The first version of Monte Kiffin's Tennessee defense is a thing of the past.
Yes, there's one more game to play this season, but there are also three weeks of bowl practice that start Friday to improve on UT's defense, rated 17th in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision.
In all likelihood, UT will field a better prepared defense in its bowl game than it did during the regular season.
Kiffin did his best to install his entire defense in Year One, but that was a lofty goal given UT had few experienced players in its front seven.
"We were young on defense no matter what you say," Kiffin said during an interview scheduled to air Friday on The News Sentinel's radio show, The Sports Page. "But I'm not using that as an excuse."
The inexperience was most evident when UT played non-traditional offenses designed to test a defense's technique and attention to fundamentals.
"Especially when you're getting into option football, getting into the spread and things like that, it's not just the option," Kiffin said, referring to the multiple offenses the Vols faced.
Kiffin believes the injuries that plagued UT's defense in the latter half of the year will make young players like freshman linebacker Herman Lathers more experienced and better.
Still, Kiffin lamented losing the two middle linebackers who started before Lathers: Nick Reveiz and Savion Frazier, both lost to season-ending knee injuries.
The Vols won't get either back in time for bowl practice but they will have a team refreshed by nearly a week off after Saturday's overtime win at Kentucky.
Practice will be about self-improvement because the Vols aren't 100 percent sure who they'll play in their bowl game. A source close to the selection process told the News Sentinel earlier this week the Vols will play Virginia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta on Dec. 31.
"Lane's not going to get into the game plan anyway," Kiffin said referring to his son, first-year UT coach Lane Kiffin, and his plan for practices this weekend. "He wants them to go against each other, just work on something else, just reading your keys.
"We're not going to beat them up, but we're going to make it competitive, but really just getting back to fundamental football whether it be D-line, or linebackers or secondary; and I know it's going to be the same way on offense."
Monte Kiffin was riding high after beating Kentucky. After 25 straight victories against the Wildcats, some might have taken the win for granted. Not Kiffin.
"I felt in the last game I was coaching in the Super Bowl," Kiffin said. "In that locker room, you would have thought we won the national championship. I love our team. I really do. Our staff feels the same way because (the players) were so excited."
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Comments » 58
bluetickhoundguy writes:
How could you not love this guy!!!
murrayvol writes:
Opposing OCs do not love this guy.
golfin_blondie writes:
Agree Monte has it going and he will have the defense ready to play whoever........wherever you can count on that my friends.
TennesseeGorilla writes:
V-Tech is going down, it won't even be close.
navarrebeachvol writes:
first! to say to the trolls tonight, get a life guys. your life should not center around UT football and this web site. enjoy your kids, read them a Christmas story. no kids? send your mom an e mail or better yet give her a call. ah, forget it, you'll be here in full force even though your teams are playing Saturday in the SEC Champ. know why? cuz you're scared. very scared. goodnight lil scared Gator and Bamer fans
SmokeyHound writes:
we better be prepared... we better get mad cuz they are supposed to beat us pretty good. we need to get really mad. every vol fan buy tickets and go down there! we need all the help we can get!
BEAT VIRGINIA TECH! GO VOLS!!
(we need to come up with one of those cheesy names for va tech. like alabubba and urban whiner and stuff)
GO VOLS! GET PREPARED STAY FOCUSED! GO VOLS
V_O_L_S_GO_VOLS_GO writes:
Lofty statement--hope it's true.
pdhuff#552644 writes:
Get 'em healthy and bring it!
bobbytodd writes:
They need to work a lot on the simple things. Defending screens or reverses have been terrible this year. We have always been able to run people down or over but need to get smarter on reading playing and knowing when to pull off a pass rush and to force bad screen passes.
randyarnold writes:
The only thing that really matters is the Vols get extra practice before Spring '10. The players who will be counted on next year must see this as preparation for next season.
Madkels writes:
We will need the best defense not only to win the SEC, but to beat Oregon and Cincy who are on our schedule in 2010 and 2011. By the way interlopers, what conference champs, other than from our conference, are you guys playing over the next few years? (I hear crickets) hee hee
loyalvol_alltheway writes:
our schedule next year is BRUTAL! Oregon, Fla, Ga, LSU, Ala, South Carolina, Ole Miss...wow!
golfin_blondie writes:
What is the deal....I posted on this threat and my post is not here....also said there were 11 post and I am still only seeing the first two. Pretty new to this site and about this time every nite seems like the same thing....post and it does not show up until the next day??? Is there a trick I don't know about??
golfin_blondie writes:
okay excuse me I see my post now but have no idea why they did not show up before..........
VolinCalif writes:
Oh Boy! do you ever have that right. But no matter what the trolls say UT plays a better out of Conf schedule than most teams. Every team has a crip game or two. There are some teams that really have it soft, but I think most can see that without pointing it out. The cute thing I see about trolls is how they can say that Vandy is one of the Vols Crip games when every team in the SECe plays Vandy and a couple of the SECw. I guess whats good for the goose is not always good for the gander.
golfin_blondie writes:
Hey WD, if I were Monte I would not think twice about putting you in as a linebacker. I think you could do some voodoo moves on the VT QB. The crowd would be on their feet yelling "Voodoo" Go Witch Doctor...lol
VolFanFtl writes:
Thank you...If the trolls can't do what you suggest, they can go Volunteer somewhere, help out in the neighborhood, clean up their trailer park.
The possibilities are endless.
They just need to get a life.
VolinCalif writes:
Don't panic Golfin I lost my ball too. I posted to response to loyal and it showed as if it were posted then I lost it again. after three refreshes it reappeared five post down.
tennezz writes:
Who won Doc...What was the final score between you and the neighbors kid?
golfin_blondie writes:
That's good to know..I thought the kool-aid I was drinking maybe was more than kool-aid and nobody else is here to spike the drink. lol
tennezz writes:
Do you ever forget to post comment after you preview comment? I do this occasionaly!
Southland writes:
of course the dadgum score will be close
p66ayers#1376155 writes:
Here 20 minutes away from Blacksburg we call'em techerwoods. If you have one better lets here it.
teampenny#658108 writes:
We are giving up 21 points a game to Tide and Gators 10. That is a large gap between our scoring defense and the top defenses in our league. We have a long way to go before we are one of the better defensive teams in our league. Playing tough teams is great, beating tough teams is better. Let's not forget we lost to UCLA at home and they suck.
steamboatticket#484773 writes:
This may be heresy, but I thought that UCLA and Auburn both played well against us and deserve some credit for their wins. Yes, I was disappointed in our defense during those games. As far as UCLA sucking goes, their QB got his jaw broken toward the end of our game, which might explain to some extent their weaker performances afterward. But generally, I have to agree that our defense is not where we need it to be, despite its playing well much of the year.
JBVol writes:
Chessy name???? Hummmm?? Isn't Hokie bad enough?
bigorangebolt writes:
Monte Kiffin is the best defensive coordinator of all times! He is a father and works like a cole miner! He is suach a leader for the kids and coaches! Tennessee is fortunate to have such an outstanding coach and man! We love you Monte Kiffin! Wishing you all the best, this Christmas season!
Craig
PennVol writes:
Bud Foster is no slouch defensive coordinator at VT. He's been on the potential head coaching list for years. This will be a tough game. Expect them to bring pressure against Crompton and try to get him rattled. They also have a tough freshman RB (Williams) who rushes for about 125 per game (albeit in the ACC). And with our kicking games woes, Beamer Ball will be in full force.
volswithclass writes:
Young on defense? They were much better on defense last year. If he thinks he is young now, wait until he loses Berry - Dan Willians and Rico McCoy - his 3 best players.
PennVol writes:
Or the Chokies?
gnm53108 writes:
Chokie pa Hokies?
BarrysaysGOVOLS writes:
(This comment was removed by the site staff.)
shopsports#273141 writes:
BTW....why do we do this? FL plays the likes of Charleston, Troy, and FL Atlantic and gets all the kudows for nothing. Why do we play this schedule??
WytheVol writes:
Beamer's special teams haven't been great this year either, but I can assure you, he will scheme to try and block anything he can against us. I think the ACC is a bit tougher than they are being given credit for too. They're no SEC, but they aren't that weak either. I'm hoping for this matchup, but I am also very nervous about it.
One good thing is, VT's coaching has been awful their last couple of bowl games.
WytheVol writes:
I agree! Young defense, tons of injuries, the robbery debacle, new coach, new scheme... To still be in there with the top 20 defenses in the country is outstanding for year 1!
BeRealistic writes:
Why don't you kids get your 8th grade books & do your homework? GO VOLS
Docrok writes:
An earlier poster commented that Dan Williams, Rico McCoy and Eric Berry were the dominant forces here and was the reason for the 17 ranking! To this I agree, however he stated that next year they would be gone and alluded to the fact that Monte would have trouble gettin that kind of production next year! To this I strongly disagree! Jackson will return next with a second year in the system and I believe the ability to replace Berry! Additionally Rogan will be a Senior and I believe will be on of the best corners in the league! he is pretty close this year! Hughes will return with a second year at college level under the tutelage of Orgeron and I look for big things from him next year! We also return all of our Ends, a very productive position for us this year! And finally we will return 3 starting MLBs all with many games of experience and all playing at a high level! Finally our Freshman LBs will be competing to replace McCoy and Askew was very highly regarded before redshirting this year! I see next year being VERY GOOD defensively!!
gnm53108 writes:
Aw come on first,give me a break.
I'm sober.
RockyTop1 writes:
Play like we did against Georgia and South Carolina we win. Pull out the Ole Miss playbook and we lose BAD! I vote for the Georgia gameplan! GO VOLS Hang 50 on the Hokies!!
Incinigator writes:
Nice of Dad, a real, great coach to take responsibility and leave his son more free time to run his mouth.
asleep#212036 writes:
Agree. Of course, when we played UCLA (and Auburn), we sucked too. Just too early and too many new things to learn. Also, so many of those points came at the ends of games we won, like Memphis, where our lack of talented/experienced depth at the No 2 and No 3 spots really showed up. And we gave up several scores on short fields and on interception returns and special teams. BAma and Florida rarely had those issue. Secondly, we struggled against spread offenses, something Bama and Florida don't do - both have better athletes and Florida plays against that stuff in practice every day. Lastly, I agree with the sentiment comparing us to Florida and Alabama, but if you compared us with teams that have a 7-5 record, our defense looks pretty good. Most would agree that our D might have cost us one game (Ole Miss), the O at least 3, 4 if you think our complete inability to run against Ole Miss and keep McCluster off the field caused the defensive breakdown. I think Monte has done wonders and I can't wait for the day when, with upgraded talent and several years of a system in place, you and I can talk about our defense being in the company of the SEC elite. We're actually not that far off now - the future looks very bright on that side of the ball. Go Vols!!!
InertGas writes:
Bones may never lie but bones will most likely break.
VolunteerLifer writes:
V-Tech is a good team. They're 9-3 with some impressive wins. They gave Alabama a good game before falling to them. They're well coached and talented. They will be a handful.
asleep#212036 writes:
True but in reality, should we have lost to UCLA or been pushed by Ohio this year? Bama played V Tech and has PSU the next two, Ohio State played USC and Texas the past two years, Miami played Oklahoma and Miami, Georgia played OK State and Ga Tech, S. Carolina played Clemson etc... so other teams do play good non-conference schedules. I would still agree that some of their non-conf teams are really bad but so are Western Kentucky and Memphis. Now the next few years we have some marquee games like Oregon and Oklahoma but, please remember that when Dickey (most likely) scheduled Cincy, they were terrible. Only in the past couple of years have they gotten stronger. To answer your post, Fulmer, Kiffin, and others like them who must recruit nationally like those high profile home and home series so they can get some exposure and maybe some recruits out of it. It works on that side but you do have to beat those teams to get full advantage. Teams like USC, Bama, Ohio State, Texas, and Florida [and FSU, on their every year schedule, used to be pretty good : ) ], who can recruit locally and who get letters/videos from kids all over the country begging for a shot to play for the them, don't feel the need for that kind of game. It's our lot in life and Kiffin, I hope, gets it. But if you win those games, look out, you do get lots of national attention. Go Vols!!!
VolunteerLifer writes:
I'm looking forward to seeing what Monte can do when he has a three weeks to prepare for an opponent and also has his guys all fresh, healed from smaller, nagging injuries, and ready to go. I realize we have some backers out for the year, but the remaining ones have all been nicked up and hopefully this month with solve that. Also our DE's have some nicks and pains that need healing, and I'm sure others like Wes Brown can use the Month to get their bodies in a better state.
I'm also really looking forward to watching his defense for next year start to take shape. We'll lose some important players, but we'll retain alot of them, too, and there will be new additions through recruiting. It will be interesting to watch.
pokechop35 writes:
I just heard on a local sports talk show in memphis, brunetti is ready to decommit from w.v. and is 50/50 0n tiger high and miss state. Be nice for ceo to get him. He looked good in the state champ. game last nite. 26 wins in a row and 2 state champs. would put us over the top.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Exactly! Some of us are predicting 9-3 or better for next year. I am as optimistic as any Vol fan, but I don't fancy facing THAT schedule with an offense as young and inexperienced as ours will be next year. We will have Oregon, Florida, and LSU in our FIRST FIVE GAMES! It should be regarded as a BIG step forward for the program if the Vols do as well as 8-4 next year. By 2011, we should be able to beat anybody, anywhere, any time; 2010, not so much. PATIENCE, people, PLEASE! The rebuilding process has some way to go yet.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
This site holds many such mysteries for all of us. Weird stuff WILL happen to your posts from time to time if you are on here long enough. Luckily, such snafus are rare.
illinoisvolfan writes:
Witchie, have you been practicing defense on the neighbor kid again?
VolunteerLifer writes:
Florida will not be as good, Alabama may be the same. we have them both at home and that helps. Same with Ole Miss, which should not be as good. The further that team gets coached by Nutt, and the more of Orgeron's recruits he loses, the worse they'll get. I doubt USC will be much better, don't know about LSU or Oregon. Georgia will likely be even worse next year than they were this one, the way things are going in Athens. It won't be easy, but I wouldn't count any of them as automatic losses, either.
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