In Friday’s column, I empty out the notebook with 10 Things I Think I Think on Tennessee-Georgia.
1. (EDITORS NOTE: This was written before Banks' dismissal this afternoon.) Let’s start with something that has nothing to do with Saturday’s game. I’m not surprised that Phillip Fulmer gave Jeremy Pruitt a vote of confidence, but the timing was quite peculiar. PR and prudent decision-making remains an ongoing issue for Tennessee’s athletics department.
On the heels of an embarrassing police video that involved both a football player and Pruitt, there wasn’t a peep from the athletics directors office. In a vacuum, fine. Let your coach handle it. Move on to the next week.
Yet hours later, Fulmer decided to publicly draw a line in the sand to end speculation that he may one day replace Pruitt. He did so without ever addressing a topic that was plastered across TMZ, FoxNews.com and CNN. It was tone deaf.
It was yet another example of the disconnect and disorganization with the athletic department. Why did Wednesday have to be the day Fulmer needed to back Pruitt? Why didn’t he acknowledge an issue that everyone else — from fans, to players’ parents to former letterman — were talking about?
Regardless of how fans feel about Fulmer’s decision to support Pruitt, it’s undeniable that Tennessee completely botched the handling of the Jeremy Banks video in the first place.
The Vols were well aware of some of the nasty comments Banks made several weeks ago. Tuesday’s news dump video did not surprise them. Yet instead of being proactive and suspending Banks for a violation of team rules, or even getting in front of the video and admitting what was said was ugly and and not tolerated, they waited until the public saw the video and issued a stale statement that rang hollow to most.
As has been the case for years around here, many of the PR decisions made don’t make much sense and it’s why Tennessee continues to swim upstream.
2. As for the game, two separate stories received way too much bandwidth in my opinion this week.
First, many wrote about the familiarity between the two staffs this week. It’s an overhyped storyline. There’s more in-breeding in the SEC than in The Hills Have Eyes. The conference’s recent incestuous nature has thwarted any counterintelligence or perceived advantages. There are very few secrets. Everyone knows what everyone else is doing. Very rarely are you tricking teams. So while several players, at both schools, drummed up the idea that one may have an advantage over the other because of all the crossover, thankfully both Pruitt and Kirby Smart completely threw water on the idea.
“It probably works both ways — you’re right, with our staffs, we’ve all coached together over the years, so whether it’s offensively or defensively, we probably know some of the checks that each team’s accustomed to,” Pruitt said. “But at the end of the day, it comes down to blocking, tackling, executing, taking care of the football. We’re familiar with them. They’re familiar with us, so it’ll be about the details and intangibles of the plays.”
Added Smart, “The bottom line is the players have to go out there and execute. They’ve got to play with a passion, energy, and enthusiasm to beat the guy across from them and not make it about what our defensive coordinator calls or what their offensive coordinator calls. I just don’t think that matters a whole lot. It’s blocking, tackling, turnovers, explosive plays, it’s executing and doing it with a lot of passion.”
It is any wonder they came from the same place?
3. The second storyline that irked my this week was the conversation surrounding the two jobs that Pruitt and Smart inherited. Many seem to want to create a Kirby vs. Jeremy deal, and it’s a straw-man argument. People are arguing with ghosts. No one thinks that Pruitt inherited anything like the situation that Smart walked into at Georgia, yet there’s been an outcry this week from folks, both in the media and some fans, to make sure everyone knows that Pruitt’s rebuild is/was much more challenging. But that’s not even up for debate. Who is making this counterargument? Part of the frustrating direction aspect of media these days (in sports, politics, culture, etc.) is so many people want to litigate a topic that’s been proven true from infancy/end of rant.
4. Moving on to the game, but as we’ve teased for several days and discussed the possibility at length on the podcast, all signs point to Tennessee starting a true freshman at quarterback against Georgia. I’ve outlined my detailed thoughts on should UT make such a move, and I still feel that if the Vols go away from Jarrett Guarantano (which is no guarantee even if Brian Maurer starts) that both Maurer and JT Shrout should see action the next few weeks. But it’s clear the staff, especially Jim Chaney, believes they have something in Maurer. We’ll find out. They absolutely must help him though. More RPOs. Roll-outs and simple reads. Run the ball. Get the tight ends involved…
5. Which leads me to, is this finally the week for Dominick Wood-Anderson’s breakout game? Thus far, Tennessee’s senior tight end has just five catches for 90 yards. Many Vol fans were expecting DWA to replicate that yardage within a single Saturday some weeks. It hasn’t happened but could tomorrow be the day? Georgia’s defense is nasty and is very good at limiting big plays, but Notre Dame found its best success up the seams to its tight end. Cole Kmet gave the Bulldogs issues, especially in the first half, as the Irish tight end finished with nine catches for 108 yards and a score. Many were off RPO reads, too.
Ideally, Tennessee would love to get its wideouts involved, especially against a UGA secondary that could be without two starters, but that could prove tough with a true freshman quarterback. Instead, if the Vols are going to generate some offense Saturday, Wood-Anderson (or even Austin Pope) needs to be the quarterback’s best friend.
6. While Tennessee’s run defense displayed real signs of life against Florida, Saturday will be a much greater challenge. Georgia actually ranks No. 4 nationally in total yards per play (8.04) behind only Oklahoma, Alabama and Ohio State. The Bulldogs average 6.93 yards per carry, second nationally to the Sooners. It’s death by a million paper cuts. With seven lineman at over 315 pounds in the rotation, Georgia leans on foes until they bleed out. Pruitt noted that through four games Tennessee has been pretty good at limiting explosive plays. He was concerned, however, with his defense’s inability to stop the 7-14 yard plays. Against UGA’s attack, that spells major trouble on Saturday if the Vols can’t win first down.
7. Both Tennessee and UGA have sound special teams and two fantastic kickers — possibly two of the best in the country. Both teams are excellent at forcing touchbacks, too. But one avenue toward an upset could be a special teams play or two, which is why Bryce Thompson is an X-factor at punt returner for me. Thompson would’ve started the season returning kicks. He’s Tennessee’s most dynamic returner. UGA punter Jake Camarda ranked near the top of the conference through three games only to have a very poor showing against Notre Dame. If Camarda shanks a punt or two Saturday, Thompson must take advantage with some big returns.
8. Darrell Taylor had a career performance against UGA last season, and for Tennessee to have any chance of an upset Saturday, it’ll need a repeat performance from No. 19. Taylor beat Isaiah Wilson for two sacks — the only two sacks UGA’s right tackle allowed in all of 2018, per PFF. Georgia has surrendered just a single sack this season, so Tennessee will have its hands full creating pressure. But Wilson is coming off an ankle injury that caused him to miss nearly a game and a half, so there is a potential opening there. Look for some different sub-packages with as many as three or four “outside linebackers” on the field as a way to try and confuse Jake Fromm and generate a pass rush with stunts and late blitzes.
Taylor noted earlier this week he wanted to play with more effort, and it certainly would behoove Tennessee’s defense if the senior outside linebacker found multiple ways to impact the game. Taylor is typically double-teamed or chipped, but getting his hands in passing lanes, chasing down plays from the backside or hurrying the quarterback into a bad throw can be just as critical as sacks sometimes.
9. My favorite quote of the week is reserved for Pruitt, who doesn’t always deliver the best sound bite but when he’s interested in a particular topic he truly engages.
Fromm and Guarantano are both veteran quarterbacks, but at this stage of their careers, there’s one key difference that separates them. Allow Pruitt to explain.
“You look at their quarterback, you don’t trick this guy,” he said.
“I’ve coached against him for two years and I think we might have got him two times in 160 plays, where we felt like he didn’t have them in the right play. That’s a pretty good batting percentage for him. There is very few out there that I’ve seen like that. It’s one of the reasons they are successful on offense.”
10. Finally, a quick look at the betting angles for Saturday’s showdown. Georgia is more than a three touchdown favorite (-24.5). The line actually opened at Tennessee +22 but quickly moved in UGA’s direction. Thus far, more than 79% of the public is on the Bulldogs. The over (51 or 51.5) is a very popular bet, too.
SP+ has the predicted score at 36-16 with Tennessee covering, while Odd Shark says 47-12.
Enjoy the game everybody.
1. (EDITORS NOTE: This was written before Banks' dismissal this afternoon.) Let’s start with something that has nothing to do with Saturday’s game. I’m not surprised that Phillip Fulmer gave Jeremy Pruitt a vote of confidence, but the timing was quite peculiar. PR and prudent decision-making remains an ongoing issue for Tennessee’s athletics department.
On the heels of an embarrassing police video that involved both a football player and Pruitt, there wasn’t a peep from the athletics directors office. In a vacuum, fine. Let your coach handle it. Move on to the next week.
Yet hours later, Fulmer decided to publicly draw a line in the sand to end speculation that he may one day replace Pruitt. He did so without ever addressing a topic that was plastered across TMZ, FoxNews.com and CNN. It was tone deaf.
It was yet another example of the disconnect and disorganization with the athletic department. Why did Wednesday have to be the day Fulmer needed to back Pruitt? Why didn’t he acknowledge an issue that everyone else — from fans, to players’ parents to former letterman — were talking about?
Regardless of how fans feel about Fulmer’s decision to support Pruitt, it’s undeniable that Tennessee completely botched the handling of the Jeremy Banks video in the first place.
The Vols were well aware of some of the nasty comments Banks made several weeks ago. Tuesday’s news dump video did not surprise them. Yet instead of being proactive and suspending Banks for a violation of team rules, or even getting in front of the video and admitting what was said was ugly and and not tolerated, they waited until the public saw the video and issued a stale statement that rang hollow to most.
As has been the case for years around here, many of the PR decisions made don’t make much sense and it’s why Tennessee continues to swim upstream.
2. As for the game, two separate stories received way too much bandwidth in my opinion this week.
First, many wrote about the familiarity between the two staffs this week. It’s an overhyped storyline. There’s more in-breeding in the SEC than in The Hills Have Eyes. The conference’s recent incestuous nature has thwarted any counterintelligence or perceived advantages. There are very few secrets. Everyone knows what everyone else is doing. Very rarely are you tricking teams. So while several players, at both schools, drummed up the idea that one may have an advantage over the other because of all the crossover, thankfully both Pruitt and Kirby Smart completely threw water on the idea.
“It probably works both ways — you’re right, with our staffs, we’ve all coached together over the years, so whether it’s offensively or defensively, we probably know some of the checks that each team’s accustomed to,” Pruitt said. “But at the end of the day, it comes down to blocking, tackling, executing, taking care of the football. We’re familiar with them. They’re familiar with us, so it’ll be about the details and intangibles of the plays.”
Added Smart, “The bottom line is the players have to go out there and execute. They’ve got to play with a passion, energy, and enthusiasm to beat the guy across from them and not make it about what our defensive coordinator calls or what their offensive coordinator calls. I just don’t think that matters a whole lot. It’s blocking, tackling, turnovers, explosive plays, it’s executing and doing it with a lot of passion.”
It is any wonder they came from the same place?
3. The second storyline that irked my this week was the conversation surrounding the two jobs that Pruitt and Smart inherited. Many seem to want to create a Kirby vs. Jeremy deal, and it’s a straw-man argument. People are arguing with ghosts. No one thinks that Pruitt inherited anything like the situation that Smart walked into at Georgia, yet there’s been an outcry this week from folks, both in the media and some fans, to make sure everyone knows that Pruitt’s rebuild is/was much more challenging. But that’s not even up for debate. Who is making this counterargument? Part of the frustrating direction aspect of media these days (in sports, politics, culture, etc.) is so many people want to litigate a topic that’s been proven true from infancy/end of rant.
4. Moving on to the game, but as we’ve teased for several days and discussed the possibility at length on the podcast, all signs point to Tennessee starting a true freshman at quarterback against Georgia. I’ve outlined my detailed thoughts on should UT make such a move, and I still feel that if the Vols go away from Jarrett Guarantano (which is no guarantee even if Brian Maurer starts) that both Maurer and JT Shrout should see action the next few weeks. But it’s clear the staff, especially Jim Chaney, believes they have something in Maurer. We’ll find out. They absolutely must help him though. More RPOs. Roll-outs and simple reads. Run the ball. Get the tight ends involved…
5. Which leads me to, is this finally the week for Dominick Wood-Anderson’s breakout game? Thus far, Tennessee’s senior tight end has just five catches for 90 yards. Many Vol fans were expecting DWA to replicate that yardage within a single Saturday some weeks. It hasn’t happened but could tomorrow be the day? Georgia’s defense is nasty and is very good at limiting big plays, but Notre Dame found its best success up the seams to its tight end. Cole Kmet gave the Bulldogs issues, especially in the first half, as the Irish tight end finished with nine catches for 108 yards and a score. Many were off RPO reads, too.
Ideally, Tennessee would love to get its wideouts involved, especially against a UGA secondary that could be without two starters, but that could prove tough with a true freshman quarterback. Instead, if the Vols are going to generate some offense Saturday, Wood-Anderson (or even Austin Pope) needs to be the quarterback’s best friend.
6. While Tennessee’s run defense displayed real signs of life against Florida, Saturday will be a much greater challenge. Georgia actually ranks No. 4 nationally in total yards per play (8.04) behind only Oklahoma, Alabama and Ohio State. The Bulldogs average 6.93 yards per carry, second nationally to the Sooners. It’s death by a million paper cuts. With seven lineman at over 315 pounds in the rotation, Georgia leans on foes until they bleed out. Pruitt noted that through four games Tennessee has been pretty good at limiting explosive plays. He was concerned, however, with his defense’s inability to stop the 7-14 yard plays. Against UGA’s attack, that spells major trouble on Saturday if the Vols can’t win first down.
7. Both Tennessee and UGA have sound special teams and two fantastic kickers — possibly two of the best in the country. Both teams are excellent at forcing touchbacks, too. But one avenue toward an upset could be a special teams play or two, which is why Bryce Thompson is an X-factor at punt returner for me. Thompson would’ve started the season returning kicks. He’s Tennessee’s most dynamic returner. UGA punter Jake Camarda ranked near the top of the conference through three games only to have a very poor showing against Notre Dame. If Camarda shanks a punt or two Saturday, Thompson must take advantage with some big returns.
8. Darrell Taylor had a career performance against UGA last season, and for Tennessee to have any chance of an upset Saturday, it’ll need a repeat performance from No. 19. Taylor beat Isaiah Wilson for two sacks — the only two sacks UGA’s right tackle allowed in all of 2018, per PFF. Georgia has surrendered just a single sack this season, so Tennessee will have its hands full creating pressure. But Wilson is coming off an ankle injury that caused him to miss nearly a game and a half, so there is a potential opening there. Look for some different sub-packages with as many as three or four “outside linebackers” on the field as a way to try and confuse Jake Fromm and generate a pass rush with stunts and late blitzes.
Taylor noted earlier this week he wanted to play with more effort, and it certainly would behoove Tennessee’s defense if the senior outside linebacker found multiple ways to impact the game. Taylor is typically double-teamed or chipped, but getting his hands in passing lanes, chasing down plays from the backside or hurrying the quarterback into a bad throw can be just as critical as sacks sometimes.
9. My favorite quote of the week is reserved for Pruitt, who doesn’t always deliver the best sound bite but when he’s interested in a particular topic he truly engages.
Fromm and Guarantano are both veteran quarterbacks, but at this stage of their careers, there’s one key difference that separates them. Allow Pruitt to explain.
“You look at their quarterback, you don’t trick this guy,” he said.
“I’ve coached against him for two years and I think we might have got him two times in 160 plays, where we felt like he didn’t have them in the right play. That’s a pretty good batting percentage for him. There is very few out there that I’ve seen like that. It’s one of the reasons they are successful on offense.”
10. Finally, a quick look at the betting angles for Saturday’s showdown. Georgia is more than a three touchdown favorite (-24.5). The line actually opened at Tennessee +22 but quickly moved in UGA’s direction. Thus far, more than 79% of the public is on the Bulldogs. The over (51 or 51.5) is a very popular bet, too.
SP+ has the predicted score at 36-16 with Tennessee covering, while Odd Shark says 47-12.
Enjoy the game everybody.
