Not adapting the system to the talent...

by ArmyVOL on Oct 17, 2008 8:12 AM EDT Comment 4 comments

Hopper,

I keep hearing the demise of the program because of recruiting? But, haven't we over the last several years, except for one (cannot remember) ranked in the top ten recruiting classes?

I ask because as we have discussed, I focus on the intangibles of why the team might be having trouble, but when combined with your statistical ability, it comes up with close answers.

I think that our recruiting has been as good as any top tier team. My theory on why we are having troubles is that Fulmer and staff are not adapting a system to the type of talent they have, and instead keep forcing the talent they have into an out of date system (read your comment on how GA defense knew where we were running too). I know what Dave Clawson system was when he arrived, but still hearing a lot of rumors of Fulmer overriding decisions (and by what I see during games, it appears so).

I bet if you did a statistical comparision with our recruiting classes in the last few years, then we would find recruiting is not the issue, it is how we use the talent we have. I would also go further and theorize that as a result, the players are not playing to their full potential in a system they do not believe or feel comfortable in.

Don V

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Good question.

Let me see if I can work something up on that. It’ll take me a bit, but I’ll try to get an answer for you sometime midweekish next week. Feel free to pester me every now and then.

by Hooper on Oct 17, 2008 8:39 AM EDT reply actions

Great Analysis.

I completely agree with you. The Tennessee recruiting has been good, if not some of the best, for a while. I always ask myself during games “Are the kids at Florida, Gorgia, LSU, Alabama…USC, BYU, Boise State, OSU, Michigan, Texas, Oklahoma……are the kids at those schools just that much better than the boys at Tennessee?” No, of course they aren’t. We just have problems developing talent. That is obvious with the amount of Tennessee alumni that I get to watch on Sunday.

I also agree that the Tennessee program recruits players, then forces a specific system down their throats, while completely ignoring their talent. Manning worked great in the system, so did receivers during that era. Thus, he came in second in the Heisman race. But these days, with the SEC being a lot different than it was back in those days, you have to go out, get good players, and scheme towards their strengths. Especially on offense. And I think everyone in the country realizes that our “offensive” offense could use some imagination.

by USMarineVol on Oct 18, 2008 1:28 PM EDT reply actions

Another view

Perhaps our guys have been recruiting the wrong kind of talent for our system. I think if you have a Spurrier typw system, you don’t recruit a Michael Vick type QB… for example. Just a thought.

by Vol Fan in Fla on Oct 19, 2008 6:26 PM EDT up reply actions

Follow-up

I’m still working on it, and am probably going deeper into the question than you intended. (I tend to do that.) But I’m also in a training seminar this week and it’s sucking the life force out of my schedule. I didn’t anticipate this much loss of time. I’ll get something, I promise.

by Hooper on Oct 21, 2008 6:31 PM EDT reply actions