Well he has done a good job so far. If he fails to make it to a bowl game this year, he may find himself in the same position in 2015 that Muschamp is in right now.
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SEC Media Days Open Thread: Day Two
- Thread starter BigEasyTider
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I've told people this as well. There was the stretch which you speak of where Florida's roster, talent wise, compared to other SEC teams, was probably way more dominant than Bama's is perceived to be now--Yet that didn't translate into national titles.
Had Coach Saban coached those teams I can almost guarantee you they'd have won more than one.
I'm not sure. They had another losing season last year and this year doesn't look like it's going to be too much better. I "hear" he's recruiting pretty good but until they put a competitive product back on the field I'm thinking the seven year streak could reach 10 pretty quick.
It'll take at least three years... Sorry I couldn't resist.
I do think Jones is doing a decent job and from the UT fans I know he is going to get some time they understand how much of a trainwreck their program is. They almost beat UGA and did beat SC last year so their is room for optimism. He seems to be recruiting at a high level as well. However, next year they are simply replacing too much on the OL and the DL to be competitive with most people.
I'm sure he'll get them better but I'm still not sure if he can ever bring them back to what they were in their prime with Fulmer. Tennessee has an up hill battle to get back to championship level. Getting back to respectable level shouldn't be that hard. But getting back to championship level in today's SEC is going to be awfully tough.
They came close to taking down UGA and obviously beat South Carolina in a big upset -- though I think that probably says as much, if not more, about those two teams than it does UT -- but aside from that he had a really ugly debut campaign. Absolutely annihilated by Alabama, Oregon, Auburn, and Mizzou, got kicked around by the worst Florida team in nearly 35 years, lost to Vandy in Knoxville, and narrowly avoided an ugly embarrassment against South Alabama. Didn't exactly progress throughout the year, either. Started off poorly, randomly had two good showings, and then went right back into the tank in the final month.
Perhaps this year will be better, but I tend to think he'll be hard-pressed to change the general end result in the win-loss column. Maybe he can start to shave off the margin of defeat in some of those tougher games, but even that is not a given with OU and Alabama on the schedule. At this point, I think they're basically hoping that the rest of the SEC East will struggle and come back to them a bit.
I'll give him some credit for improving recruiting -- though I'm not sure he's exactly selling most of those kids on what you want them to be sold on when they sign with you -- but he's got a tough job right now, a long way to go, and frankly no guarantee of success. If this year goes for UT like a lot of people expect, Jones' job will be on the line next season.
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If he can get passed this year with a respectable record and continue to recruit effectively, then he could bring them back. I think he is a better coach than the Phat man. He's energetic, focused, and really appears to be heading them in the right direction. He's not wasting his time eating donut holes, etc.
However, they could start out 1-5 this year. It depends on how good Utah State is and how good Arkansas State is. That "1" would be Chattanooga. To be better than 1-5, he's going to need some OL and DL to grow up quickly. He will have them properly motivated.
I do respect him as a coach. I had NO respect for the Phat one! He could bring our game back to the traditional rivalry that it used to be.
If he really wants to win he will let his team wear that Gray uniform instead of that awful Orange color. If I were an outstanding recruit I would not want to wear that awful color!
Playing time. That is what he is probably selling them. Other than that they replace Oregon with Oklahoma who will be just as motivated to win two in a row over SEC teams. It really won't be any easier for them this year. If anything it will only be harder with them replacing their entire offensive and defensive line.
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Well, it's not even that (although that is a huge deal, obviously), it's that those two units were really the strength of that team, particularly the OL. I don't care where the attrition occurs, any time a team has to replace its core strengths, that's a very big challenge, particularly for a team that is generally so bereft across the board like Tennessee.
It will be interesting to see how some of these new highly touted recruits they have pan out this year.
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UT has a steep, STEEP mountain to climb replacing all those interior lineman. Then they have to decide on a QB. WOW!
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