SB Nation User Blog: hooper

A Little Site Administration Information and Weekend Cheers

hooper — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 02:15:31 -0000

First off, we wish all of you a fantastic weekend. Have fun, relax, enjoy a break (if your line of work allows such a thing), stay alive, and resume normal bloggery Monday. (Not that we won't continue through the weekend, but you understand.)

Second, the holiday weekend gives me a good chance to step outside blogger mode and talk content for a bit. There's really a lot going on around RTT at the moment; some things have been visible and some have been under the hood. Let me highlight a few things so you have a better idea where we are and where we hope to go.

The RTT Create Your Own UT Uniform Contest is still going, so be sure to jump in if you haven't already. We've already been pleasantly surprised at some of the uniform ideas; there have to be plenty of other good ones out there. And don't forget that the winner and runner-up get hardware to go with their bragging rights.
The Rocky Top Tennessee 2009 Annual Ships out on Monday. Pre-orders will be sent straight away; stores will carry them starting on the 21st. I've had the privilege of a sneak peek, and I really think you're going to be blown away at what Joel spearheaded over the last few months.
The 50 Best Games of the Fulmer Era is down to the top 10. Will will keep on reviving great memories as only he can throught the summer and should provide much-needed relief through the football drought that is baseball season.
The Pilot Rocky Top League is over. Congrats to HT Group for besting News Sentinel and winning the league. As for us, our coverage of the league was, um, minimal this year - partly because we've been distracted by the annual and partly because of the under-the-hood stuff I mentioned before. At any rate, there were several Vols who made good showings this summer and we have reason to think that several players have improved quite a bit.
Recruiting News is Heating Up. As the summer camps wind down, we'll begin to hear more about prospects cutting lists down to final 3 or final 5 lists, and we'll hear about some commits (to UT and to other places). Now that the annual is out, we hope to re-invent our recruiting coverage. I think you'll be pleased.
The Time to Gear Up for Football Season is Now. It's hard to believe that football is just around the corner, but it really is. With so much going on this year (new staff, new offense and defense, new stadium look, etc.) there will be a lot to discuss. This year will probably have more scuttlebutt fodder than we've had in decades.
SBNation Keeps on Giving. Since the end of basketball season, the SBNation blogs have seen a lot of dramatic changes. Most of the advances have been managerial - things that you probably don't even know about - but if you are regulars on any of the hockey, NBA, or baseball blogs, you likely have seen an across-the-board increase in the quality of blog administration and content. Seriously, the techies behind the scenes have basically given us a Ferrari of a blog and we've been itching for the fall sports to begin so we can really stretch our wings.

It's going to be a very interesting back half of the year. We hope you like what's coming up and, most importantly, we hope to provide the best place on the 'net for Vols talk (for both fans and rivals, but especially fans) before, during, and after all Vols events.

And to keep your motor running for football (as if you needed any help), recall this lovely bit of YouTubery:

A 4-Star Place Kicker?!? Welcome to UT, Palardy!

hooper — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:37:18 -0000

Normally, I'd put news of a new recruit on the sidebar, but a 4-star kicker is something you don't see every year. Mike Palardy of St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Florida just gave his nod to the Vols as his home for 2010.

There's not a whole lot to say other than wow, but special note must be made of Eddie Gran. Gran is the coach who recruits Florida and is the special teams coach (in addition to running backs). I've been really, really impressed with Gran as a person off the field; his on-the-job performance is leaving no doubt as to how special he can be for the Vols.

Here's some terrific place-kicker eye candy for your enjoyment. Just imagine this guy in one of those sweet new uniforms you're dreaming up for the RTT Create Your Own UT Uniform Contest.

Competin' for Kickers!

The Re-Animation of David Clawson - How 'Bout Them Cold-Weather Springs?

hooper — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 03:15:17 -0000

In which we look at the Clawfense from the third person perspective. Quite possibly the cheapest brain massage you'll ever receive.

Perusing through the archives of Rocky Top Talk, I had a little fun looking at the posts from about a year ago. There was some good news, like the commitment of Josh Nunes (boy, wouldn't it be nice to have him aboard right about now?), a certain Fulmer Cup news item from a certain university to the hotward side of Tennessee, some reasons to be excited about having a brand-new starter at the quarterback position, and the requisite excitement about the mysterious Clawfense.

Yes, those were the days, when we had no clue what the Clawfense was and we liked it that way. Nowadays, we have too much of an idea what it's like, and we liked it much better when we didn't know. (Hey, it's a mistake we all make at some point in our lives. We fell for the pretty avatar and the cute IM chats, and we learned our lesson the hard way when we decided to meet Tracee1639 for a blind date - only to find out we've hooked up with a plumber named Jack in a cheap blond wig. Sober up, cowboy.)

Well, if you haven't gotten over 2008 yet, there's not a whole lot I can say. But life goes on, and at some point you offhandedly wonder just whatever happened to that crazy plumber. For UT fans, the answer is as close as the internet.

Every once in a while over the last few months, I would take a quick look through the news feeds to see just what's become of our once-beloved offensive coordinator. We all know he got the head coaching gig at Bowling Green, but that's about as far as the story has traveled around here. Granted, some of you would like to leave it there, but it's the summer and news is scarce, so now seems like a good time to run through Clawson's offseason and see how things are going.

But first, just in case you blocked last season from your memory, here's a little video Joel whipped up a while ago. Remember, a repressed memory will only hurt; let it out and be free from the pain.

A Quick Reminder

Some of the post-partem news from the UT front included a little venting from Josh Briscoe: "That offense wasn't putting us there. That offense held us back a lot." In that article, it seems that the team was told straight-up that the offense was a multi-year project. (Which would have been nice for the fans to know, rather than being told that the scheme wasn't the problem.) After getting picked up by the Steelers, Ramon Foster was happy to bid the Clawfense farewell: ""As far as that strong/weakside stuff, I wouldn't venture that I would ever see that again." An interesting side note about the offensive line last year was the issue of weight gain, and just how much heavier (and slower?) they were under Clawson.

A New Home

But hey, there are two sides to every coin. As happy as Big Orange Nation was to see Clawson go, I'm sure that he was happy to leave and start anew. We weren't a very fun lot to be around last year and I'm sure that the Clawsons found that traditional Appalachian hospitality to be a little lacking by December. Clawson must have been happy to be so warmly received in his new digs. (Photos here.) And with a new home comes new hope: Rivals.com was kind enough to point out that Clawson was inheriting a better team than the 6-6 record suggested. (snicker) Clawson even had plenty of story lines to keep things interesting. For one, he'll open the new season against a former quarterback of his - from Richmond. The Bowling Green faithful were happy to hear of the talent he was able to assemble at his 1-AA stop in Richmond. (With links, links, links, and more links. NFL Talent! Yay!)

And hey, this Bowling Green team was able to do something last year that Tennessee couldn't. Beat Wyoming. In Laramie. So when these Cowboy-killers got their hands on the 1-AA hotshot coach, what could possibly go wrong?

Spring Practice

SEC fans love them some spring practice, but sometimes we forget just how well off we have it in the South. Take spring practice in Bowling Green Ohio, for example. Clawquote: "To win championships in cold weather, at some point you have to have the ability to run the football. If your offense is dependent on 80 degrees and sunny, this probably isn't a great place to do it." Yeah, I guess that makes sense. If you're not going to pass the ball for the first two years, someplace freakin' cold would be the place to do it. By the way, this may answer the reason that Big Televen teams don't play football in December: the football players are on standby for snowplow duties on the weekends.

Nonetheless, the offense was excited to have Clawson. The offense is mysterious and is still being "kept under wraps". Clawson plans on getting the ball to the playmakers and will be flexible. He promises. The experienced quarterback appeared to have the inside track for the starting gig, but the offense may be run-first. Overall, the offense brings back a lot of starters and chemistry. The defense? ~~Four~~ three returning starters. More on that in a bit.

Keep the "new starting quarterback" thing in your head, though. I never did track down the numbers, but I had heard several times on the Sports Animal towards the end of last season that the Clawfense took a full year to get on track if the qb was a returning starter, but two full years otherwise.

Spring Game

I'm sure they have a fancy title for their spring game but I'm not inclined to look it up. If you're desperate enough for something resembling football, you can always check out the video highlights here (and then check into rehab). They used an offense-friendly scoring system and saw the day end 66-47 in favor of the offense. However, reading into it, it sounds like the defense really had the better of things on that day, shutting down both the 1st- and 2nd-string offense for most of the day, including the first five drives in a row. The offense did get on track in the second half, and I'm sure that had nothing to do with the offensive play calls being tailored to the defensive calls.

That wouldn't necessarily stand out as a problem, except that the only returning D-line player (and arguably the best player on the team), Michael Ream, was dismissed two weeks prior to the spring game. As it turns out, the dude (who has a great photo and undoubtedly kept his head warm through the Ohio winters) got the "violating team rules" boot, which means that the BGSU defense dominated the offense without any returning starters on the defensive line.

Vols fans, if this isn't providing any catharsis or closure yet, just remember where we were last year and re-run the implications of Bowling Green's spring practices and scrimmage through your head. May your road to recovery be gilded with visions of schadenfreude.

Preseason: Bringing it Home

In light of all that has transpired in Clawson's career and in the spring for Bowling Green, Rivals.com has seen fit to predict a strong offensive season for the Falcons. (Go ahead and re-read that.) The Boy from Rock M Nation has an in-depth preview of Bowling Green because Missouri will play them this year. It's interesting that he sees a rebuilding project underway for the Falcons. Athlon Sports also warns of this 2-year window that Clawson seems to carry around.

But perhaps the most interesting piece of predictive writing comes from this Athlon article. In it, they posit that Bowling Green was trying to get over some ethics and integrity problems in the team that weren't well-checked by the previous staff. That would make Clawson their 'straight-arrow' guy - somebody brought in to clean house more so than build a dynasty. The dismissal of Michael Ream seems to fit that pattern, so perhaps the whole 'offensive genius' thing isn't the real draw that brought Clawson to Bowling Green.

Which would make sense.

Wherein Doc Saturday has lost his sense of humor.

hooper — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:48:36 -0000

Wherein Doc Saturday has lost his sense of humor.

"So Evan Berry is not committed to Tennessee. That is all. You may now return to your regularly scheduled message board stalking."

Aw, come on, Doc. It's the offseason. Lighten up a touch, willya? lolruses, and all that. ;-)'s, kthxbai's, etc.

The Rock Walk

hooper — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:33:52 -0000

We just received a campus-wide email this morning that The Rock will be moved from its present location to the other side of the street. I'm just hoping that the backdrop scenery works well for future recruiting photos.

The email:

June 30, 2009

To: Knoxville-area UT Students
From: W. Timothy Rogers, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs
Subject: Moving the Rock

For the second time in its history, the "Rock", a campus icon and venue for student self-expression, is going to be moved to a new location.

The new site will be 275 feet diagonally across the street -- north of Volunteer Boulevard, at the intersection of Pat Head Summitt Street -- from where it now sits.

The move is necessary, as the current location will be the site of a new and significantly expanded Student Health Center, set to begin construction this fall. This 109,242-square-foot building, which will include a pharmacy, will not leave enough space for the Rock and the freedom of speech activities we all treasure.

The Rock's new site is an equally high-profile venue. By moving across the street, the Rock will enhance our long-term plan to create an "arts quad" by extending the pedestrian walkway, adding green space and developing a gathering place for students.

Throughout this planning process, we have conferred with Student Government Association President Laura Nishida and 2008-09 SGA President Jeff Wilcox. Last semester, Jeff accompanied us as we toured the area to find a suitable new home for the Rock.

The move will take place sometime this month. We will announce the date and time so people can be there to witness this moment in UT history. I hope you will join us.

In addition, we are planning a Celebration of the Rock for Welcome Week. We will provide details as plans are finalized.

As some of you may know, the Rock was discovered in 1966 when UT was expanding to the area now known as Fiji Island. The Rock was moved from Fiji Island to its present location that year.

Berry's brother wanrts [sic] to be a Vol

hooper — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:43:02 -0000

Berry's brother wanrts [sic] to be a Vol

Yes, it's behind a paywall. But with a h/t towards Orson, even the teaser version is enough to make a Vols fan happy. So, so happy.

Clawtharsis: Healing the Wounds of an Offense-less Season

hooper — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 22:46:58 -0000

In the middle of this week (most likely July 1st), I'll have a post up on Dave Clawson. I don't want to give anything away on it, but I do think you'll enjoy it (especially the Vols fans). Until then, let me ask you this question:

Poll

What will be your most lasting memory of the Vols' Clawfense?

Out of Sheer Curiosity: The "Other" Football

hooper — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 16:32:47 -0000

We've all heard the story: the US Men's Soccer team beat top-ranked Spain 2-0 in one of the larger upsets in World play. (Spain was undefeated for 476 years going into it. Give or take.) Today, US plays Brazil in a game that, as far as I understand, could mean a lot toward the World Cup seedings. (Or I could be totally wrong on that.) So, just to know where everybody stands on the sport,

Poll

Have you been actively following U.S. Men's Soccer team recently?

Neyland Stadium Renovation Photographs

hooper — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:59:21 -0000

A couple of days ago, the replacement of the JumboTron was discussed in a Talking Points post, and there was at least one point of interest in seeing how things were going with the renovations. So, without unnecessary lead-in, here are some snapshots to give you out-of-towners an idea of how things will look this fall. (Huge h/t to the Mrs., who took all of these photos.)

First, the JumboTron. (That puts all the pretty pictures after the jump.)

Off with the old...

Vol Walk 2009

Slight Side Angle

Closer Angle View

So Close, Yet...

For Lawvol

Helpful Arrow For Bama Fans

Recruiting Recruiters: Can UT Go Ahead And Get This Guy A Cell Phone?

hooper — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 01:45:08 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

I have a sneaking suspicion that Monte and Jacques are going to be great friends.

Browse more photos »

At the rate he's going, Jacques Smith may be one of UT's best recruiters this year. That's saying something, considering the list of all-star recruiters that Lane Kiffin has culled from schools around the SEC and the country. It's a point that Dave Hooker noted a while back, but it bears another look.

Jacques Smith, the Rivals 4-star and Scout 5-star class of 2010 defensive lineman from Ooltewah TN started his journey as a Vol with a surprisingly strategic move: committing to Tennessee on National Signing Day for the 2009 class. In the excitement of that day, with all of the site updating and name tracking, I didn't see the reason for that at the time, but it's been made clear ever since. By announcing his commitment, the nationally-touted lineman was adding his name to the Vols' haul in the only way that he could. Securing the top player in the state for 2010 also reinforced the fence-building theme that Kiffin had espoused throughout his short time at Tennessee. The move was political and intended to show the strength in recruiting that Tennessee was bringing on a day when all eyes were on the recruiting process throughout the country.

Since then, Smith hasn't slowed down.

MARCH

Nearly one month to they day after he signed, Jacques Smith wound up in the news again - answering questions about the significance of his visit to Alabama. Having one of your top commits looking at the campus of a rival is always a scary thing, but Smith was careful to first assure the Vols faithful that he was solid:

"Oh no, not at all," Smith said when asked if he was interested in Alabama. "That’s probably the last place on earth that I’d go to college."

Then he downplayed the significance of the offers made by other schools:

Smith appreciates the offers but feels that some schools are just offering him to persuade him to visit their campuses – either for junior days, summer camps or official visits this fall.

"I respect them," Smith said, "but it’s kind of like a bribe just trying to get me to come here."

Then he went to work - selling UT to the other recruits of the 2010 class:

"I try to persuade them over a little bit, just to see the good sides about Tennessee and the negative about the other schools that I’ve seen already," Smith said. "I let them know in advance without taking the trips."

Smith's number one target is clearly James Stone, an offensive lineman from Maplewood High. Though they should be natural enemies (lining up on opposite sides of the ball for two schools who will play against each other this fall), Smith is taking every opportunity to befriend Stone and to make him feel welcome in Knoxville. So far it's worked; when asked abou Smith, James Stone had this to say:

"He's really trying to sell me on UT right now," Stone said.

Even the high school coaches seem to be getting into the act. Unlike last year, when Ooltewah would line up Smith away from Stone, they hint at letting them go best-on-best:

"Last year it was kind of a cat-and-mouse game," Thompson said. "We would try to line James up on Smith and they swapped some things around on the defensive line.

"We're really looking forward to this year and seeing those guys go at it a whole game. I'd love to see that."

Stone and Smith agree.

Despite the budding rivalry, both players speak glowingly of each other and the battle that looms.

It's a beautiful friendship. And Vols fans should dearly hope that they love the competition against each other on September 25th (mark it on your calendar); if Stone has enough fun locking horns with Smith, he may well opt to do so on a regular basis - in practices at UT - rather than once a year elsewhere.

APRIL

While we were all focusing our attention on Jake Heaps, Hooker again brought us some under-the-radar insight about Stone:

Smart Smith: Not only is UT 2010 commitment Jacques Smith a star player; he's also a standout student.

The defensive end from Ooltewah, who is considered one of the top 100 prospects in the nation, has every intention of enrolling in January at UT.

Smith already has 26 1/2 credits of the 28 necessary to graduate. His main focus will be on passing his core classes this fall to satisfy the NCAA Clearinghouse.

After selling the defense, Smith again assured us that he was working on Stone:

"Their scheme is really good and they really let their linemen loose," he said.

Smith said he's still trying to recruit James Stone to UT. The offensive lineman from Maplewood High was in Neyland Stadium along with Smith and running back Juwan Thompson from Woodward Academy in College Park, Ga., on Friday.

During the end of April, Smith kept in the public eye, attending the UT spring practices and making his desire to play known. Via Wes Rucker of the Chattanooga Free Press:

"I can’t wait," Smith said later in the day. "Days like this get me excited.

"I like to get up here every chance I get, especially on days like this. I just have this great feeling every time I’m up here."

He announced his plans to enroll early and assured us of his academic standing:

The 6-foot-3, 230-pound defensive end claimed to be "way ahead" of Ooltewah’s curriculum standards and hopes to enroll at UT in January.

"I’m trying to get a head start, cut that year off and basically be ready like a sophomore my first season," Smith said.

He even started referring to UT as his team in the present tense:

"This scheme is really good, and they really let them linemen loose to do what they do, because we have such a good secondary," Smith said. "We have so many secondary athletes like Eric Berry, so they don’t have to worry about the front four."

And his recruiting net continued to expand:

In the meantime, Smith said his attention was focused on helping the Owls to a big season and recruiting some of the Southeast’s best players to join him in Knoxville.

"I follow (recruiting) a lot," he said. "I’m really trying to look at players in Tennessee that we need to keep here."

MAY

The stories about Smith on the recruiting trail slowed down during May, but Jacques found other ways to continue to impress as Tennessee's youngest ambassador - his athleticism. First, he finished first in discus and second in the shot put in the state for AAA. Then he followed the athletic performance up with another academic milestone: announcing that he was clear to enroll early in the Spring semester of 2010. Amidst all the business of state track competition and crushing the coursework, Smith continued to sell UT:

"I’ve got a pretty busy schedule, between working, working out and making a few camps and visits," Smith said. "I love it every time I visit or talk with the Tennessee coaches. Coach (Ed) Orgeron tells me I’m going to be an All-American once I get up there, and I don’t argue with him. I just hope if I keep working at it that I can prove him right.

"I think the fact that so many of their coaches have NFL experience, when they tell you that they can get you ready for the next level, you tend to believe them. That’s why I wanted to graduate early and get to UT as soon as I could. I look at it as preparing for my career, and I don’t want to wait any longer than I have to to get started."

JUNE

One the very first day of the month, we hear even more great news about Smith: he merely runs the fastest 40 time of his life at Good Old Rocky Top. Perhaps at a bit of expense of the Fulmer era, he plugged the Kamp Kiffin experience yet again:

"It was really hardcore compared to last year’s with the last coaching staff," said Smith, who is 6-foot-2 ½ "It was just so much more intense."

And was still pursuing Stone:

"I was really getting James Stone," Smith said referring to the Maplewood High School star. "I was talking to him a lot. I was telling him after practice ‘You need to go ahead and commit today.’ I know he loved it today."

Most recently, we now know that Smith will take his official visit during the Georgia game, when so many other recruits will be in Neyland.

UT defensive end commitment Jacques Smith from Ooltewah High School said he also will take his official visit for the Georgia game on Oct. 10. Smith is doing all he can to make the weekend a big one for UT.

He plans on selling the UT family like crazy:

"That will just bring the bond of the group together," Smith said after the Vols' camp concluded on Saturday. "If more commitments come, when they see that, they'll want to join in too. That's the whole thing, being one. Tennessee is a family."

And is even helping out with the offense:

"That's all we need is a quarterback," Smith said. "That will spark the offensive recruiting."

FORWARD

You have to respect this kid's motor. He's been knocking out the classwork, winning state titles in track, setting personal bests, dominating camps, selling UT, and taking every media opportunity to portray class and maturity. It's a rare combination to see in one person, so keep an eye on him. He may indeed be a very rare gem of his generation, both as a football player and as a person.