Good Afternoon, Everyone,

It is a beautiful Fall afternoon in Tennessee, more than a little dry despite the tears shed across Tennessee over a tough loss to the Georgia Dawgs.

Game notes are pretty simple.  The Vols played well.  The Dawgs scored 14 points on the two Vol turnovers.  We scored zero points on the two turnovers that the Vols forced.  Worley was a warrior and did enough to win the game, so did Hurd, so did A.J., but Gurley is a horse and he did enough for the Dawgs to win.  It was a great game and we lost by 3 points.

The SEC has shown itself to be a power conference.  We run the ball down other teams’ throats.  We control the OL and DL.  Look at the NFL Draft for the proof of that.  History has said that Power Teams with great backs wear the defenses of their opposition out.  In the second half and especially in the 4th Quarters those defensive players are a step slower and their arms a bit weaker and that is when you just run over the other team.   Our players are and were in great shape, but when you look at the game, GA had two really good backs.  They were able to give Gurley some rest in both halves.  He did not need it in the final 5 minutes of the game.  There was no lack of effort from the Vols, but Gurley made the plays to win the game.

The SEC Season is rolling now.  My Crystal Ball says that we only play one more team with a Gurley potential and that is Bama’s RB Stable.   That game is nearly a month off.  Our next three foes are beatable if we play to our potential.  We need to get some guys well and learn from our losses in order to continue to get better each week.  I think that the OL and DL played better and will continue to improve.  Two home games will help in that.   Almost without notice our secondary has really grown in these last four games and is developing their depth.  Our pass defense is improving and that is funny because when you look at the other East Division Teams their secondary’s are getting toasted.

The key for the Florida Game is to learn and to build on the GA Game.  Improve. Run better.  Catch better. Defend better.  It is hard to do but we need to maintain and improve on our levels of execution on offense, defense, and special teams play.

I confess, I do not want to beat the Gators; I want to thump them so badly that their “COACH” turns red and explodes into a monumental record-setting ranting stomping tantrum on the side line.

Time to go!   Go Vols!  Beat the Gators!!

Tnbill