Dooley and Vols look for “John Hancock” moment at Arkansas

John Hancock served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He is remembered for his large and stylish signature on the United States Declaration of Independence, so much so that the term "John Hancock" has become, in the United States, a synonym for “signature”.  According to legend, Hancock signed his name largely and clearly so that King George could read it without his spectacles.

Derek Dooley and the Tennessee Volunteers (4-5, 0-5) will travel to Fayetteville Arkansas to play the 8^th ranked Razorbacks (8-1, 4-1) on Saturday and will be looking for more than their first SEC win of the season.

 

Every new coach that succeeds at his new school has a “signature win” that lets the team, the fan base and the college football world that he is “the guy” for the job and that his team is on its way back to the top.  Derek Dooley is still looking for that win. 

Last season’s near win at LSU might have been that win, so too the Music City Bowl in Nashville could have served that purpose well.  Unfortunately for Dooley and the Vols, both games were losses and a slew of injuries in 2011 have made sure that the big win that Big Orange fans crave, remains at arm’s length.

   

Saturday’s opponent offers an interesting opportunity for Dooley and the Vols.  The Arkansas program has provided several recent coaches their signature wins and even a close call for Vanderbilt’s James Franklin just two weeks ago. 

The 2005 Florida Gators had their share of wins for new coach Urban Meyer including defeating 4^th ranked Georgia in a close game in Alltel Stadium that many would have seen as a signature win.  Florida owns Georgia recently however, and even though the Gators won that game, it was the Bulldogs that represented the East and eventually won the 2005 SEC Championship. 

In 2006, the Gators defeated Tennessee in Knoxville, but for the same reasons Georgia can’t be a signature win for a new Gator coach, the win against a Tennessee team that ended up losing four games in 2006 can’t be looked at that favorably either.  

Later that season the Gators defeated 9^th ranked LSU but then fell to 11^th ranked Auburn the following week.  Questions still remained for the Gators until the SEC Championship game when the Gators beat 8^th ranked Arkansas 38-28 on way to their first SEC Championship since 2000 and eventual National Championship win against Ohio State.

Gene Chizik got his signature win in his second season with the Auburn Tigers during their undefeated run to the National Championship.  Auburn had begun the season 6-0, including a win over then 12^th ranked South Carolina which many would argue could have been that win for Chizik, but the eight point victory over a Gamecock team that hadn’t yet proven itself still made many on the plains nervous when the 12^th ranked Arkansas Razorbacks rolled into Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.  Chizik and the Tigers answered the critics however with a 65-43 romp that let everyone know Auburn was for real and their QB Cam Newton was the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy. 

When Nick Saban joined Alabama in 2007, he didn’t have as much to prove as Chizik and Meyer.  Everyone knew Saban was a winner, having won a National Title at LSU before his stint in the NFL.  Alabama simply wanted Saban to win, and even though 2007 saw the Tide lose four of their last five games to finish 6-6, it was the 3-0 start (the fifth Alabama coach since 1900 to start 3-0), which concluded with a 41-38 win over 16^th ranked Arkansas that propelled the Tide to a 6-2 start and set the stage for Saban to recruit well and finish the 2008 season 12-0 and win an SEC and National Championship in 2009.

Now, I’m not saying that a win over Arkansas on Saturday will lead to a 2012 National Title for the Vols, but recent history does show that it takes a big signature win to get a program back on track and reach that level. 

If Tennessee wins at 8^th ranked Arkansas and finishes the 2011 season with wins against Vanderbilt, Kentucky and a bowl opponent still to be determined, the 8-5 record would certainly make Vol Nation much more comfortable going into 2012. 

The Arkansas Razorbacks program has certainly done its share to build up SEC programs and new head coaches.  In fact, every Vol fan remembers the Razorbacks role in the Vols’ 1998 National Championship season. The “stumble and fumble” moment could be considered as garish and bold as a large fanciful signature on a document declaring Independence from your former King.   

What’s one more “John Hancock” moment between old friends? 

As 2010 Ends, Vols and Fans Should Embrace Future

The 2010 football season has come to a close for the Tennessee Volunteers.  New head coach Derek Dooley and the Vols finished 6-7 after the Music City Bowl “loss” to North Carolina and now they look toward the future. 

I for one am ready to do the same.

A week ago as the Vols were preparing for the bowl game everyone thought that after the game the Vols would be looking for their fourth defensive coordinator in as many years.  Rumors swirled that Justin Wilcox was leaving for Texas.

Most signs pointed to this happening.  Dooley gave comments that suggested he was already aware and annoyed at the prospect, saying that “a thousand other coaches want a job at Tennessee” and that he wasn’t worried about finding replacements for any coach that may leave. 

Texas’ search for a coordinator just suddenly stopped, suggesting “their guy” was going to wait until after his current team’s bowl game was over to make the move. 

I even spoke briefly with Wilcox in the lobby of the team hotel on Thursday, thanking him for being at Tennessee, “this year” and thought that the look he gave me as he shook my hand and thanked me for being in Nashville to support the team, suggested he was gone.

Well, he’s not.  Vols 1   Coaching Changes 0. 

As I write this, there are rumors that Graduate Assistant Peter Sirmon is about to receive a full time slot on the Vols staff.  This would be a good thing, but would mean someone is on the way out.  Most insiders say they have heard nothing of anyone leaving.  Only time will tell.

The Vols need stability.  They need it in the coaching offices, they need it in the weight room and they need it in the classroom as the next several months play out. 

The 2011 Vols will see more freshmen join the team and more than likely, more freshmen start and play in games.  In 2010, the Vols played 16 true freshmen at various times of the season.

Looking at the depth chart, the Vols may have 5 senior starters on the entire team in 2011. 

The Vols’ first opponents in 2011 are the Football Championship Subdivision powerhouse Montana Grizzles. 

The 2011 Grizzlies return 15 starters – seven on both offense and defense, and kicker/punter Brody McKnight. UM returns 45 lettermen from a team that went 7-5 in 2010. 

That is a step down for a Montana program that has been in the hunt for the National Title on their level for the past several years. 

Dooley told the Vols that as they lay in bed not wanting to work this offseason, that they should remember the end of the Music City Bowl and the end of the LSU game and then use that hurt and anger to work to get better.

For a program and its fans that have spent too much time looking back and casting blame, I hope everyone is ready to look forward and embrace the future as we forget the recent past.