Posts Tagged ‘Knoxville News Sentinel’

In case you haven’t heard, there’s a pretty great new Tennessee Football preview annual coming out in only a few short days.  It’s from Maple Street Press and is entitled: “Rocky Top Tennessee 2009.”

I know, I know, you’re probably thinking to yourself “those previews are all the same, a bunch of the same basic statistics and information re-styled to make them appear shiny and new.”  In most circumstances you would be correct, but this preview is a little different than most.  You see, Maple Street Press does not approach these sorts of publications the way that some of the other publishers do.  They turn independent writers and bloggers who are passionate about their team and ask them to write on subjects that are near and dear to their hearts.

The result is a 128 pages of thoughtful insight, analysis, and perspective that the mainstream press simply does not offer.  Furthermore, if your a regular reader here at Gate 21 and other sites across the web, you’ll recognize some of the writers and be pleasantly surprised at the ways Rocky Top Tennessee 2009 differs from the run-of-the-mill preview magazine.

Read the rest of this entry »

Over the years, I have often criticized Knoxville News Sentinel Sports Editor John Adams for his excessive fault-finding with the various athletic programs at Tennessee.  Since the ascendancy of Lane Kiffin as the new head football coach of the Tennessee Volunteers, however, it has seemed to me that suddenly Adams had gone soft.

Well, Adams’ recent column on Daniel Hood proves that I am wrong…

In his article, Adams concludes that Hood’s past (at age 13, he was convicted of assisting a 17-year-old in the rape of a 14-year-old) means that the Knoxville native should not be given a chance to play for the Big Orange.  This is classic Adams, complete with his longstanding habit of attacking the Great Punkin for no readily apparent reason.

As for the substance of the article, I cannot say that I entirely agree or disagree with Adams, but I do take issue with his willingness to publicly attack Hood.  I’m not making any excuses for Hood or his past actions (and apparently neither is Hood), but it seems to me to be a bit heavy-handed to walk in as a moral inquisitor standing in judgment over the kid in the way that Adams does.

Furthermore, while Adams appears to clothe the article under the guise of pointing out that Hood’s troubled past does not help with Coach Kiffin’s efforts to instill a new sense of discipline at Tennessee, what the article is really about is taking one more shot at Phillip Fulmer.  Adams writes:

The main problem I had with former coach Phillip Fulmer’s program wasn’t the won-lost record.  It was the arrest record.  There were too many off-the-field incidents and too little discipline in return.

New UT coach Lane Kiffin has been all about discipline.  He has the attrition to show for it.  Four players have been kicked off the team, and another was disciplined before he left of his own volition.

You can’t say, “There’s a new sheriff in town,” because that implies the existence of a previous sheriff.  But by the end of spring practice, you could conclude this wasn’t business as usual.

So much has changed about UT football in the last few months, and virtually all of it for the better. A stagnant program is suddenly pulsating with energy.  Fans are excited and optimistic.

There’s a new offense, a new defense and a new outlook.

Amidst all the newness, this is no time to revert.

• Adams: Daniel Hood not good for UT’s new image | GoVolsXtra.com

I suppose my biggest complaint is that Adams felt the need to so directly attack a high school-aged player in order to justify the swing at Fulmer.  It just does not seem necessary to me since, as just about every article ever written by Adams other than the one he wrote the morning after Tennessee won the 1998 National Championship shows, he has hardly ever held back in going after Tennessee’s former coach.

I guess that would have just been too boring (I know I have been tired of it for years)…

Still, the article is thought provoking.  Furthermore, I suppose that with newspapers folding-up or thinning-down all across the country writers have to do whatever they can to sell papers.

Still, more than anything this one looks like a guy trying to find a story, and when one fails to appear simply reverting to his well-honed tactics of going after an easy target.  I guess even Adams is still afraid to unabashedly go after Kiffin.

Given the support that Kiffin has been receiving, that was probably a smart decision on Adams’ part…

– So it goes

Earlier this year, I was somewhat miffed at the Knoxville News-Sentinel’s Mike Griffith over his early-season criticisms of the BasketVols.  I felt that those criticisms—which were as candid as they were brutal—were misplaced.  At the time I felt that Griffith was premature in his biting critique of the Vols’ play.  I felt that the, then, 6-1 and No 10 ranked BasketVols were still just beginning to warm up.  I felt that he was putting the cart before the horse.

I take that back…

As was seen in the Vols’ utterly disappointing 81-65 loss to the Ole Miss Rebels, if anything, Griffith might have actually been a little too kind to the Vols when he assessed their performance back in December.  Lately, it has seemed that the Vols have been sliding further and further as the season progresses, raising concerns about where (or whether) this team will land in the NCAA Tournament.

After all, with their game against the Rebels presenting a chance to take control of the SEC East, there was plenty to play for…

Either way, the Tennessee Volunteers now find themselves sitting at 16-9 / 7-4 with games at Kentucky, at Florida, and at South Carolina in the next two weeks.  This after losing two of their last four games (Auburn being the other recent loss).  In terms of the Vols hopes of winning the SEC East, those are not exactly great odds.

What’s more, Mississippi didn’t just get lucky down the stretch, they beat the Vols in all of the four key areas of the game:

But enough of the doom and gloom.  The good news is that, miraculously, Tennessee is still tied for first place in the SEC East—again with Kentucky, Florida, South Carolina.  Thus, the importance of each win in the last five games of the season is amplified.  So there is a real chance for Tennessee to stretch its legs quickly and pull away from the pack.  Of course, each loss is equally as devastating in terms of conference standing. The peculiar thing is that, despite Tennessee having been mightily swatted by Kentucky—and in particular Jodie Meeks—in January, the Vols and the Wildcats actually matchup fairly evenly from a statistical perspective. As the chart below shows, Tennessee has been on a slight decline in the four key factors, but have—all things considered—held reasonably steady throughout conference play.

Of course, given the Vols’ inconsistencies over the last month, it remains to be seen whether they can manage to hold the line and man-up against Kentucky this Saturday.

I am sure Mike Griffith will be watching…

– So it goes…

Charts / Stats Courtesy of: StatSheet.com

Alright, I admit I have been a little absent and not just a little bent out of shape over the fact that I have been completely unable to post anything of substance lately due to my “real” job as an evidence manipulation specialist (lawyer).  Hence my last post.  What’s more, this has been a very exciting week for fans of the Big Orange, as Tennessee named Lane Kiffin its new head football coach.  Despite all of the fanfare, I spent my week in a courtroom, and failed to get a single decent comment out in a timely fashion.

Again, hence my last post…

That said, after watching a few video clips, most notably the one below, I am feeling much more relaxed and much happier.  Why?  Because, I am beginning to think that maybe Smiling Mike has done it again.

Lane Kiffin’s First Press Conference as Tennessee Head Football Coach

I’ll be the first to admit, Lane Kiffin wasn’t the number one name on my list—but make no mistake he was on it.  Still, in the back of my mind I wondered “is Mike Hamilton rushing into things?  I just don’t know if I would have been in such a rush.”

Then I remembered two key things:

1. I picked the Auburn Tigers to win the SEC West and the Tennessee Volunteers to finish second in the SEC East this year; and
2. Bruce Pearl.

Those two realizations gave me a moment of pause and suddenly gave me real confidence in the decision to hire Lane Kiffin as the head football coach at Tennessee.

The first point reminded me that I am a moron and that my skills as a prognosticator and student of college football are about as reliable as Eric Locke was as a receiver (or kick returner, or cheerleader, or ditch digger, or…).  Furthermore, it reminded me that there is an awful lot of guesswork in the business or picking coaches.  Which led me to point number two.

Smiling Mike dares you to make fun of his shirt

As I wrote some time ago while serving as a stand-in guest writer over at Joel’s venerable pillar of the Fifth Estate, on the day Bruce Pearl was introduced as Men’s Basketball coach the first thing I asked myself was “who the hell is Bruce Pearl?”  Well, suffice it to say that I now know who Bruce Pearl is, and I’m pretty sure the rest of the basketball loving inhabitants of the country do now as well.  The point is this: love him or hate him, over the last few years Mike Hamilton has shown an uncanny ability to find coaches about as well as anyone in the world of college sports, and as a result, I’m willing to trust his decision.

I think Hamilton has earned that.

Furthermore, what I have seen so far from Coach Kiffin (does kind of have a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?) has thoroughly impressed me.  The video above was especially telling for me.  Why?  Because Kiffin does not talk about “the passion of Tennessee’s fans” or “the tradition they have here.”   No, instead—about ten minutes after he was named head coach—he comments on “the passion of our fans” and “the tradition we have here.”

I know, I know, I’m sure the folks in the Sports Information office reminded him to project that message, but you know what, it seemed pretty sincere to me…

I realize taking “ownership” verbally is a small detail—one which can be overstated—but it impressed me.  I honestly expected the typical “NFL-style” quasi-corporate speech about future, direction, and leadership.  I expected his opening foray with the press to be far less personal than it was.  Given my concerns that the “family” aspect of Tennessee football might fade away with the departure of the Great Punkin, this really did my heart good.  It also made it clear that Coach Kiffin understands that we happy few, we band of brothers, who wear the Orange are sort of “into” that whole “Tradition” thing.

All I can say is that I first looked at the hiring of Coach Kiffin with a lot of hope and expectation, and a near equal amount of concern and reticence.  After seeing how he has handled himself so far, it’s fair to say that I have been impressed.

Yeah, I’ve got me a great big pitcher of the proverbial Kool-Aid, and I’m chugging it down through a garden hose…

I guess that is why I felt led to say hello to Coach Kiffin visually—in the header here at the Gate—rather than simply saying “Oh, um, yeah we got us a coach.”

No matter what I may have thought about the past, I am pretty convinced that Coach Kiffin is the the right man to guide Tennessee into the future.

Which leads me to the seemingly inane title of this post.

I will be the first to admit that I am not a huge fan of professional sports and while I typically follow the NFL playoffs in a limited sense, I can hardly be said to keep up with the league.  There are a lot of reasons for this, but the end result is that I am often less than informed when it comes to the guys that play on Sunday.  Thus, the only real understanding I had when it came to Coach Kiffin was that he had been fired as head coach of the Los Angeles … err … Oakland … Los Ang … Los Oaklesland Raiders mid-season.  I didn’t really hold this against him, because I realize how fickle NFL owners can be.  Furthermore, I hardly felt like I had enough background knowledge to really even understand why he was fired (I had to check just to confirm whether the Raiders were in Los Angeles or Oakland this year).

Still, I knew that something hadn’t worked out the way it had been planned…

Then, I stumbled upon this little jewel:

Al Davis on the Firing of Lane Kiffin

This video really confirmed a few things for me:

• Skeletor is real;

• The Raiders will never win much of anything until that nut-job of an owner they have gives it up;
• Anytime a coach is fired and respected journalists write things like this, it’s probably not the coach’s fault the team is sucking the tubes:

Al Davis’ once-proud franchise has won 19 games since appearing in the 2002 Super Bowl (or one more than the Patriots won in 2007) and better days seemed even more remote in January. That’s when the modest momentum built under new head coach Lane Kiffin in 2007 was flushed when it was learned Davis wanted Kiffin gone because Kiffin wanted to, ya know, coach the team…

– Tom Curran | NBC Sports

• Coach Kiffin’s record as an NFL head coach is of little concern to me considering the situation he inherited; and

• Bea Arthur really should stop wearing those silly black leather jackets and sweatshirts when giving press conferences.

Al Davis?

Bea Arthur?

So, is Betty White currently the defensive coordinator for the Raiders, or is it one of the other Golden Girls?

Anyway, the point of this rambling post is simply to say, that I am thrilled to have Lane Kiffin on board as the newest member of the Tennessee family.  So far, I have been amazingly impressed with the way he has jumped in headfirst at Tennessee.  Most of all, however, I am happy with how he seems to really want be at Tennessee as opposed to simply biding his time.

Of course, I realize that he has not yet completed his first full week as head coach.  Still, all I can say is that—so far—it seems like Smiling Mike Hamilton may have gotten it right…again!

Either way, Coach Kiffin, I mean it sincerely when I say “Welcome to the Family!”

Oh yeah, and, Go Vols!

– Go Figure …

Images Courtesy of: Knoxville News Sentinel • SA Blogs • BroadwayWorld.com • NBC Sports / Getty Images

All sorts of rumors are flying about in Big Orange Country about Lane Kiffin.  Numerous websites, blogs, and news organizations are reporting that Smilin’ Mike has already offered the Tennessee coaching job to the 33 year-old former head coach of the Los Angeles Raiders.

Could this be Tennessee's next head coach?

In response, Mike Hamilton publicly stated that he had not offered Kiffin the job.  According to the Knoxville News Sentinel Hamilton stated:

We have not offered the job to anybody.  If anybody has said that, that would be incorrect information.

Our process is fluid.  I understand there is a lot of interest in what’s going on. It would not surprise me that people would want to talk about these kinds of things.  The process is not over.

— Courtesy of the Knoxville News Sentinel

What Hamilton did not say was that he had not already made a decision, even though a formal offer had not yet been extended…

I find this all a bit troubling, considering that this weekend is supposed to be about honoring our current coach, as opposed to spinning the rumor mill about who our next coach will be.

Either way, I agree with Mike Hamilton that there it is understandable that people are interested.  After all, I suppose I am writing about why it bothers me that so many people are writing about it (now you are beginning to understand why I became a lawyer).

One way or the other, here are a few of the noteworthy stories flying about at present:

• Dave Hooker and the News Sentinel report that Kiffin has not been offered the job.
• According to the folks at the Pigskin Pathos, Jimmy Hyams is reporting that it is already a done deal, which mirrors the report from MrSEC.com, from Will at SESB, and other rumors of a Creamsicle Orange Scuttlebutt.
• For what it is worth, the Cincinnati Enquirer says that Brian Kelly—head coach for the Cincinnati Bearcats who has been mentioned as a possible candidate—is more than happy to stay right where he is.
• Of course the fans on the message boards over at Smash South Sports and VolNation are going nuts over the news—some even doing their part to “encourage” Mike Hamilton visually:

A subliminal message posted by my friends at the "King" of Tennessee Message boards.

• Some are asking why Tennessee would want Kiffin, while others more preoccupied with whether Bob Kesling might leave the Vol Network.
• The whole thing has Ghost of Neyland speaking as if possessed, while Joel and Hooper are going to run out of webspace at the rate they keep posting Fanshots.

Meanwhile, I’m just wondering what it could be like to have a head coach only one year older than me?

– Go Figure …

Contributions and Leads Courtesy of: Rocky Top Talk

Images Courtesy of: SI.com • SmashSouthSports.com

If you have read any of my posts over the last year, you will quickly learn that I have made it my habit to refer to Tennessee Volunteers’ head coach Phillip Fulmer as “the Great Punkin.”  To some, this may seem an insult—some thinly veiled comment on Coach Fulmer’s girth.  This simply is not the case.  Yes, the “Punkin” part does owe to the fact that Fulmer favors wearing Tennessee orange, beyond that, however, the name takes on a more personal (and probably less self-evident) character.  The “Great Punkin” nickname was always—and for me will always—be a term of endearment.

To me, Phillip Fulmer will always be like Charlie Brown…

Charlie Brown is the quintessential nice guy.  Everybody likes Charlie Brown and Charlie Brown likes everybody. He is the proverbial “fuddy-duddy” who has a bit of a pessimistic outlook on life, but at the end of the day believes in the hope of the future—he always keeps trying to kick that football, no matter how many times Lucy pulls it out from underneath him.  For the same reason, he is always a hard worker.  Charlie Brown is forever loyal to his friends (again, despite Lucy constantly pushing his buttons).  These are apt descriptors for Phillip Fulmer.

More importantly, Charlie Brown represents innocence and a healthy amount of naivete‘—characteristics which have always been present in the world of Tennessee football, but which now are forever gone…

One of the things that first brought me into the fold as a fan of the Volunteers was the sense of community, the sense of family.  Tennessee football began, for me, as an experience of camaraderie, belonging, competition, and unified purpose.  What amazed me that first time I ever set foot inside Neyland Stadium in 1991, the first time I ever walked through the old Gate 21, was the fact that this massive throng of people—then 95,000 strong—could be so united behind a single purpose.  The fans I saw in the stadium that Fall day came from all walks of life, all sorts of backgrounds, all sorts of situations—yet, they were united.  For those few hours, they were a great big (and loud) family.  I have personally gathered together with that family, and attended Tennessee games, 110 times since 1991.  Phillip Fulmer has been the head coach walking the sidelines for 109 of those games.

In my mind, since 1992, Phillip Fulmer was the head of that family…

I had the chance during the 2002 season to have season tickets which were directly behind the visitors’ bench on about the 10th row.  That year, I sat beside a gentleman who had been sitting in the same seats since the 1960s.  He told me that, prior to Tennessee moving the home bench to west sideline, it was not uncommon for the coaching staff to come over and chat with fans before, after, and even during games.  That is the sort of relationship-based existence that has been associated with Tennessee football throughout its history.  It has always been “ours”—something belonging to the family of Big Orange fans.  Thus, it was always fitting that “this thing of ours” should be led by one of our own—a lifelong member of the family who can be traced back to the first: General Neyland.

Phillip Fulmer has always been a member of that family…

Now make no mistake, this family can be difficult, unruly, and fickle.  This family can get into fights and can band together in factions.  Still, the leader of the family is responsible for gently chiding the wayward children, righting the ship, and keeping “our thing” going.  Once Johnny Majors left, that thing began to take on different look, as Tennessee began trying to be more “polished” for the national media.  The program became more “corporatized” and began to value money more than it had in the past.  Throughout the Fulmer years, money became a larger and larger part of the decision-making process, took over as the primary driving force, and grew into the engine that drove the program.  Still, no matter how much the financial side of the program grew in its importance, I always felt that Fulmer still managed to keep some semblance of the family feeling in the program.  He was always accessible, always fan focused, and never shirked a reasonable autograph or picture request.

In his own way, the Great Punkin was watching over us all…

Now, I am not naive enough to ignore the fact that Fulmer made millions of dollars as head coach, that the business of football was always king at Tennessee, and that—even if the fans hated it—a change which was going to increase earning for the program was a change that was going to happen.  I understand that it is a numbers game: numbers of fans, numbers of recruits, numbers of wins, numbers in the bank account.  I know all of this.  Still, despite this reality, I always felt that Fulmer was sincere in his service to the university, the fans, the alumni, and the State of Tennessee.  Sure, Phillip Fulmer wanted a multi-million dollar paycheck at the end of the year, but it always seemed to me that he would have still been the coach at Tennessee even if the pay was much less grand.

I remember the first time I met him.  Fulmer came by to give a “thank you” speech to the Pride of the Southland at 6:30 am prior to day three of our pre-season camp in August of 1994.  I was an in-coming freshman.  The only people on campus at that point were the football team and the marching band.  Now, I realize that he was probably—in some limited sense—obligated to show up and thank the band geeks for doing their thing in opening the “T” and playing Rocky Top ad nausem.  I say that because the day before the Big Dickey had come by to give his speech which was … well … less than inspiring (and, no, “Big Dickey” is not a term of endearment).  Fulmer’s speech, was far more sincere than I ever imagined it could be.  Fulmer told us how important the traditions of the Pride were to the team and to the University of Tennessee.  Whether he actually meant it or not, he made me believe that he felt our hard work was important to him.  I can honestly say that I was inspired.  After his speech, he hung around and chatted with members, signed some autographs, and then just hung-out at the side of the field for a while—leaning against the fence—watching us practice.  There were no cameras there.  There were no big-money donors to be seen.  There were no PR events on that early morning.  It was just a bunch of band kids, graduate assistants, directors, and the Great Punkin, checking in on how things were going.

Oh, and he followed that speech up with ongoing efforts to make sure the athletic bands had the financial resources to get us to away games comfortably, by urging the Big Dickey to fund the Pride of the Southland’s efforts (as a reference point, it cost nearly $300,000 to send the entire Pride of the Southland to the Georgia game in 1994).  Once, on one of the many occasions when Dickey didn’t particularly think the Band was worth the cost, Fulmer just told him “You need to give ‘em the money they need, because we need them…”

Yeah, I am a fan of the big guy…

Now, however, the Great Punkin will be stepping aside at season’s end, and someone else will be taking over the leadership of the program.  When that happens, there will be no more Charlie Brown.  When that happens, it will be all business.

Make no mistake, I support Mike Hamilton, just like I support Phillip Fulmer.  I don’t particularly like Hamilton’s decision but I do agree with his decision.  Unfortunately, there are times when we all have to do things we don’t like.  As my manifesto from earlier in the season made clear, whether I liked it or not, I had concluded that it was time for Fulmer to step aside—not necessarily because I didn’t think he was capable of winning as a coach, but because the fanbase was simply too divided.

Irrespective of whether Fulmer should have been asked to resign, he has.  Thus, we look to the future.  I also agree with the general consensus that the next coach should come from outside the Tennessee bloodline.  Considering the fact that I have spent far too long discussing the merits of the family at Tennessee, this might seem odd.

One of the things that made life so difficult for Phillip Fulmer over the last six years, was the fact that he—as both a “business” coach and a “family” leader—often was forced to serve competing interests which pulled him in opposite directions.  That dilemma was ultimately part of his undoing.  Fulmer to the last day, has never attacked his own—yet he has been the brunt of a thousand assaults.  He embraced the media and the national audience in an effort to propel Tennessee to the forefront, yet he tried to balance that against the Charlie Brown loyalty he had for his program, his alma mater, his fellow alumni, and his state.  He wanted to win more than anything—and worked tirelessly to make that happen.  Yet, winning at all costs simply wasn’t an option—given the deep ties he had to the institution and its people.  In a sense, he was in the proverbial catch-22.

The next coach should not and cannot be asked to fill that role.  The next coach should and will be resolute in assuming the role as the dispassionate and detached CEO of the football fortunes at Tennessee…

That change will—in my estimation—lead to greater success for Tennessee.  By the same token, it will forever snuff out the last little light of that Great Punkin innocence that had managed to hang on within the program into the 21st Century.  The next leader will simply be “Coach”—nothing more, nothing less.  Oh, I am sure that I will give him a nickname—mainly because I give everyone a nickname—but it will be more sterile, more professional.

As for the Great Punkin, well, I hope he realizes how appreciative that I am for what he did for Tennessee throughout his career.  I hope he understands that though it is time for a change, it doesn’t mean he has been forsaken.  I hope he still thinks of Tennessee as “home” because—as former UT Chancellor and professor Jack Reese once told me “Home is the place where they have to take you in, even when they don’t want to.”  I hope Coach Fulmer realizes that he will always be a Tennessee legend.

Even more, I hope that the fans—the family—show him that they feel that way by sending him off with the fanfare, respect, and honor he has earned—that he deserves.

I realize that this has been a terribly sentimental, naive, emotional, and even childlike discussion of Coach Fulmer’s retirement.  At the end of the day, it is little more than a change in a single position at the University of Tennessee.  I realize this will probably leave me labeled forever as a homer.  There have been more than enough analytical glimpses at Fulmer’s resignation—I’d just be piling on.  Thus, I’m just sort of shooting from the hip here.  I realize it’s a bit sappy, but, it’s what I wanted to say.

I didn’t write this because Mike Hamilton wants everyone to honor Coach Fulmer and send him out in a manner befitting his service.  With all due respect to Mike Hamilton, I have donated enough money to the athletic department at Tennessee that I really could care less what he wants me to do.

I didn’t write this because I felt obligated, or because I felt I owed it to Tennessee or Coach Fulmer.

I wrote this because it is what I sincerely believe—what I feel.

This is a turning point for Tennessee.  I believe that it is one which will lead to great things—there is so much hope for the future.  I also have faith that Mike Hamilton will find the best coach for the job and that Tennessee will be back on top soon.  I have no fears about the future.

Still, I will miss the Great Punkin side of Tennessee football.  I will miss the last vestige of the old-school style of team pride, collective will, camaraderie, and devotion to alma mater.

I will miss Charlie Brown…

– Go Figure …

Images Courtesy of: Access North Georgia • Knoxville News Sentinel / Amy Smotherman-Burgess • Snoopy.com • Smokey’s-Trail

Now that I am finally done with my trial, I can begin to get back to things that really matter, namely spending endless hours blogging…

Needless to say, this has been a football season which could drive a Tennessee fan to drink, sniff glue, use leeches, beat up little old ladies on the side of the road, or some similar vice.  Between mounting losses, SEC and BCS irrelevance, the controversy over the legacy of the Great Punkin, and bickering among the fans, the battle for the soul of Big Orange fans has never been more feverishly pitched.

That said, I am still convicted—perhaps even more so—that there is no other team I’d ever follow and that it is truly great to be one of the many Tennessee Volunteers.  Thus, I thought I’d offer up a little list—just to remind the doom and gloom crowd that life really isn’t all that bad (and for reasons which should be fairly obvious, “21” is the top of the list).

Thus, here are 21 Things that make it great to be a Tennessee Volunteer:

>> (Lawvol’s first attempt at) Flash (which he couldn’t get to resize properly) Version <<

Full Version after the Jump…

** Many images, may load slowly on dial-up connections

Read the rest of this entry »

Since my life is currently dominated by my “real-life” job at the present, and find myself completely swamped as I get ready for trial—leaving my spare time ground into dust and flung into the wind—I have limited time to post my thoughts on the Tennessee Volunteers’ loss to the Georgia Bulldogs this past weekend.  Thus, I’ll sum it up as succinctly as I can:

Better but worse.  Some nice new things along with depressingly more of the same.  It’s turning out to be a very long season…

Since I have almost nothing substantive to offer at the moment, here’s what everyone elase is saying about the Vols’ Loss to the Georgia Bulldogs this past weekend in Athens.

Final Statistics:  Tennessee 14 • Georgia 26

Post-Game Quotes • Notes

Even Smokey is Getting Taunted

From the Good Guys (Vol Bloggers):

• Tennessee is Reelin’ in the Years — Rocky Top Talk
• Georgia 26 Tennessee 14 – Frustration Reigns No Fate but What We Make — SouthEastern Sports Blog
• Tennessee / Georgia Grade Book — YMSWWC
• Everybody’s Beatable — Snarkastic (HT to Hooper at RTT)

Along these same lines, here’s the Blazer Chronicles with VolzRChamps’ take on the Georgia Game:

The Blazer Chronicles: Episode 8 — Tennessee v. Georgia Postgame

From the Meanies (Georgia Bloggers):

• Thoughts from the 35 • Penalties, Shmenalties — Get the Picture
• T. Kyle King’s Thoughts on the Game — Dawg Sports
• A Different Take — Georgia Sports Blog
• How to Smile Behind a Frown — Hey Jenny Slater

From the Mercenaries (Mainstream Media):

• Tom Mattingly Points out that at Least the Pride of the Southland Looks Good—and always has — Go Vols Xtra
• Stop the Presses, Johnny Majors Thinks Hiring Fulmer was a Mistake — Go Vols Xtra
  • Audio of Majors’ Interview (mp3) — Paul Finebaum
    
• John Adams Believes Things Could Have Been Much Worse — Go Vols Xtra
• Does Fulmer’s Contract Still Make Sense? — Go Vols Xtra
• Fulmer Ready to Face Heat From Fans • Vols Ponder Future — The Tennessean
• Vols Have No Answers For Georgia — The Commercial Appeal
• Clock is Ticking: Fulmer’s Time to Leave is Approaching — CBS Sports.com

Given the fact that I will be in trial for multiple weeks starting tomorrow, I will not be around much and will be posting even less until I get done.  Bearing that in mind, be sure to check out HSH’s posts in my absence.

SEC Power Poll Ballot to come later in the day, and then I’m into figuring out exactly what I’m going to ask on cross-examination …

– Go Figure …

Lead Image Courtesy of: Go Vols Xtra / Amy Smotherman-Burgess • Audio Courtesy of: Paul Finebaum Show

Oh Yeah, Basketball

With lawvol swamped, I have been given the steering wheel here at Gate 21. How do I respond?? With a basketball-related post – in the second week of October. That’s what 2-3 and little hope does, but I’ll have more on that plus the newly-revived Big Orange Roundtable AND the usual “On Remote” college football preview.

The joys of Fall Break and some extra time…

Anyways, the inspiration for this post, you ask? On my way back to my apartment just now, I of course see freshman Renaldo Woolridge walking down by Pratt/TBA. Not thirty seconds later, who do I see? Emmanuel Negedu. My first Negedu sighting.

Now Woolridge just had a story about his rap talent in this morning’s Knoxville News-Sentinel, where I currently work. I got a chance to listen to it for a moment this morning and I gotta say if his basketball skills are near his rap skills, Tennessee got a great player – I think they already did anyways…

Now compare this to this summer’s hit, Bobby “Big-Money” Maze’s “I Put on for Tennessee,” which was on YouTube…

These of course have little to do with Tennessee basketball, other than the incredible rise in the program’s street cred. Honestly, you could assume and guess that stuff like this helps recruiting, especially if Bruce Pearl has nothing to really say about it (I’m not sure I’ve seen his comments on any of it either…). It certainly can’t hurt, right?

I guess I just had basketball on my mind (and not Georgia…get it?!) this afternoon. Weird and all since it’s Georgia week, but you’ll get my thoughts and understand why a little later this week…

Reason #15,653 to love Bruce Pearl: the Vols now have two rappers...

Well, as Joel pointed out, the News Sentinel’s Dave Hooker recently came out with his Top 10 games in Tennessee football history. It is an interesting list, but (like Joel) I’m not so certain I agree with all of the games on Hooker’s list.

Given the fact that I am still making my way through my “Great Games” series, it seems appropriate for me to chime in with my thoughts on this. At the risk of rendering some of my future posts in this series futile (not that they aren’t already), here is my top 10 games in Tennessee football history (with comparison to Dave Hooker’s ranking):

Gate 21’s Top 10 All-Time

Tennessee Football Games

No. 10: 1989 – Tennessee vs. UCLA

The Rose Bowl | Dave Hooker Rank: Unranked

I know that some will question this one, but this game still stands out to me as one of the best. I toyed with ranking the 1985 Auburn win at No. 10, but I have to go with the Vols 1989 trip to Pasadena to take on the Bruins. This game was early in the season, and at that point UCLA was highly touted. Tennessee had been beaten in both their prior trips to the Rose Bowl to play the Bruins (1975 and 1967), and many thought they would repeat that trend as the Vols came off of their worst season in recent memory, and a close call in their season-opener versus Colorado State. The Vols, however, stepped-up to the challenge and proved that their 5 and 6 record for 1988 was only a bump in the road as they came out gunning for the No. 6-ranked Bruins. The Vols completely shutdown the UCLA offense with their own brand of SEC defense, en route to a 24 – 6 victory. That game set the stage for the rest of the season — one which included 10 more wins and only a single loss. The Vols would go on to win an SEC Championship, beat Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl that year, and end with a No 5 ranking.

Still, by my mind, it all started in California…

No. 9: 1999 Fiesta Bowl – Florida State vs. Tennessee

Sun Devil Stadium | Dave Hooker Rank: No. 1

Dave Hooker had this game as No. 1, but I cannot in good conscience give it that distinction. While the 1999 Fiesta Bowl did give Tennessee its first Consensus National Championship since 1951, the game itself was not nearly as spectacular as others that season.

First of all, both Tennessee and Florida State played very sloppily throughout the game as a result of the more than 4-week layoff leading up to the contest. Second — in fairness to Florida State — they were playing with a back-up quarterback, Marcus Outzen, who (to my knowledge) never started another game after the championship, due to the injury to Chris Weinke.

Finally, the game was exciting, but probably only if you were a Tennessee or Florida State fan. The reason for this is that the two teams were extremely closely matched at most positions. All of that said, I have such amazing memories of this game and of finally seeing another championship for the Big Orange, that I have to include it in the Top 10, regardless of its flaws.

After all, a championship is a very special thing…

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