the last 10 seasons. I also believe that Josh Dobbs, Jalen Hurd, Cam Sutton, Derek Barnett, Jalen Reeves-Maybin and the other special young talents presently on the roster or soon to join the ranks will never let it slip to the current depths again.

S-K-I-N in the GAME: In this instance S-K-I-N stands for “Swift Kick in Nuts”. The section will be dedicated to uncovering painful events suffered by fans or in some cases pointing out anyone associated with the sports world that deserves to be ruptured.

Wouldn’t you know it? I mean wouldn’t you just flippin know it? Five days after the best football victory of the last seven seasons I have to revive the S-K-I-N in the Game segment and it returns to the subject of its origin; University of Tennessee Athletics. Oh and by the way forget what I said above about the conclusion of the governmment experiment. Apparently additional funds became available. Here is how Gary Parrish of cbssports.com summarized the bomb that Bleacher Report dropped earlier in the day:

The NCAA is investigating the Southern Miss men's basketball program for potential rules violations under former coach Donnie Tyndall, multiple sources confirmed to CBSSports.com on Thursday afternoon.
Tyndall is now the head coach at Tennessee.

The investigation, first reported by Bleacher Report, is focusing on how tuition and other expenses were paid for some recruits who signed with the Golden Eagles but were not yet eligible for scholarships.
One source told CBSSports.com there's no timetable for a possible notice of allegations from the NCAA. Another labeled the situation as "serious" and suggested the operating theory is that Tyndall will have a hard time avoiding fault.


These are allegations only and Tennessee’s AD Dave Hart and the UT Administration should defend Tyndall fervently until he proves to be indefensible. Even if the allegations go unproven however it doesn’t remove the sting of losing recent Top-60 commitment Chris Clarke. It also can’t erase the fears of a justifiably traumatized Big Orange Nation that celebratory periods here will never be permitted to last longer than the common cold.


WHAT WE LEARNED IN WEEK 10:

NATION:
NOT IN THE CARDS: I felt like a rasslin fan; cheering lustily against the heel (Jameis Winston) and his underhanded manager (Jimbo Fisher) knowing all along that the overmatched opponent –regardless of how competent they appeared early- were sure to get blindsided, pummeled and pinned in the end. Louisville led 21-0 with a few ticks over two minutes remaining in the first half but after surrendering a last second 2nd quarter TD and getting instruction from Bobby Petrino’s crack staff were outscored 35-10 from that point and at times looked almost Sunseiri defensively. The Cardinal secondary either had no one in the zip code of Seminole receivers or –comically- two trying to occupy the same spot at the same time. So now the nation turns it’s longing eyes and hopes to FSU’s hated in-state rivals for any chance of what most of the nation would consider justice. With Virginia this Saturday and Boston College on November 22nd visiting Tallahassee with about as much chance of springing the upset as the late-great Arnold Zandi had of becoming Mayor of Knoxville (Arnold also ran for City Council, Governor, Senate and President of the US, man I miss “Yummy”) , Miami and Florida are the last true hopes. What a place we find ourselves in pulling for the Hurricanes and Gators. That’s almost as distasteful as rooting on Notre Dame and Bobby Petrino.

“TURNOVER” A NEW LEAF: You know Dana Holgorsen hated it. The last thing a shoot-every-bullet disciple of Hal Mumme and Mike Leach wants to do is take the air out of the ball. As WVU fans lustily booed every late game conservative play call however that’s just what he did. And who can really blame him? His Mountaineers had held TCU to their lowest offensive output of the season surrendering only 21 points in the first three quarters to the team that hung 82 on Texas Tech a week prior. His offense on the other hand had turned the ball over 5 times in their own territory directly leading to half of TCU’s point output prior to Jaden Oberkromb’s game winning FG. I understand Mountaineer fans displeasure as I have witnessed a number of play-not-to-lose attacks as a Volunteer fan over the years that resulted in exactly what whoever our coach at the time was trying to avoid. I’m simply saying I somewhat understand what led Holgorsen to go from offensive guru to a punter’s agent in an instant.

LUCKY DUCK AND DEVILISH DELIGHT The PAC-12 Regular season race became slightly more in focus with this past weekend’s results. The North Division was all but decided as Oregon shed the tree-sized weight of a painful two-year losing streak to Stanford that had destroyed not only their PAC-12 and National Championship hopes but had called into question their physicality and manhood. The Ducks now hold a commanding two-game lead in the division and though challenging road trips to Utah (11-8) and Oregon State (11-29) remain sandwiched around a home gimme versus Colorado (11-22) it is doubtful anyone will make up the difference.

Meanwhile a donnybrook is being waged in the South Division to determine the Ducks Conference Championship Game opponent. Arizona State took a giant step toward their second straight appearance in that contest scoring the only 4th quarter points in a hard-fought 19-16 victory over Utah. Arizona had a chance to give the division race a distinct Grand Canyon State flavor but instead failed to score after the first quarter and fell to UCLA 17-7 leaving everyone in the division other than Colorado (0-6) and the Sun Devils (5-1) with 2 conference losses.

SEC
IRON STRONGER THAN EGG: The sport that we so love and Bill King refers to as God’s Sport is not spiritual at all in its occasional cruelty. Ole Miss’ special season and a great young player’s year were wrecked on Saturday night when Laquon Treadwell was bent backward turning the ball over inches from victory and more importantly fracturing his tibia and dislocating his ankle in the process. Kris Frost’s defensive play was not at all dirty but was certainly unfortunate creating a situation hard to celebrate regardless of your loyalties. The real shame is if Treadwell had been a less determined player he would probably still be healthy AND the Rebels probably win the game as well. The play was designed to gain 3+ yards but due to Treadwell’s great talent and determination he was a millisecond from turning it into a TD. A great warrior whose broken tackles turned into an unjustifiable broken limb. God Bless Laquon, his family, teammates and the Ole Miss faithful.

In a far less serious light the results of that play mean that Auburn lives another day in their quest for an SEC Western Division, Conference Championship Game, and CFB Playoff berth. It also likely means that the Iron Bowl now becomes more important than the Egg Bowl which will both be played on the last Saturday of the regular season on November 29th. A Mississippi State win in Tuscaloosa on November 15th could even the slate but it looks for all the world at this snapshot in time that The Tigers and Rebels were playing to set up which blood rivalry would be contested between two one-loss teams. I do not think the Bullydogs will prevail at Alabama nor do I believe that Auburn loses again prior to their date with the Tide. Don’t shed tears for the Egg Bowl however. It’s been a great game in years when both teams had nothing to play for other than state pride. This season Mississippi State could be playing for a CFB playoff slot even if losing out on an SECCG berth due to a tiebreaker with Bama. Ole Miss? They’ll be playing for Treadwell and to assure that a little of their heartbreak is piled upon State.

CHANGE THE NAME BUT FANS STILL DAWG-DRUNK I have never been a big fan of Georgia and Florida playing in Jacksonville due to my perception that it annually placed Tennessee at a competitive disadvantage in the East Division race. I’ve always felt that if the Vols had to travel to Athens and Gainesville every-other-year that the Dogs and Gators should have to play true road games against each other as well. One of my beliefs has been that the underdog has less chance winning a neutral site game and that would be who I’m pulling for in the Cocktail Party –I refuse to call it otherwise- most every year. I can’t deny the unique atmosphere that the equal crowd creates as I have experienced at the SECCG on numerous occasions and the underdog Gators certainly casted doubt on my theory mentioned above. They took the Dawgs and their crowd out of the game early with a physical whipping similar to what we saw Georgia administer to Missouri just a couple of weeks earlier. So the Dawg-Gone mystery of how Mark Richt’s teams are always good but never good enough for a whole season to cash in on his tenure of success continues to baffle. A very good coach with successful yet frustrating teams to follow. Been-there-done-that and I don’t envy the Red and Black faithful at all.

NOT SO COCKY Steve Spurrier looked completely beaten. Can you really blame him based on the unbelievable number of late game breakdowns this season? The Cocks have suffered a decade worth of late game meltdowns in this season alone that would have tested Coach Job and though he’s a Minister’s son Spurrier has never really been a turn-the-other-cheek type guy. I wonder if his team senses as I did earlier this season when I wrote the following in the September 11th edition:

If you consider longevity, success at schools that previously experienced little. Innovation and entertainment both on the field and at the podium Steve Spurrier has no equal. Lately however I have seen what could be cracks in the armor. They are brief glimpses but may signal the end is near. First he allowed the SEC network to produce and air a documentary entitled “The Believer” a look back at his glorious career as both a player and coach. He is more than deserving but it struck me out-of-character for a man that rarely reflects on or mentions his many accomplishments. He has always been an in-the-moment, forget the rearview mirror and look through the windshield type personality and that is what has fueled his consistent excellence. Secondly his team appeared as complacent and ill-prepared in a week one thrashing –at home no less- to Texas A&M. Spurrier has already bucked a trend that I often reference concerning diminishing returns for coaches after seven years at one SEC Institution. He is entering his 10th season as South Carolina’s Head Coach and not only orchestrated the Gamecocks first 11 win season in history but accomplished the feat three straight years in his 7th, 8th and 9th seasons at the helm. I’m beginning to believe his overdue decline has begun.

The Head Ball Coach may be too proud and competitive to go out on the sour note that this season is sure to be. I for one hope he doesn’t. I know that sounds strange coming from a guy who Spurrier’s teams have tormented through the years especially since he has so openly enjoyed it. That aside I can’t help but respect him as an opponent and appreciate what he means to the game and the SEC. In a time when most coaches act as if they are on the verge of curing cancer or negotiating world peace Spurrier is still drawing up ball plays, practicing his putting, directing practice and going home early while accumulating as many victories than all but a select few of his contemporaries who haven’t seen their families since 2007. Long term the Vols will benefit from Spurrier’s ultimate goodbye because he is a once-in-a-lifetime level coach. College football and the SEC however will be poorer and less fun for it.

WHAT WE WILL LEARN IN WEEK 11:

EARLY BIG-10 CHAMPIONSHIP GAME Last season Ohio State and Michigan State staged an epic Big-10 championship game that saw the Spartans prevail 34-24 and fulfil MSU Head Coach Mark Dantonio’s premonition during a summer visit to the Rose Bowl that his team would return months later. This season conference realignment put them in the same division requiring the league’s only potential CFB Playoff contenders (does anyone really believe in Nebraska?) to play in an elimination game prior to December. Both were left for dead –and in my opinion still barely have a playoff pulse- on September 6th when the Spartans dropped a game to Oregon in Eugene and the Buckeyes inexplicably lost at home to a bad Virginia Tech squad. Those lapses will be forgiven however by whichever fan base is celebrating Saturday night. The Buckeyes have won 8 of 10 matchups since 2000 but the Spartans have won two of the last three and a win Saturday would make them 3-3 versus OSU since Dantonio’s East Lansing arrival in 2007.

TOP-SHELVE-BIG-12 In a weekend full of interesting games the Big-12 appears to be staging the best double-header. League leader Kansas State (5-0) travels to Fort Worth to face TCU who presently stands at 4-1 in Big-12 play and 7-1 overall and probably won’t lose again (@Kan, @Tex, Iowa St) if the Wildcats fail to knock them off. The Horned Frogs can take solace in the fact that the home team has won 5 of 7 in the fledgling series.

Baylor whose only loss came at the hands of West Virginia controls their own destiny but must get by traditional power and long-term nemesis Oklahoma in Norman. The Bears first started traveling to OU in my senior year of high school (1974) and have yet to win a game there (0-11). BU has also struggled against ranked teams through the years (7-29) but on the bright side all seven victories have come in the last three seasons.

WANDERING IN THE DESERT Arizona State takes a break from six straight PAC-12 games to face Notre Dame in a “what in the wide-wide world of college football is-a goin on here” type matchup. Let’s see, the Irish didn’t play Michigan State this season and won’t play Michigan again in the foreseeable future but they do play the Sun Devils in the desert in November. Makes sense right? It will be one of two November trips out west for Notre Dame as they will travel to Los Angeles on the last Saturday of the regular season to face what is a familiar foe USC.

VOO-DOO IN THE BAYOU? Alabama travels to Baton Rouge to take on an LSU team that has already knocked off a Top-5 team in Ole Miss and would like nothing better than to cast another spell especially against villainous ex-LSU head man Nick Saban. The game is a prime-time affair and strange things seem to occur in the Bayou after dark. Alabama however is not as spooked by Death Valley as most posting a 25-8 record there in a series that dates back to 1904. The Tigers are actually much better versus the Tide on foreign soil with twice as many victories in Birmingham and Tuscaloosa (16-21) than in their home stadium. Since Saban switched locker rooms the Tide hold a 5-3 advantage with the Tigers only home victory coming in 2010.

WHAT WE MUST SEE FROM VOLS IN OPEN DATE II:

DON’T TOUCH DOBBS Call Josh Dobbs unbelievable and our team unrecognizable since he took over the QB position but more importantly call him untouchable this week. Put out an edict making any contact -intentional or otherwise- an unpardonable, automatic-dismissal sin. Dobbs has carried the ball an amazing 43 times in two games and though he glides and slithers away from solid contact he must be feeling some ill-effects from the Jamal Lewis-like work load. He holds the keys to our bowl hopes and beyond so put a red jersey, a plastic bubble, a suit of armor or whatever needed on Josh; anything other than a defenders hands.

RED ZONE/SHORT YARDAGE ATTACK TWEAK: The Vols currently stand 4th in the SEC in Red Zone Efficiency with 35 scores in 39 visits. The problem is 12 of those scores have come via a FG which is three more than anyone else in the league has been forced to settle for. Since Dobbs took over the reins the Vols are 9 of 10 with 7 TDs excellent by any measure but the short yardage attack still needs adjustment. Dobbs relies more on elusiveness than power and does not have the stature to fulfill a Tim Tebow/Cam Newton-type bulldozer roll. The Vols must find a reliable power running package that can be relied upon three or four times a contest.

SÉANCE WITH CAFEGO Though all’s well that ends well George Cafego had to be on a rotisserie during regulation with Aaron Medley shanking a couple of FGs and Matt Darr pooching regardless of field position.

IN A PERFECT WORLD: I would have never heard of the NCAA.

Caitlin Clark
Posted: Fri, Mar 1st, 2:21 PM
We can now officially congratulate Caitlin Clark on breaking the record for the most points scored in women’s basketball!

Caitlin Clark is the biggest superstar in college basketball (men’s or women’s). That’s not just me being a fan, Caitlin Clark is HER! Caitlin scored 49 points on February 15th to pass Kelsey Plum’s NCAA record for the most career points in women’s college basketball..... [more]
It's a Love Story
Posted: Wed, Feb 14th, 11:23 AM
Jared (the redneck from Roanoke, VA) thought the Taylor Swift coverage would end with the Super Bowl, but this love story isn’t going anywhere. In a game that was four hours and 18 minutes (that’s a total of 15,480 seconds). Swift only appeared for around 55 seconds! 55 SECONDS from the moment the game kicked off to the overtime touchdown.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C3ONwhRyugP/.... [more]
Missouri Game Preview
Posted: Thu, Nov 9th, 12:56 PM
by Josh
The Vols did what they were expected to do against UConn. There's not really much to say about that game. The game this Saturday in Columbia, Missouri will decide whether or not this season is a failure in my opinion. If they Vols lose, they are staring at 8-4 and probably the Gator Bowl. Maybe Reliaquest..... [more]
Connecticut Game Preview
Posted: Thu, Nov 2nd, 6:19 PM
by Josh
The Vols are coming back to Neyland Stadium and I am returning after a discretionary bye week. I'll be honest with you. This year it seems like I've been writing the same preview over and over because the formula to win has been the same pretty much every SEC game. I didn't want to sound like a broken record so I needed a bit of a break from that.

I'll start with some general observations..... [more]



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Knoxville, TN
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