Tag Archives: Larry Scott

Gameday Today: Sensible quotes on Rocky Top, but no plans for Dubai

Gameday Today is awestruck at all of the sensible things said on Rocky Top over the weekend and disappointed at news the Vols will not be playing in Dubai anytime soon. This and more in today’s Vols link roundup.

Football

So the Vols hire a public relations expert and suddenly everybody’s saying all of the right things.

Bob Shoop falls on his sword, taking responsibility first:

“[M]aybe [I] was a little bit stubborn right there . . . I really wanted to force-fit, this is my style of defense or whatever. I probably didn’t do a great job at times of tailoring things.”

But ending on a positive note:

“The bowl game was the one game we really put together that looked like my vision for the defense.”

And then he’s making music when talking about the linebacker position as well:

“Kirkland had a good spring,” Shoop said before Saturday’s Big Orange Caravan Stop at Chattanooga’s First Tennessee Pavilion. “He’s hopefully the Derek Barnett, the alpha male of the defense. He’s vocal. He’s a good leader. He’s good high football intelligence. He’s smart, tough, unselfish and he wants it. I think he’s a little bit like Kongbo and myself.

“I mean, I don’t think 2016 went the way Darrin Kirkland, Jonathan Kongbo and Bob Shoop wanted. We talk about that all the time, and Darrin’s got a chip on his shoulder and he’s really determined.”

Offensive coordinator Larry Scott also gets in on the action with this sensible tone-setter for the incoming guys:

“Let’s start by being on time and being where you’re supposed to be when you’re supposed to be there, and then making sure that when you’re there, you’re 100 percent locked in and you’ve giving the very best effort you have.”

Even new athletic director John Currie managed to deftly walk the narrow ledge in voicing his opinion about Butch Jones:

“I believe you look at what has been accomplished and where we stand today versus where we were four years ago,” Currie told GoVols247. “We’ve made incredible progress in our program — academically, athletically, talent, engagement. There’s no measure where we’re not better than we were four years ago.

“We want to win every single game. There are going to be some years, eventually, where we do win every single game. But we have to make sure that the fundamentals that are in place to continue to build towards those championships that we all want to win, we have to make sure that those fundamentals continue.

. . . .

“I’m very impressed with recruiting organization. I’m impressed with the energy. I’m impressed with creativity and thought.”

And coach Jones, well, he answered questions about the quarterback battle by saying nothing and keeping his feet far away from his mouth. One interesting note in that article is that Quinten Dormady is practicing with NFL quarterback Jeff Christensen and Jarrett Guarantano is practicing with George Whitfield Jr.

More good news

The defensive line is healing up quite nicely, thank you.

Shoop thinks that the late addition of graduate transfer Shaq Wiggins is going to make a big difference, and he’s excited about all of his options at linebacker.

Tennessee will be getting its new QBs (and its secondary) a little extra practice by allowing some 7-on-7 drills this summer.

Breaking news

The Vols will not be playing in Dubai.

Hoops

Rick Barnes thinks SEC basketball is ” probably in the best shape it’s been since back in the early 2000s.” John Fulkerson, though, is not yet back from injury.

Miscellaneous fun stuff

We’ve already been over oddsmaker Danny Sheridan saying that he thought Kentucky would beat Tennessee this fall, but this article from 247Sports orders the guy’s quotes in a way I found amusing. Paraphrased: “I was wrong last year. I can confidently say what’s going to happen this year.”

Class of 2020 Receiver Leonard Manuel has committed to Tennessee. Yeah, he’ll be a sophomore in high school this year.

There were nearly 1,000 people at the Big Orange Caravan in Chattanooga Saturday.

VFLs  Chad Clifton, Willie Gault, Haskel Stanback, Graham Vowell, and Al Wilson were all enshrined into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame Saturday.

Here’s a look at the new-look Big Orange Caravan:

 

Gameday Today: Settlement agreements, 71% off! Today only!

Gameday Today leads off with an offer nobody wants, but at a bigly discount. Also, talking about the season, Larry Scott’s contract, softball, and who is this Travis Kelce guy?

Football

Tennessee receiver Josh Smith’s roommate, Kennedy Foster, wants to file a $3M lawsuit against Smith for allegedly beating him up, but he’s reportedly offering a 71% discount if he can pay, like, today, man. Hurry! Offer expires soon! (Yes, this smells like the backseat of the Grumpy Old Men car to me.)

[ess_grid alias=”grt-2017-promo-grid”][/ess_grid]

 

You know it’s the summer doldrums when sites start asking questions like What if basketball was football? Lay it on me, I’m famished. (And the answer, of course, without having to wear out your mouse button clicking through the morsels, is that Tennessee would beat Iowa State on the football field.)

Wes Rucker identifies the two most important swing games for Tennessee’s 2017 season. Hint: They rhyme with Skullfrogs and Waiters. 

Tennessee offensive coordinator Larry Scott got a $280k salary increase and a contract extension when he was promoted from his position as tight ends coach. He’ll be making $650k for the next two years, and his contract runs out at the end of February, 2019. Typing that out makes me wonder. When was the last time a college coach’s contract simply expired at the end of its term?

Tight end commitment Jacob Warren recently told The Swain Event that he wants to model his game after Travis Kelce. Who is this Travis Kelce, you ask? He’s a tight end (duh, I know) for the Kansas City Chiefs and was first-team All-Pro last season. But what’s the connection? Kelce played for Butch Jones at Cincinnati from 2010-12, and he was a third-round draft pick in 2013. So that’s why Jones has been whispering his name into Warren’s ear. Me, I’d shout “JASON WITTEN!”, but I don’t know either of them personally, so volume and brand awareness is all I have.

Softball

Tennessee lost its last two games against Texas A&M and came up just one win shy of making the Women’s College World Series. Mike Griffith puts it all in perspective, saying the team overachieved this season and is poised for something special in the immediate future.

 

 

Gameday Today: Decommits have the worst, only-mostly-dead phones

Recruiting

So yeah, 3-star running back Jashaun Corbin decommitted from Tennessee. I have just two pieces of advice for you, young man, after seeing this:
 Corbin
Charge your phone and switch to Verizon.
But seriously, what do you do after a guy like that decommits? You figure out who else is on the board. And then you remind everyone about the 4-star quarterback we just got and how he could help woo a bunch of other players in his neck of the woods. And you also don’t give up on him.

Football

I roll my eyes every time I read a quote from Butch Jones with the phrase “talk about” in it. Dude loves to talk about talking about stuff. But I digress.
Jones is now talking about talking about team chemistry, which he believes they have now, and about his decision to promote Larry Scott to offensive coordinator:
“But in terms of the promotion, that was kind of a very, very easy choice. I was able to evaluate him for a full year and what he brought to the offensive staff in terms of the dynamics of really managing personalities, being part of his staff and also his input on game day, his input throughout the course of the week and his relationship with the players.”
That there’s pretty good spin. “I hired him after a grueling, year-long interview process” sounds much better than, “Well, he was standing right there when Mike left.”
(This is a joke. I’m digging Larry Scott.)

Big Orange Caravan

The BOC must be all vamped out, because Tennessee is revamping the thing this summer. It’s apparently going to supplement the “look and feel” of the “traditional caravan” (dust and camel dung?) with some “new, fan-friendly elements.”
Hmm. What could those fan-friendly elements be, you ask? Music. A prize wheel, whatever that is. Smokey will be there (the mascot costume, I’m guessing). A photo booth with a Neyland Stadium backdrop, cornhole, a social media station, free popcorn, face painting, and more. I’m hoping the “and more” includes funnel cake, because they’re only one step away from a full-on carnival, and who doesn’t love the carnival? The Big Orange Carnival. Somebody get the USPTO on the phone.
The first stop is at the First Tennessee Pavilion in Chattanooga on Saturday, June 3 from 12:30-2:30 Eastern Time. They then go to the Expo Center at Agricenter International/West Pavilion (most awkward name ever?) in Memphis on Sunday, June 11 from 6:00-8:00 Central Time. Then it’s off to Nashville, where they’ll take over The Barn at Sycamore Farms on Monday, July 10, also from 6:00-8:00 Central.
They are actually planning something for the Tri Cities, but they don’t have the details yet because we’re the black sheep of the state, apparently. They’ll probably decide to set up a card table in a Pal’s parking lot or something. Which, as long as Pal’s is within walking distance, I’m good.

Miscellaneous fun stuff

The Football Writers Association of America has awarded Tennessee’s athletic media relations staff the “Super 11” tag as one of the best FBS sports information departments last year. High five to them.
Our friends at GoVols247 are running an awesome special, and if you’re going to pay for Vols content, get Gameday on Rocky Top 2017 first, and then go save $100 on a year’s worth of GoVols247.