Rocky Top Talk - Gamecenter: Tennessee vs. FloridaHope Lives Herehttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/51389/rtt-fav.png2018-09-25T19:12:16-04:00http://www.rockytoptalk.com/rss/stream/176376672018-09-25T19:12:16-04:002018-09-25T19:12:16-04:00The Flip Side: What to Worry About, What to Feel Good About Post Florida Loss
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<figcaption>Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Yes, there are positive takeaways from Saturday.</p> <p id="N4aF31">Now that the meltdowns have subsided, it’s time for an honest look at the Florida game and where Tennessee can find positivity/negativity for the future. The latter is obvious, while the former seems impossible.</p>
<p id="VQGTZM">But there are legitimately encouraging signs that Tennessee is improving in certain regards. It’s not enough to outweigh biggest worries of course. Each game still deserves an objective analysis and overview of what to expect for the future. We’ll get into the negatives first and then move to the positives (which do exist!).</p>
<h2 id="mvPwbJ">Worry</h2>
<p id="k6SIfw"><strong>Offensive Line</strong></p>
<p id="2jyBSU">Let’s jump right into it.</p>
<p id="cpycYj">Florida’s front seven was the first true test for an offensive line which struggled during non-conference play. Whether it was a new scheme or rust, the hope for Tennessee was that it would all come together after in-game experience.</p>
<p id="sCIJgL">Well they failed the test by a large margin.</p>
<p id="tSa8TQ">Tennessee’s offensive line suffers from a little bit of everything at the moment. They have some nice pieces who fit into what they want to run, but right now there are a couple of players who simply can’t do what Tyson Helton requires of the line. Power-running teams don’t need to hit home runs on every attempt—they just need minimal gains at the very least. If you surrender negative plays in this type of offense, it’s very hard to dig yourself out of a hole.</p>
<p id="Ch6yRE">Schematically, there are some things Helton can do to evade the issue. Quicker developing plays, inverse play calls, etc. But the Florida tape showed what many feared: it wasn’t that much of a scheme issue. Players simply weren’t reaching their blocks or weren’t winning 1-on-1 battles.</p>
<p id="z7y0Io">Even worse, Florida’s defensive line is one of the weaker units on the schedule. It’s going to be tough sledding against basically every remaining SEC opponent.</p>
<p id="r8v5IY">Not all hope is lost, since offensive lines can progress throughout the year, and they can turn in surprising performances. It’s still not encouraging to see how they performed against the Gators. The situation up front is going to take a long time to improve, so strap in and be prepared for struggles.</p>
<p id="blwpBJ"><span><strong>Jarrett Guarantano</strong></span><strong>’s Confidence</strong></p>
<p id="dtrufQ">Getting hit early and often has been known to derail even the most promising of quarterback careers. Guarantano already suffered through one lame-duck coaching staff, and now he’s being forced to take shots in the pocket while the offense figures out its identity. Paired with a dirty hit by <span>Cece Jefferson</span> that knocked him out of the contest, and it’s starting to become a question of how much he can take.</p>
<p id="bYuwCw">Tennessee should focus on getting Guarantano back to high-percentage throws and helping him ease into a rhythm. He’s a fine quarterback when defenders aren’t in his face, but he does seem especially prone to bad decisions when they are. If this upcoming stretch of top-10 opponents leads to many more hits on him, his confidence might never recover.</p>
<p id="YklOFi"><strong>Mental Mistakes</strong></p>
<p id="F85KkI">Last week’s edition of this article mentioned the exact same factor in the “Worry” section. But I’ll admit, even I didn’t expect it to culminate in six turnovers. There’s a lot of luck involved in recovering fumbles and what not, yet there is absolutely a mental aspect to it as well. Sometimes players try to do too much and they end up being careless with the ball. One thing leads to another, and all of the sudden you’re minus-5 in the turnover margin.</p>
<p id="P1xCIB">Even things like missing an easy block or taking a bad angle can be rooted in mental mistakes. That’s not going to fly for Jeremy Pruitt, so his coaching staff needs to make sure that the players stick to the plan and don’t overreact to what will be a very challenging season. </p>
<h2 id="SiME62">Feel Good</h2>
<p id="Kp3ZT5"><strong>Defensive Improvement</strong></p>
<p id="BKwPHc">Giving up 47 points to a very mediocre offense seems like an odd game to draw the conclusion that there was defensive improvement. This is yet another example of a box score not showing the full story.</p>
<p id="WJzvGU">Three turnovers inside Tennessee’s 25-yard line meant that Florida had an incredibly easy time punching it into the end zone. Yes, they could’ve technically held them to field goals or less, but that takes a truly elite defense. Absolutely no one is expecting that with Tennessee’s current situation. Maybe in the future, but not now.</p>
<p id="9bofBr">I mentioned in a previous article that on 7 of the other 12 Florida drives, Tennessee’s defense allowed less than 30 yards and forced a punt. That’s a pretty good sign that the defense was more or less doing their job. There were some bad moments like <span>Freddie Swain</span>’s 65-yard touchdown reception, but on the whole the defense wasn’t consistently getting pushed around.</p>
<p id="wuidSA">Rather unsurprisingly, when Tennessee was down by three scores and the offense could get absolutely nothing going, that’s when the Gators produced a lengthy drive.</p>
<p id="oDrSTi">The offenses will only get better from here on out. It’s imperative that the defense understands certain things are out of their control and that they need to go out and play to their fullest ability. Pruitt is a great defensive coach and he will have them playing well enough to give opposing offenses fits. As much as they’d like for their own offense to help them out a bit, sometimes it’s not in the cards.</p>
<p id="fiq0i3"><strong>Wide Receivers</strong></p>
<p id="CK5Ho5">Arguably the best position group on the team turned into the indisputably best position group on the team. Tennessee’s receivers gained consistent separation for most of the night, they just couldn’t rely on the offensive line to give the QB enough time to distribute the ball. That’s disappointing, but it shouldn’t take away from what Tennessee has in its arsenal.</p>
<p id="KlOu0q">Expecting coaches to change their gameplans wholesale is not a realistic possibility. That being said, Helton really should consider coming out with more passes early on and utilizing quicker developing plays. Tennessee absolutely has the receivers to do it. If he’s unwilling to do so, it probably doesn’t bode well for his future with the team.</p>
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https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2018/9/25/17893136/tennessee-vols-football-good-bad-florida-gators-loss-jeremy-pruittClint Eiland2018-09-24T19:00:02-04:002018-09-24T19:00:02-04:00Florida Gators vs. Tennessee Volunteers: Final Grades
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<figcaption><em>The Vols were dreadful on Saturday.</em> | Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p><em>A miserable performance gives the Vols their worst grade of the year</em></p> <p id="tv6KAT">That was absolutely brutal.</p>
<p id="vIaRO4">Tennessee was obliterated by rival Florida on Saturday night on a national stage. Not only did they look like an FCS team, but there hardly any positives to build on other than the fact that they learned how to take a good, old fashioned ass-kicking. </p>
<p id="I7hZ12">This week’s grades mirror those of a college freshman who decided to partake in Thirsty Thursday the night before an exam. </p>
<p id="Sx6p4y">Hold onto your butts, Vols fans.</p>
<h3 id="6SJ8Fd"><strong>Offense</strong></h3>
<p id="gtRzXI">The Vols came into this game with one major concern, the offensive line. If they played well, then Tennessee had a chance to win the game, but if they didn’t play well then there would be little to no chance of a victory in Neyland Stadium. </p>
<p id="zk7HUk">The offensive line was downright pitiful. Florida was constantly in the backfield all game long and <span>Jarrett Guarantano</span> took hit after hit, eventually giving way to <span>Keller Chryst</span> due to an injury on a late hit by a Gator defender.</p>
<p id="krQdkZ">The issues up front bled into the overall offensive performance throughout the night. Tennessee committed two turnovers on their first two possessions and Florida made them pay by scoring 14 points off of the miscues. </p>
<p id="3kaSBq">And it didn’t stop there. Down 23-3, Tyson Helton knew his offense needed a spark. The first-year offensive coordinator called the perfect play as Guarantano found a wide-open <span>Austin Pope</span> streaking down the sideline.</p>
<p id="nyP26m">But in the most symbolic expression of the past decade of UT football, Pope lost control of the ball and it went out of the back of the endzone. </p>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Let me show you what a decade of depression looks like.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UFvsTENN?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#UFvsTENN</a> <a href="https://t.co/rKB6IXYNkt">pic.twitter.com/rKB6IXYNkt</a></p>— Allan Bell (@AllanBell247) <a href="https://twitter.com/AllanBell247/status/1043654634139729920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 23, 2018</a>
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<p id="lU6q6t">Florida ball.</p>
<p id="YZKvGj">Then the Vols fumbled again on their next possession and finished the first half with four turnovers and faced a 26-3 deficit at halftime. Tennessee didn’t score their first touchdown until late in the third quarter.</p>
<p id="lXxczm">The offense averaged just 4.4 yards per play, committed six turnovers, and finished with six penalties for 58 yards. </p>
<p id="fCOrh6"><strong>Final Grade: 0.0 (F)</strong></p>
<h3 id="NAOUEb"><strong>Defense</strong></h3>
<p id="YFDPwF">In all fairness to the defense, they were put in some tough spots throughout the night and didn’t get many breaks from the other side of the ball. </p>
<p id="RvP7gI">But they also didn’t do anything to help themselves, either.</p>
<p id="3VHkzr">The pass rush was non-existent. The stat line wouldn’t agree with that because the Vols did record two sacks, but both of those came after the Gators had extended their lead to 33-3. </p>
<p id="1DbsKC"><span>Alontae Taylor</span> made another play after forcing a <span>Lamical Perine</span> fumble, but that was just about all the defense did all day long. </p>
<p id="MVDePj">Florida ran for over 200 yards and averaged 5.9 yards per carry. As a whole, <span>Feleipe Franks</span> and the rest of the Gators averaged about 7.3 yards per play on offense. </p>
<p id="okSB03">Despite being placed in bad situations, the defense needs to figure out how to get out of such situations when called upon. I know this team is young, but they have to start improving at some point. </p>
<p id="WJ39TA">Allowing 47 points at home is not improvement. </p>
<p id="Zy4Upk">Right now, it’s not enough. </p>
<p id="vv675u"><strong>Final Grade: 1.0 (D)</strong></p>
<h3 id="AM70pn"><strong>Special Teams</strong></h3>
<p id="DiAjLp"><span>Brent Cimaglia</span> hit both of this field goal attempts and is still perfect on the season with a 4-4 mark. </p>
<p id="cLPQx1">The rest of the unit played well. The Vols punted decently and kickoff coverage was good. There weren’t any muffed punts this time around, so at least there was improvement on the field in some capacity. </p>
<p id="6llbQs"><strong>Final Grade: 4.0 (A)</strong></p>
<h3 id="p7A2Z1"><strong>Coaching</strong></h3>
<p id="tIlzQ6">There was so much hope riding on this coaching staff coming into the season, whether it was warranted or not. </p>
<p id="Nv4KAh">The main key for this season was improvement. As long as the team improved from week to week, then everything was going to be just fine. </p>
<p id="ojPc8d">After four games, it’s safe to say this team has done everything but improve. </p>
<p id="FFOcmN">Pruitt’s frustrations came to a head against Florida and it was visible to everyone around. </p>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Not the whiteboard ... <a href="https://t.co/Mol0WijRDO">pic.twitter.com/Mol0WijRDO</a></p>— ESPN CollegeFootball (@ESPNCFB) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNCFB/status/1043670381192798208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 23, 2018</a>
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<p id="yUdV9H">At this point, it’s going to be a long season and fans are going to have to endure some major growing pains with the players and the coaching staff. </p>
<p id="omIeuX">Without growth, however, it’s just pain.</p>
<p id="yHnRGm">And it’s safe to say there is plenty of that on Rocky Top right now. </p>
<p id="PNf96w"><strong>Final Grade: 0.0 (F)</strong></p>
<h3 id="1Tioub"><strong>Overall Grade: 1.25 (D)</strong></h3>
<p id="4hURuY">This was one of the worst performances ever witnessed against the Gators. The Vols were better off with <span>Nathan Peterman</span> under center in 2013. </p>
<p id="1cY96T">It doesn’t get any better with a road trip to Athens coming up. </p>
<h2 id="exhI8I"><strong>Overall Grade For The 2018 Season: 2.43 (C)</strong></h2>
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https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2018/9/24/17896792/florida-gators-vs-tennessee-volunteers-final-grades-vols-sec-pruitt-mullenEvan Winter2018-09-23T09:15:23-04:002018-09-23T09:15:23-04:00Turnovers Made Tennessee Look Worse Than They Really Were
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<img alt="Florida v Tennessee" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/DxGcdHr2AFR2pARK0V8-5WqotAg=/0x0:4906x3271/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/61508743/1038183440.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Saturday was bad, but how bad was it really?</p> <p id="7Lr45s">Absolutely no one in Knoxville is happy with the 47-21 loss to the <a href="https://www.alligatorarmy.com/">Florida Gators</a> on Saturday night. It doesn’t change the commitment to Jeremy Pruitt or the team, but it provides quite the gut check for those thinking that the team would at least make it close for four quarters.</p>
<p id="we5hFx">After blowout losses, fans typically look for a rational explanation. Perhaps it was the coaches being completely unprepared? Maybe it was the refs shifting momentum with bogus calls? There has to be an obvious and tangible source of bad play, right?</p>
<p id="Ri1J1d">The truth is, football doesn’t work that way. Coaching, officiating, bad strategy, all of these bear certain levels of responsibility in losses. But Tennessee’s coaches honestly had fine gameplans against Florida—good enough to win the game if they could have executed.</p>
<p id="p61eA0">Yet Tennessee’s biggest negative on Saturday night was turnover luck.</p>
<p id="OtYc93">The Volunteers coughed up the ball six times over the course of the game and accumulated a minus-5 turnover margin. That’s almost unheard of in Power-5 games between evenly matched opponents in non-monsoon weather. They turned it over four times in one half, three times in their own red zone, and once on a touchback. My intention is not to traumatize Volunteer fans, but to make sure that everyone understands just how bad of a situation that puts the team in.</p>
<p id="2lcyHM">Here’s the part that frustrates those wishing for the aforementioned rational explanations: turnovers are a luck-based stat.</p>
<p id="lT18WN">SBNation’s own Bill Connelly <a href="https://www.footballstudyhall.com/2015/1/30/7947287/college-football-turnover-luck-2014-tcu-oklahoma">explains it better</a> than I could (math gives me heart palpitations):</p>
<blockquote><p id="9llxWh">The concepts are pretty simple: Over time, you’re going to recover about 50 percent of all fumbles, but in a given year, you might recover 70 percent, or you might recover 30. The same goes with passes defensed; on average, you can expect to intercept about 22 percent of the passes you defense. (Passes defensed = interceptions + break-ups.) This is a bit mushier a concept ... but over time a particularly butter-fingered year will be balanced by a sticky one.</p></blockquote>
<p id="mlZ1JZ">The proliferation of sideline objects glorifying turnovers has distracted from the truth about them. They can’t really be controlled, high turnover margins can’t really be replicated, and coaches can’t really teach it to their players. When Miami swings around their turnover chain after a fumble or interception, it’s a great spectacle that gets both their team and their fans fired up. But beyond that it’s not actually affecting anything.</p>
<p id="e3JMyl"><em>(As a side note, there is one potential exception to this rule. That’d be </em><a href="http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/24142400/coaches-their-everlasting-quest-coach-turnovers"><em>Jeremy Pruitt himself</em></a><em>.)</em></p>
<p id="MYMIey">That’s not to say that all turnovers are created equal. Coaches can teach proper carrying technique, and quarterbacks especially can reduce bad decision making. But think of how many plays you’ve witnessed where the ball took an awkward bounce and ended up in the hands of a defender. Tipped passes, bad snaps, muffed kicks, etc. Virtually none of that can really be controlled.</p>
<p id="ZQL2uF">Turnovers might not even have that much connection to winning/losing. It’s a chicken-or-egg type situation where winning teams tend to not cough it up as much as losing teams.</p>
<p id="6pNVoX">That being said, absolutely every coach and analyst will tell you the same thing about field position. If you can start drives in an opponent’s territory, your chances of scoring go up tremendously.</p>
<p id="vTb5il">If you can start a drive inside a team’s 25-yard line? <em>Not</em> scoring would be very unusual.</p>
<p id="I97t2m">So Tennessee went down 14-0 early because of <span>Jarrett Guarantano</span>’s turnovers. One of those was an odd strip sack where the ball went right into the linemen, while the other was simply a great play by a defender who jumped a screen. Both times the Gators started their drives in fantastic position to score.</p>
<p id="seO4Ug">It only got worse from there. Tight end <span>Austin Pope</span> had the worst play of the night when he went 54 yards on 4th down and managed to fumble the ball out of the endzone, giving up possession when Tennessee desperately needed the momentum.</p>
<p id="1ZbaZG"><span>Shawn Shamburger</span> put the icing on the cake when Tennessee received the second-half kickoff and Shamburger put it on the ground. It took Florida exactly one play to score, on a 19-yard scamper.</p>
<p id="AEvHFr">Two more turnovers happened later in the game, but those occurred after Tennessee went down by 30 points.</p>
<p id="mV9DwU">Turnovers have a funny way of completely skewing final scores. Florida is not 26 points better than Tennessee and most knowledgable Florida observers would agree with that conclusion. The raw numbers support it too, since Florida outgained Tennessee by just 24 total yards (387 vs. 363). Put another way, if you subtracted the three touchdowns where the drives started inside the Tennessee 25-yard line, you get a much more understandable 26-21 final.</p>
<p id="LQsMwi">On 7 of the other 12 Florida drives, Tennessee’s defense allowed less than 30 yards and forced a punt. Another drive ended in a forced fumble. The big plays hurt, and Pruitt will need to preach consistency, but the Vols looked considerably better on that side of the ball.</p>
<p id="0FPr0F">Ifs, ands, or butts won’t make the loss feel any better. At the end of the day, Tennessee lost big to one of their rivals on a massive recruiting weekend. The team needs to regroup and the coaches need to make sure that the locker room remains intact.</p>
<p id="yva9G0">It’s still valuable to put Saturday’s struggles in context. Tennessee showed flashes of a better team beneath all their mistakes, and unless you expect them to have a minus-5 turnover margin in the rest of their games, they’ll probably look better against the final stretch of their schedule. </p>
<p id="8nqkwR">Now, the next three contests against Top-10 teams? Well...maybe Tennessee should start wearing some four-leaf clovers.</p>
<p id="PSwnts"></p>
https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2018/9/23/17891704/tennessee-vols-football-florida-gators-turnovers-jeremy-pruitt-secClint Eiland2018-09-23T00:27:37-04:002018-09-23T00:27:37-04:00What Jeremy Pruitt said after the loss to Florida
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<img alt="NCAA Football: Florida at Tennessee" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/3gMD6T7-vHIJSq6V4Te4aQAzc3Q=/0x0:4000x2667/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/61507379/usa_today_11303587.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p id="smlA3H">Tennessee shot themselves in the foot time and time again against the <a href="https://www.alligatorarmy.com/">Florida Gators</a> on Saturday night at Neyland Stadium. It was a disappointing night from a Tennessee perspective and head coach Jeremy Pruitt had plenty to say after the game. </p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="58D3dr">
<h4 id="unOcpI">On what Tennessee can build on...</h4>
<p id="el0qTD">“I saw guys that kind of had a look in their eye, competing. So that’s something we can build on. Am I happy with how the game turned out? No. Okay, we’re trying to build a program here. It takes guys doing it the right way and doing it the right way all the time. I saw guys, I saw young guys who made mistakes early in the game, that I felt like have a little better look in their eye. Trying to compete, trying to finish.</p>
<p id="oPE9Jx">It’s interesting that, how many times we talk about the details of finishing — and guys being a little bit short. Lots of lessons, again not taking anything away from Florida because they had an excellent game plan and executed better than we did, and that’s on me. We’ve all got to do a better job.”</p>
<h4 id="kkZNOK">On Austin Pope’s fumble...</h4>
<p id="HWzBrk">“We got an explosive play. Austin, I felt like he had the ball high and tight. He’s trying to compete. He’s got to squeeze the ball and finish down there on the goal line. </p>
<h4 id="gZUFMi">On turnovers...</h4>
<p id="CYlfAu">“We got a bad snap down in the red area, so two of our turnovers came in the red area. It’s something we focus on every day. Trying to get them, trying not to give them up. For us to have success, we need to be on the other side. That’s what we have to do to give ourselves a chance to win.”</p>
<h4 id="myGhqx">On Jarrett Guarantano’s injury...</h4>
<p id="TkUb8d">“I think Jarrett’s going to be fine. Jarrett’s tough. I knew that when I came here. He’s learning on the go and he’s maturing. He’s a guy that’s going to be a really good quarterback one day. I like the way he’s growing into it, but we’ve got to give the guy a chance a little bit. He can’t take as many hits when he’s not looking. I thought tonight he got rid of the ball, you know, on time. There’s been a few times this year that maybe he might have held the ball too long.”</p>
<h4 id="fw4XCt">On the onside kick...</h4>
<p id="TbLk03">“It’s something we’ve been looking at for a couple of weeks — creating an edge in the kicking game. We felt like their guys left early. They got three guys over there, we got four. We felt like we could block them. We kicked the ball, the guy that we have that’s supposed to block their guy that got the ball, we didn’t block him.”</p>
<h4 id="qF6c0K">On the slow start...</h4>
<p id="zC3QJC">“It was the best warmup we’ve had all year. This wasn’t the same team that went out in Charlotte. This was the best look we’ve had from our players. I don’t know what happened in the first drive, or some point in there, but we get hit in the back of the head by one of their players. Right? We fumble the ball, they score. Then we get a delay of game. Now it’s 3rd and 20 and we throw a screen pass and we throw it to them. So it’s 14-0.</p>
<p id="h57uLT">I think our guys — they’re learning lessons. I can tell you that. We’ll continue to coach them and do the best that we can and I think the players will do the same.”</p>
<h4 id="eZtSfA">On goals moving forward...</h4>
<p id="6ou7TD">“I want to fix the team in that locker room. I want us to play the right way. I want us to learn how to execute. I want us to do it all the time. Fundamental details.”</p>
https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2018/9/23/17891908/tennessee-vols-football-jeremy-pruitt-florida-gators-secTerry A. Lambert2018-09-22T23:17:11-04:002018-09-22T23:17:11-04:00Jeremy Pruitt says he asked Quart’e Sapp to leave the sidelines after he refused to enter the game
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<img alt="NCAA Football: South Carolina at Tennessee" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/s5nEDF9xBxQax724Hn5r_Ikn5OE=/0x0:4000x2667/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/61506911/usa_today_10355521.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>A developing situation.</p> <p id="pHXS7B">It was a bad night all the way around for the <a href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/">Tennessee Volunteers</a> on Saturday night against the <a href="https://www.alligatorarmy.com/">Florida Gators</a>. Somewhere in the midst of a 47-21 loss, the Vols had some drama on the sidelines.</p>
<p id="b2UBc2">Apparently, junior linebacker Quart’e Sapp was asked to leave the field after he refused to go back into the game. Head coach Jeremy Pruitt addressed the situation during his postgame press conference.</p>
<p id="4hSzoL">“You know what, since I’ve been here Quart’e has been a really good ambassador to our program,” Pruitt said. “He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do. But he did — he left the field during the game. Because he wouldn’t go back into the game when he was asked to go in. So I don’t know how things were done here before, but you know, when you tell somebody to go in, they refuse to go in, we’re not going to do that around here. So I asked him to leave.”</p>
<p id="bZWvTk">Pruitt was then asked whether or not Sapp would remain on the team, to which he said “I don’t think right now is the time to discuss that. There’s no secrets. It is what it is.”</p>
<p id="xVU86T">This will be a story to follow in the coming days for sure. We will update this post if we get anymore information.</p>
https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2018/9/22/17891800/tennessee-vols-football-quarte-sapp-jeremy-pruitt-florida-gatorsTerry A. Lambert2018-09-22T23:03:46-04:002018-09-22T23:03:46-04:00Florida Gators vs. Tennessee Volunteers Recap: Gators Rout Vols, 47-21
<figure>
<img alt="NCAA Football: Florida at Tennessee" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/0vFl4Sl6hOjidfJfNDnJAraWTb8=/0x0:4000x2667/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/61506797/usa_today_11303645.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>Was the game over before it even began?</em></p> <p id="9iPeGp">After an absolutely dreadful performance against the <a href="https://www.alligatorarmy.com/">Florida Gators</a>, Tennessee fans are are searching for answers when it comes the Jeremy Pruitt regime. </p>
<p id="P4Gs7X">A rough season was to be expected, but a blowout loss to the Gators was not. Both teams suffered 4-8 seasons in 2017 and according to the big picture, Tennessee should be the more talented team. </p>
<p id="cI8qMf">Despite the prognostications, Florida was the better team on Saturday night.</p>
<p id="2svDkC">The game got off to a terrible start for the Vols. Intense pressure from the Gators’ defensive line caused a fumble by <span>Jarrett Guarantano</span> that was recovered by David Reese II. </p>
<p id="asf5xZ">Florida started their second drive of the game from the Vols’ 24. Tennessee’s defense got off to a good start after they dropped <span>Feleipe Franks</span> for a three yard loss, but the Gators scored just three plays later after a key 23-yard pass to <span>Freddie Swain</span> took the Gators down to the Vols’ one. Franks completed a pass to <span>R.J. Raymond</span> for the game’s first score and gave the Gators an early lead, 7-0.</p>
<p id="ZX3A2U">Things didn’t get any better on the next drive for Tennessee. Guarantano was picked off on his third pass attempt of the game by Luke Ancrum. Florida was right back in business as they took over on the Tennessee’s 5-yard line after a five-yard return by Ancrum.</p>
<p id="8DP78e">As expected, the Gators scored just two plays later to increase their lead, 14-0. </p>
<p id="aviS2J">A big play to <span>Jauan Jennings</span> was practically erased by a false start on the subsequent play and left the Vols to try and convert a 4th-and-4 to <span>Dominick Wood-Anderson</span>, but the attempt fell short and Florida took over at their own 38.</p>
<p id="ENshx3">But a forced fumble on <span>Lamical Perine</span> by <span>Alontae Taylor</span> gave the Vols the ball back in Gator territory. Tennessee was able to drive down to the Florida 15, but they had to settle for a field goal and cut the Gators’ lead to 11, 14-3.</p>
<p id="PGy05o">A three-and-out gave Tennessee hope, but a great punt by the Gators’ <span>Tommy Townsend</span> left the Vols in terrible field position. A drive that began at their own two-yard line ended in a safety that pushed Florida’s lead to 13, 16-3.</p>
<p id="oUJdeU">The misery didn’t stop there as Swain sliced through the defense on his way to a 65-yard touchdown on the first play of Florida’s drive after the safety. Tennessee was officially in trouble at this point down 23-3.</p>
<p id="SL0GqR">The coaching staff and players were feeling the heat at this point and the Vols were able to respond with a 51 yard completion to <span>Austin Pope</span> on a fourth-and-one from the Tennessee 45 yard line. </p>
<p id="v483IN">But Pope fumbled the ball through the endzone and the Gators began their next drive on their own 20.</p>
<p id="ahYzXf">Tennessee forced a punt on the next drive and it looked as if they were finally figuring things out on the next offensive drive before Guarantano had to leave the game due to injury. A low snap from center <span>Ryan Johnson</span> left <span>Keller Chryst</span> in a bad spot to the point where he couldn’t recover and the Gators began their next drive at the Vols’ 26.</p>
<p id="SmLfdb">They were able to drive down to the Vols’ eight yard line before settling for a field goal. Florida led 26-3 heading into halftime after four Tennessee turnovers.</p>
<p id="W2Fcn1">Tennessee was set to begin the second half with the ball, but that changed quickly after the Vols fumbled the ball on the kickoff return, which resulted in a Florida recovery.</p>
<p id="PLMQCy">Pitiful tackling and poor effort led to <span>Jordan Scarlett</span> running for a 19-yard touchdown that pushed the Gator lead to 33-3.</p>
<p id="uGzs7c">Soon after, Brad Stewart Jr. made a beautiful interception near the goal line to end the Vols’ offensive drive and gave the Gators the ball back at their own 2.</p>
<p id="T2Zf1N">Neither team was able to move the ball very effectively on the next couple of drives, but Tennessee finally found some offense thanks to grad-transfer <span>Madre London</span>.</p>
<p id="CmYiv2">Tennessee scored their first touchdown of the game late in the third quarter after <span>London</span> rumbled down the field for a 43-yard gain to the Gators’ 16. A defensive pass interference call helped the Vols and gave London his first touchdown a couple of plays later and cut the Gators’ lead to 20, 33-13.</p>
<p id="xzcwkr">But a familiar name surfaced on the next drive Florida as Franks hit <span>Tyrie Cleveland</span> for a 38 yards en route to the Gators’ fifth touchdown on the day. The Vols now trailed 40-13 and there was basically no comeback in site.</p>
<p id="7mh4Nn">Both sides added garbage time touchdowns to finish this one out. In the end, it was Florida walking away with a 47-21 victory in Neyland Stadium.</p>
<p id="pc1HNv">Up next for the Vols? At Georgia, at Auburn, then home against Alabama. Woof.</p>
<p id="P170Du"></p>
https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2018/9/22/17889860/florida-gators-vs-tennessee-volunteers-recap-2018-sec-footballEvan Winter2018-09-22T11:14:51-04:002018-09-22T11:14:51-04:00Tennessee Opponent Film Breakdown: Florida
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<img alt="Charleston Southern v Florida" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/fiP4YbE0Opt43ZAAj8wqZZyv664=/0x42:3000x2042/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/61490739/1030695760.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>What To Expect In This Rivalry Matchup</p> <p id="TMpWgM">It’s good to be back. We took a brief hiatus from the opponent breakdowns for a couple of reasons. One is simply just the availability of film. It was a challenge to find quality footage of ETSU and UTEP despite my best efforts. Secondly, let’s face it, those teams just were not very exciting opponents to talk about. But that all changes this week! The <a href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/">Tennessee Volunteers</a> welcome in the <a href="https://www.alligatorarmy.com/">Florida Gators</a> to Neyland Stadium. For the first time in several years this game will be played under the lights. That gives Vol Nation a good long time to get a lather going prior to the 7pm kickoff. </p>
<p id="aZeAss">Just like last season, both teams enter this game with only one loss. But that’s pretty much where the similarities between this year and last year end for both teams. Time to take a brief look at what Florida likes to do, and what Tennessee will need to stop, on both sides of the ball. </p>
<h1 id="vQ3W6X">Gators Offense</h1>
<p id="wsmQNU">Dan Mullen has quite the reputation with running quarterbacks in his career leading an offense. He has coached exceptionally talented runners in <span>Tim Tebow</span>, <span>Dak Prescott</span>, and most recently Nick Fitzgerald. Now at Florida he has... <span>Feleipe Franks</span>? Okay, Franks isn’t exactly fleet of foot. Certainly not compared to those other guys. But he is the best quarterback Mullen has on his roster right now and Mullen isn’t afraid to run Franks. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/1yjJYtVmWiN42lO0c4ZSDwlE84c=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129261/Franks_1.jpg">
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<p id="HBDbm0">Now, the above is not Franks’ best run ever, but I chose it because I think it highlights Mullen’s willingness to run Franks. He isn’t a guy with break-away speed, yet he is still being asked to run straight QB sweep/outside zone against an SEC defense. Another play that Florida likes to run a lot is the zone read. Franks is no longer strictly a pocket passer, although that is more his strength. Defensively, Tennessee will have to account for Franks in the running game. He probably won’t win the game with his legs, but he can make enough plays with them to keep the Gators moving the chains - something we didn’t necessarily see last season. </p>
<p id="b0Ehjy">On the subject of Franks, something interesting about his game stood out to me in watching film. I mentioned this earlier in a <a href="https://twitter.com/Power_T_Tape/status/1042839125769048064">tweet</a>, half joking, but the more I’ve thought about it the more I might not be joking. I will never advocate against a pass rush. However, what I will say is that if Tennessee doesn’t get to Franks this Saturday it might not be the end of the world. The reason being, he seems to struggle against a 4-man rush with lots of time to throw. Here is his one interception against Kentucky:</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/RKvpXg44CoPB0ZmK4G9PB3aE4-M=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129341/Franks_Pass_1.jpg">
</figure>
<p id="okyUcn">Kentucky brings a linebacker but drops a defensive end into coverage leaving a four man rush. Franks has plenty of time to throw, but stares down his receiver the entire way and throws an inaccurate ball that is able to be picked off. Here is another example from the Kentucky game, this time with a mismatch.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/4J69UxtrLjnMi6MGVcrDDTkjzWQ=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129349/Franks_Pass_2.jpg">
</figure>
<p id="PqG0cA">Franks has his RB matched up with a MLB down the seam. Again a four man rush. Again very little pressure. Again staring down his receiver the whole way. And, again, an inaccurate pass that falls incomplete. Here is a final example to drive the point home. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/eoUf8-v8LRw-OengXLKbruztn5E=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129355/Franks_Pass_3.jpg">
</figure>
<p id="IDF7Dw">Kentucky brings only four rushers again. Franks even gets a mini roll-out for extra room. He sets, fires, and delivers a ball basically right into the chest of <span>Mike Edwards</span>. The problem - <span>Mike Edwards</span> plays for Kentucky and is one of the best safeties in the SEC. It’s shocking that he wasn’t able to intercept this pass and possibly take it back the other way. </p>
<p id="3VXD94">Franks’ struggles against the four man rush will be a huge advantage for Tennessee Saturday night. I expect Tennessee to rush four and defend with seven. The young secondary should be able to play aggressively with seven defenders for five eligible receivers and Franks at times staring down his reads. Hopefully this translates to Tennessee winning the turnover battle, and giving the offense more chances to punch the ball in the endzone. </p>
<p id="m74Ng5">The final point that I want to make about Florida’s offense is that they seem to love attacking the middle of the field in third down situations. Here is the first third down of the game for Florida against Kentucky. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/DHr6yb1ywRkfXRt9KG2sD8kULRI=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129433/third_down_1.jpg">
</figure>
<p id="tbIr7I">The wide receiver was able to release inside of the Kentucky defensive back in man-coverage. With a linebacker blitzing plenty of space was available over the middle to complete this pass. </p>
<p id="0cXpIP">They also used this concept, out of motion to a quads formation, multiple times on third downs to convert over the middle. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/761zXP1eapT7aSRXMrRXSy-2c0I=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129443/Screen_Shot_2018_09_21_at_12.59.52_AM.png">
</figure>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ZDtFrFfHsZeViOgFebZKRqw7PRA=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129449/Quads.jpg">
</figure>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/fwThC-Vw3vEOvY7VJWRAHzhVUWI=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129469/Quads_3.jpg">
</figure>
<p id="HEu1oM">(Bonus clip - because Florida doesn’t convert this third down out of quads, but probably would have if Franks had thrown to his open receiver over the middle)</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/an0QiOWLQeMjGZTdNbT5_dmZ-Dw=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129457/Quads_2.jpg">
</figure>
<p id="UH7XH4">The take home message is this: respect Franks’ running ability, rush him with four lineman, and account for the middle of the field during third and medium to long situations. If the Vols do this on Saturday I think we’ll be in for a fun evening. </p>
<h1 id="R9kdVh">Gators Defense</h1>
<p id="fSudO3">Colorado State’s offense is not too different from the what Vols like to do offensively. That is a huge advantage for Tennessee, as the Vols are able to see how Florida likes to align against certain looks and where some weak points might be. Here are a few defensive alignment examples against common Tennessee formations:</p>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/QV2igpV3DCbu6XlXsx8e7px83u8=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129559/Screen_Shot_2018_09_21_at_1.16.19_AM.png">
</figure>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/qOOUsXr9rmOi9wVT-xJgXUwi7aM=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129571/Screen_Shot_2018_09_21_at_1.22.44_AM.png">
</figure>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/0GoEcwPRwldQnpW_bGn_32r1d5Q=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129573/Screen_Shot_2018_09_21_at_1.22.12_AM.png">
</figure>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/cxEYWpdNV2ieBF0uVhmrQQxJba4=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129577/Screen_Shot_2018_09_21_at_1.24.41_AM.png">
</figure>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/6rpzAcIjmmBFn0nWUgkwyr8F1KM=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129579/Screen_Shot_2018_09_21_at_1.25.26_AM.png">
</figure>
<p id="gsN7cE">Florida is truly a 3-4 defensive team, which you can see best in the first picture. However, due to personnel they spend most of their time in a Nickel/4-2-5 look which you can see really well with the last two pictures. In this respect they are not too different from Tennessee. They will place either #99 <span>Jachai Polite</span> or #7 <span>Jeremiah Moon</span> as the Jack LB opposite the two receiver side in 11-personnel groupings. </p>
<p id="JRyIu7">I think Tennessee, despite their troubles this year, really can have success in the running game toward this Jack LB on Saturday. Here is an example of Kentucky running zone toward the defensive weak side. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/hghOK5FVTLEaDXPzb0P-Q95TANo=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129609/Weak_Side_1.jpg">
</figure>
<p id="7GRhYF">Here is an example of Colorado State running inside zone from a doubles set toward the Jack LB to pick up a first down.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/tySTjPHLm2Ca2sUb3RxrLFWyIRs=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13129613/Zone_2_Weak.jpg">
</figure>
<p id="0ZFjyK">It all starts and ends for Tennessee up front with the offensive line. Tennessee doesn’t even necessarily need to be dominate up front, although that would be great. They just have to create enough space for the running backs to get downhill for 3 to 4 yard gains. Doing so means “staying ahead of the chains.” It makes the Florida LB’s play more aggressively to defend the run and sets up a potential shot play to <span>Dominick Wood-Anderson</span> down the seam (similar to how CSU scored their lone touchdown). </p>
<p id="QhB00y">A final point on Tennessee’s offense - I’m interested to see if/how they will expand the passing game. <span>Jarrett Guarantano</span> has been improving in his ability to make pre-snap decisions and the correct reads on RPO’s. He appears capable of shouldering more of the load. He has demonstrated decent accuracy on deep passes down the middle of the field and has yet to turn the ball over. I am hoping to see Tennessee take shots more to the outside of the numbers with one-on-one match-ups. I am also hoping to see an RPO game plan with routes getting more down the field than just the ‘now’ screen. It’s time to unleash all of the talent that this passing game has to offer. </p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="VOH0QT">
<p id="F7i74v">That is a brief description of what Florida looks like schematically. Let us know what you think about Florida and the Vols’ chances in the comments below. Feel free to engage with us over on Twitter, too! Remember, with a 7pm kickoff pacing yourself is key. Go Big Orange! </p>
https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2018/9/21/17885386/tennessee-vols-football-florida-gators-sec-film-breakdownPower T Tape2018-09-22T07:50:01-04:002018-09-22T07:50:01-04:00Tennessee vs. Florida: How to watch and Gamethread
<figure>
<img alt="NCAA Football: Texas El Paso at Tennessee" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Wbvh_L_MHGWqr5yW7AbjkIsqD5E=/0x0:3083x2055/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/61500949/usa_today_11252290.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>All the information you lead.</p> <p id="KUAKyp">One of the biggest days of the year for Tennessee Football has arrived. The Vols’ annual meeting with SEC East rival Florida is set to kick off tonight at Neyland Stadium. </p>
<p id="x6EwVY">This series has been wild in recent years with buzzer-beating touchdowns and unbelievable comebacks. This year’s matchup will feature new faces on each sideline with Jeremy Pruitt and Dan Mullen getting their first shot in this classic rivalry game. Each team enters this one at 2-1 overall. </p>
<p id="YS36E2">Vegas likes the Gators, despite the matchup taking place in Knoxville. Florida opened as a near touchdown favorite on Sunday, but the line has been coming back towards the Vols ever since then. </p>
<p id="RwUqf2">For more on this one, <a href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2018/9/19/17873626/tennessee-vols-florida-gators-2018-sec-football-volunteers">visit our gamecenter</a>. </p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="jjXw1B">
<h3 id="dLCZZk"><strong>GAMEDAY INFORMATION</strong></h3>
<p id="Djfxg2"><strong>Location</strong>: Knoxville, Tennessee</p>
<p id="FOjb8O"><strong>Kickoff time</strong>: Saturday, September 22nd at 7 PM (eastern)</p>
<p id="8W3BNV"><strong>TV Channel</strong>: ESPN</p>
<p id="9PQGnc"><strong>Stream link</strong>: <a href="http://www.espn.com/watch/_/id/3404208/florida-vs-tennessee-football">Watch ESPN</a></p>
<p id="OIAEVL"><strong>Radio</strong>: <a href="https://utsports.com/watch/?Live=3292&type=Live">Vol Network</a></p>
<p id="pSzCw0"><strong>Odds</strong>: Florida -4 (Opened Florida -6)</p>
<p id="PG458u"><strong>Total</strong>: 44</p>
https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2018/9/22/17889590/tennessee-vols-football-florida-gators-tv-channel-stream-link-kickoff-time-odds-radioTerry A. Lambert