'Bachillio Nation:

We won't randomly muse today. I'm feeling too pumped for that!


Attack Hart:
As far as the Dave Hart update Tony promised yesterday, we continue to believe the 2016-17 athletic year will be the last for the UT athletics director. If true, the question is when will it be announced? Logic would dictate an announcement sooner rather than later and a search process this fall and the hiring of a new leader for athletics by the end of the football season. Logic, however, is usually a scarce commodity on our campus. If Butch Jones conquers the Gators and delivers his program to Atlanta for a chance at the SEC Championship, suitors will be trying to hire him. If system president Joe DiPietro has made up his mind to make a change and boosters aren't going to stop him, this process needs to go forward. Jones will need to know who his AD is going to be for the next phase of his program's development.


Enough about the Angry Elf from Alabama. Let's focus on the biggest single reason to feel very good about the upcoming Tennessee football season. That reason is DEFENSE. To win an SEC East championship and the conference overall, which almost certainly puts you in the national championship picture, you have to have an outstanding defense. To be sure, you'd also like to have a very good offense and kicking game but we've seen Missouri and Florida win the last three divisional titles with inconsistent offenses but rock-ribbed defensive units.


Here are the reasons to feel our Volunteer "D" will be the best we've seen in many years:


THE TREND LINE IS ALREADY UP: Derek Dooley tapped Sal Sunseri to be his DC for the 2012 season and the Vol defense was simply horrible. Dead last in the SEC in scoring and total defense and not even in the top 100 in the country. Thankfully, Dooley's hire of Sunseri got both of them fired. Butch Jones' first three Tennessee defenses have improved from that wretched season to 10th, 8th and 5th in the SEC in scoring defense and nationally from 79th to 16th in three years.

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COACHING: Even though the improvement of the UT defense was clear last year, it wasn't good enough. DC John Jancek's unit couldn't hold two-score leads in the fourth quarter against Oklahoma and Florida. Jones surprised many observers by canning his friend and recruiting the highly-regarded Bob Shoop to leave James Franklin and Penn State and take over in Knoxville. Shoop is so highly regarded by insiders, there is already considerable fretting going on about Shoop getting a head coaching job for 2017 if the Tennessee defense performs as well as many expect. Everyone's worst case scenario is that Derek "Radio" Mason gets axed the question at Vandy and Shoop moves to Nashville as HC, where he produced outstanding defenses for Franklin during their historic run. Shoop is smart and seems to possess the confidence Jancek never had and will use his weapons to attack in crucial situations.


TALENT: I believe the biggest reason Shoop took this job (other than the fading fortunes of Franklin in State College) is the talent he saw on hand. Two stalwarts from Jones' first partial recruiting year were LB Jalen-Reeves Maybin and CB Cam Sutton, although Sutton was not highly rated. Jones' first full recruiting year in 2014 netted DE Derek Barnett, S Todd Kelly Jr., DT Dimarya Mixon, LB Cortez McDowell, CB Emmanuel Moseley and a player many think will be a huge story this year, DB Rashan Gaulden. (We don't put LB Dillon Bates in this group since there is no indication he will ever be healthy enough to play).


2015 was an even better recruiting class for defensive players. DT Kahlil McKenzie was a consensus five-star and we think will be a menace in the middle this season. DE Kyle Phillips has huge upside. DT Shy Tuttle flashed NFL potential before he was cut down by the cowardly Brandon Kublanow in the Georgia game, but should be back when the Vols hit the meat of their schedule. Insiders say Shoop loves LB Darrin Kirkland Jr. and he showed great potential as a true freshman. JUCO corner Justin Martin was a big pickup and could have a big season, if he keeps his head on straight. Other very promising players from this class: DB Micah Abernathy, LB Quarte Sapp, DE Darrell Taylor, DT Quay Picou, DE Austin Smith, S Stephen Griffin.


The 2016 class may not have the strong defensive depth of the 2015 group but #1 juco DE Jonathan Kongbo could be a game changer on the edge if he adapts quickly to SEC football. He could be that kind of player that makes plays on the QB in the fourth quarter with the game on the line. S Nigel Warrior looks like a future star and DB Marquill Osborne will be hard to keep out of the lineup. Nashvillian Daniel Bituli is a specimen but it is uncertain where he ends up, position wise.


WORRIES? Easy. defensive interior line depth. Juco DT Alexis Johnson got in trouble soon after arriving in Knoxville and probably won't be a factor this season. Jones and staff whiffed on some other DT prospects in the 2016 class. What if Tuttle's recovery takes longer than hoped? JRM and Sutton are great, veteran leaders and need to be on the field. We'll be much younger but much more talented at safety. Gaulden is a potential All-SEC player but his body isn't as big as he hits. Can he stay healthy? If he does, you're going to love him.


BOTTOM LINE: I expect this defense to be around the Top 10 in the country, if it avoids calamitous injuries because the depth isn't there across the board to withstand that. The "Shoop Troop" is going to be fun to watch and is going to close out big games they didn't in 2015.


Orange Throat'

Tony,

Another week is peeled off the calendar. The dog days are dwindling and football and pennant races are on the near horizon.

1. The July evaluation period has come and gone. Now we look forward to see who Tennessee is able to get on campus for visits in the fall.

2. Tennessee desperately needs to break Florida's dominance of their series. The national perception of the program will take a huge hit if they don't get it done.

3. The NFL selling out a game in Mexico City in minutes speaks to the power of their brand. It'll be interesting to see how heavily they invest in building that market

4. Jay Bruce is certainly making himself a desirable trade target for a team in need of a bat. The Reds need to get a good return for him.

5. The Rangers are in a tough position. They need to replace Prince Fielder's production but don't want to further deplete their farm system.

6. Cub fans seem to be concerned about the wrong issue. Their slide is the result of a noticeable offensive decline.

7. The Yankees are in a tough spot. They are just close enough to harbor hopes of the postseason but have assets they can ship for good returns.

8. Didier Drogba scored for the MLS All Stars against Arsenal. That was so incredibly predictable.

9. The PGA is usually the most unpredictable major. I don't see this year being an exception.

We are making progress on the Blankenship Field project. Go to blankenshiplegacy.org to make your contribution.

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Keith