I fully agree that the D did a lot of terrific things on Labor Day. In fact, the D had such a terrific 1st half that UCLA was reduced to half a dimension (passing game, but no long passes whatsoever). When they did try to run from inside their own 10-yard line, they very nearly (read: probably did) give up a safety and were spared only by an offside call. That’s why I’m optimistic about the defense. UCLA was decimated on offense, certainly, but the performance was still remarkable and the players did a fantastic job of playing their roles. Heck, we didn’t even need the linebackers to worry about the run; the front four had that completely sewn up on their own.

The only gripe I’d have on D is the playcalling in the second half. Once everybody knew that UCLA only had one page left in the playbook, we should have worked to shut that down too. I wanted to see UT at least attempt to take away the short inside routes. If they had been burned on a long pass as a result, I would have been much happier. But I get scared when a team does one thing over and over again, and we never pick up on it. On the defensive side, that’s the only thing I worry about. If we’d quit throwing paper against Edward Scissorhands, I’d have no fears about the defense (even if we’d still lost).

I’m also guilty to your charge of giving a pass on the offense. The difference (to me) was that the offensive troubles weren’t entirely fixable through playcalling. Crompton was too comfortable in the pocket, held the ball too long, and ended up throwing under pressure too much. A part of that was probably the green practice jersey, a part was Crompton, and a part was that the coaching staff didn’t address that habit well enough. But unlike the D, that was a new starting QB in a new system with a new coordinator, and those things are sometimes a surprise to everybody. I don’t know, so I’ll wait on it.

The playcalling is more suspect on O. I’m guessing it was because of the blitz packages that UCLA used, but Clawson really seemed to shy away from the run in the second half. But we were running so well to the outside that it seemed odd not to use it. I’ll agree with you on that.

I’ll also agree about Slade. Unless he was telling his secondary to play 10 yards off on a 3rd and 5, there’s nothing to complain about there.

All in all, I hope that the message in my posts has been this: that UT has the makings of an excellent team, and with the right adjustments, we can see them go from that shocker to world-beaters. Text-only communication tends to make things sound nastier than intended, but I hope I sounded optimistic. I’ve never been in the “off with their heads camp”. (For example, I think Chavis made a mistake in his playcalling, but it doesn’t mean I think he’s worthless. If I did, I’d be posting my opinion on GVX.)

(Nitpick: 0.9 yards per rush for 29 yards net. Doesn’t change how phenomenal it was, especially since we only had one sack for 9 yards, resulting in 38 net non-sack rushing yards on 30 non-sack carries.)

Great write-up, by the way. +1 recommend.

without a doubt, Chavis has proven he is apt in defensive coaching, and i am certain of the talent of our D-line, linebackers, and secondary. we just seem to have fallen into that “prevent” mode, too early,too often. where is the intensity that Big Orange (and the SEC) is known for, feared for? we have the knowledge, we have the skill. let us use both for 60 minutes! and yes, that goes for the offense, as well. GIVE ’EM HELL, TENNESSEE!

The D played great …. until it mattered. Then they went into the patented John Chavis Prevent Defense (following the equally stupid “pooch” kickoff which guarantees the opposing team great field position) and lost the game. I’ve seen it before, usually it’s against a team that is better than UT. Sadly, it’s now metastasized against teams we are favored to beat.

Here’s what I saw on my TV, a 3rd string QB took his team 70 yards down the field with 1:54 left in the game. There were no Eli Manning to David Tyree type plays. It was easy. It was so easy for him he had 0:27 to spare when he threw the TD pass.

Here’s how he did it:

1st and 10 at UCLA 30 Kevin Craft pass complete to Taylor Embree for 21 yards to the Tenn 49 for a 1ST down.
1st and 10 at TENN 49 Kevin Craft pass complete to Ryan Moya for 9 yards to the Tenn 40.
2nd and 1 at TENN 40 Kevin Craft pass incomplete to Dominique Johnson.
3rd and 1 at TENN 40 Kevin Craft rush for 2 yards to the Tenn 38 for a 1ST down.
1st and 10 at TENN 38 Kevin Craft pass complete to Ryan Moya for 9 yards to the Tenn 29.
2nd and 1 at TENN 29 Timeout Ucla, clock 00:49.
2nd and 1 at TENN 29 Kevin Craft pass complete to Dominique Johnson for 18 yards to the Tenn 11 for a 1ST down.
1st and 10 at TENN 11 Timeout TENNESSEE, clock 00:44.
1st and 10 at TENN 11 Kevin Craft pass complete to Ryan Moya for 8 yards to the Tenn 3.
2nd and 2 at TENN 3 Timeout Ucla, clock 00:35.
2nd and 2 at TENN 3 Kevin Craft pass incomplete to Ryan Moya.
3rd and 2 at TENN 3 Kevin Craft pass complete to Ryan Moya for 3 yards for a TOUCHDOWN.

When you pass for 21 yards, 9 yards, 9 yards, 18 yards, 8 yards, and 3 yards at crunch time, a 0.9 yards/rush average doesn’t hurt much.