Gameday Today: High praise for Pruitt, and players adore The Papa

Time to light this fire

For any still wary of getting too excited about Tennessee football under Jeremy Pruitt, we have two things that should help this morning.

First, Albert Haynesworth says that the worst is over, and if you disagree with Albert Haynesworth, you will most certainly die a sudden, painful, and humiliating death. It’s the law in Tennessee. Seriously though, go read Haynesworth’s Players Tribune post. It will make you feel better, and the line about Haynesworth’s mother may even make you laugh.

Second, according to Gridiron Now, some anonymous SEC coach has a nose tackle-sized mancrush on Jeremy Pruitt, saying that Pruitt’s better at defense than both Kirby Smart and Nick Saban. If you haven’t noticed, Nick Saban is pretty good at defense, so that’s a doozy of a compliment.

Said unnamed source also said this:

“Tennessee will play better defense with whoever they have (now) than they’ve played in the last 10 years,” he said. “The second year, I could see some real [FULMERIZED] happening at Tennessee.”

Well that sounds fun. Let’s do it.

Everybody Loves The Papa

Speaking of The Papa, make some time to listen to this entire interview with Phillip Fulmer on the Erik Ainge Show two days ago:

And I haven’t yet listened to his interview on the Swain Event this morning, but here it is:


One thing that really sticks out when you listen is just how much The Papa’s former players absolutely adore him (it’s evident just from Swain’s introduction). And it’s that that makes you a believer when Fulmer says that one of his main priorities is restoring trust, warmth, and a culture of caring about each other to Tennessee athletics.

Hoops

The Vols beat Vandy last night, 67-62, in a Woo! Wait! Whew! game. If you’re wondering what makes these guys tick, Will has figured it out.

If you missed it, here’s a video recap of the game, along with a bunch of post-game interviews:

Grant Williams is shouldering the blame for letting Vandy back into the game last night, as he was matched up against Riley LaChance at the time the dude caught fire.

Also, Jordan Bowden is feeling much better, thank you, after awakening himself from his mini-slump, and is going to keep shooting. This is a good thing for a shooting guard to say.

Football Recruiting

National Signing Day is a mere two weeks away, and the Vols currently have the nation’s No. 17 class. If you’re wondering who to keep an eye on, here’s a list of 18 guys we think are priorities for coach Pruitt and his staff.

SEC Country takes a closer look at the defensive tackle prospects here, and 247Sports notes that Pruitt and two assistants visited 3-star cornerback Eddie Smith last night. Tennessee appears to be a slight favorite to land him.

The News Sentinel has an article on the importance of the right coaching staff footprint ($$$) that’s worth reading as well. Based on where the guys on Tennessee’s staff have gained most of their experience, expect the Vols to be major players in the key states of Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and Mississippi.

Other fun stuff

Woo for Tennessee’s Pro Bowlers:


And finally, Monday Night Football is desperately seeking a student of the game with personality named Peyton Manning to take over for Jon Gruden.

Is Tennessee Consolidating Its Board with Two Weeks To Go?

When new Coach Jeremy Pruitt and his new blockbuster recruiting staff first took over, they threw a whole lot of offers out and cast an incredibly wide net.  Taking advantage of existing relationships across not just the South but also as far as California, Tennessee hasn’t been afraid to go to head with programs like Alabama and USC and other blue bloods or be told no by elite players with whom they are simply too late.  Pruitt created a large board from which to work from and signed a very highly regarded early signing class, especially when one considers he had less than two weeks to work.
At the same time, as we enter the stretch run to National Signing Day, it looks like we’ve seen them move on from a good number of guys they initially showed interest in:
S Nikko Hall
DL Caleb Okechukwu
DB Rayshad Willliams
WR Brandon Aiyuk
CB Richard McCreary
RB Mo Washington
RB Tavion Thomas
RB C’Bo Flemister*
DL Emmit Gooden **
* This one is less clear, but there is no doubt that Tennessee has slow played him to a degree while Notre Dame is showing him much more love –  I wouldn’t be shocked to see him commit to the Irish weekend
**Gooden continues to have academic questions surrounding him, and with the limited spots available I don’t think the staff can afford to take him despite its relatively recent offer
In contrast,with only 5-6 spots scholarships to give, the staff has made it clear by its actions – in-home visits and scheduled official visits – that the following 18 are high priorities (some more than others, of course):
WR Jacob Copeland
WR Geordon Porter
WR Antoine Green and his cousin, RB Jashaun Corbin
WR Tre’shaun Harrison
WR Warren Thompson
OL Dylan Wonnum
OL Ryan Winkel
TE Glenn Beal
DL Coynis Miller
DL Malik Langham
DL John Mincey
DL Otito Ogbonnia
LB Quay Walker
CB Olaijah Griffin
CB Eddie Smith
CB Isaac Taylor-Stewart
S Trevon Flowers
This list will continue to thin more and more the next two weeks as Tennessee gets a better feel for whom they have a realistic chance -for instance, it seems like they have little traction with WRs Thompson and Harrison – and others simply come off the board or others take their spot.  Ogbonnia and Flowers are two in particular who will be in Knoxville this weekend, and the staff will get a chance to size both of them up and at the same figure out where each fit into their plans and vice versa.  But the above is probably a good working list for the next two weeks, although this staff has proven they will continue to beat the bushes such that another player could jump onto the board.
Stay tuned, it’s going to be a wild ride…

Vols nearly coast into a ditch, but recover to beat Vandy, 67-62

Tennessee raced out to a huge early and sleepy 20-point lead before nearly coasting over the shoulder against Vanderbilt tonight. Fortunately, the rumble strip jarred them awake just in time to finally seal the deal, 67-62 over the Commodores.

It really wasn’t close at all for much of the game, as the Vols’ tenacious defense stifled Vandy and held them to a woeful 15 first half points. It was just more of the same to being the second, with Tennessee extending the lead to 41-21 with 14:28 left in the game.

Cue Riley LaChance.

After a teammate’s layup and a couple of free throws, Vandy’s LaChance found his three-point range. After going 0-3 from the arc in the first half, he hit 4-6 in the second, and scored 15 straight points for Vanderbilt over a three-minute stretch. At that point, Tennessee started sprinting at him when and wherever he had the ball, which opened up huge lanes leading directly to the basket and multiple opportunities for assists to open teammates. By the time the clock hit 7:06, the ‘Dores had cut the Vols lead from 20 to 4.

Cue the rumble strip.

Admiral Schofield shook everyone awake and hit two free throws, but then everyone on both teams went cold and clunky for a time. Vandy resorted to hack-a-Shaq on Grant Williams, and Williams mostly made them pay. Still, the lead was down to only two points with 1:19 left after a Jeff Roberson free throw.

Cue the woo. And the whew.

On the next possession, Schofield drove to the basket, drew a double team, and passed outside to Lamonte Turner, who hit a clutch three and extended the Vols lead to 63-58. LaChance missed a well-defended three-point attempt, and Schofield and Jordan Bowden raced to the other end for a layup and a 7-point lead. From there, the foul fest was on, and Tennessee eased into the garage safe and sound at 67-62.

Bowden silenced talk of any shooting slump and led the team with 19 points on 6-10 shooting (5-7 from three), and Williams was just behind him with 18. Other than that, it was a team effort, although you shouldn’t be surprised if Derrick Walker starts to see more minutes, as he’s becoming more and more reliable and effective near the basket.

The Vols move to 14-5 overall and 5-3 in the SEC. Next up is a trip to Iowa State on Saturday at 4 p.m. on ESPNU.

Go Vols.

 

 

 

 

The Best Predictors of Tennessee’s Success

Tennessee is capable of winning in so many different ways, it’s hard to create a formula for their success. Last year assists were the go-to stat: the only way the Vols were getting good offense was through good ball movement, and if that didn’t happen they didn’t defend well enough to make up the difference. Tennessee is still strong here (12th nationally in assist percentage, fourth among power conference teams), but that stat is less predictive of success this season: the Vols beat Purdue and South Carolina while assisting on less than half of their makes.

But that stat informs what has become Tennessee’s other leading indicator of success:  three-point shooting.

The Vols don’t rely on the three the way more and more teams are doing. Tennessee is 291st nationally in three-pointers attempted, averaging 20.4 per game. But the Vols are 55th nationally in percentage, hitting 38.3% from three on the year. Threes are a function of the offense, not the offense itself, and Tennessee hits a higher percentage largely because their ball movement generates good looks.

Of the five players who average at least two attempts per game, only Lamonte Turner shoots less than 37%. There’s been plenty of talk about Jordan Bowden shooting more (still at 51.7% on the year despite an 0-for-7 stretch last week), but Tennessee’s patience is one of the reasons he’s shooting so well to begin with. James Daniel (37.5%), Jordan Bone (40.5%), and Admiral Schofield (43.4%) are all reliable targets as well.

Good ball movement leads to more assists, especially when you’ve got such a productive option in the paint in Grant Williams. And more of those assists are coming because the Vols are getting and hitting open threes.

The two best predictors of Tennessee’s success, then:

  • The Vols are 9-0 when at least 64% of their made baskets come off an assist, 4-5 when they don’t.
  • The Vols are 10-1 when shooting at least 36.4% from three, 3-4 when they don’t.

And the one can cover the sins of the other. Two of Tennessee’s lowest assist percentage wins were at Vanderbilt (43.3%) and South Carolina (43.5%). But the Vols shot 53.8% from the arc in Nashville and 45.5% in Columbia. Likewise, the Vols shot just 29.4% from the arc against Texas A&M and 36.4% against Kentucky, but assisted on 64% of their made shots against the Aggies and a staggering 92% against the Wildcats.

And when all else fails, the Vols can still win with defense:  Tennessee was average in both against Purdue (39.1% from the arc, 48.3% assist percentage), but held the Boilermakers to 37.3% from the floor and got the win in overtime.

A dozen games remain in the regular season; there’s plenty of time for three-point shooting to go up or down. But this continues to be a well-coached team that gets shots they like, and knocks them down at a winning rate.

 

Gameday Today: Loving the Tennessee Chameleons, Saban copies Butch Jones, and more

Hoops

Coming off a big road win against South Carolina, Rick Barnes and his guys return home to host Vanderbilt tonight at 7 p.m. Vandy, of course, will be devoting a great deal of attention to Grant Williams, who went off for 37 points against the Commodores in Nashville earlier this season. Will Williams will himself to another scoring feast or will he merely divert the attention and free up space for another big night for Lamonte Turner or another teammate? Nobody knows, as this team’s identity this season may best be described as chameleony. Or maybe shapeshiftery. Tune in to ESPNU tonight at 7 p.m. to see what shape we become for this game.

Rick Barnes met with the press yesterday and said stuff that was caught on all manner of recording devices. Here he is caught in the act of talking about his team:

Notably: Defense. He likes defense. It apparently gives birth to offense or something like that.

And yes, it’s okay to start joking around and having fun and enjoying something again. The mourning period for the 2017 football season is over. Remove your sackcloth, take a shower, and get on with your sports life. I know you are wary of falling back in love with Vols’ sports teams. I can relate.

But this basketball team isn’t going to hurt you:


Sure, they will likely lose in the end, but it’s a tournament sport, and every team but one suffers that fate. Enjoy the ride.

Football

If you’re wondering where we’re at as we inch closer to National Signing Day, GoVols247 has you covered with a Recruiting Stock Report ($$$). One particularly interesting note on this side of the paywall is that coach Pruitt and two other Vols coaches met with 5-star cornerback Olaijah Griffin last night. He’s the nation’s No. 3 cornerback and No. 25 overall prospect in this year’s class, and while USC may have the crystal ball advantage, Pruitt is setting his stun gun on Woo.


See that mysterious black bag that Pruitt is holding? It’s full of magic and hope.

The Papa speaks, imploring us first to hold our horses on Jauan Jennings because he’s not officially back on the team yet and is going to screw it up unless he changes, and second, setting realistic expectations for how the teams may have to play as careful underdogs for a while until we put the finishing touches on this thing.

It appears Fulmer was serious, though, when saying he was going to build something to compete with Alabama, because he’s continuing to build an army of coaching support staff, adding an assistant director of football operations and an assistant strength coach.

Other fun stuff

Nick Saban is reportedly hiring Mike Locksley to replace Brian Daboll as his new offensive coordinator. Why is this fun? See if this reminds you of anything:

Alabama coach Nick Saban has reportedly settled on the replacement for former offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, and all he had to do was walk down the hall.

Ding, ding, ding! Yes, that’s how Butch Jones found Larry Scott. We need an offensive coordinator, and he was, like, right there, so we hired him!

Okay, so just because it exploded into a thousand death shards here doesn’t mean it will happen there, but a guy can dream, can’t he?

Also, this piece from Dari Nowkhah about the struggle to keep his fandom from showing while covering the Rose Bowl is well done. I wonder when someone is finally going to challenge the idea that old-school professional sports journalists must continue to labor under a pretense of objectivity. It really doesn’t have to be that way. You can be a fan and still be fair and professional, and it will likely result in a lot more fun and a corresponding increase in ratings as well.

And finally, have you ever wondered how the players in the Super Bowl were rated as high school recruits? SB Nation has the info.

 

January 22nd: Official Visit Weekend Recap

As we noted in the weekend preview, the Vols were set to welcome an interesting set of visitors to the Hill this past weekend.  As we also discussed, many of Tennessee’s top targets were on official visits elsewhere.  Schools UT is fighting with for certain prospects saw action as well, so there is a lot to recap from the weekend:

Tennessee Visitors

ATH Anthony Grant was on campus and by all accounts had a really nice trip.  He was told by the staff that they are recruiting him as a RB, although it seems that it’s clear to him that moving to defense is at least a real possibility.  He’s a kid who doesn’t seem prone to being overly emotional, and while he is definitely enamored with UT as a school and the football program in particular he clearly isn’t ready to shut it down.  He got an offer from FSU late last week and will OV to Tallahassee this coming weekend.  Many people, particularly Jesse Simonton from Volquest.com, have maintained that Grant won’t end up a part of this class for he Vols, and between his continued interest in the three ACC schools on his list (VT, UNC, and now FSU) and the incredibly limited spots left for Pruitt and Co. that is a reasonable take.  But he remains committed for now so it’s anyone’s guess where he ends up

DE John Mincey, who last week decommitted from Arkansas, came into his official visit feeling the Vols and exited with an even stronger affinity. He’s a large young man who would likely at least initially be a SDE in the Pruitt/Sherrer defense, with the chance to grow into a player who can move inside.  While he’s still scheduled to take visits to South Carolina and then Florida State before Signing Day, I have a strong suspicion he might have told Pruitt and the staff that he’s going to be a Vol while on campus.  Whether he becomes a public commitment and shuts his recruitment down before taking those trips is to be determined, and will be something to watch this week.  He’d be a big add to the DL class, that’s for sure

ATH Tre’shaun Harrison, a former Oregon commitment and 4-star WR/DB, was on campus with his parents and predictably was blown away by what he saw in Knoxville.  He doesn’t do much talking to the media though, so it’s unclear if coming out of the visit the Vols are true players in his recruitment.  That said, with FSU (along with the Ducks) considered to be real contenders, leaving the West Coast is certainly an option.  I think we’ll be able to get a real feel for where Tennessee thinks it sits if Pruitt and/or other staff make the trip out to Seattle to see him

OL Dylan Wonnum moved his originally scheduled visit to South Carolina and scheduled a trip to Knoxville instead.  Because his brother is at Carolina he is definitely considered a heavy Gamecock lean, but the Vols have worked themselves into the picture and got a much desired official visit.  He’s an incredibly quiet kid who notoriously does little media, so it’s nearly impossible to tell where the Vols are with him coming out of the visit.  That said, with the departure of OL Coach Herb Hand from Auburn the Vols are likely at least #2 going into his visit to Columbia, so they will likely keep swinging and see what happens with the very talented lineman

Neither S Nikko Hall nor S Trevon Flowers made it in this past weekend.  It appears Tennessee and Hall, who we noted in the weekend preview had an odd offer list, have agreed to move on from each other.  Flowers, an intriguing prospect who signed to play shortstop for Kentucky back in December but has decided he wants to play football too (which means he must sign a football scholarship), was in Lexington as the Wildcat staff tries to hold onto him.  He’s now planning on visiting Knoxville this coming weekend and will be one to watch

Tons of News in Tuscaloosa

Alabama hosted three of Tennessee’s top targets this past weekend in commitment LB JJ Peterson, LB Quay Walker (a Tide commitment himself), and DL Malik Langham and by all accounts did themselves some good with all three.  What that means in the next two weeks or so is still yet to play out.

Without a doubt though, Saban and Co. put themselves firmly in the driver’s seat with Langham.  The Alabama native had the Tide right at the top of his list going into the visit and he admitted on Sunday that they are his leader.  It could be considered a minor victory for the Vols (and Florida, with whom he still has a visit scheduled this coming weekend, and Auburn, who offered on Friday) that he didn’t commit publicly and end his recruitment completely.  But there is zero doubt that anyone else trying to land Langham has a pretty big hill to climb.  I wouldn’t be shocked if Langham never ends up visiting Rocky Top officially, but obviously the Vols won’t give up on the talented defensive lineman until he tells them to leave him alone as proven by Tracy Rocker being inhome with him on Monday night.

As one might expect, both Peterson and Walker had great visits.  Between the National Championship parade and the normal peer recruiting that takes place on a visit, one can imagine that both had a great time and that each of them felt like they could see themselves playing at Alabama.  That said, other than Walker commenting that it took some time for him to get comfortable with neither Pruitt nor Derrick Ansley on staff anymore, neither of them have talked much publicly about their visit or where their respective recruitments stand coming out of the weekend.  Therefore, anyone talking about it is simply giving their generally uninformed opinion.  Mine is that Peterson, with whom Pruitt still has his inhome visit (not to mention the Propst connection), is going to stick with the Vols.  As far as Walker goes, as long as he keeps taking visits – and he is still scheduled to see Auburn and then UGA before the final dead period – his commitment to Alabama should still be considered shaky at best.  If he were truly convinced it was the place for him – and if that convincing was going to happen one would think this past weekend was the time for it – why wouldn’t he come out and say it?  Frankly, this is in my opinion the same situation as Grant and Tennessee.  Therefore, my opinion stands that this is going to be a UT-UGA battle at the end, and unless UGA runs out of space (see below) they are going to stay in the fight.  My hope is that between his relationships on the UT staff with Pruitt, Sherrer, and Rumph along with his friendship with JJ Peterson and the immediate playing time Tennessee can only offer will win out.

Along with Langham, Peterson and Walker, Alabama also hosted stud CBs Tyson Campbell and Patrick Surtain along with Julius Irvin, who they had just offered.  And while Campbell still appears to be a strong UGA lean, Surtain and Irvin are now very much in play for the Tide.  Further, not only is Alabama is scheduled to have CBs Kelvin Joseph (soft LSU commit) and major UT targets Isaac Taylor-Stuart and Eddie Smith (and maybe also Olaijah Griffin) on campus this coming weekend, but they added to their recent CB offer spree (they offered former UGA commit Richard Wildgoose last week) by offering former Duke commit Taiyon Palmer. 

Point is, Alabama has a TON of CB lines in the water, and where they stand with most of them is unknown.  They’re likely to land some, so if you’re Tennessee you’re hoping that it’s guys like Campbell or Surtain or Irvin or Joseph or Palmer – not Taylor-Stuart or Smith or Griffin.  Lots to play out here, and lots of implications for the Vols at arguably the most important area of need

Other UT Targets on the Road

Both CB Olaijah Griffin and NG Coynis Miller were at Oregon, and the fact that there hasn’t been news on either of those visits is likely indicative of how little chance the Ducks have with either prospect.  Miller scheduled to be in Knoxville this coming weekend and UT is viewed as the one school that could realistically flip him even though he currently has an OV set up to Florida the first weekend in February.  Tracy Rocker was in to see Miller on Monday ahead of the visit, so clearly the Vols are hoping to set the stage for a big weekend.

Griffin hosted Head Coach Jeremy Pruitt inhome on Monday night. After naming UT and USC his co-leaders coming out of his official visit to the Trojans last weekend, Tennessee is clearly trying to regain the momentum in this newly-minted 5-star CBs recruitment.  He’s currently scheduled to see Alabama and then Auburn before Signing Day, but those visits are likely up in the air.  Ideally Pruitt crushed the inhome and convinced both Olaijah and his family that Tennessee is the best place for him and to commit and shut it down.  The more likely scenario is that the inhome reestablished the Vols as his leader with many more twists and turns to come

Arguably Tennessee’s top two remaining WR targets took OVs elsewhere, with Texas A&M hosting Jacob Copeland and UGA hosting Antoine Green.  And a third, Warren Thompson, was scheduled to be at UNC but it doesn’t seem like he actually went – he’s one UT would love to land but at this point still seems FSU-bound.

While the Vols trail Bama and maybe Florida for Copeland, his visit to College Station didn’t see to move the needle for the Aggies.  However, the Green visit to Athens is very interesting, as he is near the top of the WR board for the Vols.  Where he sits for Georgia is less clear, and they are still working hard to land Tommy Bush (who was in Oxford this weekend) at WR while working with very as few as three spots.  As everyone knows UGA is a big player for Quay Walker, and despite what sounds like a really good visit to Tuscaloosa for Campbell most still think he remains a heavy Georgia lean.   Notably, UGA also had DB Mario Goodrich on campus this past weekend and by all accounts made a lot of headway.  What Kirby Smart does with his numbers will be fascinating and could have an impact on the Vols, so it will be something to continue to monitor

Top CB target Eddie Smith was at Mississippi State for his Bulldog OV.  He seems to have had a nice time, and spent most of his visit with well-regarded CB coach Terrell Buckley, but there doesn’t seem to be a lot of confidence out of Starkville.  Smith still appears to be favoring Tennessee heading into his OV to Alabama, and as noted above the Tide has dished out multiple CB offers in just the last few days along with being in play for aforementioned guys like Surtain and Irvin in particular.  So it remains to be seen where he is on Alabama’s board, not to mention that Tennessee could simply have too big of a lead to overcome

Texas hosted LB/DEs Michael Williams and Caleb Okechukwu.  Williams received his Texas offer right before the visit and Okechukwu during, and Williams popped for the Longhorns on Monday.  I am a fan of the jumbo athlete’s game and think he would have made a nice chess piece in Pruitt’s defense, but it was it was unclear after his visit to Knoxville the previous weekend how much interest either side had.  Okechukwu’s recruitment has been pretty quiet after earning a bunch of offers with his performance at the Under-Armour game.  And while he received the Texas offer and had a really good visit to Austin, he remains uncommitted and will be in Knoxville this coming weekend.  With Langham looking more and more like a big Crimson Tide lean and with Williams off the board (and Texas likely no longer having room), Okechukwu’s chances of landing at Tennessee look better than ever.  We’ll see how that visit goes this weekend…

TE Glenn Beal was at Ole Miss this past weekend and this recruitment continues to get wilder.  He had a good time in Oxford and Ole Miss could be a factor depending on how things fall with Beal’s remaining suitors.  The thought that he was an Aggie lean last week after his Texas A&M visit seems to have fallen by the wayside, and after visiting the Black Bears he’s now planning to visit Alabama and then Florida.  There is also a thought that if LSU has room Beal would love to end up there and will keep that option open until the very end. At this point I think the odds of him ending up a Vol are pretty low given Beal’s interest in so many other schools this late in the game combined with UT’s needs elsewhere and the number of realistic options on the board, but it does seem like the staff wants to keep recruiting him so we’ll see

No news yet from JUCO DL Emmit Gooden’s visit to Louisiana Lafayette, but Volquest is reporting that he’s less and less likely to end up a Vol.  To me that means he’s not likely to qualify at an SEC school

Gameday Today: Tennessee football, basketball, and VFLs

Hoops

Tennessee found yet another way to win in beating South Carolina 70-63 Saturday night, namely having its bench outscore its starters. If you were for some reason unable to watch, do yourself a favor and watch these highlights of the game. Be prepared to hear the names Lamonte Turner and Derrick Walker a lot:

Unfortunately, the Lady Vols did not fare as well this weekend, falling to #6 Mississippi State, 71-52 at home.

Football

Tennessee appears to be in the mix to land Stanford quarterback Keller Chryst, who’s on the graduate transfer market. Chryst was the third-best pro-style QB in the Class of 2014. He redshirted as a freshman and then played four games (0 starts) as a sophomore, 12 (6-0 as the starter) as a junior, and 7 (all starts) this past season before giving way to KJ Costello after a 5-2 start.

SB Nation has identified Tennessee as the greatest underachiever of the 2017 season as measured by the disparity between talent (8th in recruiting) and S&P+ (107th). Woo. The bright side of that, of course, is that there still appears to be talent on the roster, and presumably, the problem of not having anyone to develop that talent into its true potential has been fixed. Right?

Don’t ever just form opinions on the headlines, folks. Sure, an early tweet made it it look like Vol Shaq Wiggins was recruiting against the team that he played for, but in a subsequent tweet, Wiggins clarified that he didn’t know who the recruit was and that he was merely praising a beloved former coach.

ICYMI: It looks like VFL Montario Hardesty will be joining Jeremy Pruitt’s staff as a quality control assistant. Oh, and it’s looking like Jauan Jennings is going to be given a chance to walk the straight and narrow on this year’s team.

VFLs

Derek Barnett had a huge play in the Eagles’ big win over the Vikings last night:

Christian Coleman set a new world record in the 60 meter dash.

Tennys Sandgren, having already beaten the No. 9 seed in the Australian Open, followed it up by beating the No. 5 seed, Dominic Thiem in a five-set thriller.

Vols Find Another New Way to Win at South Carolina

Here’s a point we would have made if the Vols lost today:  Tennessee’s next three SEC games are at home against the only three teams in the league with an RPI of 100+ (Vanderbilt, LSU, Ole Miss). Thrown in for fun is a road trip to Ames, Iowa to face the only Big 12 team outside the Top 65 in KenPom. The Vols are currently first in strength of schedule in those same ratings. After the warm-ups against Presbyterian and High Point, 11 of Tennessee’s last 16 games were against teams projected to finish in the RPI Top 100, eight in the Top 50. We’re due a break.

But at the end of the nation’s most difficult first three-fifths of the season, Tennessee found one more win. They did it on the road while holding a lead of less than eight points for the final 27 minutes, yet never fell behind. And Tennessee’s 13th win came by yet another new method: more points from the bench (39) than the starters (31).

Twenty-five of those came from Lamonte Turner, along with six rebounds. That part isn’t new:  he had 17 against Purdue, 24 at Georgia Tech, and 25 against Auburn. He’s become one of the streakiest players in recent Tennessee history: he was 1-of-6 against Missouri and 1-of-5 from the arc, then 6-of-9 today and 3-of-3 from three. The Vols have beaten good teams while he was cold – he was 2-of-11 against Kentucky – but don’t beat Purdue or the Gamecocks today without him. He’s one of those guys that could have a lot to do with the length of Tennessee’s stay come tournament time.

The newness today came from Derrick Walker, a sentence you’re as surprised to read as I am to type. Walker, a true freshman, averages six minutes per game and had only played more than ten thrice. His season high was 14 minutes. Today:  5-of-5 from the floor, 10 points, and four rebounds in 25 minutes. He doubled his previous career high in scoring.

The push-and-pull led to John Fulkerson not coming in and Kyle Alexander, who had 26 points in the last two games, playing just 14 minutes today. There was no Jalen Johnson, but Yves Pons got his first action since Wake Forest and ended up playing a dozen minutes, with an important putback for his first SEC points.

This is Tennessee: you’re going to get 15+ from Grant Williams, and if the other team isn’t physical on the interior he could go off for more. You’re going to get double figures from Admiral Schofield, who is quietly shooting 43.4% from the arc. One of the guards is probably going to play well (and when they don’t, you get Missouri). The Vols are going to share the ball well. And whoever is seeing the most minutes outside of Williams and Schofield on a given night is probably whoever is defending most effectively.

Against great competition, the Vols have won scoring 92 and scoring 66. They have bested elite size from Purdue and Texas A&M and elite athleticism from Kentucky. They have won at Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, and South Carolina; their other two road games are an overtime loss at Arkansas and a four-point loss at Missouri. This team travels. This team is good.

Here’s a question; not a concern, just a question:  does Tennessee need a clearer idea of who represents its best basketball by tournament time?

Does Barnes want/hope one of Bone, Turner, and Daniel to separate himself? Those three average almost identical minutes on the year, but game-to-game it can vary wildly. Today: Turner 32 minutes, Daniel 22, Bone 16. What about Alexander, Walker, and/or Fulkerson in the post?

The messaging has been consistent all year on having a dozen starters or whatever. And this may, in fact, already be Tennessee’s best basketball. The Vols are 14th in KenPom with a roster picked to finish 13th in the SEC. No complaints here.

They won’t even necessarily need to be better over the next couple of weeks, just consistent. But we do have memories around here of Bruce Pearl’s 2008 team still looking for a point guard heading into the bracket, and the 2010 team suddenly becoming Final Four material when Brian Williams returned to the lineup in late February. Barnes surely wants his team to continue to improve; will that improvement include more definitive answers at guard at in the post?

Either way, the Vols have already proven themselves capable of winning multiple ways against multiple tough opponents. Today was just the latest example.

 

“Diamond in the Dirt” Jordan Young is a Vol

 

Three days ago, Jordan Young was a barely-known, unranked wide receiver who was toiling in obscurity in broad daylight. At 6’2″, 185 pounds, he certainly had the size, played in the Atlanta suburb of Conyers, Georgia, scored 17 touchdowns as a senior for Heritage High School and also was a Class AAAAAA state champion in the 110-meter hurdles.

So, how was Young coveted so minimally by the who’s-who of college football?

The loss of everybody else in the nation was Tennessee’s gain as coach Jeremy Pruitt, lead recruiter Tracy Rocker, offensive coordinator Tyson Helton and Co., found out about Young and hosted him on a visit to UT last weekend.

He committed Friday via his Twitter account.

Honestly, his name was “just another name on the list,” hardly thought of behind studs like Quay Walker. But he came to Knoxville, loved what he saw, and his film got out.

In no time, he went from being unranked and not even having a profile page to a 4-star prospect and the No. 190-ranked prospect in the country according to 247Sports. When he committed to the Vols on Friday, Rivals gave him 3 stars. After Young didn’t play the camp circuit, he was going to slide under the radar.

But Tennessee found him and got a commitment from him. Now, Ohio State, Miami, Florida State, Auburn and others are beating down Young’s door, trying to get him to visit. The Vols will have to hold off some of the top teams in the country for his signature, but it’s obvious Young is smitten with Tennessee.

And that’s big news for the Vols.

He runs a 4.43, high-points balls like nobody’s business on his film and has all the measurables you could want from a receiver recruit. Given UT’s massive need for impact players at his position and the Vols’ position with Jacob Copeland and uncertainty with Geordon Porter, it’s a major pickup for UT.

He will team with Alontae Taylor to give the Vols a formidable duo at a position of need.

How good could Young be? Barton Simmons — 247Sports’ director of scouting — was so blown away by his film, he ranked him that highly based off it. He told GoVols247’s Ryan Callahan that Young could be a “game-changing” pickup and that he has a 5-star ceiling and could have been higher had the service had ample time to evaluate him.

That’s some lofty praise from somebody who doesn’t hand out candy like gum from the church lady.

He told Callahan earlier in the week that Helton told him UT believed he was a diamond in the dirt.

This late in the game, the Vols are taking some major swings with Pruitt at the helm. They’re trying for 4- and 5-star guys and high-ceiling prospects who maybe don’t have the ratings or the offer sheets of some others. Needing to fill out the class with 6-7 more players and needing instant-impact players everywhere, that’s why Pruitt is going big. But, if they don’t pan out, he wants some developmental guys next.

Young is one of those rare late finds who could wind up being one of the stars of the class. That’s how big this commitment is. Now, hopefully, Tennessee can fend off some of the sport’s biggest and best programs to keep him in the fold.

The First Page of Tennessee’s Resume

The Vols dropped a tough one at Missouri, where holding the Tigers without a field goal for the last 6:47 wasn’t quite enough to overcome 24% from the arc and 62% from the free throw line. Tennessee goes to 12-5 (3-3), but a road loss to a quality team like Mizzou doesn’t hurt at all in KenPom (where the Vols remain 13th) and RPI (where the Vols are 14th).

There are eight SEC teams in the KenPom Top 50; the same eight are in the RPI Top 40. The Vols still lead the SEC in the former, while trailing Auburn and Kentucky in the latter. Just six games into conference play, the Vols have already faced five of those Top 50 teams. Only three such games remain:  at Kentucky and at Alabama back-to-back in early February, and a visit from Florida on February 21.

Tennessee has ten other games between now and the SEC Tournament. In the best SEC of at least this decade, which means there is no such thing as easy. Vanderbilt has fallen out of the KenPom Top 100, but the rest of the league is in the Top 85. It will not be easy…but it will be easier.

Right now will probably be as high as Tennessee’s strength of schedule goes this season. It ranks second nationally in KenPom and fourth in RPI, where it is projected to finish 22nd. The Vols already have quality wins over Purdue and Kentucky, plus Texas A&M could still find their way back onto that list. When the case is being made for Tennessee on Selection Sunday, it will sound a lot like this.

Like last year, the Vols already have the details they need; the raw win total is all that remains between Tennessee and the bracket. Last year the Vols got in the bracket conversation with their 12th win, beating Kansas State four days after knocking off #4 Kentucky. The difference:  last year the Vols started 12-9. This year they were 12-4 before falling at Mizzou.

Anxiety about getting in is easy to understand after missing both the NCAA and NIT the last three years. RPI Forecast suggests the Vols would be in business there at 18-12 (8-10 or 9-9 with a loss at Iowa State). But Tennessee’s resume to this point – not just the strength of schedule but the quality wins with no bad losses – suggests we can dream a little bigger.

Coming through this front-loaded portion of the SEC schedule at 3-3 keeps Tennessee’s pre-conference goals alive:  compete for the league title, and earn a favorable seed in the NCAA Tournament. When it comes to seeding, eight or better is great for getting through the first round, but what you really want is six or better to stay away from the truly elite teams in the second round. The Vols may not be one of those truly elite teams themselves, but everything we’ve seen from this team against this schedule so far makes me think Tennessee can be a 4-6 seed. Most of the Bracket Matrix agrees.

After facing so many good teams in the first 17 games in building their case, the challenge in these final 13 games becomes consistency. That starts at South Carolina on Saturday, 68th in KenPom fresh off a win over Kentucky. The Gamecocks are the worst shooting team in league play, but are first at getting to the free throw line (thanks in large part to FoulFest 2018 against Kentucky on Tuesday) and first in offensive rebounds. We could say it’s another game where effort will be essential, but again, that’s every night now in this league. The Vols have been good enough to build a high-seed resume against one of the nation’s most difficult schedules. Now can they be consistent enough to get the rest of the way there?