From the
Upper Deck
Tough Week For
County, Vols' Fans
By Jim Steele
steele@mckenziebanner.com |
| |
|
 |
It was a miserable weekend for football fans in Carroll
County, particularly those who follow the Tennessee
Vols.Those folks sustained a double-whammy.
Here are a few thoughts about what happened. Picture
me shrugging my shoulders:
* Dresden has a good football team. Better than a lot
of McKenzie people thought, yours truly included. The
Lions are big, strong and deliberate and controlled the
flow of the game from start almost to finish.
But McKenzie's 23-20 loss is not fatal to its
post-season plans. A victory or defeat by either team
wasn't critical. It was simply a great exhibition
between two great teams. If things go well, there's a
chance we might see the Lions back in Carroll County
around Thanksgiving. If nothing else, McKenzie's battle
against Dresden, likewise Huntingdon's affair with Milan
and West Carroll's battle with Jackson Christian, was
just great free practice against good teams.
* After McKenzie's game, Rebel quarterback Drew Hayes
was a bit upset over his performance. A lot of
quarterbacks would have traded with him. He threw for
222 yards and three TDs, a school record. But he was a
bit dismayed over four interceptions.
I once remember a quarterback who threw 252
interceptions, 28 in one season. Bench him? Maybe, but
his last name was Marino. As in Dan Marino, the guy who
threw for 20 miles as a quarterback for the Miami
Dolphins.
But the good thing is that this meant something to
the youngster. He learned from a tough loss. The whole
team will learn something from this loss. Look for good
things from the Rebels.
* Gibson Co. girls' basketball coach David Russell,
while at Bradford, came into the media room after losing
a state semifinal basketball game. He was visibly upset,
but uttered this profundity: "If losing a basketball
game is the worst thing that's ever going to happen to
us, then we should be okay."
Amen.
The best thing to say about last Friday night is that
it's over. Shall we move on to say...Saturday?
* Tennessee's 41-14 loss to visiting Georgia suggests
to me one thing: something must change at the top of the
Vols' organization. It perhaps may be time to start
thinking about a new head coach.
Rash, you say? Maybe, but consider that the Vols have
the best players coming into its program from high
school and the best players going to the NFL. But
something is wrong in the middle. That suggests to me
coaching. Wiser sages than me have suggested that
Phillip Fulmer does a lousy job at player development.
It has been said that he coddles the star players and is
soft on discipline.
Need evidence? Kelley Washington's pontification last
year showed that Fulmer had a loose grip on his team.
Likewise, quarterback Casey Clausen's backtracking on
his remarks regarding Georgia last year was simply
dishonest. He claimed he never said that he could have
beaten Georgia last year with one arm behind his
back...by two touchdowns. Then he said he never said it
when reporters have it on tape.
It seems Georgia took that one arm and beat
Tennessee's posterior with it.
The Vols have lost 14 games since the national
championship; they lost 11 prior to that in the Fulmer
era. They are 1-6 against top 25 teams the last two
years and are 1-4 in post-season games since the title
(three bowl losses and the loss in the SEC title game in
2001).
What is this fascination with establishing the run?
The Vols, trailing by four TDs, ran predictably up the
middle time and time again. Why? Tennessee has already
proven that it has no running game. And why wasn't the
best runner on the team, Gerald Riggs not in the game
until it was out of reach? Because he can't pass block
effectively? Maurice Clarett couldn't pass block either,
but his lack of blocking proficiency led Ohio State to a
national title last season.
The Vols could lay the blame on last year's woes on
injuries. What can they hang their helmets on this year?
This was Tennessee's last best chance to win the SEC
East for a while, in my opinion. There is no real
quarterback prospect in the wings. The running game is a
mess. The Vols have no pass defense. They have no run
defense. And now a five loss season seems possible
again. Tennessee has relegated itself to a spot in no
better than the Outback Bowl, most likely, another
miserable trip to Atlanta for the Peach Bowl.
Tennessee isn't a Top 25 team right now. It failed to
capitalize on the bump from the national title (the 1999
team lost three games with almost the whole team back,
minus Al Wilson).
There has been absent leadership in the Tennessee
football camp since the 1998 campaign. There is talent
on The Hill, but as a collection, this is a mediocre
football team. There needs to be a change.
As for my prowess this week, it was equally as
malodorous as the Vols' performance.
I was as bad as Tennessee last week in my
predictions. I was 13 of 22, which drops me to 129 of
163. It was my worst week in almost 15 years. I am below
the 80-percent mark, just barely, at 79.1. Like our
teams this week, I seek redemption. Here's to better
fortunes.
McKenzie over Chester County: You think the Rebels
might want to vent a little frustration this weekend?
Huntingdon over Riverside: See above.
West Carroll over Greenfield: The War Eagles are
still on path to capture a region crown. This will go a
long way in ensuring that.
Hollow Rock-Bruceton over Lake Co.: This rivalry between
two once-strong teams is for bragging rights this year.
I'm sticking with the Tigers.
In other action, I see:
Trinity over Fayette Academy, USJ over Middleton,
South Fulton over Halls, Camden over Adamsville, Trenton
over Humboldt, Milan over Dresden, Westview over Union
City, Marshall Co. over Fayette Ware, Bolivar over
Liberty, McNairy over Lexington, South Side over
Crockett Co., Covington over Gibson Co., Ripley over
Brighton, Obion over Dyer Co., JCM over Munford, Hardin
Co. over Haywood Co., Dyersburg over North Side,
Clarksville over Henry Co. |
