Coaching
Nathanael: C+
I know a lot of people online wanted to blame a lot of things on the play-calling and the coaches during and after the game. And while I definitely question some of Tyson Helton’s play-calls on offense, this game wasn’t lost because of coaching; it was lost because of poor execution by the players. Coaching played a part in some of the mistakes that were made, yes. But there were also some great play-calls that ended up going to waste because the players didn’t execute the right way. I question why Pruitt didn’t go for it when it was fourth and 2 at the UF 15 and elected to kick a field goal instead, but then I liked his decision to try an onside kick on that next kick-off. Tennessee had men there to recover it too, but they didn’t. And the call on fourth down to give the ball to Austin Pope was also a great play-call, but then Pope turned it over by fumbling it. But I didn’t like the back-to-back quarterback draw calls in the first quarter, and I thought Tennessee ran the ball up the middle too often.
Ben: B
There’s not much Jeremy Pruitt can do with this team. He’s cooking with somebody else’s groceries, and it’s showing on the field. I didn’t agree with some of Tyson Helton’s play calls, but I don’t know what plays can be called when you have very little time to throw the football and there’s nowhere to run the football. The play call to Austin Pope that resulted in a fumble through the end zone was a phenomenal call. At this point, I don’t know how much Tennessee can get better this season. It’s going to take winning in recruiting before you see wins on the field.
