GoVols247: A Tennessee Volunteers athletics podcast

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Grant Ramey went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down the fifth-ranked Tennessee basketball team through its first three game and its big week coming up in New York.

The Vols improved to 3-0 with an ugly-but-comfortable, 66-53 win over Georgia Tech earlier this week in Knoxville, but toughest tests are waiting for the Vols, starting with next week's NIT Season Tip-Off in Brooklyn's Barclays Center. Tennessee will face Louisville late Wednesday afternoon, and a win in that game would likely give the fifth-ranked Vols a shot against second-ranked Kansas on Friday night.

It looks like the Vols might be back to full strength for next week's New York trip, too. Junior guard Lamonte Turner, the reigning SEC Sixth Man of the Year, is tentatively scheduled to return next week after missing the first three games of the regular season with a reported shoulder issue.

Tennessee's performance against Georgia Tech was hardly the Vols at their best, but they controlled the game from start to finish and defended well enough to keep the athletic Yellow Jackets at bay. A dissection of that game and whether there should be any concern from that performance is one of the primary discussion points in this episode.

It's also been a big week for the Vols on the recruiting trail, as three prospects — including five-star point guard Josiah James — officially became Tennessee signees. A detailed discussion of all three signees is included in this episode.

There's no shortage of Tennessee basketball topics to discuss at the moment, so let's discuss them.

GoVols247's Wes Rucker, Patrick Brown and Ryan Callahan went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down a big win for the rebuilding Tennessee football program and the opportunity now in front of the Vols as a result.

Tennessee's 24-7 upset win over then-11th-ranked Kentucky wasn't just the Vols' second win over a ranked opponent this season. It was a win that gave Tennessee a much greater chance of securing bowl-eligibility — something many didn't expect from first-year head coach Jeremy Pruitt.

One win in the next two weeks — either this Saturday against Missouri, or the following Saturday at Vanderbilt — would give Tennessee's seniors a chance to extend their college careers and give the team's many young players 15 extra practices to help their development moving forward.

Nothing is guaranteed, though. And the first of those two games — the one against Missouri — is a potentially problematic matchup for Tennessee.

The Tigers have hardly been consistent this season despite having a potential first-round NFL Draft pick quarterback in senior Drew Lock. At times, though, they've been really impressive, and Tennessee obviously needs to expect it will get Mizzou's best shot. The Tigers are a seven-point favorite at Neyland Stadium for a reason. When they're not getting in their own way — something they certainly do from time to time — they're a pretty good football team.

Of course, one could argue that Tennessee on its day also is a tough team. The Vols' performance against Kentucky was incomplete but impressive, and they have every reason to feel optimistic about their chances to build on this momentum and finish the season the right way.

There's plenty to discuss — including the return of former Tennessee head coach and hair model Derek Dooley — at the moment, and this episode covers quite a bit of ground. The Kentucky win, the matchups against Mizzou, a recruiting roundup, Dooley stories and several things emerge in this wide-ranging discussion of all things Vols.

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Patrick Brown went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down Tennessee's 14-3 win over Charlotte and look forward to the Vols' annual Battle for the Beer Barrel showdown with 12th-ranked Kentucky on Saturday at Neyland Stadium.

There’s no way to call the Vols’ win against Charlotte a beautiful win, but perhaps only because there’s no such thing as an ugly win. A win’s a win, and Tennessee hasn’t won enough games the past two seasons to complain too much about a win, but the performance against the 49ers produced plenty of room for discomfort, at least offensively. The Vols had just 192 yards of total offense and just 20 rushing yards against Charlotte. The 49ers do have one of the nation’s stiffest run defenses on paper, but that’s still a Conference-USA opponent, and any time an SEC program can’t push a C-USA program off the line of scrimmage, there understandably will be consternation and much gnashing of teeth.

How much concern should there be following last weekend’s performance? Should that be considered simply a bad day at the office, or should it be considered a red herring for the final three-game stretch of the regular season? Should anyone expect anything on offense to look any better Saturday against a good Kentucky defense?

Let’s not forget the obvious question, either: Is Kentucky — yes, THAT Kentucky — really one of the dozen best teams in college football?

Those are the main topics of this week’s podcast, though several other topics — including a discussion on the targeting rule in football, a discussion on whether a 5-7 Tennessee team could play in a bowl game and a quick discussion of the sixth-ranked Tennessee basketball team — are mentioned along the way.

Looking for an honest discussion on the impact of Tennessee’s disappointing loss at South Carolina, and where the Vols go from here?

There's a GoVols247 Podcast for that.

GoVols247's Wes Rucker, Patrick Brown and Ryan Callahan went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down Tennessee's tough, 27-24 loss to the Gamecocks last weekend at Williams-Brice Stadium, and the impact that loss could have on the Vols’ chances to secure bowl-eligibility under first-year head coach Jeremy Pruitt — something few outside this state expected in Pruitt’s first season, but something that felt very possible after the team’s upset win at then-21st-ranked Auburn.

Tennessee took an early lead at South Carolina, scoring its first first-quarter offensive touchdown of the season in the process, and the Vols extended that lead to 21-9 in the third quarter before the Gamecocks reeled them in, overtook them and held them off in a game that came down to the final minutes — as practically every Vols-Gamecocks game seems to do.

How will the Vols rebound in this week’s homecoming game against Charlotte? Who actually knows anything about Charlotte? When did Charlotte football become a thing? Why are some Tennessee fans so seemingly convinced that Jarrett Guarantano needs to be replaced in favor of senior backup Keller Chryst? Why do some consider every backup a potential savior when any starter at any position is struggling?

What does this Tennessee team need to fix in order to become bowl-eligible, and how many of those things are reasonable to expect?

Now that Tennessee has just four games left in the regular season, should we expect to see any young players join the rotation while preserving their redshirt eligibility, thanks to the NCAA’s new rule?

Those and many other questions are discussed in this episode.

All previous GoVols247 Podcast episodes can be found HERE, as well as on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, iHeartRadio, TuneIn and most other podcast streaming services.

If you enjoy the podcast, don’t forget to subscribe to it (for free) and rate it. Rating the podcast helps others find it and helps us add wolves to our wolfpack.

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Patrick Brown went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down Tennessee's big road game at South Carolina on Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium.

Tennessee picked up serious momentum two weeks ago with its shocking upset win at then-21st-ranked Auburn, and it remains to be seen how much of that momentum the Vols lost in last week's lopsided setback against Third Saturday in October rival Alabama. That loss looks bad in a vacuum, but it doesn't look terrible when you look at what the Crimson Tide have done to anything and everything in their path this season.

South Carolina, on the other hand, was expected to compete for an SEC Eastern Division championship this season but has already lost three games to take itself out of the running. It remains to be seen whether the Gamecocks will be any more ready to play the Vols than Auburn was two weeks ago. The Tigers also had a disappointing start to their season, and Tennessee took advantage of that situation.

The Vols — already an injury-riddled group up front — now have to face South Carolina without arguably their best player at any position. Sophomore Trey Smith has been ruled out indefinitely following the return of blood clots in his lungs, and how the Vols physically and mentally respond to that challenge will be on full display this weekend.

It also remains to seen whether sophomore starter Jarrett Guarantano's injury or senior backup Keller Chryst's strong play off the bench against Alabama will have any impact on that position this weekend. Jeremy Pruitt has been characteristically mum on that topic this week, but early returns have pegged Guarantano as the likely starter against the Gamecocks. Whether that actually happens, though, remains to be seen.

Tennessee also hopes to get its running game going after struggling badly in that area against Auburn and Alabama, but Smith's absence could throw a big wrench into those plans.

Anything and everything related to this season's Vols-Gamecocks game is discussed in detail in this episode — an episode that ends with questions from listeners, GoVols247 subscribers and social-media followers, with the pick of the litter winning the Grant's Gun Show Question of the Week Award.

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Patrick Brown went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down some tough news for arguably Tennessee's best football player.

Tennessee confirmed Thursday that star sophomore offensive lineman Trey Smith would again be sidelined "indefinitely" after doctors discovered Wednesday that blood clots had returned in his lungs.

Smith was a touted five-star prospect who enrolled at Tennessee in Summer 2017 with outrageous expectations, and he met those expectations by emerging as one of the SEC's best offensive linemen as a true freshman. The West Tennessee native was considered by some as one of the nation's best O-linemen heading into his sophomore season, but serious health concerns have gotten in the way.

The 6-foot-6, 330-pound Smith approached Tennessee's medical staff after struggling to get through a couple of February workouts, and doctors found blood clots in his lungs. He was immediately taken off the field and started treatment with anticoagulant medication, which eased the blood-clotting issue but forced him to stay away from physical contact. He was able to workout but not face contact on the field until midway through preseason camp, when (after consultation with UT doctors and specialists from around the country) he was weened off the anticoagulants and cleared for contact.

Smith's family and Tennessee coaches and staffers handled the situation very carefully and made sure to give the player all the information he'd need to make a decision regarding his future, and Smith — whose mother passed away a few years ago with heart issues at age 51 — was adamant in his desire to return to football if doctors would allow it.

Tennessee hasn't offered anything other than its Thursday statement on Smith's situation, and no one on the GoVols247 staff is a medical expert, so we spend this podcast breaking down the fallout from this news and its potential impact on the Vols in the short-term and longterm future.

As much as as everyone likes Smith as a person, the fact is the show must go on, starting with Saturday's game at South Carolina, and Smith would be the first to admit that. We spend this podcast discussing Tennessee's options to replace the best performer on an already-struggling offensive line. 

GoVols247's Wes Rucker, Patrick Brown and Ryan Callahan went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down Tennessee's win — yes, win — at then-21st-ranked Auburn last weekend and discuss the Vols' upcoming showdown with top-ranked Alabama at Neyland Stadium.

An program-record, 11-game SEC losing streak was stopped before reaching the dirty-dozen level, and Jeremy Pruitt became the fastest coach in SEC history to win a road game against a ranked team. It was just his sixth game on the sideline with the Vols.

Much of the national discussion after the Tennessee-Auburn game focused on the Tigers, and understandably so, given the fact that they were considered legitimate national-championship contenders heading into the season and have now fallen out of the polls. But the talk around this state has centered on the stunning achievement for Pruitt and his Vols, who were stuffed all day on the ground at Auburn but scorched the Tigers' secondary through the air.

Sophomore quarterback Jarrett Guarantano had the best day of his career on The Plains, winning several national and SEC player of the week honors after completing a career-high 21 of 32 passes for a career-high 328 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. Senior defensive lineman Kyle Phillips also was honored by the SEC after arguably the best game of his career, finishing with nine tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack and one forced fumble that was recovered by freshman cornerback Alontae Taylor for a touchdown that proved to be the difference between the two teams.

Here's are the questions now for Tennessee: Was the Auburn game an aberration, or have these Vols truly turned a corner and made themselves competitive in the SEC? Are these Vols now a contender to win six games and become bowl-eligible? Is Guarantano ready to be the man? Can this defense continue to hold up?

Regardless, this weekend's game will be an even bigger test, even though it comes at Neyland Stadium — the site of Saturday's game against top-ranked Alabama. The Crimson Tide have been a force on defense throughout the Nick Saban era and are still really good on that side of the ball this season, but sophomore quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has made them even tougher on offense. They're leading the nation in scoring at 53.6 points per game, and Tagovailoa hasn't attempted a single pass in the fourth quarter all season.

Before diving into what's expected to be a long weekend against Bama, though, we spend plenty of time discussing a huge win that Tennessee players, coaches, administrators and fans needed for several reasons.

That — along with some injury updates, general tomfoolery and the announcement of the new Grant's Gun Show Question of the Week — is the main focus of this episode.

GoVols247's Wes Rucker, Patrick Brown and Grant Ramey went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down the state of Tennessee football heading into Saturday's game at 21st-ranked Auburn.

Tennessee had an open date after its Sept. 29 loss at second-ranked Georgia, giving the Vols an extra week of work to sort of some of their own issues and get a head start on Auburn's unique offense — something that SEC West teams have gotten used to seeing in recent years, and something Tennessee's current staff has seen a lot, but something that Tennessee's current players haven't seen.

First-year head coach Jeremy Pruitt said his Vols took advantage of the open date, but how much can you really change schematically in one week? You can't reinvent the wheel in that amount of time, but you can tweak some things, and that's certainly something Tennessee has done.

What changes could the Vols make, though? Will they try some drastically different things, or just add a few different things while refining the same basic formula? And what should we expect to see from Tennessee against an Auburn team that was expected to compete for championships but has already lost two games, including last week at Mississippi State? And is it possible to think Tennessee could win this game and avoid extending its program-program-record SEC losing streak to a dirty dozen games?

That — along with some injury updates, general tomfoolery and the announcement of the new Grant's Gun Show Question of the Week — is the main focus of this episode.

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Grant Ramey went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down anything and everything from Tennessee basketball media day.

Rick Barnes' reigning-SEC-champion Vols have sky-high expectations heading into the season, and understandably so, given the amount of experience and firepower on their roster.

The Vols snuck up on the college basketball world last season, but that won't be the case now. They've been in the top-10 nationally in practically every preseason projection and power poll, and many have them ranked in the top-five.

Can this team — a team with the reigning SEC player of the year in Grant Williams, the reigning SEC Sixth Man of the Year in Lamonte Turner, another legitimate conference player of the year candidate in Admiral Schofield and the reigning SEC Coach of the Year — repeat or even surpass its performance from last season? It sounds so simple on paper, considering Tennessee brings back its entire starting lineup and all but one of its top bench performers from last season, but things in sports rarely prove to be so simple.

What changes should we expect from the Vols this season? Which players have improved, and in what areas? Whose roles could be increased this season? Will this team have the same great chemistry it enjoyed last season? Will touted freshman big man C.J. Burns get himself into the mix for a rotation spot? Those are some of the many questions discussed in this expansive look at Tennessee basketball.

GoVols247's Wes Rucker, Ryan Callahan and Patrick Brown went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down Tennessee's loss at second-ranked Georgia over the weekend and look forward to things we can expect from the Vols following this week's open date.

A loss is a loss, and Tennessee's loss at Georgia was its third setback of the season by exactly 26 points, but the Vols looked better against the Bulldogs than they had in losses to West Virginia and Florida. Tennessee got a terrible break in the first quarter and got nothing from its offense until the third quarter, but the Vols rallied back into it and made things at least a bit interesting in the fourth quarter. It was a step forward for first-year coach Jeremy Pruitt's rebuilding program.

Pruitt was quick to say after Saturday's loss that he doesn't believe in moral victories, but he also showed some emotion and nearly got choked up while discussing the fight he's seeing from his players, and he didn't deny that they showed improvement in several areas Between the Hedges in Athens.

The Vols get a brief break this week, and it comes at a good time — right in the middle of their toughest stretch of the season. What they do with that break will go a long way toward determining whether they secure bowl eligibility this season.

What do the Vols need to be working on this week? Which areas of the team look OK, and which areas need serious work? And what can be done to shore up some of those struggling areas? Which specific players need to play better for this team to be more competitive? And which specific players could emerge and play much larger roles on this team in the second half of the season. Those and several other questions are the main points of orders in this first of two GoVols247 Podcast episodes this week.

The second GoVols247 Podcast Episode of the week — an episode featuring a look at the reigning SEC champion Tennessee basketball team — will be released Friday.