Category Archives: Football

Just before kickoff of the first Tennessee-Florida game as Eastern Division rivals in 1992 (after the old SEC rotation brought them on each other’s schedule in 1990 and 1991), one of my dad’s friends made a comment in our section about how the Gators would soon become Tennessee’s biggest rival. To my 10 year old brain, that was blasphemy – and it still sounds a little that way at 37 – but if we’d all known what was coming, we might’ve agreed.

The other answer to that question is a rivalry built on streaks. This one, turning 30 this week, has arguably carried a more potent brand of both agony and ecstasy. Alabama and Tennessee take turns being big brother. With the Gators, Tennessee has been little brother that wins just enough for us to want more.

Images from those wins are burned in our memories. Dale Carter to open the second half. Mose Phillips in the rain. No-sir-ree. Travis Stephens vs Guss Scott. James Banks and James Wilhoit. And Jauan Jennings gleefully coming down the sideline.

A question we asked a lot during the Butch Jones era was some form of, “Doesn’t Tennessee actually have the better team this year?” It’s the one we wanted to be true all those years in the 90’s, when losses could at least be chalked up to elite competition. As lesser Florida teams still found a way to turn the Vols into even lesser versions of themselves, the rivalry evolved into a new level of frustration. The Gators were, for a long time, the team standing between Tennessee and the top of the mountain. Most recently they’ve become the team that’s kept Tennessee from being “back”.

There’s a world of should’ve packed into this decade with the Gators. In the mid-90’s, Florida took hope away early. In the last seven years, they’ve stolen it late. In 2012 the Vols led 20-13 with five minutes left in the third quarter and lost (by 17). In 2014 the Vols led 9-0 on the next-to-last play of the third quarter when Justin Worley was blindsided. The Vols lost. In 2015 the Vols scored to take a 26-14 lead with 10 minutes left in The Swamp, chose not to go for two, and it all went very bad from there. And in 2017 the Vols had 1st-and-goal at the nine with a minute left, settled for three to tie, and you know how that ended too.

So it was almost nostalgic when Florida took Tennessee’s hope right away last season, a hyper-aggressive gameplan backfiring into six turnovers and Tennessee’s first ten drives ending in something other than a punt or a touchdown.

Tennessee doesn’t have the better team this year on paper. In 30 years of doing this, the Vols have been favored to beat Florida seven times (via Covers.com). And the Vols have beaten Florida seven times. Three times, Vegas got it right: the Vols rolled in that first meeting against Spurrier in 1990 from -4.5 to a 45-3 win. Tennessee was -3 in 2004 when James Wilhoit went from goat to hero. And three years ago, the Vols turned -4 into a 21-3 hole into 35 straight points.

Four times, the Vols have lost as a favorite: nightmarish first halves in the rain in 1996 and 2002 in Neyland, that nightmarish finish in 2012, and four years ago in The Swamp, the only time Tennessee has been favored in Gainesville (-1) since the rivalry was played annually.

(I’d rate that loss, by the way, as third-worst of my lifetime. 2001 LSU is the undisputed champion, and I hope stays there for the rest of my life. 1990 Alabama is number two. But I think everything about that 2015 loss – the series of horrendous coaching decisions in those last 10 minutes, the carryover fury from Oklahoma, and the fact that it cost the Vols the SEC East when other infamous losses cost Tennessee far less – it’s the worst of a very bad time these last 12 years.)

Four times, Tennessee pulled the upset. In the downpour in 1992 at +4.5 with a young Phillip Fulmer on the sideline. The eventual National Champions were +3 when Collins Cooper sailed wide. The last win in The Swamp in 2003 came with the Vols +3. And, of course, the +16.5 in December 2001 in what is still the best football game involving one of my teams I’ve ever seen.

This year, the Vols opened at +12.5. It quickly swelled to +14.5. Despite only beating the Gators seven times in 29 tries, +14.5 is the third biggest line the Vols have faced in this series, trailing the 16.5 they turned around in 2001, and the +30 they easily covered when everyone thought Urban Meyer might actually attempt murder on Lane Kiffin.

Unlike the current nature of the Alabama rivalry, where the Vols have faced lines of 29.5, 36.5, 28, and 29 in this decade, Florida is always right there within reach. It’s what makes it hurt more when the Vols fail to grab it. And it’s what makes us hope – even this year – that another Saturday we’ll remember forever might get added to our list.

As you’d expect against an FCS foe, the Vols’ national stat rankings improved quite a bit this week. Here’s a closer look.

Offense

Climbed out of the Bottom 30: Nothing was in the Bottom 30 last week

Climbed into the Top 30: Red zone offense, tackles for loss allowed

Fell to the Bottom 30: 4th down conversion percentage

Fell out of the Top 30: Nothing this week (because nothing was in the Top 30 last week!)

Nearly everything is better on offense, with the exception of the passing game.

Defense

Climbed out of the Bottom 30: Scoring defense, which went from 112th to 55th. Woo for shutouts against FCS opponents.

Climbed into the Top 30: Team passing efficiency defense, passing yards allowed, and red zone defense. Also, passes intercepted, when compared to the most recent ranking in 2018.

Fell to the Bottom 30: Nothing, although 3rd down conversion percentage defense remains there even with a slight improvement.

Fell out of the Top 30: Nothing, technically, although sacks fell dramatically from just out of the Top 30 all the way to 79th.

Most everything is improving, with the exception of sacks and tackles for loss. Third down is still a problem.

Special Teams

Special teams is currently the strength of the team by a long shot. The worst ranking here is No. 30, in kickoff returns. Net punting is one spot away from being the legit best in the nation.

Turnovers and Penalties

Five turnovers this week against the Mocs shook things up here, with turnovers gained teleporting straight from the cellar (No. 105) to the penthouse (No. 20), turnover margin going from No. 113 to No. 32, and the others seeing vast improvement. Regarding penalties, the number of them improved, but the actual penalty yards took a bit of a hit.

The Vols beat an FCS team 45-0 this past Saturday, which doesn’t really mean much with the SEC slate looming. But they beat an FCS team 45-0 this past Saturday, which means they did what they were supposed to do.

The first two weeks of the season, the Vols didn’t do what they were supposed to do, so living up to expectations is an improvement. Does it mean we can circle back to the preseason expectations we had for this team for the remaining games of the season? Probably not. Not yet, anyway. But it does mean that we can probably adjust them upward just a wee bit from where they were last week.

We learned more about some of the Vols’ future opponents this weekend, too. Alabama and Georgia were about what we expected. Kentucky and South Carolina perhaps better than expected. And Florida and Mississippi State look perhaps a little less intimidating today than they did this time last week.

Bottom line, I’m adjusting my expectations for the Vols upward just a bit, and I’m shuffling and readjusting some of the remaining opponents.

With those adjustments, I now have an expected win total of . . . 3.65. Woo. A good showing against the Gators will do wonders for these numbers.

• Preseason: 6.55
• After Week 0: 6.6
• After Week 1: 2.87
• After Week 2: 2.37
• After Week 3: 3.65

Details: I have Alabama and Georgia at 5%. In my second tier, I have Florida and South Carolina both at 25%, and in my third tier, I have both Kentucky and Missouri at 30%. Mississippi State and Vanderbilt are inching toward tossups, but aren’t there yet, as I have them both at 40%. I have UAB at 65%.

The GRT Expected Win Total Machine

Here’s a table with my expectations this week:

Tennessee Volunteers currently

Current record: 1-2 (0-0), 3rd in the SEC East

The Vols’ past opponents

Georgia State Panthers

Current record: 2-1 (0-0), 1st in the Sun Belt East

So much for the “Maybe these guys are better than we think” talk.

BYU Cougars

Current record: 2-1 (0-0)

But wait, maybe these guys are, in fact, better than we thought. Beating a ranked team has to count for something, right?

Chattanooga Mocs

Current record: 1-2 (0-0), 4th in the Southern Conference

The Vols’ future opponents

Florida Gators

Current record: 3-0 (1-0), 1st in the SEC East

Kentucky had this game won, at least twice. They looked like the better team most of the game until they lost the lead late. And then they still had a chance to hit the go-ahead field goal with about a minute remaining. This was in character for Kentucky and in character for Florida, which I hate to say because if we see an in-character game between Tennessee and Florida this weekend, we’re in for another new and novel heartbreak. The Vols need to break character.

Also, Gators quarterback Feleipe Franks left the game on a cart with an air cast and is expected to miss the rest of the season. But it was backup QB Kyle Trask who won that game for Florida. We might have preferred to see Franks.

Bottom line, Kentucky looks better than I thought, but Florida looks worse than I thought.

Georgia Bulldogs

Current record: 3-0 (1-0), 1st in the SEC East

Ho-hum. Nothing to see here.

Mississippi State Bulldogs

Current record: 2-1 (0-0), 3rd in the SEC West

The video recap of this one suggests that Mississippi State is dangerous, both to others and to itself. They pulled their starting quarterback after a couple of picks and gave up a 100-yard kickoff return right after finally getting a go-ahead touchdown. Chalk this one up more to mistakes than overall aptitude.

Alabama Crimson Tide

Current record: 3-0 (1-0), 1st in the SEC West

Forget the final score here for a second. The Gamecocks made this look like a real contest for much of the game, sometimes looking like world-beaters themselves and sometimes making Alabama look vulnerable. Yeah, Bama ultimately did what Bama ultimately does, so there’s not much change in attitude about them, but South Carolina looks better than I thought they would, especially after losing Jake Bentley.

South Carolina Gamecocks

Current record: 1-2 (0-1), 5th in the SEC East

See above.

UAB Blazers

Current record: 2-0 (0-0), 1st in C-USA West

Off this week.

Kentucky Wildcats

Current record: 2-1 (0-1), 5th in the SEC East

See the bit on Florida above. The Kentucky-Florida game was much closer than the score suggested. The Wildcats really should have won and looked like the better team most of the night. Something clicked off when Kyle Trask took over for Florida.

Missouri Tigers

Current record: 2-1 (0-0), 3rd in the SEC East

Rushing touchdown. Receiving touchdown. Both a punt return and a kickoff for a touchdown. Defense pitched a shutout. Fine day, even considering the opposition.

Vanderbilt Commodores

Current record: 0-2 (0-1), 5th in the SEC East

The Commodores were off this week.

What about you? Where are your expectations for the Vols now?

Looking to give the system a hard reboot, Tennessee quarterback Jarrett Guarantano dropped back, wound up, and launched a deep ball to one of his most trusted receivers.

It should have been intercepted.

An ominous start against an inferior opponent, to say the least.

Forget the fact that Ty Chandler opened the game with an impressive 58-yard kickoff return. We Vols fans have seen too many happy moments immediately swallowed by malevolent forces not to be vulnerable to the oh noes. So, that near-pick on the first play from scrimmage made you grimace and brace for another day of new and novel disappointment.

But it was thankfully short-lived because immediately after that, the machine finally came to life. Tim Jordan ran for 9 yards, Eric Gray for another 8, and then Jordan for another 4. Then Chandler got another first down on a 7-yard run and hit the checkerboards on the next play with a 13-yard dash to the end zone. Five plays, all on the ground, for a 41-yard touchdown drive aided by Chandler’s kickoff return to set up the short field position.

With the exception of an early live-fire experiment for backup quarterback Brian Maurer in the third possession, the Vols offense scored on every drive until the third quarter was nearly over, and with Tennessee leading 45-0 by that time, the game was over as well.

Meanwhile, the defense not only pitched a shutout, it went on a turnover binge. Nigel Warrior returned an interception 22 yards on Chattanooga’s first offensive possession. After forcing a three-and-out on the second, the Vols defense let the Mocs drive down to within sniffing distance of the end zone but recovered a fumble to end that threat. The defense got off the field early after another three-and-out on another possession and then ended the next one with the first of two interceptions by Jeremy Banks.

By the end of the day, the Tennessee defense held Chattanooga to 227 total yards and caused five turnovers despite playing half the game with its second- and third-string. The Vols offense ran for 195 yards and threw for 165 and protected the ball the entire game. And the special teams even got into the action, blocking a punt and returning it for a touchdown.

Guarantano went 7-8 for 142 yards and 3 touchdowns in his short day. Six different running backs put up more than 10 yards, Chandler leading the way with 46. And eight different guys caught passes with three of them — Jauan Jennings, Marquez Callaway, and Cedric Tillman — getting in the end zone.

All of this, of course, was accomplished against an outmatched team from an entirely different league. But we don’t have to go too far back in the archives to find disappointing results against inferior opponents, so it was good to hear the machine hum again.

It’s not like we weren’t all wondering if it was all a pile of rubble already, especially after Guarantano’s first pass looked more like the last two weeks than how he looked last year.

But the awful beginning gave way to finally seeing what we actually expected.

Who know? Perhaps the season itself can follow the same script.

It’s Gameday on Rocky Top, with the Vols looking to forget the last two weeks and reboot the season right here and right now. Here’s the Gameday Gameplan for Vols fans. Where and when to find the Vols game on TV, what other games to watch today as well, and what to listen to and read as you wait for kickoff.

When is the Vols game, and what TV channel is it on?

Here are the particulars for today’s Tennessee game:

• Kickoff: 12:00
• TV: SECN
• Official video streaming: Watch ESPN
• Official audio streaming: Vol Network
• Live stats

The best other games for Vols fans to watch today

Here’s our list of games to watch today, curated just for Vols fans:

And here’s a searchable version of the entire college football TV schedule for this week:

GRT games and contests

While you’re waiting for the games to begin, make sure that you submit your answers to the GRT Guessing Game questions and update your picks for the GRT Pick ‘Em.

GRT game-week audio

The podcasts this week were preempted by Zofran, Pepto Bismal, and Sprite, but you can find Will’s regular Friday appearance with Josh Ward and Heather Harrington on WNML’s Sports 180 here.

Pre-game prep

To catch up on your pre-game reading, have a look at our game preview posts from earlier this week:

• Progress, Competitiveness, and Investment
• What the SPM comps say about Tennessee-Chattanooga
• Video: Post-GYU, Pre-Chatt pressers, interviews, and more
• What Do We Make of Pruitt and Fourth Down?
• Tennessee Vols statistical ranking trends – after BYU
• What is the GRT Expected Win Total Machine telling you after BYU?
• Embrace/Refrain

Go Vols!

Two weeks ago today, we talked about how progress was the expectation, and how much would be the fun part. More important than the difference between 6-6 and 7-5 would be how the team performed play-for-play a year after losing six games by four-plus possessions. Preseason projections from SP+ had the Vols within two possessions of every opponent except Alabama; FPI had the Vols within one possession of every opponent except the Tide.

The last two weeks have changed the conversation considerably. Even if the Vols fought their way back to 5-7 – which feels like an accomplishment from here, as our expected win totals this week are hovering around 3.45 – there is, of course, an actual difference between 5-7 and 6-6. Coming that close to bowl eligibility at the end of November would make us re-live the pain of the BYU loss.

Progress may be best measured now not in the distance to the top, but the distance from the bottom. That being the case, there’s an even more compelling argument to focus on what this team does on every snap…because there is still plenty of opportunity to be far more competitive this season.

In that department, you’re going to want to believe in FPI more than SP+. Tennessee’s projected margin of victory after this week:

	SP+	FPI
at Florida	-21.6	-14.8
Georgia	-23.4	-14.7
Mississippi St	-11.8	-6
at Alabama	Shut your eyes!	Don’t look at it!
South Carolina	-5	-4.9
UAB	18.6	20.1
at Kentucky	-7.6	-6.2
at Missouri	-14.7	-8.6
Vanderbilt	6.9	7.8

Both models have the Vols favored only against UAB and Vanderbilt after this Saturday, where Tennessee’s line is about where it opened against Georgia State. FPI’s current projection has in part become SP+’s preseason projection: two-score losses to Florida and Georgia, a third squeaking by with Missouri at -8.6, but generally competitive in every other non-Alabama game.

Obviously, a 4-8 season isn’t going to be viewed as an overall success. It’s hard to re-calibrate expectations after a huge upset; it would’ve been interesting to see how the 2016 Vols were received if they beat Vanderbilt to earn a Sugar Bowl bid at 9-3, but still gave away the SEC East after losing to the Gamecocks at -14.5.

Still, week to week what this team (and its fans) need is the idea that Tennessee can compete. We’ll learn a lot about that against Florida. With a win against Chattanooga, the Vols can technically still carry the bowl eligibility conversation to the South Carolina game, with any win before then incredibly helpful. Between now and then, if the Vols can be relatively competitive with Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi State, it will not only be an important sign of progress, it will keep more fans in Neyland Stadium and invested wherever we find ourselves.

The last two weeks are a great reminder that we never know exactly what’s going to happen week to week. It’s a really tough road to six wins now. But the kind of progress that keeps people invested is still available. We’ll see what signs of life show up against Chattanooga.

The SPM finished Week 2 at a disappointing 21-24 (46.67%) on all games. Above what is usually a magic confidence level, it went 10-14 (41.67%) and within the usual magic confidence range, it still lost at 3-4 (42.86%). The tweak last week was pulling out all of the games involving FCS opponents. This week, we’ll be putting those back in but monitoring them separately. I still suspect they’re mostly junk or luck.

For the season so far, the SPM is 49-51 (49%) overall, 30-27 (52.63%) over the confidence threshold, and 16-8 (66.67%) within the confidence range.

Although it wasn’t at all confident about the game, the SPM did (barely) win the Tennessee-BYU game, saying the Vols wouldn’t cover the three-point spread. With the Big Orange hosting FCS Chattanooga this week, I’m pressing the button with the full intent of disregarding everything it spits out, but let’s take a look to see what it says.

Tennessee vs. Chattanooga

Yep. The Mocs haven’t played a game against an FBS opponent yet this year, and the only one they played last year was against South Carolina. That means that there’s only one good comp and that it’s a bit stale to boot. With the SPM pitching a fit about insufficient information, I’m going to look both at its results and my own analysis of that game in more detail manually.

In the Chattanooga-South Carolina game last year, the Mocs ran for 78 yards, threw for 256 yards, and scored 9 points. They gave up 238 yards rushing, 364 yards passing, and 49 points to the Gamecocks.

South Carolina’s run, pass, and scoring offense last year were 152.8, 272.8, and 30.1, so against the FCS Mocs they basically got 90 yards more than their average both on the ground and through the air, plus an additional 19 points.

The Gamecocks’ run, pass, and scoring defense last year were 195.3, 229, and 27.2, which means they held the FCS Mocs to less than half of what they usually give up on the ground but actually gave up more passing yardage than they did on average against their entire season-slate. They did hold Chattanooga to one-third of the points they usually gave up last season.

How does 2018 Tennessee compare to 2018 South Carolina? The Vols’ run, pass, and scoring offense last year were 129.1, 196.4, and 22.8. So, not nearly as good on the ground, a little less potent through the air, and about 5 points behind on the scoreboard, compared to the Gamecocks.

On the defensive side, the Vols’ run, pass, and scoring defense last year were 154.5, 222.9, and 27.9. That’s basically the same as the 2018 Gamecocks, but better stopping the run.

SPM Final Estimates

SPM Final estimated score: Tennessee 59.8, Chattanooga 9

SPM Final estimated spread: Tennessee -50.8

SPM Confidence level: 22.8

Eyeball adjustments

As I said before, much of the actual SPM output for this week is suspect because there’s only one stale comp. It also still includes an assumed improvement for Tennessee in 2019 over 2018, an assumption that at present appears to be incorrect.

Accounting for all of that, here are my best eyeball-adjusted estimates for Tennessee-Chattanooga:

• Rushing Yards: Mocs 70, Vols 200
• Passing Yards: Mocs 250, Vols 320
• Points: Mocs 9, Vols 45

Other predictions from other systems

The Vegas line is between Tennessee -24 and Tennessee -28 with an over/under of 51.5. That basically translates to something like Tennessee 40, Chattanooga 12.

Bill Connelly’s SP+ likes Tennessee 40-11 and gives the Vols a 95% chance of winning. Connelly was 59% overall in Week 1 and 54% in Week 2. I’m not sure how this adds up (must be missing something), but a recent tweet says that for the season he’s 50% overall and 63% in his confidence zone.

As I said above, the season results for our SPM are 49% overall, 52.63% over our confidence threshold, and 66.67% within our confidence range.

ESPN’s FPI gives the Vols a 97.7% chance of winning.

Bottom line

Will the Vols cover -28 this weekend? I think the SPM is too high, but I still say yes.

What are y’all thinking?

It’s only the third week of the 2019 college football season, and the Vols ease out of unconsciousness at the bottom of a hole wondering how they got there. But before they can climb out, they first must take care of Chattanooga, who must be wondering whether they can make magic against an unsteady and rattled Tennessee team.

Here’s when and where to find the games that matter to Vols fans this week, along with some suggestions on how and why to watch them. First up is the list curated just for Vols fans. The full schedule follows that.

Friday, September 13, 2019

Hey, if you’re just hanging out wondering what to do on Friday, there’s stuff to watch. Catch former Vols coordinator Dave Clawson — the original Pants! — plus Les Miles back on the field and the almost-hired Mike Leach. Woo?

Gameday, September 14, 2019

The Vols kick off at noon against Chattanooga on the SEC Network. Meanwhile, future Vols opponents Georgia and Mississippi State are in games they should win, but if you want a look at them, DVR the games and watch them later.

The CBS SEC Game of the Week is Alabama against South Carolina, two future Vols opponents, although it could get out of hand in a hurry. Other games of interest to Vols fans in that time slot are USC-BYU and a midwest rivalry game between the Hawkeyes and the Cyclones.

In the evening, it’s Tennessee’s next opponent — Florida — against another future opponent in Kentucky. This is where we really start to see the SEC East race take shape. Root for chaos and the ‘Cats. If there’s nothing of the sort on tap, there are other games to channel-hop as you wind down your day.

Enjoy!

Full searchable college football TV schedule

In a sea of sound bites this week, I thought this one was interesting:

#Vols coach Jeremy Pruitt on his aggressive fourth-down mindset: I’m trying to instill a mindset in these guys that Tennessee goes out there to win games. We want to attack. We want to make you uncomfortable.

— Wes Rucker (@wesrucker247) September 9, 2019

We’ve talked a lot about Pruitt’s nature as it relates to the offense, especially because the Vols ran fewer plays than any team in college football last season. Does he naturally lack aggression? Was he trying to protect a vulnerable defense? And we wondered last week, before Jarrett Guarantano struggled so mightily against BYU, if Pruitt could adapt that kind of philosophy and green light an offense that scored a bunch of points if the defense truly couldn’t stop anyone.

There are fewer questions about the defense and more about the offense after the loss to BYU. But Pruitt’s response about fourth down was noteworthy, especially because the numbers already show a significant change in that department.

The Vols have gone for it five times, which is tied for 14th-most in college football (stats via SportSource Analytics). Your eyes immediately jump to the fact that Tennessee is just 1-for-5 on those conversions, and rightfully so. But big picture, I think five tries in two games is more significant…especially because Tennessee only went for it on fourth down 11 times last year.

That ranked 126th in college football; among teams that missed a bowl game, only Maryland had fewer attempts last season. In 2018 Tennessee came out of this particular gate fast: 2-of-3 on fourth down against West Virginia, successful conversions against ETSU and UTEP, and an 0-for-2 as part of a hyper-aggressive gameplan against the Gators. The Vols also went 0-for-2 against South Carolina on their final two drives…then didn’t try it again the rest of the year.

We saw a conservative nature on fourth down for the entire Butch Jones tenure:

Year	4th Down Att	Rank	Per Game
2019	5	14	2.5
2018	11	126	0.92
2017	10	124	0.83
2016	9	126	0.69
2015	17	84	1.31
2014	12	115	0.92
2013	11	114	0.92
2012	19	65	1.58
2011	28	10	2.33
2010	17	61	1.31
2009	24	13	1.85

The last consistently aggressive coach on fourth down was Lane Kiffin, who tried one in every game except the blowout win over Georgia. It doesn’t always work: the Vols were denied twice in a frustrating loss to UCLA. And when it does, it doesn’t guarantee victory: the Vols went 5-for-5 combined in narrow losses to Auburn and Alabama. But the willingness to go is something we never saw with Jones, and only saw as a reaction to Dooley’s least competitive team with an injury-riddled offense in 2011. Seventeen of those 28 attempts that season came in games featuring Matt Simms or Justin Worley at quarterback.

I like Pruitt’s quote, and I like the idea. Football coaches find forgiveness much faster for sins of aggression than the other way around. Had the Vols trotted out Cimaglia (and he continued to be automatic) on 4th-and-1 at the BYU 30 with 4:15 to go instead of trying Josh Palmer on the end around, Tennessee leads 19-13 and now BYU needs two hail maries instead of one.

And I’ve heard zero people make that point.

Call it confidence or aggression, but it tends to be rewarded over time. We’re especially appreciative of it after the previous administration courted close games every year. I’m hopeful Pruitt continues down this path, especially because it would represent doing something different. It’s one thing to say you’re learning, it’s another to demonstrate it.

You also can’t be aggressive for the sake of being aggressive. The Vols still struggle to run the ball in short yardage situations after being last by a mile in that stat last season. In two games, when running on 3rd-and-1-3 and 4th down, the Vols have nine carries for 24 yards. The 2.67 average is better. But those nine carries have still only produced five first downs. The Vols can be both smart and aggressive in their play-calling; again, that’s why I don’t hate the end-around, because at least it wasn’t another stuffed attempt into the center of the pile.

The larger issue everyone is invested in is building the mindset Pruitt references. Coach like you believe in your players, and it’s easier for them to believe in themselves. Belief is hard to come by after two games in Knoxville. But in the big picture, the fourth down mindset represents a hopeful shift in Pruitt’s philosophy, and will hopefully lead to a young team and a young coach continuing to grow in the right direction.