They're Not Even Good Khakis

I agree completely (see my comment from this morning.)

If there is a good reason for this, I haven’t heard it yet. Considering a stretch with our usual SEC foes, an above-average (but by no means elite) UNC team, and a crappy Brian Kelly-less Cinci team a “gauntlet” to be scared of is WAC thinking. Coach Dooley better learn how to think like an SEC coach.

And if this was Hamilton’s doing, his seat is getting warmer all the time.

so I’ll just stay mum on the topic for now.

Extremely disappointing. Good take. I’d just like to add two things:

1. We already had a bye week after the UNC game. So the gauntlet argument is crap, imo. Who changes their opponent before the bye week to be more rested after the bye week? Really?

2. If this is the difference between Shreveport and staying home for the winter, it’s a good call. We need the extra bowl practice. But I’m more hopeful about next year. This year’s biggest problems project to be depth and experience. Next year, we’ll have a recruiting class to fill out numbers, and we’ll have returning starters at QB, RB, 4 of 5 O-line spots, 3 of 4 D-line spots, and 3 of 4 secondary spots, to go with our already quality depth at WR and LB. Honestly, I see next year’s team positioned better than UNC, Cincy, Montana, MTSU, UK, Vandy, Georgia, and South Carolina, putting us at an 8 win expectation and a realistic shot to hit 10 (LSU at home, Arkansas likely minus Mallet). That’s not the team that needs an extra patsy to make a bowl.

This is stupid.

To anger. I realize there’s probably not that many North Carolina Vols who really can’t travel 6+ hours for a UT game and pay for hotels, parking, tickets, food, etc … but there is at least one. I was already making plans with some friends from UNC to spend a weekend with them, hang out for the first time in a few years, head to the game together — they were going to get me in with a Student-Guest ticket … but nah. Nah. Instead I’ll probably have to gamecast the Buffalo game since lord knows that game isn’t going to be televised over here .. and I can watch the bowl game we might make because of this. Pah. Pathetic. If we’re having another 5-6 season history shows we’ll choke against the cupcake WYOMING VANDERBILT team we got anyways.

I get so used to typing the tags in comments that I forget that they don’t work in the story editor.

[end tangent]

… which is patently ridiculous for a couple of reasons. First, most people don’t consider UNC and Cincinnati “big-name” teams, particularly with Brian Kelly gone. Vol fans in the 1990s would have laughed at the idea of running from either one of these teams.

Second:
FSU plays at Oklahoma and vs. BYU in back-to-back weeks this year, and closes their season with Florida.
Georgia’s playing at Colorado (not a “big name” in my mind, but they are if you consider the likes of UNC and Cinci “big names,”) and Georgia Tech this year.
Iowa State is playing at Iowa and vs. Utah this year.
LSU is playing UNC and West Virginia this year.
Miami is playing at Ohio State, vs. Pitt, and vs. USF this year. (Again, USF isn’t much, but I consider them at least as big a name as Cinci.)
Oklahoma plays FSU and at Cinci this year.
Oregon St. plays at TCU and at Boise St. in the first four weeks this year.
Pitt plays at Utah and vs. Miami in the first four weeks and also plays at Notre Dame this year.
USF plays at Florida and at Miami this year.
Utah plays Pitt and at Notre Dame this year.
Washington plays at BYU and vs. Nebraska this year.

Try again, Jacoby.

Dropping this game means that we, as fans, will get an inferior game. It may also be the difference between CDD keeping and losing a job. I can’t fault the guy for that. And we were the play anyone-anywhere team, back when we were good. We ain’t good anymore. If CDD wants to be here in three years to savor the fruit of the rebuilding tree he’s planting, he has to survive. At the end of each year, the key metric he’s going to be graded on is win-loss; this is especially true next year, since I think he gets a well-deserved pass on that this year. “Playing tough” and “being in the games” are going to matter exactly doodly squat if we go 5-7 next year and miss a bowl.

Dropping this game means that we, as fans, will get an inferior game. It may also be the difference between CDD keeping and losing a job. I can’t fault the guy for that. And we were the play anyone-anywhere team, back when we were good. We ain’t good anymore. If CDD wants to be here in three years to savor the fruit of the rebuilding tree he’s planting, he has to survive. At the end of each year, the key metric he’s going to be graded on is win-loss; this is especially true next year, since I think he gets a well-deserved pass on that this year. “Playing tough” and “being in the games” are going to matter exactly doodly squat if we go 5-7 next year and miss a bowl.

Never would I have thought we would back down from anyone. UNC isn’t that huge of a Juggernaut. It now looks as though we will duck opponents when it suits our interests. Certainly, this is not the Tennessee way I remember. Buying this game out would have been acceptable if we were doing it to play USC — not a cupcake. Ugh.

from earlier today, listen here

Hamilton sounds worried about finding six wins not just this year, but next year. And that’s fine – we’ll see how often he keeps signing his letters with “Expect to win” at the bottom.

But instead of being worried about finding just enough, we didn’t want to look at this game as an opportunity? Let’s just use a somewhat reasonable scenario and say we go 7-5 this year, and then we win our bowl game to get to 8-5. I still don’t think UT people are going to then suddenly expect us to be in Atlanta in 2011. If we did that and then lost at Chapel Hill (which would probably come on the heels of losing at Gainesville), I don’t think anyone would start screaming that the sky was falling.

No one is going to remember what happens against Buffalo unless we lose. So you’ve cashed in an opportunity for this program to take a step forward. Fans don’t care about numbers are much as we care about moments – for instance, we went 8-5 in 2002 and 7-6 last year, but last year was a thousand times more enjoyable; even with one fewer total win, the games we won (and the way we played) in ‘09 were much more memorable than ’02 (where I remember 6 OTs against Arkansas, and that’s it). If we lose to North Carolina, okay, we’re still rebuilding. But this takes away an opportunity for a win that would help us move forward, a step in the process, now replaced with a meaningless game. The only reason you do this is if you believe Buffalo for North Carolina is the difference between 6-6 and 5-7…and if that’s the case next year, then we’ve got much bigger problems and so does Mike Hamilton.

And here’s a natural question out of all of this. I know not all UT fans agree, but I think Mike Hamilton has done a good job as AD. He hit the jackpot on Bruce Pearl. The improvements at Thompson-Boling are incredible. Neyland Stadium has gotten a facelift. The non-revenue sports are winning the way they always have (other than baseball, where I guess the jury’s still out on Raleigh). The Fulmer situation was a nightmare that he didn’t ask for, but looking back I think he made the only move he could (not in hiring Kiffin, but in letting Phillip go when he did).

But now with Kiffin and the NCAA and the bleak outlook in football, Hamilton has to know that most, if not all of his fate is tied directly to Dooley. So is there a part of him that knows he has to try and make life as easy as possible on Dooley, so he can make life as easy as possible on himself? That’s a natural inclination that I think all of us would have and many of us would act on – you see GMs in professional sports (especially the NBA) do this all the time, where they make just enough moves to be just good enough to stay employed.

Either way, we’ve sold out an opportunity to move forward, and a piece of our reputation along with it.

There’s still no reason to take any nonsense from any other SEC teams about non-conference scheduling. We still have a stronger past and future than any other team in this league.

[FULMERIZED] [FULMERIZED] [FULMERIZED]ing [FULMERIZED] in the [FULMERIZED] [FULMERIZED] [FULMERIZED] ear.

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As my original post(s) stated, I’m playing Devil’s Advocate; I am in no way stating that my position is the be all-end all position. Not that I’m implying that any of you are accusing me of that; I just wanted to make it clear. That being said, I’m not even 100% on my own side of the issue. I think it sucks that the state of our program even makes this a move that had to be considered, let alone made, and even with where the Vols are I still say, bring ‘em all on. The same part of me that said bring U$C on, even tho the rational part of me said that the upside for a losing wounded U$C team in terms of publicity and exposure were much more than a hypothetical win for us. If I’ve ruffled feathers, I apologize – I’ll blame it on the low-iodine diet. No dairy and no bacon make Dan something something. :)

We are approaching this as the possible difference between 5-7 and 6-6. What about 6-6 and 7-5? Would we rather risk UNC and 6-6 or take Buffalo and 7-5?

should never run from a middling ACC team. shame, shame, shame.

the UNC football team hasn’t been better than 4-4 playing in a basketball conference since 2004 (pre-season ncaa polls be fulmerized!). leave them on the schedule and beat them. end of story.

Inferior product at a marked-up price. The cover charge for these switches will guarantee that we’re paying Izod level for something nameless out of the bargain bin. And we’ll be expected to pay it because passing up on this ‘deal’ will ‘only hurt the players’.

A few years ago I had a conversation with Joel in the week leading up to a game where Tennessee was playing somebody weak (maybe Marshall?). Anyway, I couldn’t go to the game—it was shortly after the birth of my twins—and Joel said he probably wouldn’t go either out of lack of interest.

I told him that was a mistake: that gameday at Neyland is a special event that only happens 6 or 7 times a year and that if you have the chance to go, you gotta go. That said, I think we fans should boycott the Buffalo game next year.

I’m not mad at the idea of us looking “cowardly” for “ducking” UNC. I’m mad at the idea of UTAD charging, what, like forty bucks for what in the best-case scenario will a a terribly dull and forgettable game?

You weren’t going to Neyland that day anyway. You were either going on a pretty terrific road trip or sitting at home to watch what would have been an intriguing game (to say the least). So still don’t go to Neyland. Or, if you feel the need to support the boys, go to the stadium, go en masse to the Vol walk, find a tailgate with a satellite and be entertained. But don’t give those [FULMERIZED]s a penny that they don’t deserve.

Don’t let them sell you crap. Don’t but the khakis.

(or fortunately I guess, depending on your POV) it was a lack of butts in seats that ultimately eroded the last of CPF’s support and got him fired. Everyone is free to vote with their wallets, but it’s often not as tightly targeted a weapon as you might hope.

Not exactly the best way to instill confidence in a fanbase already hesitant to purchase tickets for this upcoming season.

I think I’ll be scalping my way into a few games this year…

And my own still seething anger every time I see this caused me to make a new signature. We need content during the football season? Can I have a “I’m from North Carolina AND I HATE YOUR GUTS RIGHT NOW MIKE HAMILTON!!!!!!!!!!!” column? The content will be something like this:

A chicken crap move by Mike and Derek. I do not care how tough the schedule is next year. Man up and go to Chapel Hill and play’em. UNC is a middle of the pack team in the ACC and we can not play err, beat them in their barn. Even attempt to beat them in their barn. This is a step back for the program. Let’s hope next year Buffalo does not have an experience team that comes in fired up to play in front of 100,000 plus and steals a win on the hill. If that happens it might not have been so bad to go to UNC after all.

Buffalo is my wife’s alum.

If we lose this game (and gawd help us of we do) I will be forced to move out my of freaking house.

Thanks Mike. Appreciate tat. Better marriages through SEC Football schedules brought to you by Mike Hamilton.

In 1981, UT started the season on the road at Georgia( defending Nat’l Champs) and S. California. The Big Orange got spanked both weeks by total score of 87-7. Tennesee started the year out 0-2 but bounced back and won 7 out of the next 9 and finished the year at 7-4. Also won the bowl game the defunct Garden State Bowl to finish with 8 wins. Coach Majors did not seek relief for such a tough opening schedule. Instead the team work hard and got better to finish with a good year. 2011 would have been a difficult challenge but it should have been met head on and not looking like a team wimping out to go to Nashville for the Music city bowl. A bad move by both Mike and Derek.