Just what did Kiffin get from his team in the 1st year?

Just what did Kiffin get from his team in the 1^st year? To analyze that you have to look at what he had to work with and where he had to start from.

UT finished the ’08 season 5-7 including a loss to Wyoming, beat down losses to UF, Bama, GA, and USC. To be totally honest the fact they won 5 games seems lucky.

This team wasn’t just beaten on the field physically but also mentally. None of the 3 QB’s where developed properly and their collective confidence crashed as the season evolved. This was also a recruiting nightmare if the coaching changed had not been made. Don't let me get started on the discipline problems.

Kiffin came in and had less than 2 months to assemble a staff, hit the recruiting trail and convince top recruits he could and would change the direction the program was headed.

12 months later and UT has obtained one top 10 recruiting class, avenged 2 of the conference losses decidedly by beating GA and USC more soundly than they had loss to them the year before. Some will still point out losses to UF and Bama still happened but the competitive nature in those losses was clearly different to the good. Several players were gone before the season even began due to higher standards that cause some to quit and others to be dismissed. Some think they may have helped UT this season but when you look at the relaxed standards that had become acceptable at UT and the direction the program was headed it is hard to believe that keeping the status-quo standards so these players would have stayed would have made this team better at all.

UT finished 7-6 but the record doesn’t fully show the improvement no more than the 5-7 ’08 season fully show just how bad it really was. Freshmen had an opportunity to contribute at a level not seen since they did away with JV teams at UT. Kiffin had 28 less scholarship players than most teams in the conference, a QB no one imagined could compete, 2 walk on OL men and several injuries that in part were due to relaxed conditioning that was acceptable prior to the coaching change. Still this team improved as a whole as the year went and the holes the team had prior to Kiffin’s hiring became more evident. Now Kiffin has to continue to sell the top recruits on UT and he has plenty to show them as proof from this season to encourage them to come here. Not just an improvement in the record but the improvements in players such as Crompton, D. Williams both now NFL prospects, Freshmen like Oku, Brown and others that got significant playing time due to their talent and the need of the team.

Things are better on the hill but there is still a long way to go. At least now we are heading in the right direction.

Keeping it Real

Go Vols!!!