It was kind of USC and UCLA, all things considered, to let their news loose on June 30. Nine weeks til kickoff, three weeks til SEC Media Days, baseball season moving into the rear view. It’s great content, thanks! So now, is there a great version of where all this […]
Football
Tennessee Volunteers football news, information, commentary, and analysis. Gameday on Rocky Top is a community of reasonable fanatics all sharing a passion for Tennessee athletics. Scores, game previews and recaps, and more, all often with a touch of humor.
The Good Old Days
And what you learn along the way is, these little moments are always available. Your team doesn’t have to win it all before they can do something meaningful, before we can enjoy them. Whenever I hear people asking if this – right now – is as good as it’s ever […]
Do you have to win at an elite level before you can recruit at one?
In the last 10 years, 20 different schools signed at least one Top 10 recruiting class (via the 247 Composite): 10x: Alabama 9: Georgia, Ohio State 8: LSU 6: Auburn, Clemson, Michigan, Texas, Texas A&M, USC 5: Notre Dame, Oklahoma 4: Florida, Florida State 2: Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, […]
Pass Distribution & New Wide Receivers
The addition of Bru McCoy this week raises the ceiling on our hypothetical offseason conversations. And it was already fairly high given what this offense did last season, even with Velus Jones and Javonta Payton now off to the NFL. There may be more on the way: Last season Cedric […]
Draft Picks, Recruiting Rankings, Wins, and The Future
We’re in this interesting place where matching our best regular season in 14 years is a baseline conversation for year two. That’s in part because Josh Heupel and his team did such a good job exceeding expectations in year one. So when we look back on “the wilderness”, it’s with […]
First Impressions of 2022 Expectations
In 2022, how would we feel about 8-4? In the last 14 years, it’s a number the Vols hit only twice. Tennessee went 8-4 in 2015 and 2016 under Butch Jones. Both of those seasons came with mixed feelings, an 11-game winning streak bookended by disappointing outcomes to open 2015 […]
2022 Expected Win Total Machine
Spring practice is over, opening night is two days closer, and it’s a good time to break out the expected win total machine. Tennessee’s number one ranking in baseball will help these next 136 days from here to Ball State pass more quickly. But after spring practice is still a […]
Grading Year One Coaches with SP+
There were 18 coaching changes on the FBS level heading into the 2021 season; that number jumped to 29 on the carousel’s latest round this winter. Timing – not often Tennessee’s friend these last 15 years – is definitely on our side in this regard. Last year, the Vols rode […]
How much difference will more depth make?
Here’s one thing it feels like is happening to Tennessee more often than it actually is: the Vols get to third-and-short, go fast, and get stopped because defenses know what’s coming. Even in Josh Heupel’s fast-paced offense, no two games are exactly alike. It feels like the Vols do that […]
Forward Progress is Beating Forward Progress
Tennessee played four one-possession games this year. They went 1-3 in them against teams that are currently 11-2, 10-2, 9-3, and 9-4. In the three losses, specific calls that should’ve/could’ve gone the other way stand out: Against Pittsburgh, a horrendous spot to leave the ball short after a third down […]