Talking Points: Chick-Fil-A to host the Bristol Bowl everyone wanted

by Joel Hollingsworth on Dec 7, 2009 7:27 AM EST in Rocky Top Talking Points

The Tennessee-Virginia Tech matchup in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl is a bit of consolation for the failed Bristol Bowl, which would have pit the two teams against each other at the 160,000-seat Bristol Motor Speedway. Apparently, the Bristol Bowl mostly died when someone recently made some changes to the infield that were not conducive to playing football on it, but the schools have continued to talk about the idea as recently as a couple of months ago. Unfortunately, the two teams' schedules are full for the next ten years or so, so it ain't gonna happen for at least a decade. Fortunately, the matchup matters more than the seat count, and the Chick-Fil-A was savvy enough to see that and seize the opportunity when it arose. Will, who's uniquely positioned to address all facets of this game, is skipping around his living room like a kid at Christmas, and he's already stockpiling posts for the next three weeks. The first look goes live in . . . four minutes.
So yeah, the SEC got a record 10 teams into bowls this season. The full bowl schedule is here.
When a member of the Tennessee football staff goes into a living room to recruit a player, he doesn't just bring a smile and a handshake, he brings an easel and whiteboard.
Check out Tennessee's free throw drill, designed to simulate real-game pressure. Oh, and Mike Griffith, after watching the Kentucky-North Carolina game Saturday, says that the Vols are a distant second to the Wildcats. I'm afraid I'll have to agree with him at this point.
The Lady Vols beat Texas last night, 78-58.

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FYI, I'm two days away from freedom.

I’ll catch up on the Lady Vols then. They’re beginning to shape up for what could be a monster season.

by David Hooper on Dec 7, 2009 10:05 AM EST reply actions

Vols can't compete with Kentucky???

I guess were not as good as Miami (OH) or Sam Houston State, or Stanford.

I think Mike Griffith is confused. He was floored by a 28-2 run on UNC’s defense??? UNC barely plays defense.

Honestly – I think Tennessee might be better than UNC this year. Imagine that! Oh, and UK only beat them by 2 points.

Saying we are a distant 2nd is one thing, but he says we can’t even compete! Making judgments like that, I’m surprised he doesn’t put Florida above us too!

by golfballs03 on Dec 7, 2009 12:23 PM EST reply actions

UK had an obscene 28-2 run in the first half; quite frankly, I don't understand how there are four teams better than they are.

Simulated Gameday Experience - just like the real thing, only we have smoke machines.

by Chris Pendley on Dec 7, 2009 8:13 PM EST up reply actions

Parrish has had them at #2 all year

Which means we have three scheduled games this season against the top 2 teams in the country. This is before we even get to folks like Purdue and Florida, which provides three more games against top 10 teams.

by Incipient_Senescence on Dec 7, 2009 9:46 PM EST reply actions