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Vols: Problems In All Phases At Moment

By Randy Sharber

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The Tennessee Vols have problems in all phases as a football team at the moment.

The Vols lost another tough one last night at home in front of 102,000 disappointed Tennessee fans and a handful of Razorback fans. It has become commonplace for Tennessee fans to watch the opposing team dance on the field and in the stands of a once feared and revered Neyland Stadium. It is now a place for bad teams to come and feel better about themselves.

They were out-played and out-coached by a team that had lost three of its’ first four, including a loss to Toledo. Coach Butch Jones and his Vols did not wait until the fourth quarter to blow a double digit lead. No sir, they fixed that problem. Instead, they blew that in the first half instead of waiting. So Jones fixed that part as promised.

The Vols raced out to a lead quickly when stud returner Evan Berry took the opening kick off 96 yards to the chcckerboards. Soon after on the Vols first real possession, quarterback Joshua Dobbs sprinted 7 yards on a busted play after an impressive 89 yard drive. The rout was on! But Vol fans knew what was coming.

Four Offensive plays soon after for Arkansas resulted in a walk in the end zone untouched touchdown run. The rest is history. A Tennessee missed field goal here. A Vol unforced fumble while getting ready to score inside the ten yard line there. A unprepared and unsuccessful offensive last possession for the Vols ended hopes for Tennessee fans for a win then, and in the near future.

Same old thing Vol fans have seen since Phillip Fulmer was fired. Nothing new, just a different opponent.

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Yesterday it was each phase of the game that bit Tennessee collectively. It wasn’t a case where Tennessee was conservative, or didn’t go for two when everyone in the stadium knew they should. It was a collective fail. Kicking, offense, defense, and coaching.

The Vols are better than they are playing. I am convinced of that. Are they ready to play in the SEC? No. Will they? It remains to be seen. What was touted as a team that could contend for the East will be fortunate to make a bowl. I mean a minor bowl.

Looking at the schedule I don’t know how they get to 6 wins. I see North Texas, South Carolina and Vanderbilt as teams we can beat. Possibly. But I digress. Let’s get back to the topic. Phases.

For whatever reason Aaron Medley has left the building and is kicking like me. He clanked one off of the left post after Tennessee bogged down yet again in the red zone (more on this later) early in the first half. It was from point blank.

It is an absolute disheartening moment for an offense to work their way into scoring range to have this happen. It is a momentum killer. He missed a 52 yarder for a win at Florida. That is tough. You can forgive that one. This one you can not forgive. It added to this defeat. Period.

The return game was fabulous. Berry is the best in the country. Sutton is terrific as well. But Alvin Kamara is also fantastic. He had a touchdown called back when Chris Weatherd blocked a Hog in the back. It was obvious, and it did help spring him for the touchdown. Good Call. Good run. Terrible block and lack of discipline on Weatherd’s part.

The defense was not good. I thought the young Kahlil McKenzie and Shy Tuttle played pretty well inside. But the tend to chicken fight with their blockers instead of shedding them. Derek Barnett was solid, but the zero production came from the other defensive ends.

Time and time again the Hogs running backs bounced an inside run to the outside. Here is the truth, and the truth hurts. If Jalen Reeves-Maybin does not make the tackle, no one else can or will. The Vols do not have a middle linebacker.

I am not down on Darrin Kirkland, Jr. I think he will be a fantastic player. He will go down as a great one possibly in my estimation. But he was playing high school this time last season. He is not developed physically enough to withstand the rigors of the SEC. The Hogs have the largest offensive line in the country. They have a 230 lb battering ram running back. Kirkland is 224 lbs.

Once they are in the secondary it is bye bye. This is the weakest tackling secondary I have seen since the Sunseri days at Tennessee. I mean they do not want any contact. Randolph is a Senior. He could not play at another SEC school. He is that inadequate. He can not defend, and he wants no part of tackling.

Kelly Jr has great ball skills, and will stick his head in every once in a while. But he shies from contact as well usually. Emmanuel Moseley is just small and weak. He is a total disaster against the run. He is a cover guy. It is like not having anyone on the corner against the run. I would rather have a walk on that tries and gets beat than a guy that is afraid. I would find one if I was Butch. But he can’t coach that anyway.

I thought it was Coach Jancek’s worst game as a Tennessee Vol to date. His defense looked confused as to where to line up most of the night. How many times did you see guys look at each other, hold their hands up like what the hell do I do, and just start chicken fighting with the nearest Hog as the running back or receiver ran right past them. Many times.

Offensively the run game was solid, but not spectacular. They left a lot of yardage on the field. The offensive line was ok in the run game. The backs busted some good runs with some big holes early. Dobbs had a poor game in the read option. But Arkansas had a part in that. They stayed disciplined, which is all it takes to defeat this little finesse style offense. We called it sissy style in my day.

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Hurd and Kamara are great backs. Not good backs. Great backs. They did a good job getting them the ball in the passing game, but the passes are never where they need to be. Dobb’s throws turn them in some funky direction just to catch it, and that slows them significantly.

But here is where I may be wrong. I don’t think it is the inaccuracy of Dobbs as much as the design of the offensive passing game scheme. We will have to see Dormandy play in order to prove me wrong or right. I’ve been wrong before. I said no one would run on Tennessee this season. Two one hundred yard rushers by the hogs last night proved me stupid on that prediction, that is for sure.

This is a high school level scheme at best. There are no route combinations that make sense at all. I do not believe the receivers are not getting off of press coverage. I see too many downfield. I do not believe that the line is providing perfect protection, but I don’t think it is as bad as it looks. There is no pocket. It does not look like the offensive line is coached to form a pocket. I don’t think it is part of the offense.

It looks like this. Get the slow paced shotgun snap from center first. Then if you’re Dobbs, try to find the seams of the football for a second. Then you automatically take off rolling to your right, because the pressure is already coming from your left tackle spot immediately. Then you throw the ball to a limited 1/3 of the field and short where every defensive back on the opposing team knows you are going with the ball. Rinse and do it again.

I will go ahead and say it now. Butch Jones made a disastrous hire with Mike DeBord. It is his downfall this season. Much like Dave Clawson was Fulmer’s downfall, so will DeBord be for Jones. This guy is pitiful.

You can not tell me there was an offensive plan last night against Arkansas. You can not tell me that Tennessee is prepared in any form or fashion to make a last two-minute drill type of drive. You can not tell me this passing game has a chance to beat MBA or Brentwood Acadcmy the way it is designed. The Vols miss Mike Bajakian or a real offensive coordinator. Simple.

DeBord coached a hundred years ago when guys were named “crazy legs” and stuff like that. He was playing putt putt and boce at shady acres retirement home for coaches in Boca when Butch called him. What was he thinking?

The Vols got two chances last night due to the ineptness of the Arkansas staff to win this late. First by the fake field goal, and then the failed fourth down try. I knew Tennessee would win then.

Wrong. Panic from the coordinator set in. Let’s try a trick play by allowing one of our freshman receivers (that was a high school quarterback) throw the ball deep to a receiver during the most important time in the game.

Later on fourth and 13 (and the game) let’s throw a deep fly pattern Malone to try and pick up the first down. McElwain throws a deep in pattern to pick up the first down. Pretty high percentage. We throw a fly pattern. Pretty low percentage.

If I sound down, I’m sorry. I am frustrated. I don’t think the coaching staff is doing what the should or could at this point. I am afraid that Butch and his assistants are over their heads. I don’t want that to be the case. I like this guy a lot. But this is stupid. So here it is. Butch stays, because he does it right and he can recruit. Let everyone know today DeBord is gone after this year. He won’t care. He has medicare and a short memory. If he is like me, he won’t even remember.

Stop recruiting the amount of stars next to a guys name and recruit football players that like contact and can run. Get out of this sissy spread offense and find a guy that can get you in the pro set. It is the only way in the SEC. Jancek can stay, but only if he gets out and tackles Jalen Hurd one on one. Jancek doesn’t get to wear a helmet or pads. Hurd gets a 10 yard head start, and has no mercy on the coach. If Jancek tackles him in front of all of his defensive players he stays. If he whiffs, he goes back to the mid majors where this staff came from, and we get a big boy coach.

I think this is fair. I know 102,000 of my friends that want to be there to see it.

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