2009 TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS FOOTBALL PREVIEW

The University of Tennessee Volunteers are widely considered to be one of the elite football programs in one of college football’s greatest conferences, the Southeastern Conference. However, the mighty Volunteers have now fallen on somewhat hard times, and now find themselves in an unusual position for this great program, rebuilding mode.

Tennessee Volunteers Football Helmet

Former Oakland Raiders head coach Lane Kiffen has been brought in to help right the ship in Knoxville. And while the first few months of the Kiffen-Volunteers experiment have been bumpy to say the least, with seemingly daily news breaking about one recruit or another, or one coach or another, it still remains to be seen how well Kiffen will ultimately be able to perform as the head coach of the UT Volunteers. There do seem to be two things for certain: He probably cannot do any worse than he did in his abbreviated stint with the Oakland Raiders, and based on his first few months, it looks like things are going to be fun while he is there.

One of the most significant obstacles that the Kiffen-led Volunteers are going to have to overcome is the lack of a reliable offensive signal-caller to run the game and lead the offense down the field. What looked like a competitive battle in spring practice has since dissolved into a QB-by-default situation. BJ Coleman looked like he was ready to take the QB position by force during spring practice, as he looked very effective in moving the offense down the field. However, Kiffen made it clear that Coleman would not be the guy, and since then, Coleman has transferred. As a result, less because he looks ready to lead and more because there is no one else to do it, Jonathan Crompton looks like he will take the quarterback position by default.

Credit for the outstanding photos above to flickr.com/photos/motionblur except that credit for pictures 1, 2, 4, 12, and 14 to to flickr.com/photos/royce58. Some rights are reserved for these photos.

Unfortunately, this lack of really consistent and/or dynamic play out of the QB position is going to make things extremely hard on the offense as a whole, and it is going to be utterly paramount that the playmakers that do exist on the team step up and make plays happen whenever they are able. And while the best way for the pressure to be taken off of the quarterback would be if the running game is able to get jacked up, the single best playmaker on the offense is probably junior wide receiver Gerald Jones. In 2008, despite being on the receiving end of a dysfunctional offense with horribly inconsistent quarterback play, Jones managed to pull down 500 yards of offense and 5 touchdowns. He needs to find a way to be a factor in this offense.

Thanks to JEFFHREED at flickr.com for this photo of the Tennessee Smokey mascot.

In order for the first season under Lane Kiffen to be a successful one, he is going to have no choice but to rely on his defense, which is the stronger of these two units this season, and that defense is going to have to step up. One unit on which much of this pressure is going to fall is the secondary, considered to be one of the stronger units In the SEC. This unit is led by junior safety Eric Berry, who managed 70 tackles as well as 3 sacks last season. Berry will be joined by Art Evans, Rod Wilks, and Dennis Rogan. In addition to the play that is expected out of this unit, other members of the defense will need to step up. Defensive end Chris Walker is an example of another player whose performance it is hoped will be elevated to another level in 2009.

2009 is really a wildcard when it comes to UT football. If things come together, and the players respond well to the Lane Kiffen system, the team could have a successful season which results in a 7-5 or even 8-4 record. However, a 6-6 or even 5-7 repeat season would not be shocking given the lack of any consistency at QB, and the holes Kiffen has yet to fill.

Looking for 2008 Tennessee Volunteers Football info? Check out 2008 Tennessee Volunteers Football.

Other Tennessee Volunteers Football Pages

2007 Tennessee Football

Tennessee Volunteers Football History

Phil Fulmer Biography

Best All-Time SEC Football Player -- (Peyton Manning made the list)

Tennessee Football Blog

Top All-Time College Football Conference Record -- (Shows UT's all-time record)

Best All-Time SEC Quarterback -- (Peyton Manning)

Best SEC Football Stadium (Neyland Stadium)

Best NCAA College Football Stadium (Neyland Stadium)

Biggest All-Time SEC Football Victory -- (Tennessee's 1998 BCS Championship game)

Biggest All-Time NCAA College Football Game -- (Tennessee's 1998 College Football Championship game)

Best All-Time SEC Football Coach -- (General Robert Neyland is a finalist)

All-Time Best SEC Football College -- (UT is a finalist)

University of Tennessee Knoxville Trip

SEC Football Predictions

2008 SEC Football Tickets

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