Gameday Today: Wishing Darrin Kirkland well and thanking Lee Corso

We wish Darrin Kirkland and the team a speedy recovery, wonder who’s going to play Monday night against Georgia Tech, and extend our gratitude to Lee Corso. This and more in today’s Vols link roundup.

Darrin Kirkland out for the season

Yeah, Tennessee linebacker Darrin Kirkland’s injury is a torn meniscus and will keep him out for the entire 2017 season. Terrible news for him and for the team, and we wish them both a speedy recovery. Kirkland reportedly had two options: let his knee heal on its own and be back in maybe six weeks or opt for surgery to repair it, which provided a better long-term prognosis. Surgery was the wiser option; better for Kirkland himself, and better for the future of the program as well, but it’s also a challenge for the next four months.

Coach Jones is disappointed as well, but maintains a positive outlook:

“We did get the results back with Darrin Kirkland, and unfortunately it wasn’t the news we wanted to hear,” Jones said. “He will be out the entire season. It’s a situation we’re going in (where) obviously you never want to jump to conclusions until you get all the medical evidence that you need.

“We were hoping and we had a positive outlook that it could three-to-four-to-five weeks, but unfortunately that’s not the news that came about, so he’ll miss the entire season. I know Darrin’s extremely disappointed. His family’s extremely disappointed, but just like anything in life, he’ll be better for it and he’ll work exceptionally hard and we look forward to getting him back.”

The job now appears to be Colton Jumper’s for the long-term. The coaches are confident in Jumper’s ability to handle the job, and Jumper himself says he’s ready. There are also plenty of other linebackers on the roster available if necessary, including Cortez McDowell, Dillon Bates, Will Ignont, and others.

Quick hits

From day one, here I was thinking I’ve been hired to analyze football. You know: football, football, football, football.

What I quickly realized was he would make the comment like, ‘Michigan against Arkansas? That’s pickup trucks against Cadillacs. I’m going with the pickup truck.’ And I’m like, ‘What the hell is he talking about?’ [Herbstreit’s laughing really hard.]

I quickly learned, just through sitting by him, not to take yourself too seriously, not to sit there and just beat people over the head with analysis and statistics, and have fun.

And honestly, for 22 years, that’s how I’ve patterned my style, is by sitting next to him. If it weren’t for him, I’d be just a guy who’s out there breaking down football all the time, instead of trying to kind of humanize the sport and have fun with it.

Yep. It’s football. Have fun.

Vols video roundup: Chick-fil-A hype video, Cutcliffe’s favorite Peyton Manning play, and more

Hype video for Monday night’s game:


David Cutcliffe, when asked to recall his favorite Peyton Manning play:


“It’s going to be difficult for Georgia Tech to win this game,” due to the dismissal of Dedrick Mills:

Can you ever have too many funny Peyton Manning commercials? I think not:

Jones’ presser yesterday:

Vols assistants talk to the media ahead of the Chick-fil-A Kickoff:

Tennessee offensive lineman Jashon Robertson, tactfully telling reporters, among other things, that their expectations of him are nothing compared to his expectations of himself:

The SEC Network’s Matt Stinchcomb gives Vols running back John Kelly some love:


. . . and Gene Chizik immediately trades the credit for calling for the Vols to lose to the Yellow Jackets by double digits:


I vote we stop calling him Gene Chizik and just start referring to him as Cam Newton from now on.

Jones says that “everyone’s opportunity will come.” Hey, it did last year, for sure:


Could Evan Berry be the difference in the Georgia Tech game? Mike Griffith thinks so:

Will Shelton on WNML’s Sports 180: Uncertainty abounds for Team 121

On this afternoon’s appearance on WNML’s Sports 180 with Josh & Will (West), our Will Shelton reacts to the news that Darrin Kirkland is out for the season, talks about the uncertainty surrounding Team 121, sticks to his prediction of 8-4, and goes on record with Tennessee beating Georgia Tech by a touchdown.

Listen to Josh & Will’s Sports 180 show every weekday from noon to 3:00 at AM 990 in Knoxville and at SportsRadioWNML.com online. Will Shelton is on with them every Friday at 1:30. You can also subscribe to their podcasts by clicking the button below.

 

The Gameday on Rocky Top Guessing Game: Georgia Tech edition

Monday night games confuse us. On one hand, we’re still three days to Football Time in Tennessee.

On the other hand, it is the Friday before Gameday, and so we’re acting like it.

And that means it’s time for the Gameday on Rocky Top Guessing Game, even if we’re still technically way early for kickoff.

Yes, we’ll be using Mario Kart rules again this season. Here’s how to play, what you can do with your own skill, and what happens to you courtesy of the gamification ghouls.

Earn points with knowledge and skill

First, submit your answers to our three questions. Unlike seasons past, you don’t have to go somewhere else to do that. You can just submit your answers below, right here inside this post.

Nobody else will see your answers, though, unless you share them, which is half the fun. So, once you hit the “Submit” button, your answers will be displayed for you. Copy and paste them into the comments section so everyone can make fun of you.

That’s really it for the stuff you can control. New this year is that questions may have different point values so we can put some space between folks earlier in the season.

Shrooms, Shells, and Bolts, oh my!

Now for the Mario Kart-style chaos. Stuff can happen to you during each week’s tabulation of the totals. Stuff like this:

Mushroom. Plus one point. There are two of these per round, randomly distributed.

Banana. Minus one point. There are two of these per round, randomly distributed.

Blue Shell. 25% chance each round of the person in last place getting one of these. Once received, it’s automatically released and will travel from the lowest point total to the highest one place each round until it reaches the leader(s), at which point it will blow them up and cause them to lose two points.

Thunderbolt. 25% chance each round of someone in the bottom half of the standings getting this. When received, it’s automatically released, and everyone sits the next question out except for the person who received and used the thunderbolt.

We’ll check for specials after tabulating each question. In other words, we’ll tabulate the results of the first question, re-rank everyone, check for specials and their effects, re-rank everyone again, and then move on to the next question until there are no more questions.

New this year: There is always some attrition during the season, and the specials aren’t as fun when there are 50 people in the “race” that are no longer actually playing. So, I’m going to cull the list periodically of inactive players. Because there’s so much randomness involved, there are no prizes but bragging rights, and because there are no prizes, I reserve the right to change the rules as we go. 🙂

Let’sa go!

  1. Submit your answers to our three questions below.
  2. Click the “Submit” button.
  3. Copy and paste your answers in the comments below.
No Fields Found.

Good luck!

Tennessee’s Locks & Keys: The Return

 

Some of you who date back to the ancient times of the Tennessee blogosphere will recall the origins of my “Locks & Keys” weekly column on Rocky Top Talk where I give you five keys to the Vols winning their game of the week then give you five college football locks to lay all your money on.

You know, if you could gamble legally, that is.

“But Brad,” you may ask, “wouldn’t that mean it was Keys & Locks??”

Well, yes, but that doesn’t have nearly the same ring to it, does it?

The last L&K I can find that I wrote came way back in November of 2012, the year before Butch Jones took over for Derek Dooley. Back then, opportunity was nowhere, and that was, in retrospect, a perfect slogan for the Vols. Though a bunch of our fans are harrumphing their way through the past 18 months of the Jones era, just think of where we were then versus where we are now.

Back-to-back 9-4 seasons don’t feel quite so bad now, do they?

I left Rocky Top Talk after the ’12 season to join Bleacher Report, and I’m still there, having transitioned from Tennessee writer to SEC featured columnist to national college football columnist. I’ve expanded my knowledge to all realms of the college football world, feeling just as comfortable writing about the Pac-12 and its players as I do the SEC and ACC. But one thing always remains the same:

I still suck at picking games.

With that little intro [read by the little voice in my head that has morphed inexplicably into a Bob Kesling “To the Cheggarboards” tenor] out of the way, let’s get on with the keys.

Perfect fits

If you still have nightmares of Tennessee getting gashed a season ago, and you wake up in cold sweats crying before sucking your thumb in a fetal position over in the corner of your bed, you’re not alone. That happens to me a lot, and the only thing I remember is an evil, laughing Bob Shoop throwing up the “VFL” hand sign before morphing into a Sal Sunseri-being that more resembles Fred Flintstone in my dreams.

*shudder*

Yes, last season was forgettable on the defensive side of the ball, especially the end of the year where teams like Missouri and Kentucky looked like Alabama running the ball against the decimated, porous Tennessee rush “defense.” If the Vols aren’t a whole lot more disciplined against Georgia Tech, they’ll get blown off the field.

I worry about them playing the edge and getting beat on the dive, drilling the quarterback and forgetting the pitch, rinse, repeat. That’s why you fear UT’s linebacker makeup, which is a mixture of talented-but-inexperienced and experienced-but-undynamic. It’s also why you should be concerned about the Vols trotting out four defensive ends that simply haven’t played a lot of football. If I’m Shoop, I play four quality tacklers in the secondary much of the game (Todd Kelly Jr., Nigel Warrior, Micah Abernathy, Rashaan Gaulden) and take my chances. The Vols have to fit the run gaps, have their defensive backs step up in the box and help and play smart, disciplined football.

Find the trench mix

With starting left tackle Drew Richmond suspended for this game, the Vols are even thinner on the exterior of the offensive line than they were during the preseason. Though UT has a lot of experience along the front, the group has been far from consistent this summer for first-year coach Walt Wells.

The Vols need to know what they’ve got heading into that game, and they need to play the best five, regardless of position. That’s likely to be seniors Jashon Robertson and Brett Kendrick, junior Jack Jones, sophomore Marcus Tatum sliding into Richmond’s spot, and freshman Trey Smith.

ESPN college football “analyst” David Pollack — who got owned more than once against the Vols in his Georgia career — called the Vols offensive line “the softest thing in college football” last year in a recent broadcast. If I’m Wells, that’s on the bulletin board, and it’s the last thing I let my linemen see before they trot onto the field. But the bottom line is UT has to prove it isn’t that on the field. The Vols need to get tough and mean, and the unit needs to be a strength. If the O-line plays well, UT will have a strong running game this year.

Let the depth of talent win the game

Paul Johnson boasted heading off the field after last year’s TaxSlayer Bowl win against Kentucky that his Yellow Jackets were 3-0 in the SEC East with Tennessee next. Indeed, Tech earned bragging rights against the division a season ago.

But this is a new year.

The Vols have superior talent this year to Johnson’s team, and there are waves of it, even if much of it is inexperienced. Shoop told the media on Thursday that he was going to play six or seven linebackers. That may seem like a lot, but those guys need to be ready, and they need to do the job. A year ago, Tech outlasted a lot of teams, wearing them down and finishing comeback wins a handful of times. The type of ball-control, run-always offense the Bees play can tire opponents.

The Vols don’t need to get caught up in playing the same 15-16 guys a ton of snaps. They need to utilize their talent and depth and let the recruiting battles Jones has won the past few years shine through.

Strategic strikes

You don’t want to put too much pressure on your first-time starting quarterback, whether it’s Quentin Dormady or Jarrett Guarantano by putting the game on their shoulders early. That wouldn’t be smart at all, especially with some capable running backs.

But the Vols do need to utilize their speed on the perimeter by taking some downfield shots. The Yellow Jackets were 68th in pass defense a season ago, and Tennessee has the weapons to take some downfield shots with strong-armed quarterbacks and some size and strength on the perimeter with guys like Marquez Callaway, Latrell Williams, Tyler Byrd and Joshua Palmer. If Tennessee can take the lid off the defense — something they failed to do consistently with Joshua Dobbs playing quarterback — the offense could expand considerably.

That’s something that needs to happen throughout the season, and it needs to start now.

Big John Studd

Everybody is excited about junior running back John Kelly.

As a matter of fact, the other night in the Gameday on Rocky Top podcast, Kelly was the player we were all most excited about in orange and white this year. In a year with not many certainties, everybody believes Kelly can be depended on. The Vols need to ride him all season and hope he stays healthy.

Think of what his body of work can be when extrapolated across a season’s worth of carries. It could be a big year if UT’s offensive line steps up. Then there are exciting players like freshmen Ty Chandler and Tim Jordan behind him. The Vols need to focus on the running game early this season and work their quarterbacks in slowly. If they can.

LOCKS

Now, it’s onto this week’s LOCKS! Get those wallets ready, boyz! They’ll be busting at the seams before too long! For the record two of my top picks of the week were on Thursday night, which were Ohio State over 56.5 and Central Florida -17. But, alas, they were off the board with the column running today.

  1. Colorado State +5 over Colorado: Maybe Georgia should have hired Mike Bobo instead of Kirby Smart. He looks like a prime candidate to come back to the SEC for a  big job soon, as he’s taken over for Jim McElwain in Fort Collins and picked up right where he left off. Last week, the Rams railed Oregon State, and while the Buffaloes are a different animal than the Beavers, this is a CU team that must replace a lot from last year’s Pac-12 runner-up season. This will be two good coaches going at it, but I like the Rams to be 2-0 vs. the Pac-12 when it’s over.
  2. Wyoming +11.5 over Iowa: If you haven’t heard of Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen, commit the name to memory. He’ll be one of the most elite passers in all of college football this season and a very high draft pick in next year’s NFL Draft. This weekend, he’ll be the guy hoping to lead the Cowboys to an upset bid of the Hawkeyes. They may not complete the deal, but they’ll keep it under the spread.
  3. LSU -13.5 over BYU: The Cougars didn’t excite anybody with a pedestrian 20-6 win over Portland State in Week Zero. Now, they’ve got to travel across the country to take on an upstart Bayou Bengals team in Death Valley? Ugh. That doesn’t bode well for Kalani Sitake’s team. The Fighting Coach Os Prevail. Big.
  4. Michigan -3.5 over Florida: This is the lock of the week. I don’t care how young the Wolverines are and how much talent they lost off last year’s team (11 players drafted in the NFL, in case you’re counting). Jim Harbaugh is recruiting at a high level, and Big Blue is about to be BIG again for a long time. The Wolverines will sputter some in the early season for sure, but this game won’t be one of those. The Gators have suspended 10 players, and that includes some of their few playmakers. Also, they’re starting redshirt freshman Feleipe Franks at quarterback. Michigan will win by two scores.
  5. Tennessee -3 over Georgia Tech: I guess I’ve got to pick this one, but I don’t really think it’s a lock. As a matter of fact, this is going to be the fourth-toughest game on UT’s schedule, in my opinion. But the Vols offense is going to surprise some people this year, and I like Shoop getting months to prepare for this scheme. Of course, I wish Darrin Kirkland was in the lineup, but you can’t have everything.

FINAL VOLS PREDICTION: Tennessee 34, Georgia Tech 24

What Will We Learn On Monday?

There is so much that is unique to playing Georgia Tech, it may be hard to fully believe a lot of what we see on Monday night. Whether Bob Shoop’s defense plays well or plays poorly, you’ll need a couple weeks of seeing them against more traditional offenses to really gauge their overall performance. The Vols are likely to play combinations at linebacker and in the secondary we may not see again all season.

On offense we’re obviously going to learn about the quarterback(s), and plenty of ink will be rightfully spilled on that. But beyond Dormady and Guarantano, what can we learn against Georgia Tech that will be telling for the rest of the non-triple-option season?

Distribution of Carries

John Kelly is a known factor, though both his ridiculous average per carry and the fact most of his carries came against lesser competition last year make us a little unsure where to set the bar for him. But what will be most educational about Tennessee’s running game is what happens behind him.

Carlin Fils-aime was listed second on the depth chart this week, but true freshman Ty Chandler has led the way in preseason buzz. I’m curious to see not just who gets the second team reps, but how many carries the Vols put in their hands.

Throw out last season’s weirdness with Kamara hurt and the whole Jalen Hurd fiasco. If we look at Butch’s first three years with relatively healthy RB’s, how were the carries distributed between the first and second team running backs?

  • 2015:  Jalen Hurd 277 carries, Alvin Kamara 107 (72%/28%)
  • 2014:  Jalen Hurd 190 carries, Marlin Lane 86 (69%/31%)
  • 2013:  Rajion Neal 215 carries, Marlin Lane 101 (68%/32%)

In Butch’s tenure, only Jalen Hurd in 2015 (21.3) has averaged more than 18 carries per game. Are the Vols going to give John Kelly that kind of load? Even if they do, there should be 7-10 carries to go to the backup(s) if history holds. Will Ty Chandler get all of those, or will CFA get his chance as well?

Does this team have a number two wide receiver?

Not counting Ethan Wolf or John Kelly?

Maybe Josh Smith would have been this answer, and he might still play even after a shoulder injury scare in fall camp. But after Jauan Jennings, Tennessee’s depth chart at wide receiver is five flavors of OR. Smith, Tyler Byrd, and Latrell Williams are battling it out in the slot. Meanwhile true freshman Josh Palmer – a three-star Canadian import who was committed to Syracuse three weeks before signing day – is one of the ORs on the outside opposite Jennings, alongside Brandon Johnson.

Perhaps the Vols found a diamond in the Ontario rough. Perhaps his inclusion is more of an indictment on the other guys on the roster, especially those who have been here longer than a few months. Either way, with a new quarterback and new offensive coordinator, will Palmer or any one of these other guys step up Monday night? Or will OR be a multi-game starter at wide receiver?

September 1: Dead period ends, 2019 recruiting begins in earnest

Today the 2017 college football season has already have kicked off, and Tennessee’s first game will be just three days away.  And while Butch Jones and his staff will surely be making final preparations to take on Georgia Tech in Atlanta, they will also be taking the next step toward building the future of the program.  September 1st is the first day that coaches can contact Class of 2019* prospects via phone and Twitter.  Staffs’ initial priorities are revealed by who is contacted when, and on the flip side prospects start the next phase of their recruitments.

*Let’s get it out of the way: Discussing the Class of 2019 on September 1, 2017 is crazy.  These kids are 15, maybe 16 years old. But that’s just how college football recruiting is now – compressed cycles and tons of exposure caused a multitude of factors, not the least of which are a billion dollar scouting/recruiting service industry and intense fan interest (you’re reading this, aren’t you?).  With that said…

With three commitments already, each of whom are 247Sports 4-stars, the 2019 class is already ranked #12 nationally.  For a variety of reasons, Tennessee sits in a very nice position with regard to this class, and looking forward has a chance to stack another great class on what’s going to be a blockbuster 2018 haul.

2018 Hay is Mostly in the Barn

As the 2017 season begins, the Vols are sitting with a Top 5 2018 class in the country and with 23 commitments.  Now, Butch Jones always seems to find room if he wants to sign an extra player or two, but assuming 25 is the limit for this class and even allowing for some attrition from the current commitment list, there simply isn’t a ton of recruiting left to do.  We all know the top targets for the last 2-3 spots: OL Jerome Carvin, another defensive end, and maybe WR Jeshaun Jones.   Of course, Tennessee’s staff will have to fight to hold onto many of their commitments, and that will take time and energy, but it’s simply not the same as trying to land 10+ more players over the course of the next five months.

What this means is that the UT staff will be able to focus on scouting, communicating with, and building relationships with 2019 prospects while many of its rivals are still working on 2018 players.  They’ll be able to spend more time figuring out who the decision makers are in each prospects recruitment.  More time standing on the sidelines on Friday nights.  And more time scouting and finding out exactly who they want to target.  They also get to use the upcoming game against Georgia Tech to host a bunch of 2019 prospects – top instate targets Joe Anderson, Trey Knox, Wesley Walker, as well as former commits Kendrell Scurry and Adonis Otey are among those who plan to attend.

The added benefit is that Tennessee’s staff, with multiple members who are new since NSD 2017, will have that much more time to do any catch up with the class of 2019.  And given this new staff is already showing much improved results on the trail over the previous one, this bodes very well.

In-state Class is Loaded Again

According to 247Sports, the state of Tennessee has 20 4-stars in the 2019 class, and Vols commits TJ Sheffield and Cameron Wynn are two of them.  Importantly, while there was some talk earlier in the year that the 2019 class on both sides of the line of scrimmage wouldn’t be anywhere near the 2018 class, six of those 20 4-stars are defensive linemen – while only one is an offensive lineman, it’s Vols legacy Jackson Lampley who is pretty close to a lock in my opinion.  Also, this list of 4-stars doesn’t include other prospects whom several scouts are incredibly high on, including linemen Joseph Honeysucker and Tymon Mitchell.

And despite periodic incursions from the likes of Ohio State and FSU (among other blue bloods who recruit nationally), Butch Jones and Co. have proven their ability to bring the lion’s share of the elite in-state talent to Knoxville.  Look no further than the 2018 class, which includes nine in-state commitments with at least one more likely to come, and with only two prospects the Vols would have liked having committed elsewhere (RB Master Teague and OL Max Wray).

For Tennessee, in-state recruiting success is a virtuous cycle: As the Vols sign more and more talent inside the state’s borders, the ties between Knoxville and the rest of the state deepen.  Future prospects see their older friends go to UT and succeed.  High school coaches do the same with their players.  And assistants like OL coach Walt Wells, who seemingly knows every person connected to high school football in the state, strengthen those relationships even more.  And as the state continues to churn out more and more elite talent every year, Tennessee can rely more and more on that talent to form the bulk of big time recruiting classes.

Combining the two points above about being ahead of the game and the state being loaded in 2019, see below the Top 20 players in the state of TN for 2019 and how many times they’ve been on campus*.  It’s extraordinary how good of a job at getting the best players in the state on campus the staff has done, and we’re still almost 18 months away from NSD 2019.

*Just the ones I know of

247 TN Rank Name POS # UT Visits
1 Anderson DL 6*
2 Hampton DB 0
3 Knox WR 2*
4 Wilhoitte WR 5
5 Scurry WR 4*
6 Gregory DL 0
7 Izuchuku DL 4
8 Nash WR 1
9 Otey DB 7*
10 Lampley OL 1
11 Walker CB 4*
12 SHEFFIELD WR 2
13 Norton DL 1
14 Gray RB 1
15 Hopper DL 1
16 Washington DB 1
17 WYNN WR 4
18 Watkins DB 5
19 Hannah LB 1
20 Williams DL 2
* Scheduled to attend GT game in ATL

Other 247 Sports 4-stars to watch out for right off the bat include DL Zacch Pickens from SC (#59 overall); OL Darnell Wright from WV (#86 overall); DB Joseph Charleston from GA (#150 overall); RB Derrian Brown from GA (#157 overall); and WR Ramel Keyton from GA (#178 overall).  All of these guys are elite prospects and have been to campus at least once already, and in fact Keyton, who has seen his recruitment explode this summer, named the Vols his leader as recently as late June.  The Vols have a family tie with Charleston in that his brother is a current player on the Tennessee Baseball team, and Derrian Brown comes from the Buford program that has produced current Vols Austin Smith (a starter on Monday night at SAM LB) and Quay Picou, as well as 2018 RB commit and Brown’s teammate, Anthony Grant.

Florida Investments Will Continue to Pay Dividends

We hit on this back in June, but Butch Jones has made a big investment in recruiting in Florida, in terms of his staff, allocation of resources, and absolute numbers of Floridians on the roster.  After signing five players from Florida in the class of 2016, Butch Jones and Co. followed that up by signing seven Floridians in 2017.  That’s 30% of the last two signing classes from the Sunshine State.  So far for the class of 2018, the Vols have four Florida natives on the commitment list: QB Michal Penix, DBs Tanner Ingle and Brandon Cross, and WR Shocky Jacques-Louis.  They are still targeting DE Kayode Oladele and WR Jeshaun Jones as well.

Not surprisingly, the state of Florida is once again loaded in 2019, with 40 247Sports 4-stars.  And just like in Tennessee, those relationships continue to get stronger, allowing the Vols to dip into the Sunshine State and take more and better players every year.  Obviously, recruiting in Florida is a different animal than in your own state, and Florida is uniquely difficult because it has one powerhouse program in Florida State and two other programs in major conferences in the University of Florida and the University of Miami.  But Butch Jones has been succeeding in the state, particularly recently, and with another year (and the extra time discussed above) for OC Larry Scott and WR coach Kevin Beard to recruit down there on behalf of the Vols, that success should only continue.  Especially when you don’t have to have that many because your own state is providing you with a large chunk of your class.  It doesn’t hurt, of course, that the Florida Gators program is currently imploding, with more than 10% of the team suspended for the opener (as of this writing…could be more by the minute) for defrauding the university and coach Jim McElwain handing out 4th and 5th chances like they grow on a tree just outside the football complex.

*Caveats: nine are from IMG, so most are not true Floridians; UF has eight commits, UM has four and FSU has three.

Momentum and Winning on the Field

These are two different things.  While the Vols clearly have momentum on the recruiting trail, the 2017 season will go a long way toward determining the tenure of Butch Jones and his staff at Tennessee.  Exceed relatively modest expectations (i.e., beat 1-2 of UF/UGA/Bama/LSU and win the SEC East) and Butch is likely the coach here as long as he wants to be.  With the way he’s already recruiting, he could be set up to take Tennessee to that mythical “next level.”  Win 7-8 regular season games and he’s likely safe, ensuring that this outstanding 2018 class stays largely intact and the staff remains.  Anything less than that though, and all bets are off – best case is a coach on a very hot seat heading into the 2018 season, which will be used against him to no end; worst case AD John Currie cuts bait and we start over.  I’m of the opinion that the latter scenario is by far the least likely, but the Vols absolutely have to prove it on the field starting Monday.

It goes without saying that recruiting is the lifeblood of a football program, and fortunately there aren’t many coaches in the country as passionate about it and as good at it as Butch Jones.  Combine that with a killer staff, a competitive advantage from getting their work done on the previous class, a state churning out unprecedented numbers of blue chip talent, and investments in another talent-rich state that are paying off.  There’s obviously a ton of time between now and NSD 2019, but the Vols are off to a great start.  And the staff has an opportunity to leverage several advantages – some they’ve created and some that are systemic – to bring in another big time class in 2019.

College football TV schedule and rooting guide for Vols fans

The college football season might have served up a couple of appetizers last week, but it really kicks into gear tonight with Ohio State taking on Indiana. And then it hits full blast Saturday at 3:30 when Florida faces Michigan, reaches fever pitch that night when Alabama and Florida State collide, and continues right on through the Vols meet the Yellow Jackets.

Here are two sets of schedules, the first curated just for Vols fans who don’t have 40 hours to watch football this weekend, and one with the complete schedule in case you’re looking for something in particular.

Enjoy!

College football schedule curated for Vols fans

Thursday, Aug. 31, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets How to Watch Root For
(2) Ohio State at Indiana 8:00 pm ESPN Live Indiana

The reason to watch this? It’s football. Actual, real football. Yeah, Indiana’s not beating Ohio State, but . . . it’s football!

Friday, Sept. 1, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets How to Watch Root For
(8) Washington at Rutgers 8:00 pm FS1 Channel Hop Rutgers
Utah State at (9) Wisconsin 9:00 pm ESPN Channel Hop Wisconsin

See Thursday, Aug. 31, 2017. It’s football. Just hop back and forth between these two until you fall asleep.

Saturday, Sept. 2, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets How to Watch Root For
Akron at (6) Penn State Noon ABC Channel Hop Akron
Kent State at (5) Clemson Noon ESPN Channel Hop Kent State
(11) Michigan vs. (17) Florida (at Arlington, TX) 3:30 pm ABC Live Debatable
Appalachian State at (15) Georgia 6:15 pm ESPN Live, until 8:00 Debatable
(3) Florida State vs. (1) Alabama (at Atlanta, GA) 8:00 pm ABC Live Debatable
BYU vs. (13) LSU (at New Orleans, LA) 9:30 pm ESPN DVR, until after AL/FSU Debatable

The noon slot is just an opportunity to see a couple of Top 10 teams. Things really pick up at 3:30, when Florida and Michigan kick off. In the window between that game and the day’s main event at 8:00 (Alabama vs. Florida State), you get a chance to see future opponent Georgia. And if you still haven’t had enough by the end of AL-FSU, you can fall asleep to LSU/BYU late.

There’s a lot of room for debate on who to root for when an SEC rival plays an out-of-conference foe. Will and I had this very debate just after recording the Gameday on Rocky Top Podcast last night. He’s generally of the mind that he wants his rivals to be at full strength and to have their best-possible resume when Tennessee faces them. That has a certain appeal. If you win, you’re bragging rights are greater. I embrace that philosophy much of the time, but sometimes it’s in conflict with what might actually improve Tennessee’s chances to win, which is the most important thing. If Florida losing to Michigan somehow improves Tennessee’s chances to beat them in a couple of weeks, perhaps by eating away at their confidence or something, then I’m for that. Also, the recruiting contest never sleeps, and anything that might make it more difficult for a rival to recruit, well, I’m for that, too. So right now, I’m sort of rooting against all SEC teams except Tennessee.

Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets How to Watch Root For
(22) West Virginia vs. (21) Virginia Tech (at Landover, MD) 7:30 pm ABC Live Irrelevant

This is a Top 25 matchup, so could be worth watching if you haven’t used up all of your football credit with the family.

Monday, Sept. 4, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets How to Watch Root For
(25) Tennessee vs. Georgia Tech (at M-B Stadium) 8:00 pm ESPN Live Vols!

The entire schedule

And here’s the entire schedule for the weekend for reference.

Thursday, Aug. 31, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets
FIU at UCF 6:00 pm CBSSN
Presbyterian at Wake Forest 6:30 pm ACCNExtra
Austin Peay at Cincinnati 7:00 pm ESPN3
Buffalo at Minnesota 7:00 pm BTN
Elon at Toledo 7:00 pm ESPN3
Rhode Island at Central Michigan 7:00 pm ESPN3
Tennessee State at Georgia State 7:00 pm ESPN3
Holy Cross at UConn 7:30 pm SNY/ESPN3
North Dakota at Utah 7:30 pm Pac-12N
Tulsa at (10) Oklahoma State 7:30 pm FS1
FAMU at Arkansas (at Little Rock, AR) 8:00 pm SECN
(2) Ohio State at Indiana 8:00 pm ESPN
Sacramento State at Idaho 9:00 pm ESPN3/ALT
ULM at Memphis 9:00 pm CBSSN
New Mexico State at Arizona State 10:30 pm Pac-12N

Friday, Sept. 1, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets
Fordham at Army 6:00 pm CBSSN
Charlotte at Eastern Michigan 6:30 pm ESPN3
CCSU at Syracuse 7:00 pm ACCNExtra
Colorado vs. Colorado State (at Denver, CO) 8:00 pm Pac-12N
Navy at Florida Atlantic 8:00 pm ESPNU
(8) Washington at Rutgers 8:00 pm FS1
Utah State at (9) Wisconsin 9:00 pm ESPN
Boston College at NIU 9:30 pm CBSSN

Saturday, Sept. 2, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets
Akron at (6) Penn State Noon ABC
Ball State at Illinois Noon BTN
Bowling Green at Michigan State Noon ESPNU
Kent State at (5) Clemson Noon ESPN
Maryland at (23) Texas Noon FS1
Missouri State at Missouri Noon SECN
Wyoming at Iowa Noon BTN
California at North Carolina 12:20 pm ACCN
Bethune-Cookman at (18) Miami, FL 12:30 pm RSN
Youngstown State at Pittsburgh 1:00 pm ACCNExtra
Portland State at Oregon State 2:00pm Pac-12N
VMI at Air Force 2:00 pm ESPN3
NC State vs. South Carolina (at Charlotte, NC) 3:00 pm ESPN
Alabama A&M at UAB 3:30 pm Stadium
(11) Michigan vs. (17) Florida (at Arlington, TX) 3:30 pm ABC
Nevada at Northwestern 3:30 pm BTN
Temple at Notre Dame 3:30 pm NBC
UTEP at (7) Oklahoma 3:30 pm FOX
William & Mary at Virginia 3:30 pm ACCNExtra
Troy at Boise State 3:45 pm ESPNU
Charleston Southern at Mississippi State 4:00 pm SECN
Eastern Washington at Texas Tech 4:00 pm FSN
Kentucky at Southern Miss 4:00 pm CBSSN
Stony Brook at (19) USF 4:00 pm ESPN3
Western Michigan at (4) USC 5:15 pm Pac-12N
Albany at Old Dominion 6:00 pm ESPN3
James Madison at East Carolina 6:00 pm ESPN3
NC Central at Duke 6:00 pm ACCNExtra
Appalachian State at (15) Georgia 6:15 pm ESPN
Miami, OH at Marshall 6:30 pm Stadium /
Central Arkansas at (20) Kansas State 7:00 pm K-StateHD.TV
Eastern Kentucky at WKU 7:00 pm FloSports.TV /
Hampton at Ohio 7:00 pm ESPN3
Houston at UTSA — Postponed
Houston Baptist at Texas State 7:00 pm ESPN3
Lamar at North Texas 7:00 pm ESPN3
Liberty at Baylor 7:00 pm FS2
Northwestern State at Louisiana Tech 7:00 pm ESPN3
SE Louisiana at UL Lafayette 7:00 pm ESPN3
SE Missouri at Kansas 7:00 pm JTV
Stephen F. Austin at SMU 7:00 pm ESPN3
UMass at Coastal Carolina 7:00 pm ESPN3
Cal Poly at San Jose State 7:30 pm No TV
Georgia Southern at (12) Auburn 7:30 pm SECN
(16) Louisville vs. Purdue (at Indianapolis, IN) 7:30 pm FOX
South Alabama at Ole Miss 7:30 pm ESPNU
Abilene Christian at New Mexico 8:00 pm No TV
Arkansas State at Nebraska 8:00 pm BTN
(3) Florida State vs. (1) Alabama (at Atlanta, GA) 8:00 pm ABC
Grambling State at Tulane 8:00 pm ESPN3
Jackson State at TCU 8:00 pm FSN
Northern Iowa at Iowa State 8:00 pm Cyclones.tv
Vanderbilt at Middle Tennessee 8:00 pm CBSSN
Southern Utah at Oregon 8:15 pm Pac-12N
UC Davis at San Diego State 8:30 pm Stadium /
Howard at UNLV 9:00 pm MWN
BYU vs. (13) LSU (at New Orleans, LA) 9:30 pm ESPN
Incarnate Word at Fresno State 10:00 pm No TV
Montana State at (24) Washington State 10:30 pm FS1
NAU at Arizona 11:00 pm Pac-12N
Western Carolina at Hawaii 11:59 pm Spectrum PPV

Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets
Texas A&M at UCLA 7:30 pm FOX
(22) West Virginia vs. (21) Virginia Tech (at Landover, MD) 7:30 pm ABC

Monday, Sept. 4, 2017

Matchup Time (ET) TVTickets
(25) Tennessee vs. Georgia Tech (at M-B Stadium) 8:00 pm ESPN