The Tennessee Vols Offense Will Be Just Fine Without Bajakian

Mike Bajakian did a fantastic job for the Tennessee Vols the past two seasons. It was reported today in Knoxville that Mike has decided to move on from Butch Jones and the Vols. At the time of this writing it is uncertain if he is going to take over the Tampa Bay Buccaneer QB Coach job with friend Lovie Smith, or if he will take the Central Michigan Head Coaching job that just became open.

There is no denying that the Vols will miss Coach Bajakian. However, Tennessee will be just fine without him. There is too much talent in Knoxville that has been assembled, and that will be assembled in two weeks. The Vols added another top running back today when John Kelly chose the orange and white over the maize and blue of Michigan. He did this after Bajakian bolted. Enough said.

I was hard on Bajakian early in the season. Many of you that read my writing or watch the game with me on game day know that I have never been a fan of this offense. The Zone Read offense drove me nuts in the first part of the season with Justin Worley at the helm. Now this is not a shot at Worley. I love the kid, and I love what he personally did this season. He was as good as he could be, and I appreciate that very much. But he is not a zone read quarterback.

I constantly complained early on about the zone read. It was obvious to me that if the quarterback would not keep the ball that defenses would load up on Jalen Hurd or Marlin Lane. And they did. Worley never kept the ball. Ever. I was pretty vocal about this fact. Later on I started to hear Jimmy Hyams finally catch on and report it to the likes of Mark Howard. It took them quite a while.

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After the game we would hear Bajakian take up for Worley on his zone read decisions. Bajakian kept saying Worley was making the correct reads, and did not have the opportunity to pull it down and run. When I heard him say this, I really began to doubt this offense could work. If he was telling the fans the absolute truth, then the offense at Tennessee was doomed.

Enter Josh Dobbs. Dobbs came in and fit Bajakian’s offense right away. Josh was a better runner than Justin. It was Josh’s style. He is a mobile quarterback. Worley is a pro-style pocket guy. Not that there is anything wrong with that. But it is wrong in the zone read. After Dobbs took over we began to see what this offense could do. And it could do a lot. The Tennessee offense moved the ball at will from that point on for the most part. They even moved the ball on Alabama.

How could the Vols offensive coordinator not see this? When Dobbs came in and started keeping the ball, Jalen Hurd’s yardage began to explode. He finished the season with 899 yards rushing with a 4.7 yards per carry average. Many say he got stronger as the year went on. I say it was because the linebackers had to play honest to see if Dobbs was going to keep. In other words, it put the “option” in the option. If you only give the ball to your running back time and time again, then there is no “option” at all.

Please understand that I am not complaining here. I love this team, and again I think Mike did a heck of a job here. I wish he was not leaving. But he is gone. I just don’t think it is a devastating loss.

Another aspect to this offense that bothered me was the routes in the passing game. Make no mistake that the Vols are as loaded at the receiver position as any other team in the country. This group is incredible. Marquez North, Von Pearson, Josh Smith, Pig Howard, Josh Malone, Vic Wharton, Ryan Jenkins, and my man Jason Croom. That is serious talent. And they have Preston Williams coming in. That is sick. But the passing game always looked awkward to me.

Most of the receptions that the receivers made seemed to be with their backs to the end zone. In other words, they were seldom hit in stride. I do not think that was Worley or Dobb’s fault. It almost seemed by design. Now all you have to do is look at the New England Patriots to see that is an effective and efficient extension of the run game. But unlike the Patriots, the Vols have guys that can get down the field. They can run the slants. But they have to be hit in stride. It just seemed to me that was missing. The few passes I remember that hit someone in stride was thrown by a placekicking holder on a fake field goal, and by Marlin Lane against Iowa. The passing game needs some work, and they have the talent to be the best in the SEC.

Mike had some games where I thought he was brilliant. The South Carolina game was incredibly called by Bajakian. The Taxslayer Bowl was called beautifully. Iowa never had a clue what was coming. But then there was Missouri, and then Vanderbilt. Those were hard to watch from an offensive side.

The Vols finished 83rd in the country in Total Offense. Honestly,that is unacceptable. I know the line was not very good. I get that, and I know that was a huge factor. But 83rd? They were 65th in the country in passing (with said group of receivers above and quarterback’s above) and again 83rd in the country in total rushing. So there is room for improvement.

My point for all of this is not to demean Mike Bajakian. He is a football guy. He lives it, breathes it, coaches it well, and knows it well. He is good enough to be offered a QB coach in the NFL. So he is good. There is no doubt.

However, the offense can be better. It has to get better. In order for Tennessee and Butch Jones to get to the level that they want, which is a National Championship level, they have to get better. They are going to have to get a coach that can get the most out of this team’s talent. They are going to have to get a guy that has the formations and sets of Bajakian that allowed him to create match ups, but someone that brings a more physical presence and determination to this team. Physicality is missing. With Hurd and Kamara there now, they need to get back to that. Or, at the least, be able to be physical when needed.

So where will Tennessee go? I don’t claim to know. I am sure Coach Jones already knows. It is probably Azzanni, but again, who knows? Suffice it to say that whoever comes in will have a plethora of talent to work with. Everything is in place now. With exception of an Offensive Coordinator. Jones will get a good one. It is what he does.