Wednesday, April 20, 2011
State of Tennessee Football
5 for 30.
Those numbers don't describe Nate McLouth's batting average. They are not the baseball Vols record this season. It isn't the original title for ESPN's film series.
No, those are Tyler Bray's spring game numbers.
5 for 30.
In case you aren't aware, the quarterback cannot even be hit in the spring game. He is down by touch. Bray had no fears about being blindsided or blitzed.
And he went 5 for 30.
Coach Dooley said they were opening the offense up for Bray in the spring. Maybe they need to close it back down. Maybe Matt Simms wasn't so bad. Maybe Tyler Bray was a flash-in-the-pan.
But here is the more concerning thing - nobody cares. I have not sensed any panic from the Vol Nation about Bray's embarrassing performance. Is this what we expect out of Knoxville now? Have Tennessee fans accepted mediocrity?
Can you imagine the outcries from Vols fans in the late 1990s if our starting quarterback had this kind of game in the spring? How will we beat Spurrier? What about recruits? What is Fulmer doing wrong?
I haven't heard ANYTHING about Bray's performance. I shouldn't have to go to GoVolsXtra to find ranting about this - it should be everywhere. It is not. We are not panicking. I don't like it.
Maybe Tennessee fans are still reeling from the Pearl/Martin whirlwind. Maybe they are swept up in the excitement of Todd Raleigh baseball. I don't know. But I'm afraid we are falling in to contentment with 8-4 seasons, with competitive but out-classed teams, with good not great coaches, and with losing to the likes of Alabama, Florida and Georgia without too much hand-wringing.
This is the state of Tennessee football.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Auburn. Alabama. LSU twice. Florida twice. All have spent millions hiring highly sought-after coaches that would catapult their programs to the next level.
ReplyDeleteY'all hired Dooley.
You can defend the man all you like, and people can talk glowingly about his potential and the long view over the quick fix. But at the end of the day, that hire felt a lot like the school was throwing in the towel because it can't keep up with the bigger boys on the block. And talk about "potential" and "long-term investments" is usually what you hear from fans who expect to keep losing for a while longer.
I know this because I hear stuff like that from NC State fans all the time, and they haven't won much of anything since 1983.
As soon as I figure out how you are wrong, I'm going to let you have it. Just as soon as I figure it out...
ReplyDeleteOkay, but let's take a look at the circumstances shall we? Lane Kiffin left us high'n'dry on January 13. How many weeks is that before signing day? I remember thinking when it happened it would take us three or four years to get over the blow. 8-4? I'll be fine with 8-4 next season. Heck, I'll be happy with 7-5.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'll be happy with 7-5 next year too. Unless Luke Stocker gets picked, there probably won't be a single Vol drafted this year. The cupboard is empty.
ReplyDeleteI will also mention that it was very windy for that spring game. Very windy. Tough to throw the ball. Really, really windy. I still believe in Tyler Bray.
Windy.