The "second season" has started. How it goes could have major implications for the future of Tennessee football.
It begins today with Troy and ends in 21 days against Kentucky. In between are games against Missouri and Vanderbilt.
If the Vols finish this month 4-0, the second season will go a long way toward easing the pain of the first. If the Vols lose any of the next four games — including, or perhaps especially, this one — a change at the helm of Tennessee football might be inevitable.
The Vols (3-5) play Troy (4-4) today (TV: FSTN, noon) at Neyland Stadium.
Tennessee coach Derek Dooley used the phrase "second season" shortly after last week's loss to South Carolina. In the "first season," Tennessee attempt to defeat five ranked SEC opponents ended 0-5.
"It's all pretty clear that the legacy of this team and the character of this team is going to be defined by how we compete these last four games," Dooley said.
The significance of the fresh start has been impressed upon players, several of whom repeated some variation on the line "You always remember what happens in November," this week.
Most haven't forgotten last November's loss to Kentucky, the first by a Tennessee team in 26 years. The Vols would like to replace that game with happier memories in 2012.
But first on the agenda, as Dooley has hastened to point out, is Troy, a team with a well-earned reputation for upsets.
The Vols are 19-point favorites and Troy is coming off a loss to a subpar Florida Atlantic team. But the Trojans are still dangerous, nearly beating Mississippi State in Week 3 and averaging 28 points and 460 yards per game.
"We can't go 4-0 without going 1-0," Dooley said. "I told the players I don't want to even talk about 4-0, because we have to go 1-0 first. We have to get a win, and we haven't done that in a while. If we think we are going to roll the ball out there and get a 'W,' we're really fooling ourselves."
Players and coaches say they see no signs of this year's squad repeating last November's swoon. They point to last week's South Carolina game — in which the Vols were threatening to score a go-ahead touchdown in the final minutes — as evidence that no one has packed it in.
"Anybody that was on this team last year, we all remember how we felt at the end of last year about how we competed," Dooley said. "We certainly don't want that to happen. So we have to go out there and prepare right, play our best, focus on this game and go one at a time."
After a long run near the top of the Sun Belt, Troy has struggled in the past two years. The Trojans went 3-9 in 2011 and will have to fight to avoid their first back-to-back losing seasons since 1989.
But Troy's offense is still potent. The Trojans are 68-4 when scoring at least 35 points under 22-year head coach Larry Blakeney, a distinction that could be tested today against Tennessee's struggling defense.
"There's just no excuse," Dooley said. "We should be playing better than we are."
Evan Woodbery covers Tennessee football. Follow him at www.Twitter.com/TennesseeBeat.
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Comments » 64
volprof80 writes:
Cue the trolls. Finishing 7-5 and going to a bowl game isn't good enough. We should be 10-2 every season. Blah blah blah.
Here's to the start of a 4-0 run in November and the end of this childish, knee-jerk reaction to losing to five great SEC teams.
CrankE writes:
Do successful coaches need to talk about "second seasons" at all? I mean...if they were successful in the "first" season.
It's time. After all, he's had 6 seasons to turn it around. (That's 2 seasons per year in Dooley-speak and 3 years. Or maybe 2 if you're not counting "year zero".)
UTKin1992 writes:
Some people just "settle" for less in life.
volprof80 writes:
Here's a more realistic assessment of the situation from RantSports in their article about coaches on the hot seat: "There is always that one guy who does not deserve his fate but is just in the wrong place at the wrong time [...] To say Dooley inherited a mess is the greatest understatement ever made [...] There is no doubt if Dooley had another year or two he could turn this around...".
See, trolls, only in your crazy world is Dooley as bad as you say he is. Rational people recognize the situation he stepped into and that it takes years, not months, to crawl out of such a hole, especially in the nation's best conference.
volprof80 writes:
Some people just hide behind the internet and insult total strangers rather than engage in meaningful debate.
Also, I'm interested in your "use" of "quotation" marks. Do "you" "know" what quotation "marks" are "for?"
gglardon50#417841 writes:
when does the 3rd season start?
jobrando#216494 writes:
Lets rock and roll right to 7-5 and maybe a bowl aganst a top 25 team for CDD's very first signature win.
jobrando#216494 writes:
After Oregon next year
jobrando#216494 writes:
They were not fans until after 2003
mjaichele#464960 writes:
Nice try but you can't fix stupid. The Darksiders will never admit how bad things were post Foolmore / Kiffin the Destroyer. However, if Dooley does not recuit a top 5 class, he is toast, you just can't beat 5's & 4's with 4's, 3's & 2's.
Chope writes:
I don't get how you can be ok with losing 5 straight sec games 2 years in a row, the only other team that has ever done that in history is Vandy. I think it is ok to expect more if you are Tennessee. 7-5 best case playing some phooey bowl is just not all that exciting to me. I quess that makes me childish and knee jerky. Enjoy the 2nd season and being happy with losing to every decent sec team
LIBDESTROYER writes:
"There is no doubt if Dooley had another year or two he could turn this around..." Bull. That's exactly the problem--his recruits are 95% 3 stars. Alabama, LSU, Georgia and Florida have 4 stars sitting on the bench.
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
Nobody's settling, but if UT does go 8&5 with a bowl victory that's a tad better than Fulmer's last season..Just sayin'
vq4nfo writes:
So many games so close this year with the exception of Alabama. (Alabama will crush LSU in Tiger statium)
UT will win but unless the defense steps up it will be closer than the 17 points they are favored.
7-5 with a bowl win and time to recruit fast and strong linebackers for this new defensive scheme sounds real good.
Who knows, maybe CDD will go back to the 4-3 next year. A&M droped the 3-4 fairly quickly.
pcshowtime writes:
Let me ask all you guys that say a 7-5 season is good enough. If I would have asked you in 2010. Did you think Dooley would find a way to beat FL, GA, Bama, or So Car just one time just One game in 3 yrs. What would you have said? Just one game in 3 yrs. Kiffen did it, Majors did it, saban at mich st did it against his rivals. It is the fact he has never won a game his teams were an underdog in and has managed to lose at least one a year in which his teams are favored. 0-5 in the sec for 3yrs in a row. 0-12 against sec teams that matter fl, ga, bama, and so car.
I showed last night that due to staff turnover and new contracts it cost us more to fire this guy every year he stays. Let dooley go heck I don't think he even wants to be here anymore.
pcshowtime writes:
here is another good article on dooley's 3 yrs. The Vote of No Confidence
http://www.rockytoptalk.com/2012/10/2...
vq4nfo writes:
And I showed last night that the athletic department (Whole athletic department) has less than $2M in reserves. Part of that will be used to finance a bowl game if they win out the last 4. So forget the Pilot money and big booster funding a new coach. 2014 looks good, not having to pay for personnel not working at UT.
jobrando#216494 writes:
A 5000 loss in season tickets next year will pay for the firing.
jobrando#216494 writes:
0-15 in SEC play the first 3 years of CDD. Recruiting is sinking yearly. Talking about a vote of no confidence.
volprof80 writes:
I'm actually not ok with being 0-5 again this year, I'm just arguing that firing the coach is not the best solution. Expecting more is perfectly ok, and I expected more myself. But what I don't get is how you can expect any coach to walk into the mess that Dooley walked into and instantaneously turn things around. It took years for Tennessee to fall from the elite program it once was. Isn't it logical to assume that it will take years to rebuild it?
And I will enjoy Tennessee's November wins because I am a Tennessee fan.
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
Whether we agree or not on CDD's record it doesn't change the fact that you nor I have any decision making authority at UT. So, sit and wait like all of us or continue to knock yourself out making a point that falls on deaf ears..In the meantime be a fan or go away..GBO!
pcshowtime writes:
You are correct sir
thanks for that it is like when someone slaps you if you are getting hysterical.
I am getting too emotional in all this.
RodneyHopper writes:
Top 5 class you need to look it up on scout.com,espn,And be your own judge!
iowavol writes:
It's not okay, plain and simple. That's exactly why we should have fired Hamilton long before Fulmer. But we didn't and now we are paying the piper. You know what's ironic about making stupid decisions? They begat another stupid decision - akin to the one you are suggesting. It's a slippery slope and we are trying to get off of it. Don't exacerbate the slide.
volprof80 writes:
How is Dooley a con man on this? Calling November the "second season" is obviously a way to motivate his players to play their best and to forget about the tough losses they have had this season. What does the fact that we are 2/3 of the way through the season have to do with this? Are you confused and think that he is talking about halves of a season?
Please come back when you have something rather than ad hominem attacks.
tnvolfan30 writes:
How would LOSING tickets pay for anything? Sounds like a dumb Repub. way of thinking, like cutting taxes to pay for roads. God luck with that Alan Greenspan!
GerryOP writes:
"Settle" for less? Not at all. Some people have unrealistic expectations and depend on a bunch of 18-21 year old kids to fulfill their expectations.
suttree writes:
In seventy (70) games as a head coach Dooley has never beaten a ranked team. He is as bad as we say he is.
GerryOP writes:
That confirms what many said when Dooley took the job. "It's a 5 to 6 year rebuilding project. Derek Dooley can do it if the rabid UT fans will give him the 5 to 6 years to do it."
5-6 years? Hell, the rabid UT fans were on his butt after the 1st 2 years.
jobrando#216494 writes:
If you ever owned season tickets you would know donations go with the purchase of season tickets. Few other items like loss of merchandise purchases. What on earth do you do for a living. It's not in business.
makelemonade writes:
You may be right but it's not a whole lot different from an athletic department that has unrealistic expectations of filling a 95,000 seat stadium while having 7-5 seasons. Maybe Vol fans need to accept that their team won't have the kind of success with which they used to be accustomed. But likewise, the administration needs to accept that they have to grow accustomed to operating on a much smaller budget. Winning and making money go hand-in-hand when it comes to college football.
BigOrangeRock writes:
Cue the Rock.
THE ROCK HAS SPOKEN.
BigOrangeRock writes:
You were never on board with giving a coach 6 years to become competitive. You won't even live that long.
BigOrangeRock writes:
Guys, it's Dooley's last season.
Don't be fooled by the idiot Alabama trolls. He is gone.
The Rock has spoken.
shipperman#280095 writes:
See Dooley's record at LA Tech, and see his successors record. Then tell me how totally sure we can be that Dooley is going to turn anything around in this league
GerryOP writes:
Oh, geeze, first we have my own personal stalker lil' billyboybob on here spewing his childish nonsense and now we have a talking orange rock? What next, a pink dancing gata? Or a purple wire-walking elephant?
I "...won't even live that long?" Is that a threat or is there something here that I need to know?
pcorange writes:
I realize that CDD is just trying to get the team to buy in to running the table for the remaining four games, but dang if this 'second season' stuff ain't a little bit embarrassing.
philgreen5#410561 writes:
The problem is we used to be one of those great SEC teams.
philgreen5#410561 writes:
It used to be... 'Lets not have a letdown in November because we can still win the East and get to a BCS bowl'. Now....'Lets not have a letdown in November so we can get to 6 or 7 wins and become bowl eligible'. The bar seems to have been lowered.
voodoo101 writes:
Chope, it's like being sick or injured. You are going to feel bad until you are well whether you like it or not - that's just the way it is. Whether Dooley can cure what ails the team remains to be seen, but he didn't create the problem, and apparently there wasn't a long list of coaches willing to tackle the problem - nobody knew how badly and with what Kiffin had infected the whole thing, but they knew the NCAA was looking hard.
BigOrangeRock writes:
No, not a threat. It's just natural that you only have a few years left when you start farting dust.
Dooley is gone.
voodoo101 writes:
That's right. We were, and then we weren't, and it's been repeated. No team has stayed strong throughout the years - and some were very dominant until they weren't. We will be back, but it may not be next year or the next, and it may be with or without Dooley as the coach, but cutting the legs out from under the program and creating constant turnover and turmoil definitely won't help the process.
When one faction decided we needed a businessman as the AD rather than someone who knew the athletic world, it put the decline in motion. Think of someone with contacts quietly putting out feelers in a world he knew, and then waiting until the season was over to bring in a new coach - orderly transition. Then assume he'd made a good choice rather than a reject at a fire sale (Kiffin). Think how much farther along we'd be, but that's history, that's meddling by the "fans"; but, hey, they got suites and upgraded facilities, seats got squeezed elsewhere, and students got the shaft on tickets. Luckily we had people like Bob Woodruff and Doug Dickey for a few years before the Hammy betrayal.
chuckfromwoodberry writes:
Our DB's should start playing more like Bobby Majors and less like Billy Arbo.
BigbearVol writes:
JustSayin??? Wondering why you brought COACH FULMER into this point? Dooley hasn't shown a dang thing at this time to be mentioned in the same post with CPF. So YOU settle down, or go somewhere else. Does that sound condescending enough for YOU jackWAGON? YOU, and others on this site need to allow differing views, without vendetta. Have a nice day, and pray for better days ahead. #GBO #RealVFL
DwayneElizondoMountainDewHerbertCamacho writes:
Yeah...right...I'm a troll for being disappointed that the only teams we can beat are the cellar dwellers of the SEC and cupcake out of conference teams.
Geez...what was I thinking expecting for us to be competitive. And we haven't lost to just five great SEC teams...we've lost to pretty much the same five great SEC teams for the last three years. You Doolaide drinkers love to ignore history unless it involves bringing up Lane Kiffin.
Dooley: Never beaten a ranked team. Has only beaten Mississippi, Vandy, and Kentucky.
Pathetic.
I guess I'm a troll for expecting better.
claiborneh writes:
Teams with 5 losses do not have "legacies." They are mostly forgotten.
claiborneh writes:
If Dooley played Alabama five times and lost all five times as most would expect, is this acceptable?
TooDlems writes:
This second season Doofism is non-sense, it's just November. Tennessee has always coasted through November. In fact before the SEC expansion in 1992 the Vols always ended the regular season with Ole Miss, Kentucky and Vandy with a non conference game in there. I know most of you will have to look that up due to your youth, but it's true. And then Fulmer had the nerve to cry to ole Roy because other schools(Bama and the Barn) were taking their bye weeks before the SECCG while he had to face the mighty Wildcats, Hall of Fame my a**.
PennVol writes:
So we go 4-0 in November, end up 7-5, go to the weedeater bowl (woo-hoo!) with 300 Vol fans attending, end up 8-5 or 7-6 and claim victory and significant improvement, right? This will get us a top 30 recruiting class to take into Oregon and the usual SEC battles next year. Yep, our future's so bright, we gotta wear shades.
Classof72 writes:
"There's just no excuse," Dooley said. "We should be playing better than we are."
If this is a 'second season', it will then be Dooley's fourth. The coach should be given four seasons, and he will have had his four. Enough is enough.
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