ESPN 102.5 The Game took over SEC Media Days and had a plethora of interesting discussion about what’s to come in the SEC, specifically the Tennessee Volunteers as they get ready to answer questions of coaching, quarterback play and what fans should expect out of the team this upcoming season.
One of the great features of SEC Media Days is the chance for conversation and conflicting opinions, and ESPN’s Booger McFarland started that kind of conversation on Braden & Fitz with his prediction for Tennessee this season, calling for the Vols to disappoint under head coach Butch Jones in his fifth season.
“I think Tennessee is going to be abysmal,” McFarland said. “The people at Tennessee are going have to make a decision at the end of the year: do you take a chance on being great, or are you satisfied with being good?”
This sparked plenty of reaction from both the crews for The Game and most guests that stopped by:
“They’re most likely to finish 3rd. Because that’s where they are going to finish. The irony of Tennessee’s situation now, and the fans don’t wanna hear this, but: five new coaches, new athletic director, new quarterback, new chancellor, but call me crazy but it sounds like a team in transition… But, they are deeper now than they’ve ever been since [Phil] Fulmer left, they’ve got more good football players in the program.
The momentum that that coaching staff has been able to establish, not only in the recruiting ranks, restocking some of the losses they’re going to have. But, there’s still a huge void at quarterback still… Dobbs, at the end of the day, is going to finish as one of the more underappreciated performers in this conference. How do you fill that? I don’t know that you just plug a guy in there, and I don’t know if that guy is on the roster.
“Are people sick of ‘brick-by-brick’?” Nowkhah asked. “Do you care about being ‘Champions of Life?’ Drop the cliches, it has to stop. Don’t be a machine that spits out the same statements over again and again. Win football games, and beat teams that you’re supposed to beat and a couple that you’re not.
He’s done enough to improve enough to where you can point, and [Jones] does, to what they’ve accomplished. He compares to the down times, but the fans want the comparisons to the great times. That’s where is the disconnect is, but it’s not about where the fans’ frustrations is, it’s UT.”
He’s done enough to improve enough to where you can point, and [Jones] does, to what they’ve accomplished. He compares to the down times, but the fans want the comparisons to the great times. That’s where is the disconnect is, but it’s not about where the fans’ frustrations is, it’s UT.”
Personally, I think last year was a quality year for Tennessee, getting to nine wins because of what they had to overcome in order to get there. I think that Butch Jones is getting a whole lot of grief he doesn’t deserve.
For all these interviews, click the hyperlinks above. For more content, head to ESPN 102.5 The Game’s Soundcloud.
