Knoxville Media Turns the Corner

When the Tennessee coaching search was set in motion, just after Phillip Fulmer's dismissal, there weren't many Lane Kiffin supporters to be found among the Knoxville media. Kiffin was too young, too inexperienced, and he had recently been fired from his current job in Oakland. Nevermind his accomplishments or the quality of staff that he could likely assemble, it just wasn't a good fit.

Even weeks later, after Kiffin was hired, things didn't change. I'm sure you remember. It was a questionable hire, they said. A 33 year-old NFL dropout with no college head coaching experience couldn't have possibly been Tennessee's first choice. Something had gone terribly wrong.

Perhaps the media prejudice towards young Kiffin arose from loyalty to coaches that were fired, or maybe it was simply the fear the unknown. Either way, there was undoubtedly a certain familiarity and comfort with the previous staff, which is very understandable considering the length of time that regime was in place.

It's also possible that media members were disappointed and embarrassed that none of their "likely replacements" were hired (Bill Cowher, John Gruden, or Butch Davis). I certainly don't recall any of them campaigning for Lane Kiffin as their candidate of choice, and as a result, they appeared uninformed.

But those days are behind us.

Yesterday was the first day of spring practice under new coach Lane Kiffin, and area media are suddenly gushing with excitement over what they witnessed on the football field. Once considered too young and inexperienced, Lane Kiffin now runs the best first day of practice in the history of football practices. A blueprint should be recorded and enshrined forever so all future generations can experience such greatness. We are being told that it was perfect -- physical, well organized, intense, and yet simplistic and fundamental.

I don't know why we've seen this sudden change, but now that the transformation is complete, I must caution you. Remember these words: physical and fundamental. Those are the adjectives that will be overused all spring and summer. They will be preached by the staff and repeated mindlessly by the media. Come fall, if they aren't careful, fans will be expect to see the most physical and fundamental team in the Southeastern Conference take the field.

Understand, I don't have a problem with the media being positive about practice. I'm certain the new regime, in many ways, is refreshing to everyone. It's even possible that Tuesday may have been an exceptional first day. Without question, football is a physical game and, absolutely, fundamentals are essential. But don't be blinded by the shine of the newness or seduced by the sound of football cliche's just because they originate from the lips of a different staff.

Last season, fans were promised a new offense (Clawfense) that would get the ball in the hands of play-makers in the open field. (What an innovative concept!) It was theme of the off-season. But as we quickly learned, having it said and printed repeatedly doesn't make it so.

Because I've let you in on this little secret, you will no longer be hyptonized by the establishment whenever you hear those words (physical and fundamental). Instead, they will serve as triggers that remind you of reality. And the reality is, this will be a process, a long process, that begins with a 5-7 football team.

I realize Tennessee fans are starving for success. So, before you label me, understand that all I'm asking is for realistic expectations - from both fans and media. It was the first day. At the very least, wait until Friday, when the team is sporting full football gear, before declaring the Vols' impending wrath upon the world of college football.

Tuesday Morning Orange Juice

I decided to come up with a catchy name for posts here that address happenings around the interwebs -- quick hits if you will. Some call them talking points, daily roundup, quick hitters, etc. You get the idea. So, along those same lines, I decided to call ours.... "Morning Orange Juice".

Yes, I realize it's corny but it's the best I could come up with -- and it does include the word orange, which just happens to be Tennessee's primary color (in case you were unaware). Keep in mind, there is a fine line between corny and cleverly genius.

Moving along.

• I voiced my displeasure of Tennessee basketball fans in Sunday's post-game piece. Expectations were set so high to start this season that many consider 19 wins and a co-SEC East championship to be a disappointment. It's a shame, really, that Bruce Pearl has to build up his teams' accomplishments as he did in yesterday's press conference. Even the University was forced to point out that this year's team has plenty to be proud of.
• Chris Low sat down with South Carolina's Alshon Jeffrey to talk about the recruiting process and Jeffrey had an interesting comment regarding Lane Kiffin:

According to Jeffrey and Wilson, Kiffin told Jeffrey that if he chose the Gamecocks, he would end up pumping gas for the rest of his life like all the other players from that state who had gone to South Carolina.

Should Kiffin have said something like this to a potential recruit? Probably not. I certainly don't think it helps his cause -- it didn't with Jeffrey. But on the other hand, I'm sure it's not the worst thing ever said on the recruiting trail. Typically most kids just choose not to pass those tidbits along to the media.

• A poster on VolNation.com (I spend a lot of time there and consider it my "home" board) posted a nice story about bumping into Charles Davis. The former Vol has done very well for himself, but most impressive to me is I've never heard anyone say anything negative about him.
  
• Does anyone else find it ironic that talk out of Camp Kiffin this week is, typically, it can take two years to implement a new system and see positive results from it? In Hooker's piece he quotes Monte citing Nick Saban's transition from a 7-6 team his first season to a 12-2 title contender in year two. Can you think of anyone else who claimed a two year time frame was needed when installing a new system? That's right, the much ridiculed Dave Clawson and his Clawfense.
• Drew Edwards put together a list of big things (his words, not mine) for the Vols as spring practice starts. While I don't completely agree with his list, he hits on a few of them. I'm putting a lot of stock in number five: the players buying in. I fully expect they will, yet I'm very interested to see the on-field discipline, especially of the offense, which has been clearly lacking under non-Cutcliffe coached Tennessee teams.
  
• While not totally sports related, I found it very interesting that the four major newspapers in the state of Tennessee (Knoxville News Sentinel, The Tennessean, Memphis Commercial Appeal, and Times Free Press) will begin sharing content. More evidence that the print media business is really struggling.
• The Georgia Sports Blog, in reference to the Dawgs' ongoing coaching search, put together a list of salaries earned by college basketball coaches around the country. Of those, Billy Gillespie at $2.3 million stood out to me. Hmm.
• The ACC & SEC Blog projects Southeastern Conference teams in the NCAA Tournament. I agree with their top four (LSU, Tennessee, South Carolina, and Auburn), but I disagree that Kentucky and Mississippi State are 'likely out'. I contend that the league's automatic bid is the only way either will make it. Patrick Patterson will play in the NIT, like it or not.
  

Scheduling has been Key for Tennessee Basketball

Bruce Pearl has always been an advocate of playing a difficult regular season schedule and this season has been no exception. The Vols strength of schedule has ranked number two or three in the country for most of the year, and for good reason. Looking at their out of conference games, it's easy to see why -- Sienna, Georgetown, Gonzaga (twice), Temple, Marquette, Kansas, and Memphis. Of those games, only Memphis and Gonzaga were played in Knoxville.

The go anywhere and play anyone approach has served Bruce Pearl well during his tenure at Tennessee. The Vols played their way to a No. 2 NCAA Tournament seed twice in Pearl's three trips to the Big Dance. In each case, strength of schedule was essential in obtaining such a high seed.

This year has been no different. Tennessee's RPI, influenced by their strength of schedule, is the key component that currently differentiates the Vols from the log jam of 19+ win SEC schools. Aside from Tennessee and LSU, the other teams are paying the price for poor scheduling and consequently, are bubble teams at best. Those schools are going to need a strong showing in the upcoming conference tournament to punch their ticket to the NCAA tournament.

In his Monday press conference, Coach Pearl acknowledged that scheduling has served him well -- it's something that he believes in strongly and will continue in the future. However, this season it's been somewhat of a negative for his young team because it hasn't allowed them to build any confidence or momentum by putting together 5,6, or 7 wins in a row. Regardless, Pearl insists that his formula for success is working.

The question then, is if strong scheduling is such a benefit, why doesn't every school do it? The answer is simple according to Pearl -- job security. Due to high expectations and the emphasis on winning NOW, typically about half of all coaches are on the hot seat and are therefore reluctant to schedule better teams. It's high reward, but also very high risk. If a coach over schedules and his team doesn't perform, that coach may not be back the following season. That's the reality.

Hungover in Knoxvlle - Tennessee Falls to Alabama 70-67

Excruciating. That's the word I would use to best describe today's 70-67 loss to Alabama. The three point prayer by Anthony Brock at the buzzer spoiled the Vols chances for 20 regular season wins.

From the beginning, the the body language of both our players and fans was horrible. Everyone in the arena behaved as if they were suffering from a hangover. And the students were apparently still sleeping theirs off. The student section behind the basket was practically empty.

With about ten minutes to go in the first half, Wayne Chism motioned and pleaded to the students to get up and get loud. The response? About five of them stood up and clapped. It's a pretty sad state of affairs when the mascot game of musical chairs and the kiss cam get more of a reaction than the basketball game.

As for the players, it was glaringly obvious they didn't bring the same level of intensity they showed the last two road games. With the exception of a couple stretches in the second half, they played uninspired basketball .

The bottom line is fans didn't create a hostile environment and the Alabama players wanted this game more than the Tennessee players. The Crimson Tide deserved to win.

On the positive side, I give props to the person that came up with the idea to honor Ryan Childress. During warm-ups, the players all wore shirts that stated: "Childress #34 Senior".

The other positive was Wayne Chism. I thought he was the only player that played with any passion and energy. His outside shooting and defense ignited the run that erased a double-digit Alabama lead.

I'll close with this thought: can we please stop talking about Anthony Brock and his "great story" now? I mean, he missed his flight and drove from Arkansas. Good for him. But it's not like he walked... barefoot... uphill the entire way. The media is always looking for an angle.

What other bloggers had to say:

• 3sib is the only other Vol blog I could find that already had some post game commentary -- Sleep Walking
• Chris Rich at FanHouse says the Vols are a team without a clue.
  

If You Take Me Back I Promise I Will Change -- and This Time I Really Mean It

As it turns out, even though I've only made a few posts here, this blog is like the steady girlfriend that I keep leaving behind and yet she keeps taking me back. Recently, I've spent time chasing other hot blogs around the internet. Some lasted and some didn't. Some were fulfilling for short time and some weren't. Yet here I am, back at The Vol Critic after an absence of nearly a year.

So why didn't I just start a new blog? I could have done that, but it's too much work. I tend to spend enormous amounts of time preparing for new things instead of just doing them. No, what I need is to log more time hammering on the keyboard -- not more time trying to pick out themes and tweak css files. I spend enough time doing that for some of my other interests.

So, here I am, but why? This blog always remains in the back of my mind for some reason. I seem to be drawn to it. Hopefully this time I can make a commitment and not walk out on her. (Is it weird that I keep referring to this blog as "her"?)

Any questions? Now that we have that reintroduction (sort of) out of the way, let's get to it.

There's a lot on the docket right now in the world of Tennessee sports. The football team begins Spring practice on Tuesday and there's going to a ton of material to get through in the next few weeks. It's likely going to be a media circus with Kiffin and company -- new coaches, a new class of players, new offensive and defensive schemes, full media access, and even a practice open to the fans. It's certainly going to be a lot different that any Spring we've had around Tennessee in quite some time. Buckle your seat belts and hold on.

But for now, I want to stick with basketball.

Less than two weeks ago, the Vols basketball team suffered an embarrassing loss to the Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington by 19 points. To make matters worse, that loss was on the heels of a 16-point drubbing at the hands of Ole Miss in Oxford. Fans were questioning the heart, drive, and overall talent of this basketball team. Even our fearless leader, who could do no wrong the past three seasons, was suddenly under attack.

After that Kentucky loss, Pearl called out his players. He said they quit and weren't representative of a "Bruce Pearl coached team". Pearl also called out himself and his coaching staff. With NCAA Tournament hopes dwindling, the Bruce Pearl era had hit its low point and bandwagon fans were jumping ship.

The following game, Tennessee returned home to try and get well against Mississippi State. The Vols won the game, 81-76, but weren't overly impressive in victory. Nevertheless, this team needed wins on their resume, and they got a crucial one against the Bulldogs.

But 17 wins wasn't going to be enough to get this basketball team into the Big Dance. Most analysts believe that with 18 wins, Tennessee would be a bubble team. However, with 19 wins, they would be a lock. The good news: the Vols could hit that mark by winning two of their final regular season games. The bad news: two of the remaining three games were road games against teams that were also battling for their tournament lives -- Florida and South Carolina.

Fast forward to the high point. Tennessee dismantled Florida in Gainesville 79-74, in a game that was not nearly as close as the score, and just days later, with the SEC Eastern Division title on the line, Bruce Pearl and company destroyed South Carolina by 17 in Columbia. With the wins, the Vols locked up a No. 1 Seed in the SEC Tournament.

Currently Tennessee stands with 19 wins and will have a chance to earn number 20 later today against Alabama.

All aboard! Fans are now knocking each other down to climb back on the bandwagon. This time, more fanatical than ever. The talks are now of a conference tournament championship and a possible appearance in the Elite 8. All of this from a team that fans had written off just a couple weeks ago. Makes you understand why fan is short for fanatical, doesn't it?