The Pregame Speech

Men, the only people who know we're going to win this game are in this room right now. The media doesn't give us a chance. Fans across the country think this game has been decided. But I say to hell with them! The only people who can decide who wins this game are in this locker room, and the other locker room. And guess what? They aren't better than you - they aren't! All of us put our pants on one leg a time. We all practiced all spring, summer, and fall for this moment. They don't have super power abilities. They are men, just like you. The way we win this game is to be the team whose men fight the hardest, the longest, and the toughest. Is that going to be you today? Are you going to be the men on the field today, or are they? Listen, it's going to be tough. It's going to be hard. There will be times where you want to quit, stop, take a rest. Let me relate an old story to you.

Two frogs fell into a deep cream bowl. One was an optimistic soul. But the other took the gloomy view. "We'll drown," he lamented without much ado, and with a last despairing cry, he flung up his legs and said "Goodbye." Said the other frog with a steadfast grin, "I can't get out but I won't give in, I'll just swim around till my strength is spent, then I'll die the more content." Bravely he swam to work his scheme, and his struggles began to churn the cream. The more he swam, his legs a flutter, the more the cream turned into butter. On top of the butter at last he stopped, and out of the bowl he gaily hopped. What is the moral? It's easily found...
If you can't hop out, keep swimming around!

All the planning, practicing, crying, laughing, fighting, learning, EVERYTHING we've done since January, is about to grow into greatness, men. The days where you didn't want to wake up and lift weights. When you didn't want to run the Hill. When you didn't want to hit the ground anymore. It all pays off today. Take advantage of this situation, and make the most of it.

Men, when the times get tough today, don't just give up - fight for life on that field! FIGHT FOR IT! No, this ain't a war, it's not a battle. We'll all wake up tomorrow with God's blessings. But for right now, you can continue to kick and fight and hold each other up - and etch your names into the history books at the University of Tennessee. When you get hit in the mouth, don't fall to the bottom of the bowl, fight to stay afloat then HIT 'EM BACK! ATTACK ATTACK ATTACK - always attack. Let's go.

Holy Bench Press, Batman!

Justin Groves, of Rock Solid Sports on WUTK Radio (UT's student radio station), just reported that Jacques McClendon broke the Tennessee bench press record by pressing 635 pounds! Good Lord, man, that's like 1.5 Manginos.

Vladimir Richard also benched an amazing 600 pounds today. This furthers my belief that Vlad is the baddest man in the world, and maybe even the entire campus. If Tebow is a Baby Rhino, then Vlad is like a .... Real Rhino. Too bad Vlad isn't on the defensive line to create a Rhino v Rhino matchup in September.

Lastly, Groves said Gerald Jones, of Orange and White game dominance and future legend of the program, benched 335 pounds and had a 41 inch vertical leap today. It's as if he's athletic or something. Gerald, he of 72 inches and 190ish pounds, can bench press a Phil Fulmer. That's sick, both literally and slang-edly.

Groves, against his own wishes, is going to be a roundabout contributor to The Power T in the future. I'll have his insights from the Orange and White game up as soon as I get the energy to e-mail him the questions. Blame me, and Canada.

Life is Under Control

Good news fans - I have time to once again devote to this blog. As I've alluded to in a previous entry, my life during the early months of the football season had some drastic changes. I drank more due to that, so couldn't put together a great blog.

But now, I'm back with a renewed sense of dedication and creativity. We'll be covering the BasketVols with great passion, and will begin talking recruiting for football.

So, stick with me this year, it should be far far more consistent, and thus, enjoyable.

3rd Time's a Charm

If you told me on September 16th that Tennessee would be 5-3 and 1st place in the SEC East, I would have laughed you back to the Tri-Cities, optimistic Vol fans. It's been a Johnny Carson style season (weird, wild stuff), but I'm happy to be where we're at. We are in the driver's seat, which, in the college football world (and ONLY in the college football world), it's the best seat to be in, even if you end up being there drunk. Which is what we've done at Tennessee. We've stumbled, crawled, and cried our way to controlling our own destiny in the toughest division in football.

But, when looking at this season's performance, can we expect to not drop the ball again? This is Tennessee's third time to control their own destiny in the SEC East. First, when sitting at 0-0 in conference play, and traveling to Florida. We saw how that turned out. Then, on September 29th, Auburn upset Florida, bring the Gators down a rung on the ladder, with LSU looming on showdown Saturday. That same Saturday, Tennessee had a game against rival Georgia, in formerly Richt-Neyland Stadium. The Vols blew the Dawgs out, and LSU beat Florida to give Tennessee it's 2nd chance to control their own destiny. A week later, we went on the road and beat a good Mississippi State team (good for them, not good like Top 25 ... yet). The 3rd Saturday in October was an embarrassment, and were once again dead men walking.

Until ... Georgia managed to upset Florida in convincing fashion. Their game ended about an hour before our game against Steve Spurrier. We came out and acted like we were taking the East right then and there. Boom! 21-0 at half, showing moxie on both sides of the ball, looking like a real Tennessee Volunteers team. But someone slipped some GHB in our locker room gatorade, and we came out playing like drunk sorority girls on casino night. The Ghost of 2nd Half Collapses once again made an appearance on our roster, much like it did in Berkeley, Gainesville, and Tuscaloosa. Luckily, Daniel Lincoln doesn't believe in ghosts.

Anyway, the point is forthcoming.

What makes any of us so confident that our guys will take charge this third time, and win the East? Is it the mere fact that we only have 3 SEC games left and odds are better because of it? Or is it because we have 2 of those 3 games at home, where we're undefeated this year? I personally think we might not make it past the next SEC game before we blow it.

This team has had opportunity after opportunity handed to it, and thus far, has crapped it away each time. The talent on this team is plentiful, because you don't "show flashes" with no talent. We've shown flashes of being a great team, but it's been far too inconsistent, and it's been combined with scared playcalling on both sides of the ball. Arkansas is on tap, and we need to remember two things: 1. 2006 @ Arkansas, and 2. Cory Boyd just averaged 8 ypc on us. (Yes, I know, ULL is next, but we're talking SEC here) It's too late to fix things. It's going to be November on Saturday! NOVEMBER! You can't change scheme in November. Thought, if I was John Chavis, I would consider it. You cannot win games consistently when you have corners playing 10 yards off the receivers. You also will get picked apart if you continue to rely on Jerod Mayo and Rico McCoy in pass coverage. They suck at it.

So, someone, anyone, please make a logical debate for me on why this Tennessee team can finish up 3-0 to win the East with a nothing secondary put into bad schemes, a linebacking corps that has been the most disappointing unit on the team, and a coaching staff that won't even follow through on their word. Please, make me excited.

Sorrrrrrrrrrrrrrry

Sorry I've been away. At least our Vols had a bye week. I'll be back on Sunday or Monday with post-Georgia thoughts. Life has thrown me the biggest of curveballs, but this Saturday is the most important of Saturdays for Phillip Fulmer and this program. I'm a bit buzzed right now, and since that Florida loss, I've seen more alcohol than ever. This blog's content goes to another level post-Saturday.

It's Florida Week!

The greatest week of the year, Florida Week, is here! I hope to have a lot of content for this game, but to kick it off, here is a quote from Johnny Majors, that applies to this week and sums up how I feel.

"They don't have any respect for ya'. Make 'em remember you for as long as they live ... the way you hit. And the way you knock 'em down downfield ... the way we hustle. Attack attack attack ... always attack."

Was That Really a Fumble?

An interesting piece of NCAA rule has been posted on Volquest by someone, and carried over to Volnation by yours truly. But before I get into the conversation about the Ainge "fumble," I want to make it clear that Cal deserved to beat us, and this play, in the end, was not the reason our Vols lost. However, I think it's interesting to discuss the rule of this play, and the complete ignorance of the rule by Kirk Herbstreit and the officials.

Here is the play in question:



And here is the NCAA rule regarding a play like this. PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE VERY END OF THE RULE!

"If a Team B player contacts the passer or ball after forward movement begins and the ball leaves the passer’s hand, a forward pass is ruled regardless of where the ball strikes the ground or a player (A.R.
2-19-2-I)."

So, now, *if* Ainge's forward motion has begun, the landing point of the ball, whether backward or forward, is irrelevant. Is Ainge's arm going forward? It's hard to tell, but I believe it is. Why? Because of the trajectory of the ball after the hit. If Ainge just has the ball in grasp without forward motion, does the ball fly UP like that? I don't think so. The call on the field was a fumble, which is baffling to me. The officials should know this rule, and should call that incomplete.

In the end, this play wasn't why Tennessee lost, but could it have changed the game? Sure! That early momentum can change everything after that moment. Like a butterfly effect, if you will. Still, Cal won this game because they were more prepared and wanted it more. I do wonder how it would have gone if this were called correctly.

Your thoughts?

New Layout

I'm an absolute HTML newbie, so I didn't quite change everything I wanted to ... yet. I would love feedback on the layout, even negative feedback as long as it's the truth. Tons of postings scheduled for the upcoming work week. Stay tuned.

Vol Blogs Tuesday and Starters Note

First, I have updated the current starting lineup graphic here. Fall practice will bring about plenty of changes, so check it weekly if you like it.

Second, Rocky Top Talk posted the #3 signee from our recruiting class, Brent Vinson. This is, in my opinion, the best RTT prospect report yet. Vinson has been wowing people in campus this summer, from all reports. He already has the physical tools, and is apparently picking up the mental aspect of the game.

Third, Fulmer's Belly continues to fake us out by posting every 5 days or so. He's going to the Cal game, I'm going to the Cal game. Hopefully Joel from RTT is going. Beers for both if they go.

Fourth, I just realized there are only 3 UT year-round blogs.

Fifth, (ugh, longer than I had hoped - wishing I hadn't said "First" up top) I've got a special e-mail interview/Q&A with Chris from Smart Football about the pros and cons of the no huddle, as well as other facets about the approach. His blog is incredible if you like the deep Xs and Os of college (and pro) football. Look for that soon.

Sixth, and finally, I have set up a Q&A with Nico at Roll Bama Roll (one of the good Alabama fans out there) about their expectations for 2007. I'll probably cross-post that at College Football Authority. Keep an eye for that, as well.

Alright, keep visiting, as I have some super secretive plans that could take this blog to a better level.

We're Getting Closer

Now that I have my Cal tickets, it's time to ramp up the insults (playfully, of course) directed towards the Bears. I downloaded the picture editing software The Gimp a few weeks ago and I'm obsessed. So, today's Cal Bears Mockery Entry is dedicated another ROFLCat type picture.

Reminder for Cal Tickets

Vol fans: As of right now, the Cal ticket office is selling general admission and other reserved seating tickets on their website. Tomorrow you can order by phone. I bought mine today. Here is the link.

We sold out our 7,500 allotment to the donors, which is great! If we have get 5,000-7,500 MORE people into Memorial Stadium, we'll take up almost 25% of the venue! $44 for a general admission seat, and I advise that all of us arrive early and get to the Blue Zone, to make sure we sit near Section PP, the visitors' section. Check it out on this seating chart.



Our presence matters! Remember Miami, 2003? We brought soomething like 25,000 UT fans and ended Miami's home winning streak. BUY YOUR TICKETS ONLINE NOW, HURRY!

Thoughts at Random Times

The lovefest in Gainesville for Tim Tebow (who will from here on out be known as T_T) is getting a littttttle nuts. Here's a kid who, for the most part, has been equivalent to an NFL 3rd down back ... but in college. Yeah yeah yeah, he threw 2 TD passes against LSU last weekend, but only 1 was REAL. That pansy ass jump pass was a little too dainty for me to consider a real college football touchdown. I would like to add that I think he do well in Urban Cryer's system in years to come, but right now, the obsession is scary.

Yes, this is a fark of Tim Tebow with a cape ... as if he were Superman ... or SuperTim or Super T_T. Maybe this was after his 10th three-yard run of the season.

Texas is widely ranked ahead of Tennessee, which is okay if only people like Verne Lundquist, Tim Brando, and other talking heads vote. However, there are so-called experts who rank Texas ahead of the real UT. Why? Texas beat Oklahoma .............. Tennessee has beaten Cal and Georgia. Eh, I guess you can't expect fair and knowledgable analysis from experts anymore. Maybe they felt sorry for Texas because Bevo is gone ...

Nobody will truly miss you, Bevo. Except maybe this other guy bull behind you ...

Gross.



It'd be awesome if that beer was the kid's ...