SB Nation - Brandon Warren

Recruiting Update: Black is the Color of My True Love's Jersey

Hooper — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:30:20 -0000

It's pretty amazing that, for all of the events surrounding Tennessee football since Lane Kiffin's hiring, few topics have achieved as much steady discussion and debate as the color black. It was a significant enough topic that we not only held a create-your-own-uniform contest, we added some swag as prizes for the winner and runner-up. Our busiest day at Rocky Top Talk for the entire month of October? In a month where Crompton turned the corner, Tennessee drilled Georgia, and Alabama very nearly fell to the Vols in Tuscaloosa, it was the day we talked about uniforms.

But if uniform color is a big deal to us, it shouldn't be surprising that color is a big deal to other people as well. It was important enough for Eric Berry and Montario Hardesty to talk to Mike Hamilton and request black for Halloween. It was important enough for Mike Hamilton to make the about-face on earlier statements and rush-order black uniforms with screen-printed numbers. It was important enough that Tennessee's recruiting may very well have turned a surprising and very exciting corner.

Commits Since the Black Jerseys

Shortly after the black jersey game, Tennessee earned the pledge of Ken Adams, Kenbrell Thompkins, and even 5-star basketball commit - point guard Kevin Ware.

Ken Adams could play either defensive end or tight end, but the roster numbers appear to suggest tight end at the moment. He's a Junior College player who was first an Auburn commit out of high school, but the changes in Auburn (which were more significant, offense-wise, than Tennessee) don't particularly suit tight ends very well and Lane Kiffin's offense should be a much better fit for him.
Kenbrell Thompkins is another Junior College player - a wide receiver who is a little bigger than most of the receiver stock currently in Knoxville. He's not a 6'-6" monsterbeastreceiver type per se, but he will fill the role that Brandon Warren was supposed to fill in the offense quite nicely.

I'm actually pretty happy that both of these players are junior college players. With a recruiting class that appears to be on its way of maxing out, having a few players who finish their eligibility earlier will help maintain a healthy scholarship rotation into the next few years of recruiting classes - something I think is very important for the long-term health of the recruiting program. Additionally, both players will play in positions that are thin in upperclassmen, which helps create cleaner, more uniform player distributions.

Here is a chart of the players by class to help visualize what I'm saying. In this chart, the years are years in which a player's eligibility is expected to end. If a player is a redshirt freshman (e.g. Aaron Douglas), they are listed as freshmen. Likewise, a playing freshman is listed as a freshman, so Aaron Douglas and Marsalis Teague are both freshmen in the chart. Ok? Good.

Untitled Document

		Senior	Junior	Sophomore	Freshman	Total	2010 Commits	2010 Total
OFFENSE	Quarterback	1	1	1	0	3	1	3
	Halfback	1	0	1	3	5	0	4
	Fullback	0	1	1	0	2	1	3
	Center	2	0	1	0	3	0	1
	Guard	2	0	0	4	6	1	5
	Tackle	1	1	1	2	5	2	6
	Tight End	1	1	1	0	3	2	4
	Receiver	2	3	1	3	9	4	11
DEFENSE	Tackle	2	2	0	3	7	4	9
	End	1	3	2	2	8	3	10
	Corner	1	2	3	2	8	0	7
	Safety	1	1	1	5	8	0	7
	Middle Linebacker	0	2	0	2	4	1	5
	Outside Linebacker	1	1	2	3	7	1	7
SPECIAL TEAMS	Punter	0	1	0	0	1	0	1
	Kicker	0	1	0	0	1	1	2
	Long Snapper	1	0	0	0	1	0	0
		17	20	15	29	81	21	85

The chart is very fluid; juniors who may leave early are still listed as juniors, but the potential early departees to the NFL (like Eric Berry) are not debited for the 2010 total. Also, recruits who may end up going JUCO are not discounted. There are more exceptions, but the basic point is that this is rough. But it does show some good details:

The current sophomore class is going to be bolstered by JUCO players. John Brown and Patrick Harris are both defensive tackle JUCO recruits, which is where the sophomore class is particularly thin. Adding a receiver and a tight end helps round out the numbers on offense, too. That's pretty decent for the JUCO portion of the class, and that's where JUCO players are valuable.
We still need offensive linemen. For clarity, I have Jose Jose listed as a guard, though some speculate that he will be a center. Either way, two more offensive linemen is a minimal must. The gap of linemen in our current junior and sophomore classes are so significant as to be irrepairable. We just have to fill in behind those classes and make do, and that starts with getting numbers now. It'll make an imbalance down the road, but at least things will be manageable then.
The numbers are shaping up very, very nicely. This may be more than just a top-ranked class. This may be a top-ranked class that actually matches the needs of the team across the board. If you're ever wondering how valuable Ed Orgeron is to the team, this is your answer.

Finishing Up

There are still several names floating out there. Rumors are getting very strong that man-beast middle linebacker Jeff Luc will commit to the Vols at some undetermined point in the future. Offensive linemen JaWuan James, John Cullen, Chaz Green, Dakota Mosley, and James Stone are the bulk of names still being floated about - roughly in order of apparent precedence/likeliness at this point. Michael Dyer appears to be taking a serious look at Tennessee, even though he's probably favoring Auburn at the moment. (The guy's a bowling ball; I'd love to have him here.) There are still people insisting that Jesse Scroggins will come to UT, but I just simply don't believe it. Matt Simms is a JUCO quarterback who might be added, but the odds seem slim there as well as he doesn't have an offer yet. That's alright; I'm perfectly fine with only having Tyler Bray in place. Between him, Nick Stephens, and Nick Lamaison, Tennessee should be alright in 2010. That would leave room for a quarterback in 2010's class. Chris Dunkley, Corey Lemonier, and Christian Jones are consistently tossed around as names as well, but it's really anybody's guess at this point.

Many of these players were in attendance during the South Carolina game, and they saw the players put the black jerseys on in the locker room. The impression was strong, as they all have stated in later interviews that the scene was intense and special. Black jerseys may seem like a silly point of conversation, but it's one of those things that somehow matters. It matters to us, and it matters to them.

And to top it all off, the retirement of Mickey Andrews - the soon-to-be-former Florida State Seminoles defensive coordinator - will surely open up a poaching free-for-all on FSU's current commits and prospects. Likewise, the defensive struggles of the Georgia Bulldogs will cast doubt on the future of Willie Martinez and the possibility that Charlie Strong may get a long overdue head coaching gig could loosen up a few Florida Gators commits. Meanwhile, Tennessee has a brand new staff that should be stable for the next few years - a staff who is proving their ability to coach players up to win games. The end of this recruiting season should be a wild one, with commits and decommits flying about from unforeseen directions. It should be fun.

Gerald Jones and receiving corps staying late, getting better

Joel — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:15:30 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

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Right after the Auburn loss, Gerald Jones went to see receivers coach Frank Wilson and asked him to be harder on Jones than on any other receiver. Fortunately, Wilson was hardest on Brandon Warren, who was dismissed, but to be fair, Jones didn't give Wilson much of a chance to criticize after that meeting.

Jones started staying late with Jonathan Crompton, leading the rest of the unit by example. Soon, Quintin Hancock was staying late as well, and then Marsalis Teague and Nu'Keese Richardson joined the after-hours practices.

It's apparently paying off, as the QBs and WRs were at a 90% completion rate at Wednesday's practice.

Talking Points: on Gus Malzahn and Monte Kiffin

Joel — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 11:22:02 -0000

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What exactly did Gus Malzahn do that was so successful against Monte Kiffin? He ran his offense. One specific: he was focused on getting Tennessee out of its five-man front and into a four-man front against which Auburn could better run the ball. How did he get that fifth guy out of there? The article doesn't say (I don't think -- another hurried morning), but I'd guess that the explanation uses the word "spread."
Perhaps there should be some progressive discipline for chop block repeat offenders:

Wes Brown, Auburn's latest victim, is fine and taking the high road. Unlike me.

Also not taking the high road is whatever Vol fan sent Trooper Taylor a taunting letter last week and forging Lane Kiffin's and Eric Berry's signatures to the thing.

Well this is distressing. When I said on the podcast last night that I thought that the offense had actually improved over the 2008 version but that it was just hard to see among the comedy of errors, I had not yet read John Adams's Sunday column saying the same thing. If I have time to write tonight, I'll take a look at the actual numbers and post them tomorrow morning, but the main point is that although it's quite understandable to pull out the archived reactions of 2008 and hit "play" when Jonathan Crompton's falling down alone in the backfield and the receivers are trying to catch passes with their helmets, it might be getting in the way of seeing some actual improvement.

John Adams also recaps Tennessee's receiver woes from the departure of Ahmad Paige in the spring to yesterday's release of Brandon Warren. Warren's dismissal, by the way, wasn't just for his sideline outburst Saturday but, reading between the lines, for a much longer "show of emotion." Translation: ongoing attitude problem. Now we're just looking for the other three to four players that make up the infamous "five percent."

Sprints Is Celebrating as Hard as It Can // 10.06.09

cocknfire — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 05:09:55 -0000

More photos » by John Bazemore - AP

If we let him do this, the terrorists have won.

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Team Speed Kills Now on LSU-Florida and Ole Miss-Alabama. We will not talk (that much) about Tim Tebow's concussion. Instead, we have Richard from And The Valley Shook to talk LSU's side of the matchup with the Gators and Todd from Roll Bama Roll and one of the guys from Red Cup Rebellion to talk about that "other" important game. An all-SEC West show to balance last week's all-Tebow show. Plus, the SEC Power Poll is unveiled and all the other stuff you've come to expect from TSK Now.

EXCESSIVE CELEBRATIN'

Just get rid of it. That seems to be the overwhelming sentiment about the unsportsmanlike conduct rule after the debacle in Athens. Even Mr. College Football thinks it should go.

One of two things has to happen for the good of the game: My suggestion is to eliminate the rule entirely because it has become clear to me that it can’t be enforced on a consistent basis. Excessive celebration is too much in the eye of the beholder. Replace it with a taunting rule. Taunting is more clearly defined than excessive celebration. ...

It’s time to put some common sense back into the excessive celebration rule. It if we can’t do that, then it needs to be eliminated.

You do realize that Tim Brando agrees with you, right? And he makes an insinuation that's bound to set a few people off but might unfortunately be unsettlingly close to the truth when he points out that the SEC is calling the penalty more than other leagues, as Georgia Sports Blog illustrates.

"They don't want us to go more in-depth on why the SEC is throwing more. I am telling you, it is a conversation, I don’t want to have it, my friend Spencer does not want to have it, and I am telling you, watch out, because people are going to take a closer look at this and it is not going to bode well for the league."

What Brando appears to be talking about there is the issue of race. Tim Tebow has never been flagged by an SEC official for celebration; yet, Tebow dances around like an idiot after every two yard run both drawing attention to himself and pandering to the crowd. ...

Am I saying the issue really is race? I believe that Caucasian players rarely get flagged in the SEC no matter how excited they get. I've never seen it. Have you?

This is probably not too far from how Brando intended it; I thought the same thing while he was talking, and "my friend Spencer" seems a little bit less of an odd addition when you consider that Spencer Tillman is black and that is the middle-aged white guy's way of saying, "I'm talking about race, see?" Before you allow your head to explode: Think about this for just a minute. It's really not that unreasonable a point. Then allow your head to explode if you so desire. But at least give it some honest thought first.

As for the rule itself, I'm not sure that it needs to be eliminated. Instead, the vagueness needs to be cleared up. If you take an unnecessary dive into the endzone, maybe that should be a penalty. If it's a choreographed dance or routine, it should clearly be a penalty. Otherwise, let the players get excited. I promise it won't ruin a thing.

In any case, it probably isn't going anywhere.

Quinton McDawg, meanwhile, makes the somewhat obvious point that could be overlooked in the brouhaha.

The bad celebration penalty didn't cost us the game. Here's what did: one first down in the first half, no threat of a running game, a missed field goal, terrible kick coverage, and missed tackles.

Yes, but blaming your own team is no fun.

Sympathy from who?
Urban Meyer, of all people, rushed to A.J. Green's defense.

"That's just awful," Meyer told reporters in Gainesville, Fla. "I can't stand that when then happens. I just think that's wrong."

He then called a timeout.

But you have to wonder whether Meyer wasn't thinking more along the lines of Saurian Sagacity's take on celebrationgate.

TIM TEBOW INJURY

One way or the other, it's "The Most Important Week Of Tim Tebow's Career"
Not much hyperbole in this piece from Alligator Army. Tebow's legacy will be changed by what happens Saturday.

We might not know until game time
Meyer said it could be a game-time decision.

Asked if an announcement will be made on Saturday (Florida plays at Louisiana State at 8 p.m. on Saturday), Meyer said, "If it's real late, you probably have to wait late. If they clear him earlier than that, I'll probably tell you."

Note the "probably."

A little noticed portion of a Palm Beach Post story
I and most other speculating about Tim Tebow whiffed on this piece from the PBP:

And if Tebow can't play in this Saturday's showdown at LSU -- and it's likely he can't, UF sources say -- the Brantley Era starts about four months early for the Gators. [Emphasis mine.]

Of course, this could all be just as speculative as anything else and could also be a smokescreen. But it's the most definitive thing we've heard either way.

Another clue
Florida also left another hint that it will either not play Tebow or be irresponsible when it does.

Meyer did say, though, that Tebow "will not get hit" if he does practice this week. And that does not bode well for a return to the field this weekend, concussion expert Dr. Robert Cantu said on Monday. ...

"The first hit you take is not in the game. It should be in practice," Cantu said. "Normally, it’s better if athlete has practiced the week that they’re going to play. Generally speaking, that’s certainly the ideal situation, so that you’ve taken hits during that week and you know that the hits that jar you are not producing symptoms."

Medical experts say: Tebow should stay on the bench this week. Again, just making sure we're all paying attention beforehand.

'No idea'
That's how much of a clue John Brantley has to whether he's starting. But consider the schedule combined with Tebow not practicing until Wednesday, and it's not hard to connect all these dots.

Tebow did not practice on Monday and isn't expected to practice until at least Wednesday, which is scheduled to be a light day for the Gators. Thursday is a walk-through day.

LSU fans are treating Brantley like the starter
All the way down to the cell phone calls.

How do they do it?
Goodman wonders about how Bengal fans continue to pull off the phone thing.

Is there a rat among Florida's players? Doubtful. It's more likely that an LSU fan with access to a cell phone database pulls the numbers and then distributes them.

How long until Lane Kiffin figures out how to do this?

Deonte Thompson's ready
Good news for the Gators' WR corps at least.

Down to one player with the flu
So there's that.

OTHER NEWS

Brandon Warren gone
Kiffin has removed the WR from the team after he caused a couple of scenes during the Auburn game.

"Brandon Warren is no longer with our team," Kiffin said. "He has been dismissed for conduct detrimental to our team. We wish him the best of luck. We'll give him full academic support to keep him going in school, and that's the last I'm going to comment on it. Very unfortunate.

"Like I said, I'm not going to get into it any further out of respect to him and his family, but he's not been removed from this team because of that solely."

It's not entirely clear what those other incidents are. But this is not ideal for a team about to face a key SEC East rival.

Caleb King broke his jaw
And continued playing.

It's just the special teams. Like it was just the turnovers
The other serious problem undermining Georgia's season.

Maybe Atlanta isn't completely ridiculous
Track Em Tigers adjusts its read on the season, but warns us against getting too wrapped up in the Malzahnfense.

In the end, Auburn will be judged by how well Ted Roof's defense improves in the coming weeks. Outside of the Tennessee touchdown drive at the end of the first half, this unit made strides. The veterans made plays when the game was drawing close.

Next opponent: Arkansas.

A different kind of reassessment
Vanderbilt Sports Line takes a look at what's gone wrong this year after last year's breakthrough season.

He's probably better off for it
Jim Brown missed his first Kentucky home game in 64 years Saturday.

"I let common sense take over from valor," Brown said.

He was actually talking about his cold, but could just as well have been talking about Kentucky's chances of winning.

RTT podcast tonight at 9:00 EST

Joel — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 00:31:38 -0000

Join us for the RTT podcast tonight at 9:00 EST. I've been out of pocket all day, but we'll try to sort through the Brandon Warren thing a bit in addition to talking with Kyle King from Georgia blog Dawg Sports about this Saturday's game against the Bulldogs.

WVLT reports Brandon Warren suspended for the season

Will — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 20:18:20 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

Warren makes a catch between defenders in the 2009 Orange & White Game back in April.

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UPDATE 6:03 PM - KNS citing Lane Kiffin, says Warren has been dismissed from the program.

No official confirmation and lots of additional rumors at this point, but Knoxville CBS affiliate WVLT is reporting that Vols WR Brandon Warren has been suspended for the remainder of the 2009 season, citing one of Warren's family members. Warren is a local product of Alcoa High School.

Erin Andrews reported that Warren was involved in a sideline altercation with receivers coach Frank Wilson last night, but nothing more has been said at this point. Updates on this story as we get them...

(h/t to BeantownVol for for FanPosting this)

UPDATE 4:59 PM - Brent Hubbs and VolQuest.com are now confirming the story, with some additional information. For now, this is a free link to their info.

UPDATE 6:59 PM - Once more from VolQuest, though this is a pay link. In short, Warren apparently threw his helmet on the sideline during the exchange with Frank Wilson, but Kiffin said Warren's dismissal was not based on that one incident, but the famous "conduct detrimental to the team" that probably encompasses all of the reasons he was in Kiffin's doghouse to begin with. Kiffin also made a point to separate Warren's incident from Gerald Jones' outburst against Ohio.

Tennessee Football: Surviving September & Anticipating October

Will — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 18:16:51 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

If the guy on the left can hurt us less, the guy on the right will help us more.

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Two wins over mid-majors, a heartbreaking loss to UCLA and a closer-than-expected battle in The Swamp leaves the Lane Kiffin Era with a 2-2 start and a relatively firm foundation, even if there hasn't been a lot of building on it yet. But the Vols will have opportunities throughout the month of October to do just that, as the schedule brings Auburn, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and an open date to the table.

A third of the way through the regular season, we're still trying to figure bits and pieces of this team out, and that's based largely on the schedule: we don't know how good Western Kentucky, Ohio and even UCLA truly are, and we don't fully know exactly how much better Florida is than everyone else. But the Vols will be measured most closely by what they do against their SEC contemporaries, which is exactly what they'll see in the next four games. If this team has as far to go as they've looked at their worst, the Vols will have a long month and will be scrambling for bowl eligibility by the time November gets here. And if this team is as competitive as they've looked at their best, Tennessee will give themselves a chance to win in each of the next four ballgames.

One of the biggest factors in Phillip Fulmer's dismissal was his inability to win any big games last season - when you beat UAB, Northern Illinois, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and Kentucky, you lack a signature win - and so the biggest step forward the Lane Kiffin administration can take would be to win one of the next four games.

That's not to say going 1-3 in October would be a success...but I think 2-2 would be.

Getting two of the next four wins would give the Vols an excellent chance to get bowl eligible, would mark significant progress from last season, and could set the stage for a hot finish against a weaker November schedule (including a trip to Oxford to face an Ole Miss team that suddenly looks very beatable) that could give the Vols huge momentum towards recruiting and the next stage of the growth process.

That process starts with getting one win, and since we take them a week at a time, it starts with a fascinating matchup with Auburn this week.

We'll learn everything we need to know about this team, and ultimately judge its season as a success or failure based on what happens in October. But through four games, here's what we have learned for sure thus far:

We're playing Russian Roulette with Jonathan Crompton

It's no longer a matter of if Jonathan Crompton is going to hurt Tennessee each week, it's simply when, and how bad is the wound going to be. That's not to say he isn't capable of doing some good things at times or making some decent throws, as he did last night against Ohio. In fact, his numbers would've been better against the Bobcats if Vol receivers held on to the football.

In his entire Tennessee career, Crompton has now seen significant action in 12 games spanning three seasons. In those 12 games, he's been responsible for 18 turnovers. That's 1.5 per game.

In fact, only twice has Crompton played a turnover-free game: his backup duty performance against Wyoming, where he went 11 of 27 in a Vol loss, and against Kentucky last season, where the Vols passed only eight times.

This is who he is.

Again, it's not to say Nick Stephens should be playing instead, or that he can't make some good throws, or that the Vols can't win when he's under center. You just need to know, and you might as well embrace at this point, that Tennessee's quarterback is going to cost you 1.5 turnovers per game. How the Vols choose to manage these expected mistakes will go a long way in determining how successful the month of October is.

Montario Hardesty is the best back to wear the orange since Travis Stephens

We're a spoiled bunch, because to play tailback at Tennessee for 15 consecutive years from 1987-2001 meant you were playing it very well. The list of starting tailbacks during that run is astounding: Reggie Cobb, Chuck Webb, Tony Thompson, James Stewart, Charlie Garner, Jay Graham, Jamal Lewis, Travis Henry, Travis Stephens. Every single one of those guys was a game-changer.

We've been okay in the backfield since then: Cedric Houston, Gerald Riggs, Arian Foster, plus several others who saw spot duty. But none of them have run the way Montario Hardesty has in the first four games of this season.

Last night, the Vols opened things up in the first half in hopes that Crompton would produce. When it wasn't going as well as we'd hoped, it's no big deal: we'll just give it to #2 and watch him run for 135 yards in the second half.

I don't know if this is Hardesty or Eddie Gran or both, but when that kid gets the handoff, he's already at full speed. There's no waiting for this or that hole, he takes the ball with explosion, and then leaves defenders in the collateral damage. When was the last time you didn't just expect a Tennessee back to break tackles, you got used to it?

Hardesty has 485 yards in 4 games, which includes two tremendously tough performances against great defenses from UCLA and Florida. He's still averaging 5.8 yards per carry. He's 7th nationally and 1st in the SEC in rushing yards (storyline alert: numbers two and three both play for Auburn).

And Hardesty has been here. He's done his time, waited on the depth chart, showed flashes of greatness like that run against Cal way back in 2006. But now, there's no more waiting: #2 is the man. And in this offense, he'll need to be that and then some this month to get the Vols where they want to go. I don't expect him to disappoint.

Veterans still rule the day at WR

...and that's not an entirely great thing.

Tennessee's leading receivers last night against Ohio? Denarius Moore and Brandon Warren. Before them it was Quintin Hancock, and part of me still feels like Gerald Jones is still the team's #1 receiver.

Nu'Keese Richardson is still more style than substance - and he'll get there eventually. Marsalis Teague had bad luck last night, because Crompton overthrew him on a double-move sure touchdown...but still, Teague had six catches against Western Kentucky and has one since.

I go back to the fact that when the game was on the line against UCLA, it was Jones, Hancock and Moore who were in the game. Brandon Warren did look good last night. But I think it's going to continue to be those guys who lead the way the rest of the year - I'm just not sure a total breakthrough is coming from Teague or Nuke in 2009. If it's going to be the vets, they've got to help Crompton and not hurt him, and they've got to catch the ball when it comes their way.

How good is Chris Walker?

He sacked Tim Tebow twice. He gets the rare defensive lineman pick-six on an incredibly savvy play last night. Through four games, he has 5.5 TFLs, 4 sacks, a pick, a forced fumble and a touchdown. When they said he was unblockable in the spring...again, maybe Lane Kiffin really is a man of his word.

Walker is the kind of dominant presence at end the Vols have been sorely missing. He's got better numbers than Robert Ayers and been a bigger presence in the opposition's backfield than anyone we've had in recent memory - like Hardesty, you have to go back to 2001 to find a better DE performance thus far.

Suddenly, I'm worried about this guy turning pro early.

Rico McCoy, Eric Berry and Janzen Jackson are out for blood

Whatever the record is for the number of times the Neyland Stadium crowd goes "OOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHH!" after a big hit on defense, it's going down this year.

Eric Berry is Eric Berry, who leads the team in solo tackles with 20, and the next closest guy (McCoy) has only 12.

Rico McCoy picked a good year to play up to his potential, and in terms of hitting he got even better when Nick Reveiz went down, which was great to see. That guy will bring the pain.

But there's been no bigger headhunter thus far this season than Jackson, who is an impossible combination of tall and fast, and who is making us happy for more than just his hit on Brandon James.

When the ball goes up around #15, you look for bad things to happen to the receiver. This defense is incredibly agressive and makes the other team pay...and again, we're going to need more of the same if the Vols want October to go their way.

Tennessee Volunteers Outlast Ohio Bobcats, Limp Out 34-23

Hooper — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 03:00:23 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

2 months ago: Tennessee defensive end Chris Walker returns an interception for a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Ohio, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

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In the last non-conference game before the heart of the conference schedule, the Tennessee Volunteers won in a tougher-than-expected matchup against the Ohio Bobcats. The good news is that the Volunteers won. The bad news is the injury list.

The opening quarter started out briskly for the Vols, with a solid opening drive capped by an eleven-yard touchdown run by Montario Hardesty to create a 7-0 lead. But then, things went haywire fast for the home team. The following kickoff was returned by Ohio's specialist Chris Garrett for a touchdown to tie the game at 7-7. The next drive ended abruptly with an all-too-familiar tone for Vols fans: an early interception thrown by Jonathan Crompton. With the short field, the Bobcats took a quick 14-7 lead, closing with a 2-yard pass from Theo Scott to LaVon Brazill. The Volunteers tied things up at the end of the first quarter with a touchdown pass to Brandon Warren.

And then the grudge match was on.

Ohio, led by coach Frank Solich, gameplanned very well for Tennessee. The Bobcat defense sold out against the run, daring Crompton to throw all day long. To his credit (and every Vol fans' fear), Lane Kiffin obliged by turning Crompton loose for a 34-attempt night, even after the early interception. Likewise, Monte Kiffin sold out his defense against the run, determined to halt the spread elements of the pistol formation, to which the Bobcats turned their quarterback loose for a 52-pass night. The result was that the second quarter ground down to a near-halt with field possession ruling the night.

Playing field position worked for the Vols. Pinning Ohio back deep in their own end, the ferocious pressure from the Ed Orgeron-trained line caused Ohio quarterback Theo Scott to throw straight into the arms of defensive end Chris Walker, who sauntered into the end zone for his first career pick-six and a 21-14 Tennessee lead. After trading field goals (and a very near miss from a 46-yard attempt by Daniel Lincoln), the half ended 24-17.

In the third quarter, the grinding game continued, with an early field goal for Ohio and a late touchdown by Tennessee on a 26-yard Jonathan Crompton to Bryce Brown pass that extended the Volunteer lead to 31-20 heading into the fourth quarter. Likewise in the fourth, a pair of traded field goals left the final score 34-23 - much closer than the Volunteer faithful were hoping for, but a win nonetheless.

Areas of Concern

Special Teams: The kickoff touchdown run has to worry the Vols. Between that and other returns, it appears the coverage unit needs some more work in anticipation of other good return games down the horizon. On the plus side, Lincoln is having a much, much better year kicking field goals than he did last year, with only missing the one 46-yarder on the year and setting a new career high with the late 49-yard field goal to ice the game. Improvement has definitely been made in special teams, but Eddie Gran's job is not done.

Wide Receivers: Either to the credit of the Ohio secondary, the detriment of the Tennessee receiving corps, or both, the Volunteer receivers were not able to consistently establish separation in their routes, giving Crompton precious few targets and forcing many throwaways. While the interceptions were down for Crompton (just one on a deflected ball) as well as for the Ohio secondary (who had 5 on the year already), the lack of opportunities were more of a problem in this game than in previous outings for Tennessee.

Injuries: At one point, five defensive starters were out of the game for injuries, including a potentially nasty leg injury to home crowd favorite linebacker Nick Reveiz. The injuries are coming at the worst possible time - the very beginning of the main SEC conference slate, which starts next Saturday against the Auburn Tigers. As this is a team that is very clearly led by the defense and very thin on depth, getting as many healthy bodies back into the lineup as possible is a high priority.

Other Notes

Tennessee touchdowns were scored by Montario Hardesty, Bryce Brown, Chris Walker, and Brandon Warren. Daniel Lincoln missed his first field goal of the year (a 46-yarder) but made a personal record 49-yarder and a 38-yarder, dispelling many of the fears of a return of last year's shaky performance. Aaron Douglas made his first career start at right tackle, adding valuable experience for the future of the Vols offensive line. Eric Berry had another quiet night, as Ohio clearly played to keep the ball as far away from him as possible. Janzen Jackson is obviously relishing the opportunity to lay hard hits, inflicting several on Bobcats players. The Tennessee defense held the Ohio offense to 21 yards on the ground on 17 carries, but gave up 319 passing yards on 52 attempts for a 6.1-yard average.

Talking points: even homework is afraid of Eric Berry

Joel — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 11:02:44 -0000

Eric Berry tackles his homework like it's Knowshon Moreno. From his Twitter feed:

...Shout out to EmeraldMaserie!!! Just crushed my presentation. Now I'm off to eat and off to practice.

No doubt that if it weren't for that pesky 140 character limit, the last part of that would have read, "Now I'm off to demolish my dinner and destroy practice."
The word of the day is . . . FINISH . . . brought to you by Wes Rucker and the Times Free Press:

College football coaches pore over statistics after most games, and they obsess over them after close losses. Most of the most important statistics boil down to one factor: As Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin puts it, "Did we finish?" Did your defense get off the field on third down? Did your team outscore its opponent in the fourth quarter? Did you turn red-zone drives into touchdowns? Kiffin's Volunteers did two of those three things the past two weeks, but they lost to UCLA and Florida in large part because they couldn't accomplish the third task. They couldn't fully capitalize inside the opponent's 20-yard line, and that's one of the biggest reasons they're 1-2 heading into Saturday's 7 p.m. game against Ohio University. UT scored six times in seven red-zone chances against the Bruins and Gators, but just two of those possessions, and just one of the last six, crossed the goal line.

The Google of Football is always and forever indexing:

Still Learning: Defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin has been indoctrinated in the spread offense and will see it again from the Bobcats. But they'll add one more wrinkle the coaching veteran hasn't faced much before with their Pistol attack that features a running back behind the quarterback in a shotgun formation. "I didn't even know what it was until I got here," Monte Kiffin said. "Every week it's something new."

As Jarrod Shaw moves to left guard to sub for injured Vladimir Richard, Aaron Douglas will start at right tackle for Shaw. Douglas's former NFL dad will be rooting for Douglas . . . to get up and get back in the huddle.

Friend of the blog Brian Cook has issues with RTT and Clay Travis asserting that Lane Kiffin's taking up residence in Urban Meyer's head. Which is fine, although I'm not sure that anyone's really trying to say that it necessarily means Kiffin will win. It does have the effect of rallying the team (much like it has his fanbase -- hmm . . . there's a post in there somehwere), which is probably a piece of the puzzle, though. Oh, and both Kiffin and Meyer have heard from the principal now, too.

Kiffin's expecting better times for the passing game this weekend -- but remember that Ohio's secondary is quite ball-hawkish -- and is thinking that Brandon Warren may fit into that somehow.

Miss last night's game between South Carolina and Ole Miss? Catch up with SBNation's storystream of the Gamecock's 16-10 victory over the Rebels. Oh, and if you missed the game, you also missed the Dr. Lou segment, which was actually quite funny.

Quintin Hancock & Vladimir Richard injured, out for Ohio

Will — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:43:38 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

3 months ago: Tennessee Quintin Hancock (87) out runs UCLA's Akeem Ayers (10) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009 in Knoxville, Tenn. UCLA won 19-15. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

Browse more photos »

Tennessee's struggles in the passing game will face an even steeper climb this week: senior OG Vladimir Richard is out with a knee injury and is on crutches, and WR Quintin Hancock has a broken jaw and will miss this week and then some.

Richard, who has been hampered throughout the month with achilles tendon and knee issues, will see his absence filled by Jarrod Shaw moving inside from tackle to guard, meaning redshirt freshman and converted tight end Aaron Douglas will see his first start at tackle on Saturday night. Douglas has played a handful of snaps in Tennessee's first three games.

Hancock has been Tennessee's most reliable wide receiver since spring practice, and leads the team with 11 catches for 128 yards this season. No other wide receiver has caught more than six passes.

Lane Kiffin stressed yesterday that Jonathan Crompton needed to play well this week, and the downgrade from Florida to Ohio in terms of defensive talent should allow the passing game to open things up more, even if only a little bit. But now with an offensive lineman and the leading pass catcher out, it'll be an even more interesting re-evaluation of Tennessee's passing game on Saturday.

Gerald Jones and Denarius Moore have the experience, but one still wonders if either is fully healthy. Freshman Marsalis Teague caught six passes in the opener but hasn't seen one since. Brandon Warren and Nu'Keese Richardson are still more hype than result. And thus far, Tennessee's third, fourth and fifth leading receivers are tailback Bryce Brown, fullback Kevin Cooper, and tight end Luke Stocker. The Vols need increased productivity from the WR position, and in Hancock's absence the competition will be more wide open than ever...who will step up?

Poll

Who will lead Tennessee in receptions against Ohio on Saturday?

Gerald Jones

54 votes

Denarius Moore

7 votes

Nu'Keese Richardson

11 votes

Marsalis Teague

70 votes

Brandon Warren

10 votes

A non-WR: Brown, Hardesty, Cooper or Stocker

32 votes

184 votes | Poll has closed