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Tennessee May Have New Unis That Look Like Tennessee's Old Unis

Andy Katzer — 2008-07-18T14:55:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerIn about six weeks, Tennessee and UCLA will kick off their seasons on Labor Day night in the Rose Bowl. An outsider might think that biggest question for Tennessee going into opening weekend is "how will punter Britton Colquitt's suspension affect the game?" or "what will Jon Crompton look like as UT's new starting QB?" But no, neither of those things matter. The important question is: "Will Tennessee wear orange pants?" After all, it is mid-July, and these things matter now, dammit!

Tennessee (and Alabama) blog 3rd Saturday in Blogtober has found some evidence that UT might in fact be wearing a slightly new uniform, including orange pants, if not against UCLA, then at least in the near future. Visual:

Those orange pants can be hideous or glorious, depending on whether you're outside or inside the parallelogram. The picture is supposedly one sent from adidas to EA Sports to help with the making of NCAA 09. If Tennessee actually wears the pants, it will somewhat of a big deal, as white tops and orange bottoms were a staple of the Johnny Majors era, but dropped by Phillip Fulmer in favor of white-on-white as he put his own stamp on the UT program in the early 90s.

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Spurrier Won't Not Be Calling Plays This Fall

Andy Katzer — 2008-07-18T12:15:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerI'm sorry, was that headline needlessly confusing? Let's see if the Ol' Ball Coach himself can clarify:

This year, I know there has been a lot of talk this summer about play calling. Let me just get that straight. I will be responsible for the play calling. Steve Jr. has been coaching with me going into 11 years now and together we will get the play calling done. The plan right now is for him to sort of put it all together and we'll get it in there. I will oversee all the play calling. I'm still the offensive coordinator.

Much better. So to recap: Steve Spurrier, Jr. (the Young Ball Coach?) will put the offensive gameplan together--some would even say coordinate the game plan--and together with his dad will get the plays called; although Spurrier Sr., as offensive coordinator, will be responsible for calling plays. Nothing beats clearly defined roles. But hey, this is Steve Spurrier we're talking about, so no matter what the official plan is, the result will be somewhere between pretty darn good and wrath-of-god domination.

More succinctly, Spurrier has shrugged off the rumors that he's frustrated in Columbia, saying he knows building a champion at South Carolina will take some time and that he's in for the long haul. For fans of other SEC schools, that means several more years of worrying that this is the season the OBC gets it all put together.

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LSU / Ole Miss Game Named 'Magnolia Bowl'

Andy Katzer — 2008-07-18T10:36:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerIn the grand tradition of inventing new traditions, the annual LSU/Ole Miss game will henceforth be known as the "Magnolia Bowl," according to theDMonline.com:

The long-standing rivalry between the University of Mississippi and Louisiana State University is now named the Magnolia Bowl and will be represented by a big, golden trophy in the shape of a magnolia, Interim ASB President Elizabeth Yerger said. "The trophy should be ready by the Nov. 22nd game between Ole Miss and LSU," Yerger said. "We want to get t-shirts, stickers, cups and water bottles for the event."

Personally, I can't wait for that Magnolia Bowl water bottle. I'm a little confused as to why Ole Miss would want a trophy game with LSU, considering the Rebs have lost seven of the last eight games and about 60% of all games against LSU. From the Tigers' standpoint, it's just another piece of hardware they'll rarely have to give up, kind of like the "Tiger Rag" they (occasionally) share with Tulane.

The Magnolia Bowl will now be added to the illustrious list of trophy games invented this decade, alongside the Shula Bowl (between tradition-rich Floridas Atlantic and International), the Battle for the Milk Can (Fresno St./Boise St.), and my favorite, The Battle for the Bones between UAB and Memphis, where the winner gets "The Bones." I'm not sure what that means, but I'm hoping it's where the winner gets the eviscerated skeletal remains of the loser; though since it involves Memphis it could just be a plate of leftovers from the Rendezvous. Either way, it beats a big gold flower, no?

(HT: The Hotty Toddy Blog)

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UGA and Other Preseason Top 5s Be Warned: Your Demise Can Come Quickly

Andy Katzer — 2008-06-09T11:45:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerThe fact that Georgia is getting lots of love this offseason as a potential BCS contender doesn't impress coach Mark Richt, who was quoted recently saying preseason rankings "[don't] mean jack, because if you lose your first SEC game, preseason doesn't mean nothing anymore." Of course, I'm sure Richt doesn't mind any extra national attention from the media and potential recruits that a top-five ranking brings--although it does hurt the "us against the world" mentality that coaches like to cultivate. It's also much easier to position yourself for a BCS championship starting the year at number five than, say, number 15.

But Richt's right; preseason rankings are pretty much meaningless. And if you need proof browse though the stats at Stassen.com (they keep up with these things). There's goodies like the preseason consensus (of which UGA is currently a member, and though it's early, I'd expect them to stay put).

Even more interesting is the comparison of preseason and final polls. In the last 10 years exactly half of the teams that started as a consensus top-five didn't end the season there. And the fall can be dramatic: 12 teams since 1999 have had double-digit drops from the preseason top 5 to the year's final AP poll, and six of those fell out of the top 25 altogether. Unfortunately, this is a topic I know a little about, as my beloved Tennessee has the distinction of having fallen from preseason top five to unranked twice--in 2002 and 2005--a feat no other team has managed. Yay.

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NCAA First Round's Least Shocking Upset: Siena Over Vanderbilt

Andy Katzer — 2008-03-22T11:30:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerAs Chas Rich pointed out earlier, The Tampa Trap was indeed a record-setting string of games. But the least surprising of the four contests that saw lower (much lower) seeded teams advancing was Siena's win over Vanderbilt. Now, it's easy to say in hindsight, but if you had a bracket that included Vandy advancing in the tournament, you must not have been looking at the Commodores' body of work this season.

Vanderbilt was unbeatable at home -- litteraly. The Commies ran through their home schedule unscathed, including their much-heralded win over then number-one Tennessee. But away from Memorial Gym was another story for the 'Dores as they were a pedestrian 7-7 (now 7-8) away from the TheatreDome they call a home court; apparently they feel handicapped when the benches aren't somewhere in the side orchestra section.

Had Vanderbilt beaten Siena, the Saints would have been the highest-ranked team Vandy beat away from home, according to RPI. Naturally there are ways other than RPI to judge a team, but the Commodores hadn't beaten anyone of note RPI-wise away from home all year.

If the tournament was held at Memorial Gym, Vandy would cruise to the championship. But for whatever reason, they just couldn't do anything away form their own floor. Looking back is easy, but it's clear: if you didn't have Vanderbilt losing, you hadn't been paying attention.

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NCAA Previews: Recognize Austin Peay Govs

Andy Katzer — 2008-03-17T07:30:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerConference: Ohio Valley
Record: 24-10 (16-4)
RPI: 84
How They Got In: Automatic
Seed/Bracket: #15/South

Mascot: Austin Peay is known as the Governors, as the school was named for local Clarksville (TN) favorite son Austin Peay, former Governor of the Volunteer State. While the mascot does allow you dust off you cockney accent and count how many times you can say "'Ello, Gov'nah!" before someone punches you square in the face, the school is also widely known for its cheer of "Let's Go Peay!," which is much more fun to say than read.

Big Wins: The Govs have two wins over a tournament qualifying school; unfortunately both came over fellow automatic qualifier Belmont (Atlantic Sun). Peay has no other wins against teams in the RPI top 100.

Player You Should Know: Senior Todd Babington was named OVC tournament MVP after nailing six threes in the championship game against Tennessee State. Since upsets are often built on hot three-point shooting, Babington will need a similar effort in the Governors' first round game, along with help from Peay's other two senior stars, Derek Wright (12 ppg, 41% 3-pt) and Fernandez Lockett (11 ppg, 7 rpg).

Outlook: As mentioned above, the Govs beat another team in the tournament, but not of the quality they'll see in the first round. The two best teams Peay played this year, Memphis and Vanderbilt, each handled the Govs easily. As a projected #15 or 16 seed, Austin Peay will need a magical night, and perhaps a bout of food poisoning for the favorite, to advance past round one of the tournament.

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NCAA Previews: Recognize Georgia Bulldogs

Andy Katzer — 2008-03-16T22:00:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerConference: SEC
Record: 16-16, 8-12 in conference (4-12 regular season)
RPI: 108
How They Got In: Automatic bid from SEC
Seed/Bracket: #14/West

Mascot: Bulldogs. One of the most widely-used mascots in all of sport, Georgia overcomes the commonplace by reffering to themselves as Dawgs instead of just "dogs" and by trotting out the overfed, overbred, overcute solid white English Bulldog Uga (who also holds the distinction of being the only live mascot to attend the Final Four).

Big Wins: Georgia has six wins against teams in the RPI top 100, and four of those came in their improbable SEC tournament championship run. However, UGA did not beat SEC regular-season champion Tennessee. Just sayin'.

Notable Losses: Losing to South Carolina and LSU are bad conference losses, but can be easily dismissed by pointing at the banner Georgia just won as SEC champions. it's not as easy to wave off losses to East Tennessee State and Tulane.

Players You Should Know: Guard Sundiata Gaines is the team's star player, but fellow senior center Dave Bliss is the glue that held the Dawgs together in the SEC tourney. Bliss hit a game-winning three in the first round game against Ole Miss, and had the presence to finish against Mississippi State despite playing most of the second half with four fouls. The leadership of Gaines and Bliss will be key to any more wins for UGA.

Outlook: On Saturday, Georgia became the first team in modern basketball to play and win two games in one day. They became the first six seed to advance to the SEC championship since divisional play began in 1992. They won as many games in four days as they did in two months. Continuing this kind of momentum is highly unl;ikely, but getting this far was highly unlikely, too. If you want to say they can't win in the NCAA tournament, go ahead, but I'm not going to say it.

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Short On Time, Gators Need Big Win vs. Vols

Andy Katzer — 2008-03-05T13:00:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerWith two games remaining in the regular season, Florida's nine-year streak of NCAA tournament appearances is in serious trouble. The SEC, on virtue of being the SEC, will probably get at least five teams in the field, and Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Mississippi State are the virtual locks. Conventional wisdom says that the other spots are going to come from a group made up of Mississippi, Arkansas, Kentucky, and the Gators.

Ole Miss helped themselves greatly Tuesday night by riding 54% second-half shooting to a 81-72 win over Arkansas. The Rebels and Hogs don't play any more interesting competition until the tourney starts in Atlanta next week -- they've got Georgia and Auburn (respectively) on Saturday. Meanwhile in the East, Florida and Kentucky play what may come down to an elimination game on Saturday.

But before then, Florida gets a shot at what would be a major resume-building win against the conference's highest-ranked RPI team, Tennessee. Even though the Gators are relatively inexperienced, freshman Adam Allen knows what this game means:

"We all know what's at stake. We know we've got to win some games to get in the tournament," he said. "Nobody wants to go to the NIT. It's like the champion of the losers if you win that. Everybody wants to play in the NCAA Tournament. ... Any year not in the NCAA Tournament is a bad year for Florida."

Tennessee has a lot at stake, too: they can win the SEC Championship outright, leaving just Ole Miss and Georgia as the only schools not to win a SEC title since the conference went to divisional play in 1992. But to do it tonight in front of a hostile crowd, the Vols will have their hands full. They've got to hope Wayne Chism can keep Marreese Speights in check, that Nick Calathes doesn't show the wizardry he's flashed at times this year, and that the physical play of Dan Werner doesn't get UT flustered as it almost did the first time these two met.

Florida's season wouldn't officially end with a loss tonight, but it would receive an incredible boost with a win. In the end though, I'll agree with The BruceBall Blog's prediction of an up-and-down game that eventually favors the Vols.

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Tuscaloosa Police Be Ridin' Dirty

Andy Katzer — 2008-03-04T22:00:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerOf course, "ridin' dirty" has a looser definition in Alabama, where it can encompass having the audacity to put an Auburn license plate on the front of your cruiser while patrolling the Alabama campus, as seen here:

That picture comes from the blog Alabama Gameday, who also links to a thread on the TideSports fourm where a member says he emailed the Tuscaloosa chief of police and "addressed the issue of credibility (and the growing lack thereof), and asked that he check into it and have it removed if possible." The poster says the chief responded by having the tag removed from the unit.

Now, this all might seem kind of petty until you understand the growing unease of an Alabama fan base that has seen more players arrested (8) than wins (7) in the year since Nick Saban took over the program. Tuscaloosa seems to be one of the college towns where arresting a student-athlete is a trophy of sorts for the local po-po; a statement that anybody is fair game, but especially those who make headlines. That may or may not be a fair assessment, but it's a growing concern in places where high-profile students seem to get in more trouble than the average student.

Consider, however: if the Auburn-fan cop with the Tiger plate on his cruiser wasn't targeting Bama players before, he sure could be now that he's been singled out himself.

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Finally, Billy Gillispie Wins Over Big Blue Nation

Andy Katzer — 2008-02-25T22:50:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerRemember back when Billy Gillispie was the most hated man in the state of Kentucky? I know, it's hard to go back that far... like a little over a month ago. But to listen to Wildcat fans now, it might as well be a lifetime past.

The axis of G-love is perhaps best epitomized in a Rupp Rafters thread about Gillispie's appearance at a fundraiser for UK's Children's Hospital (video here) at which the coach teared up at least four times talking about how much the children mean to him. Admittedly, it's sweet in its way, and at the end Gillispie announces a $10,000 gift for the hospital. But the beauty of it all for an outsider is in the message board thread:

I thank you coach for bringing joy back into my heart and for making UK Basketball fun to watch again. Have you guys ever heard of a coach here having so much heart. If there are fans on here that still does not like Coach G they must be sick in the head.

Yes, thanks Coach G for saving UK basketball, just weeks after ruining it for everyone. Memories of that San Diego loss melt quickly, yes? At the time of this posting, that thread has nearly 800 views and 25 replies, and not one of them come close to anything but outright praise for Gillispie. He's called "the real deal," "a great coach," and "a Wildcat legend." Billy Clyde's even got one fan so in love with him, the fan is questioning his own sexuality (not that there's anything wrong with that, natch).

Seriously, does nobody remember how much they reviled this guy just a few weeks ago?

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Former SI Coverboy 1 of 2 Vols Dismissed

Andy Katzer — 2008-02-14T13:02:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerBackup safety Antonio Wardlow and reserve linebacker Dorian Davis were both kicked off the Tennessee football team on Wednesday. Wardlow is best known for blocking a couple of punts in his career, including one in UT's 2006 blowout win at Georgia that landed him on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and for sealing UT's Outback Bowl win against Wisconsin with an interception (pictured). Davis is pretty well unknown, though he would have had a chance to compete for a staring job in spring practice.

The official university line on the players' dismissal is the ubiquitous "violation of team rules," but scuttlebutt amongst fans is that weed was the root of their problem. Now technically, it's just a rumor, and the comment linked is just the first on that site to bring up the drug thing (though none refute it, and similar comments can be found elsewhere). But if it is true, take into account LaMarcus Coker, an infinitely talented running back who failed the requisite number of drug tests to get himself kicked off the team (like 14 or something, I think), and Gerald Jones, an infinitely talented wide receiver who just got busted for possession like two weeks ago,and there's got to be a reason that Tennessee players keep risking their scholarships and athletic futures over getting high.

Is it brash egos that make them think they're above the law? Maybe. Is it plain stupidity? Possibly. But I think Occam's razor would say: Knoxville's got the stickiest icky around. Now I don't smoke, but in the five years I lived in Knoxville, had I known that I was living in some kind of ganja heaven, I'd at least given it a shot. You know, when in Rome, support the local economy, etc. But I digress.

So how do these losses affect Tennessee from a football standpoint?

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Tennessee Steals Out of Baton Rouge With W

Andy Katzer — 2008-02-09T21:38:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerWhen last we saw the Vols, they were making the scoreboard smoke in a hectic 104-82 win over Florida last Tuesday night. The only smoke seen around Tennessee on Saturday was coming out of Bruce Pearl's ears as his team barely scraped through an ugly two-point win against LSU, a game that was in doubt until JaJuan Smith's steal and layup with about 10 seconds remaining.

At halftime of Tuesday night's game, Tennessee trailed Florida by a score of 44-48, a margin that seems more significant now in light of a much closer 47-45 victory UT squeezed out against LSU Saturday. That's 92 points total for the game by both teams, the same total as Tuesday's game at halftime. Twelve less than the final the Vols put up by themselves against the Gators. Less than 10 points more than Tennessee's per-game average going into Saturday.

To put it simply, the Vols just weren't their usual high-octane selves against LSU. Oh, they took plenty of shots, but didn't make many, obvs. In fact, UT took 60 field goals, only hitting 19. They tried 19 threes, but made just five. And they were sorry from the stripe as well, going just 4-15. JaJuan Smith, who turned out to be the game's hero, made his only shot of the day on that steal and game-winning layup (otherwise missing all seven of his other shots, including five 3s). Only two Vols (Chris Lofton and Wayne Chism) Shot better than 39%.

All of this against the SEC's worst team in LSU: a team that had just fired it's coach and seemed to have no direction. The Jefferson Pilot Lincoln Financial Raycom announcers, though known for their hyperbole, might have been right when they repeatedly stated throughout the game the a LSU win would be the biggest upset in the program's history -- but it wasn't to be. So, on a day that the Tigers could have made a statement about the rest of their season, but didn't, the Vols are left hoping that this game doesn't say too much about them, either.

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Free Throws Cost Bulldogs Against Tennessee

Andy Katzer — 2008-02-02T23:29:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerMississippi State shot absolutely lights-out against Tennessee from behind the 3-point line, going 10-21 for the game. Even more impressively, though, State was 7-8 on threes in the last six minutes of the game, storming back from a 17-point deficit to scare the daylights out of Bruce Pearl's club. And still more incredibly, MSU had that 48% three-pointer night against a Vol team that had held opponents to just 21% from behind the line in the last six games.

And yet, Mississippi State lost to UT 76-71 in large part because they found a way to take the "free" out of free throws, going just 17-29 from the line (58.6%). Just six of the 12 points State left at the line would have won the game for them, and five would have sent the game to overtime, where they would have had a great chance at winning with their hot shooting in the last few minutes of the game. Maybe they should have backed up on those free throws.

Speaking of hot shooting, Chris Lofton continued his renaissance for Tennessee, leading the team with 20 points on 6-12 shooting -- including 4-9 from three and a perfect 4-4 from the line. Oddly enough, Lofton's improved shooting seems to have little impact on whether or not Tennessee wins, as the team was doing fine when he was stinking the joint up. Still, given the choice, I'm sure the Vols will take a full-strength Lofton heading into the heart of SEC play.

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Georgia Lawmakers Petition NCAA for Playoff

Andy Katzer — 2008-02-01T22:00:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerHey, you know what college football doesn't have enough of? Government sticking its nose in. But the great state of Georgia is trying to fix all that. The Georgia state House of Representatives recently passed a resolution calling for the NCAA to implement a playoff system in college football. The bill states:

WHEREAS, the greatest disappointment of the 2007 college football season was the dysfunctional system, known as the Bowl Championship Series or BCS, the NCAA has implemented in order to determine a national champion; and

WHEREAS, the teams chosen to play in the various BCS bowl games are selected through mathematical computations, politics, and corporate and television influences that rarely relate to determining the best football team on the field;

The resolution is on its way to the state Senate, where somebody might want to work on the wording; because like the computers or not, mathematical computations used in the BCS rankings are, in fact, directly related to determining the best football team on the field. Also, the irony of politicians complaining about politics in sports is open to second-guessing, eye-rolling, and conjecture.

As a resident of the state of Georgia, my initial indignation that my tax dollars are being spent on passing such an inane resolution while the state grapples with a water crisis and overcrowded roadways has passed. Now I'm just amused at the thought of this legislation being a part of Georgia's (and not the state's, but UGA's) growing inferiority complex.

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SEC Daily W: LSU Really Stinks

Andy Katzer — 2008-01-30T15:20:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerEach weekday, The Daily W asks about the Who, What, Where, When, or Whys of SEC basketball. Today's question:

When did LSU become so awful?

Two years ago LSU went to the Final Four. Last year they went 17-15 and missed the postseason. Going into Wednesday night's game with Auburn, the Bayou Bengals would need to win out in order to beat that win total, and they ain't gonna. Considering that LSU hasn't beaten a team with a RPI better than 144, and the lowest-ranked team they have left is Kentucky (131 -- nine of LSU's last 11 opponents are top 100 RPI), they might not win again.

Last year LSU had six losses by four or fewer points, four in SEC. So far this year, the Tigers haven't won a SEC game yet, but only one of those losses has been as close as four points. Many have been blowouts, including the stinker against Mississippi State in which LSU only scored 39(!) points. So how does one go from Final Four to horrific in just a couple of seasons?

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SEC Daily W: Chris Lofton Gets His Shot Back

Andy Katzer — 2008-01-29T18:00:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerEach weekday, The Daily W asks about the Who, What, Where, When, or Whys of SEC basketball. Today's question:

Where has Chris Lofton's shot been all year?

That's been the topic du jour on Rocky Top this season. Since arriving in Knoxville, Lofton's been known as a three-point shooter, although his percentage of made threes has dropped off every season since his incredible 46.5% freshman year. That's understandable enough -- teams have been more and more determined to clamp down and not let Lofton beat them single handedly (though he's made lots of shots with a hand in his face over the years, too). But defense has had little to do with it this season. Lofton's been missing all kinds of shots, whether closely guarded or wide open. His three-point percentage has downright plummeted to 36.3%, and on many occasions his teammates are opting to work the ball inside rather than kick out to a wide open Lofton.

Or, at least they have been, but that might be about to change. In Tennessee's first 17 games, Lofton only hit 40% or better three times; he's done it in each of the last two games (totaling 12-23 from behind the line). His overall shooting percentage is up in those two games, too, and he's posted two of his top three point totals for the season. Also, not to be overlooked, Lofton has been perfect from the free-throw line after struggling in a couple of games earlier this month.

Now the question becomes: Will Lofton keep filling it up? Tuesday's game against Alabama gives his a chance to, as the Tide are 239th on Pomeroy's ranking of three-point defense. The true test may come Saturday at Mississippi State against one of the best defensive teams in college basketball. If Lofton can light up The Hump, then look out SEC.

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SEC Daily W: Florida, Mississippi State the Teams to Watch

Andy Katzer — 2008-01-28T15:21:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerEach weekday, The Daily W looks at the Who, What, Where, When, or Whys of SEC basketball. Today's question:

Who would have thought that, in late January, we'd have a weekend where the two most important games featured the Mississippi schools, Vanderbilt, and Florida?

And yet, that's what we got this past weekend. State's 88-68 win over Ole Miss and the Gators blowout of Vandy iced it: we've been following the wrong teams from the Magnolia State and Eastern division all along.

It was supposed to be a rebuilding year for Florida, but if the Gators can hold off Arkansas this weekend, next week's game against Tennessee will go a long way toward deciding the SEC Eastern division. The Gators have put themselves in this position by getting phenomenal play from freshman starters Jai Lucas and Nick Calathes, but also got a career-high 19 from Walter Hodge against the Commodores (as a junior in a lineup made from freshmen and sophomores, Hodge qualifies as an "old man").

The Gators looked good but untested in non-conference play, losing the only two games they played against teams with a pulse (Florida State and Ohio State). But they're being tested now that the SEC season has cranked up, and answering the bell in stunning fashion. Other than an increasingly inexplicable loss to Ole Miss, the Gators look lights-out in conference play, with a league-best 81.5 points/game, and tremendous production from freshmen Calathes (41 assists to only 15 turnovers in SEC games) and Lucas (11 of 18 from behind the arc in SEC play). This team is not rebuilding, they're redefining what expectations should be when a school wins consecutive championships.

On the other side of the conference, Ryan Ferguson already tabbed Mississippi State as the best in the West, and he's probably right.

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'Rebound' the Key Word in Tonight's Vandy-Vols Matchup

Andy Katzer — 2008-01-17T16:00:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerCaution: Tonight's Tennessee-Vanderbilt game is an "orange-blazer special" for Bruce Pearl. Have appropriate eye protection available at all times.

Tennessee has a unique opportunity before them when they take on Vanderbilt in Knoxville tonight -- they have a chance to out-rebound two opponents in a row. Might not sound like much, but the Vols haven't out-rebounded two straight opponents since playing NC A&T and UL-Lafayette to close out November. In fact, before last Saturday's win over South Carolina, UT hadn't won a rebounding battle against anyone since beating up on ULL. So if Tennessee can in fact win the rebound battle against Vanderbilt (UT averages about two less rebounds a game), that will be a nice little feather in their cap.

The good news for Tennessee, though, is that despite getting their glass kicked on a regular basis, they've still managed to win all but one game this year -- largely because what they lose on the boards they make up for in defense (UT is second nationally in seals/game). The Commies only have one loss, too. But according to Pomeroy's rankings, VU still isn't on the level of some of the teams Tennessee has already beaten this year, a point not lost on The BruceBall Blog:

The Vols have played 5 teams that are ranked higher in pythag than Vandy (63) is, and Western Kentucky (72) and South Carolina (76) aren't far behind. Vanderbilt hasn't beaten anyone worth mentioning, either. The best teams they've played are Kentucky (62), South Alabama (68), and South Carolina, and they're 2-1 against them, beating South Alabama (in double OT) and South Carolina at home by a combined 11 points and losing at Kentucky (in double OT).

For Vanderbilt, the more important rebound will be in their collective head rather than on the boards. Vandy needed to beat Kentucky last weekend for two reasons: 1) they're a better team and 2) it makes a splash nationally to go into Rupp and walk out with a win. But they didn't.

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Alabama-Clemson Scheduled for 2008; Bowden Trying to Kill Ticket Sales

Andy Katzer — 2008-01-04T23:28:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerThe 2008 college football season will open with a marquee SEC-ACC matchup in Atlanta's Georgia Dome. Alabama will face Clemson on August 30 in a game organized by the ~~Peach~~ Chick-fil-a Bowl committee. It's a new tradition that bowl group hopes to keep going in years to come; the plan is to have an ACC-SEC game in the Dome to begin each season.

Scheduling this game means Clemson will be bookending its season with SEC teams (the Tigers will play South Carolina on Nov. 29) with the rest of the non-conference slate consisting of The Citadel and South Carolina State. Alabama rounds out its non-con with yawners against Tulane, Western Kentucky, and Arkansas State. Most of that sounds terribly boring -- and it looks like Bama is dodging UL-Monroe this year -- but at least we're all getting a quality non-conference game out of it.

Alabama has beaten Clemson 11 straight times but not one of them came in the last 30 years -- the two teams haven't met since 1975. When reminded of that fact, Clemson's Tommy Bowden said:

"Do you happen to have the score from that last game? It's not a rivalry."

Thanks, coach. I'm sure the ~~Peach~~ Chick-fil-a people are happy to hear you sucking the juice out of this game by pointing out its relative unimportance. Still, I'm sure that neither school will have any trouble getting rid of their allotment of tickets, and since this whole SEC-ACC showdown was proposed here on FanHouse by yours truly back in May, I'll be expecting my complementary passes in the mail any day now.

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Urban Meyer Will Keep Tim Tebow From Winning Another Heisman

Andy Katzer — 2007-12-29T23:15:00+00:00

by Andy KatzerI'm sure Urban Meyer enjoyed seeing his star quarterback win the Heisman trophy earlier this month. But if it's up to the Gators' head coach, Tim Tebow won't be winning another one next year. That's because Meyer is looking out for the young man's health, saying:

"Next year, we'll play two quarterbacks for sure. We'll have to. I don't think he can stand three years of that punishment," Meyer said. "We'll have to be smart."

So if Superman does win another Heisman, it probably won't be due to gaudy numbers like the ones he put up this season (like 51 total touchdowns and 330 yards of offense/game). It sounds like Florida will be trying to re-create the two-quarterback system in the mold of the one that won them a national championship in 2006, with the pass-minded Chris Leak and a bullish young Tebow as a run threat. The 2008 model could be even more dangerous, as Tebow should be more of a true dual-threat than Leak ever was.

And who will be Tim Tebow's Tebow? If you're looking at Florida's roster, the job would either fall to Cam Newton or Josh Brantley. However, the more cynical-minded out there might believe that the timing of this announcement from Meyer -- right now, during the "dead period" of recruiting -- is a thinly-veiled message to uber-recruit Terrelle Pryor -- or perhaps, less specifically, any other QB Florida might be recruiting.

It's all the same, anyway. Tebow doesn't want to win next year's Heisman, he's voting for Percy Harvin.

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