Fans and media are notorious second-guessers when it comes to college football. But I gave my literary contributors an opportunity to offer opinions beforehand.
I asked them what advice they would have for Tennessee football coach Josh Heupel as he enters his fourth season with the Vols.
Their responses reminded me just how far UT has advanced in three years under Heupel, who has averaged nine victories per season. From 2008 through 2020, UT only twice won as many as nine games – both times under former coach Butch Jones (2015-16).
Even though many fans were disappointed by last season’s 9-4 record – after Tennessee went 11-2 in 2022 – they are generally happy to have Heupel as their coach.
The responses from my literary contributors reflect their contentment.
Chris writes: I’m happy with everything except the defense must be more consistent, especially the secondary.
My response: The secondary has been a consistent and sometimes glaring shortcoming. Heupel tried to address that weakness through the transfer portal by adding several defensive backs.
NC State could provide an early season indicator if he succeeded.
Vols Mark writes: If I had to offer advice to Coach Heupel, it would be this: evaluate and adapt to your players a little faster. The coaches seemed slow to recognize Joe Milton’s strengths and limitations on the field.
Realizing sooner that he wasn’t the best fit for the fast-paced game plan, and switching to Hooker earlier, could have been beneficial.
Even in Milton’s senior year, the coaching staff seemed slow to adjust to his weaknesses, like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. This had a noticeable impact on the season. Additionally, there were moments when in-game adjustments, especially on offense, were slow to come. Being quicker with these changes could make a big difference this…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/got-advice-tennessee-football-coach-090053096.html
Author : Knox News | The Knoxville News-Sentinel
Publish date : 2024-06-16 09:00:53
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