Toughest Schedules for 2013

Matt0424

All-American
Jan 16, 2010
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Just read a nice article on ESPN discussing the toughest schedules in each Conference this year. I came away feeling bad for what pile of mess Butch Jones stepped in a Tennessee. In the first 8 games they play 5 teams who will, presumably, be per season top 10. The first four SEC games come against Florida, Georgia, USCe, and Alabama. Plus they have an ooc game against Oregon. Throw in playing a WKU team who returns good talent, and adds Bobby Patrino as HC and they could easily be 2-6 over their first 8 games...

Anyone seen a tougher schedule?

Thoughts?
 

theballguy

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Nov 5, 2012
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Just read a nice article on ESPN discussing the toughest schedules in each Conference this year. I came away feeling bad for what pile of mess Butch Jones stepped in a Tennessee. In the first 8 games they play 5 teams who will, presumably, be per season top 10. The first four SEC games come against Florida, Georgia, USCe, and Alabama. Plus they have an ooc game against Oregon. Throw in playing a WKU team who returns good talent, and adds Bobby Patrino as HC and they could easily be 2-6 over their first 8 games...

Anyone seen a tougher schedule?

Thoughts?
Hahah I don't feel sorry for them. They got themselves into this mess. You get what you get.
 

uafan4life

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All I know is that I'm definitely not complaining about our schedule this year! :biggrin2: We've had some tough ones in the past - remember 2010, anyone? - but you couldn't plan a better schedule for a BCS CG run for us than the one we have this year.
 

ALA2262

All-American
Aug 4, 2007
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Perhaps they are about to experience a couple of "firsts". They are the only current 1A school that has never lost more than 7 games in a season. Also, they have never had four consecutive losing seasons. A 4-8 would take care of both of those.
 

Alasippi

Suspended
Aug 31, 2007
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All I know is that I'm definitely not complaining about our schedule this year! :biggrin2: We've had some tough ones in the past - remember 2010, anyone? - but you couldn't plan a better schedule for a BCS CG run for us than the one we have this year.
At A@M in game two is going to be extremely difficult but it beats playing them the week after LSU.
 

uafan4life

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At A@M in game two is going to be extremely difficult but it beats playing them the week after LSU.
It's early in the season after they'll have only played two complete pansies - that won't test the new team chemistry, especially the O-Line - with us having two weeks to prepare. The only better scenario would be not having to play them, which isn't possible. :)
 

BAMA1979

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Nov 15, 2006
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Don't feel sorry for them. They've had a frontloaded schedule for years. Did you happen to take a look at the last five weeks of their schedule?

at Missouri
Auburn
Off
Vanderbilt
at Kentucky

They also get to play Austin Peay, Western Kentucky, and South Alabama.
 

Go Bama

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Dec 6, 2009
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16outa17essee
Just read a nice article on ESPN discussing the toughest schedules in each Conference this year. I came away feeling bad for what pile of mess Butch Jones stepped in a Tennessee. In the first 8 games they play 5 teams who will, presumably, be per season top 10. The first four SEC games come against Florida, Georgia, USCe, and Alabama. Plus they have an ooc game against Oregon. Throw in playing a WKU team who returns good talent, and adds Bobby Patrino as HC and they could easily be 2-6 over their first 8 games...

Anyone seen a tougher schedule?

Thoughts?
Link?

The Vols may be buried. Tennessee is not a fertile recruiting ground. They used to get a lot of guys from South Carolina and those guys are staying home now. Vandy may be on the way to being consistently competitive. UT has to play USCe, Georgia, Florida, and Bama every year. It's going to be hard for the Vols to dig their way out of this hole created by Fat Phil and Little Laney. It seems to me the AD's at UT aren't willing to pay enough money for a top tier coach. Tickets are easy to come by in Knoxville.

It's funny, I live in west Tennessee and see almost as much Bama gear as I do UT. The Vols are now a closet nation. Most Vols fans have never heard of Butch Jones.

This is the biggest mess the UT football program has seen in my lifetime. I'm torn because I've always hated the Vols but I went to graduate school at UT. Tennessee is a great place to live. In an ideal world, Vandy becomes the premier program in Tennessee.
 

TIDE-HSV

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Oct 13, 1999
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Link?

The Vols may be buried. Tennessee is not a fertile recruiting ground. They used to get a lot of guys from South Carolina and those guys are staying home now. Vandy may be on the way to being consistently competitive. UT has to play USCe, Georgia, Florida, and Bama every year. It's going to be hard for the Vols to dig their way out of this hole created by Fat Phil and Little Laney. It seems to me the AD's at UT aren't willing to pay enough money for a top tier coach. Tickets are easy to come by in Knoxville.

It's funny, I live in west Tennessee and see almost as much Bama gear as I do UT. The Vols are now a closet nation. Most Vols fans have never heard of Butch Jones.

This is the biggest mess the UT football program has seen in my lifetime. I'm torn because I've always hated the Vols but I went to graduate school at UT. Tennessee is a great place to live. In an ideal world, Vandy becomes the premier program in Tennessee.
It's 160 miles further from Memphis to Knoxville than to Tuscaloosa and more than two hours more driving time. Memphis really the only area in TN which produces a large number of FBS prospects. These days, it's a bit of a surprise to see them retain somebody like Carr. In fact, it makes you a little suspicious that Adams is back out of retirement...
 

Go Bama

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It's 160 miles further from Memphis to Knoxville than to Tuscaloosa and more than two hours more driving time. Memphis really the only area in TN which produces a large number of FBS prospects. These days, it's a bit of a surprise to see them retain somebody like Carr. In fact, it makes you a little suspicious that Adams is back out of retirement...
A lot of Tennessee is closer to Tuscaloosa than Knoxville. I grew up in Fayetteville, TN. Most of white collar Fayetteville works in Huntsville. Still, Lincoln county bleeds orange as does most of Tennessee.

Arkansas, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, and Alabama are all geographically closer to west Tennessee than Knoxville is. Jackson, TN has good high school football.

It's always been a mystery to me why the Vols didn't recruit middle Tennessee heavier than what they do. The people there bleed orange. Murfreesboro, Franklin (Brentwood Academy), and Gallatin routinely have great high school football, but UT a lot of these guys wind up somewhere other than UT.
 

selmaborntidefan

TideFans Legend
Mar 31, 2000
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Tennessee has front-loaded their schedule for years. Furthermore, they are IMHO the best in the SEC at scheduling quality OOC games (LSU 2nd, us 3rd). That said - they're in a fix and I don't care.
 

BigEasyTider

FB | REC Moderator
Nov 27, 2007
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In terms of recruiting, Tennessee is a bit landlocked, so to speak, given developments beyond their control.

The State of Tennessee has never turned out a great deal of talent, and in recent decades Tennessee has always been heavily reliant on going into border states, which was not a major issue, given that the State of Tennessee borders nine other states. UT typically did well enough in-state, and then went into Alabama, Georgia, the Carolinas, and up into the Ohio River valley to get talent, and that strategy generally worked really well. Fulmer used it to perfection in his heyday.

The problem for Tennessee in recent years, however, has been the rise of programs in those surrounding border states. Alabama is at all-time high, Auburn has done really well the past 10-12 years, ditto for Georgia, Clemson recruiting has been strong, and South Carolina is also at an all-time high. Incidentally, the return-to-power of Ohio State this decade has locked up much of the Ohio River Valley, and several other programs have made significant in-roads into the mid-Atlantic region. Combined it all worked to really limit their recruiting base.

Look at it this way, kids like Tee Martin, Fred Weary, and Joey Kent (Alabama), Jamal Lewis (Georgia), Albert Haynesworth (South Carolina), and Peerless Price (Ohio), aren't saying no to the Mike Duboses, Terry Bowdens, Ray Goffs, and Brad Scotts of the college football world and signing with Tennessee anymore. They are saying no to the Vols and signing with Saban, Spurrier, Richt, Meyer, etc.

Again, events beyond their control have really limited their recruiting base, and it has hurt them significantly.
 

bamafaninOhiO

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May 11, 2010
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At A@M in game two is going to be extremely difficult but it beats playing them the week after LSU.
We're actually at TAMU in week three; we have a BYE in week two to prepare for them.
...They better be ready for us, because I believe that we'll be much more prepared for them this time around. They aren't going to suprise us again.

BTW: We have a BYE week before our two toughest games; TAMU and LSU....thats just perfect.
 
Last edited:

bamafaninOhiO

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May 11, 2010
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All I know is that I'm definitely not complaining about our schedule this year! :biggrin2: We've had some tough ones in the past - remember 2010, anyone? - but you couldn't plan a better schedule for a BCS CG run for us than the one we have this year.

I love it! Our schedule couldn't have been any better if I drew it up myself.
 

rja4bama

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Feb 12, 2004
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A lot of Tennessee is closer to Tuscaloosa than Knoxville. I grew up in Fayetteville, TN. Most of white collar Fayetteville works in Huntsville. Still, Lincoln county bleeds orange as does most of Tennessee.

Arkansas, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, and Alabama are all geographically closer to west Tennessee than Knoxville is. Jackson, TN has good high school football.

It's always been a mystery to me why the Vols didn't recruit middle Tennessee heavier than what they do. The people there bleed orange. Murfreesboro, Franklin (Brentwood Academy), and Gallatin routinely have great high school football, but UT a lot of these guys wind up somewhere other than UT.
Go Bama I've lived in Fayetteville now for about 22 years and there are a lot more
Bama fans now than it use to be. I teach here at the high school and you see lots
of Bama gear. Maybe it's just the trendy thing to do after 3 out of the last 4.
 

bonehouse81

All-SEC
Jun 30, 2006
1,206
0
0
Clarksville, TN
In terms of recruiting, Tennessee is a bit landlocked, so to speak, given developments beyond their control.

The State of Tennessee has never turned out a great deal of talent, and in recent decades Tennessee has always been heavily reliant on going into border states, which was not a major issue, given that the State of Tennessee borders nine other states. UT typically did well enough in-state, and then went into Alabama, Georgia, the Carolinas, and up into the Ohio River valley to get talent, and that strategy generally worked really well. Fulmer used it to perfection in his heyday.

The problem for Tennessee in recent years, however, has been the rise of programs in those surrounding border states. Alabama is at all-time high, Auburn has done really well the past 10-12 years, ditto for Georgia, Clemson recruiting has been strong, and South Carolina is also at an all-time high. Incidentally, the return-to-power of Ohio State this decade has locked up much of the Ohio River Valley, and several other programs have made significant in-roads into the mid-Atlantic region. Combined it all worked to really limit their recruiting base.

Look at it this way, kids like Tee Martin, Fred Weary, and Joey Kent (Alabama), Jamal Lewis (Georgia), Albert Haynesworth (South Carolina), and Peerless Price (Ohio), aren't saying no to the Mike Duboses, Terry Bowdens, Ray Goffs, and Brad Scotts of the college football world and signing with Tennessee anymore. They are saying no to the Vols and signing with Saban, Spurrier, Richt, Meyer, etc.

Again, events beyond their control have really limited their recruiting base, and it has hurt them significantly.
Because the button just isn't enough: As a longtime UT hater, I "like" this post.
 

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