'Tony World:

Random musings as once again we attempt to rinse out the bitter taste of an avoidable loss to Florida and look forward:


BUTCH THE BUTCHER: He carves up opportunities to take the upper hand in big games and he makes such a mess of explanations, it's almost as painful as watching the poor coaching in real time in the first place. The sheepy local media let him off the hook on the fateful First and 12 (inches) in the third quarter as he blamed Quinten Dormady for checking to a pass. The only thing we're blaming "Q" for is not checking to a snap under center and a sneak.


BUTCH BOTCHED THE EXPLANATION of the last play of the game by saying the UT staff didn't have enough DBs to play a "dime" coverage. Really?


ON TO THE FUTURE. Shoop's defense may give up some yards tomorrow but hard to see this being a tough game. It will be interesting to see what happens at quarterback. Dormady's shaky performance at Florida opens the door for Guarantano to still win this job but the New Jersey redshirt freshman isn't showing a lot of maturity so far. John Kelly badly needs a light workload in this game and Ty Chandler needs to have a big day, plus the young Vol receivers need to be dominant.


GEORGIA LOOKS MUCH IMPROVED on defense so it is important that the Tennessee offense grow tomorrow and have a great showing.



FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY (3-3 Last Week, 6-9 Overall ATS): Bob Shoop's crack prevent defense prevented us from a 4-2 week because we picked the Vols +5.


Mississippi State (48.5) at GEORGIA -5.5: Very interesting game for Vol fans. State HC Dan Mullen is the flavor of the week for all SEC fans who want their current head coach fired, coming off his Bulldogs' bludgeoning of LSU. Georgia, of course, is Tennessee's next opponent. We're tempted to take the road dog here but will instead bet on both defensive units and take the Under.


FLORIDA -2.5 at Kentucky (44): Gator fans aren't in love with their program under HC Jim McElwain, even with his mastery of Butch Jones. The Wildcats beat the Gators about as often as a Jones-coached team runs a QB sneak inside the one. Kentucky was a more inviting pick at the opening price of -4 but we'll stick go with the Cats at home.


AUBURN -18.5 at Missouri (55.5): Auburn has a good football team. Mizzou does not. We'll take the Plainsmen and lay the three touchdowns.


ALABAMA -18.5 at Vandy (43): The Commodores are full of themselves right now, and rightfully so. Tide fans are fretting about their defense because they gave up 23 to Colorado State. Yes, you read this correctly. Alabama is worried about its defense. That's like us worrying if Roget will get enough to eat at a Basilio restaurant remote. We'll take the Under, based on the belief the Red Elephant defense will have something to prove.


Syracuse (55) at LSU -23.5: Syracuse is a bad football program. Ed Orgeron is already in some trouble in Baton Rouge after the State beatdown. He needs a smashing win to cool the Cajuns, at least momentarily. Lay the points.


UMass (61.5) at Tennessee -28: The Minutemen aren't any good but they do have a good quarterback who throws for a lot of yards. That might point toward an Over game but we're not in love with this UT offense under QB Quinten Dormady or the coaching he is getting from Mike Canales. It will be interesting to see how much playing time Jarrett Guarantano gets. We're hearing there is concern inside the coaching staff about Dormady but Guarantano has not responded well since he lost the starting job. It all might add up to another disjointed offensive performance by the Vols and much more John Kelly than we'd like to see. We'll go with the Under.


Orange Throat
IGYDAT'

'Massachusetts (0-4) at Tennessee (2-1, 0-1 SEC)

Another bye week game. UMass is terrible. They might not win a game all season. Like Indiana St., this game is at a good spot on the schedule. Starters can take the 2nd half off, and younger players can see some extended playing time. John Kelly doesn’t need more than 10-12 touches. Ty Chandler doesn’t need more than 15 touches.


Jarrett Guarantano needs some snaps with the first-team offense. This would be the perfect time to install a goal-line package with Guarantano at quarterback. Tennessee’s red zone problems existed before Saturday. The Florida game just magnified them. Since it’s a scheme issue that keeps John Kelly from getting the ball inside the 5-yard line, why not insert Guarantano into the game so there’s a running threat? It could even open up the passing game.


Of course, I can see Butch making the offense go under center every time they get inside the 10-yard line on Saturday, just because he can. I still chuckle thinking of Quinten Dormady going under center the first offensive play of the season in Atlanta. A sign of things to come? Of course not.


Defensively, I’d like to see the front four get pressure on UMass quarterback Andrew Ford. The Minutemen have given up 23 sacks in four games. Maybe Jonathan Kongbo can get his first sack of the season.


It was evident in the Florida game that Bob Shoop didn’t think the front four can generate enough pressure on Feleipe Franks, so he blitzed a lot on passing downs with linebackers. Other teams (Georgia, South Carolina, etc.) will pick up this and look to exploit this going forward now that it’s on film. Kongbo, Darrell Taylor, Kyle Phillips and the interior linemen need to get off blocks better and get in the backfield.

Could Shaq Wiggins make an appearance before the game is out of hand?


Prediction: Tennessee


Around The SEC:

No. 17 Mississippi St. (3-0, 1-0 SEC) at No. 11 Georgia (3-0) The biggest game of the weekend in the SEC. Mississippi St. is coming off a 37-7 beatdown of LSU. It’ll be interesting to see how they respond after such an emotional win. Georgia is the favorite to win a very average SEC East, but a loss on Saturday keeps the door open for a school like Tennessee to stay alive in the division race. Georgia still needs to figure its offense out. Jake Fromm is the quarterback for now, but what happens when Jacob Eason gets healthy? The Bulldogs can lean on Nick Chubb and Sony Michel until then, but Saturday will be the toughest test to date for Georgia this year. Nick Fitzgerald is the best quarterback in the SEC, so the Bulldogs will have a puncher’s chance in every game this year. I want to pick Mississippi St., but it’ll be really difficult for Dan Mullen to have his team clicking on all cylinders two weeks in a row.
Prediction: Georgia


No. 20 Florida (2-0, 1-0 SEC) at Kentucky (3-0, 1-0 SEC) This could be the biggest win for the Wildcats since beating No. 1 LSU in 2007. Tennessee’s 11-game losing streak to Florida seemed like a lifetime. Kentucky has lost to the Gators 30 consecutive years. I can’t imagine. Florida’s offense can’t score, so the Wildcats certainly have a chance. I expect Commonwealth Stadium to be jam-packed and rowdy (for a Kentucky home game), but in the end, I can’t imagine the Gators losing at Kroger Field.
Prediction: Florida


No. 1 Alabama (3-0) at Vanderbilt (3-0) I actually think Vandy is a bad matchup for Alabama. Now, the Commodores have almost no chance of winning this game, but they could pose a lot of problems for the Crimson Tide. Vandy’s defense is good enough to keep this a low-scoring game. Kyle Shurmur and the Vandy passing game has looked good through three games, and Alabama's biggest weakness on defense in recent years has been in the secondary. It wouldn’t shock me to see the Crimson Tide come out and take care of business and leave Nashville with a 38-3 victory, but I think Derek Mason’s bunch keeps this game close for at least the first half.
Prediction: Alabama


Texas A&M vs (2-1) vs Arkansas (1-1) Kevin Sumlin and Bret Bielema both desperately need to win this game. Sumlin probably a little more so. The Aggies blew Arkansas out 45-24 last year in Jerry’s World. The Razorbacks are wearing Dallas Cowboys replica jerseys in school colors that look really good. If they win, they should wear them going forward. A&M is struggling offensively. Redshirt freshman quarterback Kellen Mond is very much a work in progress. Arkansas simply doesn’t have enough quality SEC players to compete in this league. Austin Allen is a solid quarterback, and freshman running back Chase Hayden leads the team in rushing and will be very good, but overall, Bielema hasn’t recruited enough talent to get over the hump.
Prediction: Texas A&M


No. 15 Auburn (2-1) at Missouri (1-2, 0-1 SEC) Can Auburn’s offense get going against Mizzou’s defense? Gus Malzahn’s team has looked very sloppy offensively through three games, but I still think they have a nice season. Jarrett Stidham is very talented, and Kamryn Pettway is a very good running back. Auburn has its defense to fall back on. Missouri is a complete dumpster fire. Barry Odom is in his 2nd year in Columbia, but he’s just 5-10 through 15 games. The Tigers have the worst defense in the league, and last week at home against Big 10 bottom-feeder Purdue, lost 35-3. Auburn should win this game comfortably. For you gambling degenerates, the over/under on this game is 60, and I have a hard time believing it’ll get close to that.
Prediction: Auburn


Syracuse (2-1) at No. 25 LSU (2-1, 0-1 SEC) The Tigers are coming off a disappointing outing in Starkville. Running back Derrius Guice is out for this game. Danny Etling has improved at quarterback, but he’s still nowhere near good enough for the Tigers to compete for an SEC title. Syracuse has a very good dual-threat quarterback in Eric Dungey. He will make a few plays on the LSU defense, but other than wide receiver Steve Ishmael, Dungey is the Orange’s only offensive weapon. Dino Babers is in 2nd year with Syracuse. I was impressed with his Bowling Green team when they played Tennessee in Nashville to open the 2015 season. Babers led Syracuse to a 4-8 record last year, but they did upset Virginia Tech. They also scored 61 points in the season finale at Pittsburgh, and LOST by 15. LSU should win this game by three touchdowns, but a hangover after the Mississippi St. could be a sign of bigger problems for Ed Orgeron’s squad.
Prediction: LSU



Louisiana Tech (2-1) at South Carolina (2-1, 1-1 SEC) How will the Gamecocks respond after a home loss to Kentucky? They are also dealing with star wide receiver Deebo Samuel being out of the season with a broken leg. Louisiana Tech lost to Mississippi St. 57-21 two weeks ago, so the Gamecocks should handle them fairly well. Finding another offensive weapon to pair with Jake Bentley is the Gamecocks biggest concern going foward. Without Deebo Samuel, the Oct. 14 game in Neyland looks a lot more winnable for Tennessee.
Prediction: South Carolina


SEC Coaches Power Rankings: Nick Saban Dan Mullen Jim McElwain Gus Malzahn Kirby Smart Butch Jones Bret Bielema Will Muschamp Kevin Sumlin Derek Mason Mark Stoops Ed Orgeron Barry Odom Matt Luke


One and two are no-brainers for me. I didn’t want to put McElwain and Malzahn at three and four, but there’s nobody better. If Hugh Freeze was still at Ole Miss, he’d probably be No. 3. Same for Mark Richt if he was still at Georgia. Smart, Jones and Bielema are essentially interchangeable at 5-7. I put Smart ahead of the other two because I know Butch and Bret will never win an SEC title and there’s a chance Smart could. Muschamp, Sumlin, Mason and Stoops are all four about equal.



If you’re going to the game on Saturday, I hope you stop by the Amachi tailgate. My family and I will be there at W-27 & W-28 in Circle Park. My dad and I went to it last year, and it was incredible. What Tony and others are doing for those kids is amazing.

Go Vols,

Matt Dixon'

Tony,

Mercifully, Tennessee gets back in the field tomorrow against UMASS. It imperative the program move past the Florida disaster.

1. The main question to be answered tomorrow is how Butch Jones handles Jarrett Guarantano. The talented young quarterback has to get some reps.

2. The size and enthusiasm of the crowd will be telling. Vol fans seem to be poised to jump ship.

3. Utah heads to Tucson for a matchup with an Arizona team desperate for a quality win. Rich Rodriguez has to win one of these to keep his job.

4. Arkansas and Texas A&M renew what has been a fun series of late. The loser faces some serious soul searching.

5. Vanderbilt has a chance to grab what could be the biggest win in school history against Alabama. My guess is that the Tide will extinguish the Commodore enthusiasm quickly.

6. Oklahoma State faces TCU in Stillwater. This is the first major test for the Cowboys, who harbor playoff aspirations.

7. USC travels to Berkeley to face surprising Cal. We'll find out if Justin Wilcox and Company are for real.

8. Kentucky gets an opportunity to announce themselves as a contender in the SEC East. They'll have to exorcise their Florida demons to do so.

9. Mississippi State tries to back up their huge win against LSU against Georgia. The winner will find themselves in position to do serious damage going forward.

Clancy's is opening at 10 AM tomorrow. Stop in for food and drink prior to kickoff.

Sapphire is Knoxville's premier nightspot. Check out their signature cocktail menu and enjoy their late night DJ.

The Blankenship Field renovation project continues to steadily move in the direction of its goal. Go to blankenshiplegacy.org to donate.

Keith

'STRONG FINISH MAKES AMERICAN ASSASSIN A 4 STAR FILM!


American Assassin has a very dramatic start, then after a so-so first hour, finishes with great action (lots of CGI). Dylan O'Brien of TV's Teen Wolf and cinema's The Maze Runner, stars as Mitch Rapp, a young American bent on revenge after the senseless murder of his fiancée.


It took me until the second hour to root for his character. Michael Keaton plays Mitch Rapp's not so likable mentor. I didn't believe Taylor Kitsch in the role of the villain. He was much better in Savages and the TV version of Friday Night Lights.


American Assassin is high on action and violence, a little weak on the overall story.


Today's Opener - Kingsman: The Golden Circle looks to be the best option for this weekend!


See you at the concession stand.


Jack Tate'

WINDS OF CHANGE ARE HOWLING HOW LONG CAN BUTCH JONES HOLD ON?
FREE THOUGHT FRIDAY

JUMPING THE GUN ON BUTCH?

IT MUST START WITH THE DAWGS:

BOTTOM LINE:

SAD TRUTH


WHAT WE WILL SEE IN WEEK 4:

ANOTHER LOSER LEAVE TOWN MATCH:

HOW’S FRANCOIS-LESS FSU?

CLASSIC BIG-12 CONTRAST:

STEP UP FOR CAL BEARS:

BROHM BAROMETER:

SEC’S SECOND BEST:

EAST FRONTRUNNER
WHO GETS AN F:

BACK-TO-BACK JACK:

BACK FROM THE DEAD:

WHAT VOL FANS SHOULD KNOW ABOUT U-MASS:

ODDS & ENDS...[more]

FAQ's Asked Of Tony Per Our Relaunch Announcement:

Q: Tony, you didn't say anything about your daily show yesterday. Will you continue to do this?

A: Absolutely. I'm looking forward to year #24 with you.


Q: Tony, you used the word 'subscribe'. What Am I subscribing too?

A: Great question. 'Subscribe' is a misnomer. What you actually are doing if you choose to help us monthly (and we need this for budgeting reasons) is actually acting as a patron. The goal is to keep the content (ALL CONTENT, from postgame offerings to various podcasts) free for all.


Q: So, if I'm not subscribing and I'm already reading this, why give?

A: Because you value the content and our contribution to the market and you want to help us keep this stuff free for everybody.


Q: Are you going to beat us up for money all the time here?

A: Absolutely not. I will bring this up a few times heading into the football season as we attempt to meet our financial goals and create new programming. I'll also mention it in the post-game format as well as the regional programming. I will not however wear you out with this. Either you feel the need to help us or you don't. This is why I'm taking today to field some question I received after day one.


Q: What happens if this doesn't generate the revenue you're seeking?

A: We will scale back our online offerings accordingly. The blog itself could even disappear. I really don't want this to happen but will be forced to spend my time in the most profitable way necessary. That's why we're having the conversation. All my cards are on the table here.


Q: When will we be able to hear these new podcasts, like that X-Cast?

A: It's all coming soon. We premiered a new Gate Twenty Won yesterday after the Basilio Show live on the app and will debut one today from the 1980 Georgia game. As for the 'X'-Cast....I'm going to upload these in real time with minimal production. Therefore I'm hoping to get one of these up in the next 10 days. It all depends on 'X's schedule.


Q: When will Southeastern Sunday debut?

A: We're shooting for the Sunday after the first full weekend of the football season.