SEC superiority just took a hit

[fu-man-soo]

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20081215/COLUMNISTS/812150908/1003/NEWS04?Title=SEC_superiority_just_took_a_hit

[Hawg Barry]

Good article.
Makes our hire of Bobby Petrino look pretty dang awesome, IMO.

[josh_sec33]

Matter of time before some media started to realize we hadn't screwed up the hire as they thought we had.

[OnYourToes]

By Hiring Coach Petrino we have moved into the middle teir of the SEC. . . on paper.

The coaching changes of Fulmer and Tubberville were an unexpected bonus for our program and it was a catalyst for us getting on the road to the promised land.  These 2 top teir programs, simply by coaching choice, have gone to the bottom 3rd of the SEC.

The amount of de-committs and "looking around" and telling committs that they won't be needed has hurt their programs for the long run. 

By hiring a class act and a recruiting guru we have hit the accelorator on the road to prominance.  This may pump up my prediction on how our program benifits.

09 is lookin' mighty fine
Sorry. . .couldn't resist.

[Pigsknuckles]

By Hiring Coach Petrino we have moved into the middle teir of the SEC. . . on paper.

The coaching changes of Fulmer and Tubberville were an unexpected bonus for our program and it was a catalyst for us getting on the road to the promised land.  These 2 top teir programs, simply by coaching choice, have gone to the bottom 3rd of the SEC.

The amount of de-committs and "looking around" and telling committs that they won't be needed has hurt their programs for the long run. 

By hiring a class act and a recruiting guru we have hit the accelorator on the road to prominance.  This may pump up my prediction on how our program benifits.

09 is lookin' mighty fine
Sorry. . .couldn't resist.

Our ugly duckling seems to to be turning into a beautiful swan.

[dr_arkansawyer]

I love the comparison to Auburn hire that they made:
"It's like sitting in coach and asking for first class only to be stuffed into the baggage compartment."

Awesome.  WPFS!

[ALLVOL]

LK is putting together a very good staff. I think that speaks volumes about him right now. If in fact Ed O does come to UT with what Kiff has already put together it will be one of if not the best staffs in the NCAA. 

[FATBACKHAWG]

Good Find

[RZRBack_FAN]

LK is putting together a very good staff. I think that speaks volumes about him right now. If in fact Ed O does come to UT with what Kiff has already put together it will be one of if not the best staffs in the NCAA.

No what TN has is a coach who has no experience and was one of the worst NFL coaches of all time. His dad isn't going to be there long enough to have an impact. No one else on that staff is impressive at all. Tenn Is a has been program and will fade further into non existence under Kiffin.

[ALLVOL]

No what TN has is a coach who has no experience and was one of the worst NFL coaches of all time. His dad isn't going to be there long enough to have an impact. No one else on that staff is impressive at all. Tenn Is a has been program and will fade further into non existence under Kiffin.

You are just wrong. But you have that right as an American.

[ALLVOL]

No what TN has is a coach who has no experience and was one of the worst NFL coaches of all time. His dad isn't going to be there long enough to have an impact. No one else on that staff is impressive at all. Tenn Is a has been program and will fade further into non existence under Kiffin.

How did Bobby P do in the NFL? How about Lou Holtz? How about Saban or Pete C? Or Spurrier? Funny how you seem to forget that. And you're right Ed O is terrible and so is Reaves.

[tennhogfan]

LK is putting together a very good staff. I think that speaks volumes about him right now. If in fact Ed O does come to UT with what Kiff has already put together it will be one of if not the best staffs in the NCAA. 

As much as I HATE UT and wonder why ALLVOL is a common poster on this board, I believe Kiffin will git er dun in knoxville. Who knows if he is a good coach yet. It does seem that he is showing the first signs of a good CEO. He is surrounding himself with good coaches. I think the key will be recruiting. I think that they just made a HUGE step forward in recruiting by hiring him. I sure do wish we had them on the schedule next season!

[Beaverfever]

Kiffin will probably recruit well enough to win, but I don't think he is anything special.  Mullen, ehhhh, Croom was a solid coach but his offenses always lacked.  I would have given him another year or two.  I'll call that a wash.  Chizik over Tubbs??? Please.  We are on the rise at a perfect time.  Two teams that we play every year are going to be rebuilding/sucking while we are going to be recruiting like crazy the next couple of years and preparing to win our first BCS  NC.  Add to that the fact that if LSU has another 5 loss season next year ole Les WILL be gone.  It could be us and Bama in the West for the coming years. 

[ALLVOL]

As much as I HATE UT and wonder why ALLVOL is a common poster on this board, I believe Kiffin will git er dun in knoxville. Who knows if he is a good coach yet. It does seem that he is showing the first signs of a good CEO. He is surrounding himself with good coaches. I think the key will be recruiting. I think that they just made a HUGE step forward in recruiting by hiring him. I sure do wish we had them on the schedule next season!

Because the Hogs are my SECW team.

[PeytonManningSUCKS]

Little Opie Kiffin will do fine.  But I think TN will stay middle of the road for a while with the Hogs having a nice head start with Bobby P.  We honestly got lucky all those teams fired their guys this year and not last.  We'd have Tommy T. probably and aub would have Bobby P...  I'm much more excited with BP than I would be with TT...   and TN can hang on to Opie as long as they want as far as I'm concerned.

[RZRBack_FAN]

How did Bobby P do in the NFL? How about Lou Holtz? How about Saban or Pete C? Or Spurrier? Funny how you seem to forget that. And you're right Ed O is terrible and so is Reaves.

There is no comparison to what Petrino had in Atl compared to what Kiffin had at Oakland. The Vick deal screwed Petrino he had no RB and several cancers in the locker room. Kiffin had a #1 QB in Russel and he had  Dmac and couldn't do anything with them. Petrino has won a BCS bowl and had a 41-9 record. Kiffin couldn't hold Bobbys jock strap and you know it. Kiffin will fail miserably espeacially if he comes running off recruits. 

[ALLVOL]

Little Opie Kiffin will do fine.  But I think TN will stay middle of the road for a while with the Hogs having a nice head start with Bobby P.  We honestly got lucky all those teams fired their guys this year and not last.  We'd have Tommy T. probably and aub would have Bobby P..  Not a bad option, but I'm much more excited with BP than I would be with TT...   and TN can hang on to Opie as long as they want as far as I'm concerned.

The job at UT was not as bad as what CBP took at Ark. CBP came to a bare cupboard and the cupboard is def not bare at UT for Kiff. Add to it that he will have a pretty good class coming in (may get a lot better soon) and he is putting together a heck of a staff and I dont see UT being in trouble.

[ALLVOL]

There is no comparison to what Petroni had in Atl compared to what Kiffin had at Oakland. The Vick deal screwed Petrino he had no tn and several cancers in the locker room. Kiffin had a #1 QB Dmac and couldn't do anything with them. Petrino has won a BCS bowl and had a 41-9 record. Kiffin couldn't hold Bobbys jock strap and you know it. Kiffin will fail miserably espeacially if he comes running off recruits. 

You're real football savvy. I mean everyone knows it's easy to win as a coach in Oakland. Ask the current head coach for the Broncos...

[tennhogfan]

Because the Hogs are my SECW team.

Guess I need to pick out an SECE team. Nevermind. I wouldn't be caught dead wearing another team's logo. I don't have any room in my closet anyway.

I say that to say this, if you had to choose another team to root for, I'm honored you chose ours. If you care, I can't remember you actually posting about anything other than UT. I'm probably wrong.

[RZRBack_FAN]

I know enough about it to realize your program is going down and the Hogs are going up. Sucks for you and that's why your angry I understand. It's ok you can adopt the hogs whenever we are playing for Sec championships and tenn and Kiffin are still trying to become bowl eligible.   

[ALLVOL]

Guess I need to pick out an SECE team. Nevermind. I wouldn't be caught dead wearing another team's logo. I don't have any room in my closet anyway.

I say that to say this, if you had to choose another team to root for, I'm honored you chose ours. If you care, I can't remember you actually posting about anything other than UT. I'm probably wrong.

You are wrong. Ive posted on many, many things not related to UT. I do however respond to VOL threads on here. I think that is understood. I root for the hogs unless they are playing the Hogs. Believe it or not most UT fans dont hate the Hogs like so many hog fans hate UT.

[ALLVOL]

I know enough about it to realize your program is going down and the Hogs are going up. Sucks for you and that's why your angry I understand. It's ok you can adopt the hogs whenever we are playing for Sec championships and tenn and Kiffin are still trying to become bowl eligible.  

Im not angry at all. I laugh at people who are so blinded by hatred that they cant see reality. Will Kiff be a hit? Who knows it is a gamble but to think he is not putting together a great staff or to argue that the atmosphere in Oakland is or was good is foolish at best. So go ahead and join those who have an illogical hatred of UT.

[ALLVOL]

Guess I need to pick out an SECE team. Nevermind. I wouldn't be caught dead wearing another team's logo. I don't have any room in my closet anyway.

I say that to say this, if you had to choose another team to root for, I'm honored you chose ours. If you care, I can't remember you actually posting about anything other than UT. I'm probably wrong.

I will add that there are some threads that I stay out of due to respect to y'all as I think some are family matters. Ive been to just about every UT vs Hog games in the past 20 years. Ive also been to Hogs vs LSU game in LR. Having friends who are Ark grads and having been to many games and partied with hog fans play a big role in my being a fan of the hogs. Maybe that will explain it better.

[josh_sec33]

Hey AllVol...go jump down into the thread about the SEC eating itself alive. Really good thread with a lot of schools POV...I'd love to get the Orange nation's side of all of this.

(also, post 2250!) Edit...hmm, guess its 2250+ to get that next star.

[10thPlanet]

I'm afraid the Vols will be back, but ths time we'll be ready........

[RZRBack_FAN]

I don't hate UT I was born there. I usually only hate teams that have been succesful in the last few years. It's not hate at all it's just my opinion, Kiffin will not succeed and neither will Chizik. Mullens can't go anywhere but up so who knows about that. Arkansas clearly hired the best coach outside of the Sec with the exception of Carrol and Stoops and I feel like if you put him in either of those schools he would have just as much success if not more.

[josh_sec33]

I personally don't hate TN. I used to live an hour from Knoxville, and my first experience with college football was at Neyland Stadium. The resort that my dad managed was where Majors would take his coaches to retreat in the offseason, and I was able to get down on the field a few times. I even broke my arm there (had a hollow spot in my upper arm that thrown a ball stress fractured into).

But then I moved, and then the Hogs joined the SEC, so UT was no longer my team.

All my animosity came from Fulmer...I just couldn't stand him.

[12247]

Until shown different I believe both TN and Aub ended up with coaches of lessor quality than the ones that left.  That is not to say these new fellows can't pick it up and do well, just that it hasn't happened yet.  I always felt Fulmer could pick assistants well and his recruiting was usually amoung the best for whatever reason.  TT can coach and usually chooses assistants pretty well to go with the ability to recruit decent.  I am not sure Lane Kiffin knows that offense means you when you have the football, but he won't need to know if he picks assistants well and lets them coach.  Chizik may just perfer to recruit all defensive players and elect to stay on defense all game long, believeing he can score more from a defensive posture than he ever could trying to mount an offensive scheme.  Right now these 2 hires don't look good but likely TN will be fine and Aub won't.

[DeltaBoy]

Great Article and We are moving on up!

[ALLVOL]

I don't hate UT I was born there. I usually only hate teams that have been succesful in the last few years. It's not hate at all it's just my opinion, Kiffin will not succeed and neither will Chizik. Mullens can't go anywhere but up so who knows about that. Arkansas clearly hired the best coach outside of the Sec with the exception of Carrol and Stoops and I feel like if you put him in either of those schools he would have just as much success if not more.

Like a team that won the SEC East last year and was one bad throw from winning the SEC?

[The Hogfather]

You're real football savvy. I mean everyone knows it's easy to win as a coach in Oakland. Ask the current head coach for the Broncos...

I just asked Gruden and Madden and they said it's easier than people think.

[The Hogfather]

Like a team that won the SEC East last year and was one bad throw from winning the SEC?

Dude, don't talk to us about "almost wins".  We've led in that category for the past 10 years.

[sivad53]

allvol i think you add alot to this board and i think kiffin was a good hire, you guys needed someone young and that would provide a spark and you got him.

[ALLVOL]

I just asked Gruden and Madden and they said it's easier than people think.

you're right Al Davis is a perfect owner to work for. Arthur Blank is much worse than Davis....

[ALLVOL]

Dude, don't talk to us about "almost wins".  We've led in that category for the past 10 years.

Read what that post was about and you will see how foolish you seem to those with a good reading comprehension.

[elksnort]

You are wrong. Ive posted on many, many things not related to UT. I do however respond to VOL threads on here. I think that is understood. I root for the hogs unless they are playing the Hogs. Believe it or not most UT fans dont hate the Hogs like so many hog fans hate UT.

That might be because Tennessee is 13-3 or something over Arkansas. Fans usually hate teams that beat them regularly.

And as a side note: I think that you have good input on this board.

[Hoggish1]

I agree with him about Auburn going down.  But they probably won't stay with GC for long.  If it's two years I would be surprised. They won't stand back and watch a recruiting class destroyed and tolerate a 2-10 season, which is what they are going to get, at best.

I don't agree that TN and MSU made bad choices. Given the upgrade in defense with Monte and the players Mullins has to work with.

[ALLVOL]

allvol i think you add alot to this board and i think kiffin was a good hire, you guys needed someone young and that would provide a spark and you got him.

You must be a hugger since you dont mind other peoples opinions... LOL

Thanks man, I like the hogs and I have a lot of good friends who are Ark Grads.

[ALLVOL]

That might be because Tennessee is 13-3 or something over Arkansas. Fans usually hate teams that beat them regularly.
And as a side note: I think that you have good input on this board.

Fair point. But I like the Hogs for other reasons. Friends and having been to Hogs games and not only against UT.

[razorbrass]

Our ugly duckling seems to to be turning into a beautiful swan.

Stop looking at me Swan!

[The Hogfather]

Read what that post was about and you will see how foolish you seem to those with a good reading comprehension.

"We are successful, we ALMOST won the SEC Championship Game last year!  Give us credit!  We ALMOST beat LSU!  I know you guys beat LSU in their own house, but we almost did too!  We're good!"

[The Hogfather]

Fair point. But I like the Hogs for other reasons. Friends and having been to Hogs games and not only against UT.

I know you won't believe me, but I don't hate UT.  There are many other teams that I dislike more than Tennessee.  I just like to push your buttons because you seem to think way too highly of the Tennessee athletic program and you get worked up fairly easily.  I just kind of like putting some perspective on your rants about how great anything adorned by hunter orange is.

[KENDALLF]

the vols will be fine with kiffin but i like our situation better lol
WPS!!!!!!!!

[Newhopehog]

If papa stays as DC Tenner will put a D on the field in 2 yrs that will make bamas D look like a bunch of girls scouts. 

[Maverick Razorback]

Guess I need to pick out an SECE team. Nevermind. I wouldn't be caught dead wearing another team's logo. I don't have any room in my closet anyway.

I say that to say this, if you had to choose another team to root for, I'm honored you chose ours. If you care, I can't remember you actually posting about anything other than UT. I'm probably wrong.

yep you are wrong.
ALLVOL stays very classy..even when attacked.
He congrats the Hogs and always has good input.

[Drunken Tailgater]

Kiffin was a great hire for Tennessee. It'll take a couple of years, but they will be contending for the East again soon.

[Bubba's Bruisers]

If papa stays as DC Tenner will put a D on the field in 2 yrs that will make bamas D look like a bunch of girls scouts. 

While I understand that Monty might be one of the best NFL DC's in history, if not the best, I can assure you that no DC will make a Saban coached defense look like girl scouts.

[MuskogeeHogFan]

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20081215/COLUMNISTS/812150908/1003/NEWS04?Title=SEC_superiority_just_took_a_hit

I have to ask when "affirmative action" will be put away and people wil be interviewed and hired on the basis of their abilities and not their color.

At Arkansas, I am extremely happy with our hire of Bobby Petrino, but frankly I don't give a damn whether he is white, black, red, green or blue. I don't care if he is from the friggin planet Mars.

I am sick and tired of race being an issue whether pro or con.

Personally, I believe Auburn screwed the pooch not hiring Turner Gill, but that opinion is based on his being a good football coach and not his ethnicity.

If we had been saddled with Nutt for another year(a frightful thought) and Gill had been available instead, I would have been happy to have him at Arkansas. He is a coach on the move and very capable. If he can take a prgram like Buffalo and turn it around, I assure you he could recruit and turn a SEC program around.

Put the black/white issue aside. Let that not even come into the equation. Evaluate a coach on his abilities and accomplishments, not his color. We want to win and I don't give a rats arse who it is that brings us to that level. No one else should care either as long as they reach the pinnacle of their goals.

[ALLVOL]

I know you won't believe me, but I don't hate UT.  There are many other teams that I dislike more than Tennessee.  I just like to push your buttons because you seem to think way too highly of the Tennessee athletic program and you get worked up fairly easily.  I just kind of like putting some perspective on your rants about how great anything adorned by hunter orange is.

I really dont get worked up. I will admit like everyone else I have a little homer in me. But at the beginning of the year I picked UF to win not only the SEC but the national title as well. I try to correct missinformation when I can about UT and othe subjects. 

[socalhogcaller]

I have to ask when "affirmative action" will be put away and people wil be interviewed and hired on the basis of their abilities and not their color.

At Arkansas, I am extremely happy with our hire of Bobby Petrino, but frankly I don't give a damn whether he is white, black, red, green or blue. I don't care if he is from the friggin planet Mars.

I am sick and tired of race being an issue whether pro or con.

Personally, I believe Auburn screwed the pooch not hiring Turner Gill, but that opinion is based on his being a good football coach and not his ethnicity.

If we had been saddled with Nutt for another year(a frightful thought) and Gill had been available instead, I would have been happy to have him at Arkansas. He is a coach on the move and very capable. If he can take a prgram like Buffalo and turn it around, I assure you he could recruit and turn a SEC program around.

Put the black/white issue aside. Let that not even come into the equation. Evaluate a coach on his abilities and accomplishments, not his color. We want to win and I don't give a rats arse who it is that brings us to that level. No one else should care either as long as they reach the pinnacle of their goals.

Given how you feel, that race should not matter, it seems you may be missing the point.  People are not upset that Tennessee hired a white guy as opposed to a black guy, or that Auburn did the same thing.  They are upset that blacks time and again who have equal (or in Auburn's case-better) resumes are being passed over for young, inexperienced, (or in Auburn's case-losing) football coaches.

I don't think for a second that if Auburn had hired Chris Peterson, Mike Leach, or even pulled Spurrier over from SC they would be fielding these questions.  Whatever made them lean to Chizik was NOT based on his success as a head coach.  And for that matter, neither was TN's decision...though, the fact that he had been in the NFL made their decision look more kosher.

I have thought for a while now that with a number of young black assisstants who are doing very well, that the numbers of black head coaches would start to rise soon because of the very reason you mentioned...people just want winners, they don't care if the coach is purple.

However, Auburn's decision has to raise eyebrows.  They tuned away a clear young winner who was black, for a clear young loser who was white.  Being in the deep south, with its history of racism, it has to beg the question of whether or not race was involved.

Affirmative Action is not even an issue here, if it were, Auburn would be in serious violation.  In my mind, they violated what YOU, I, and every reasonable football fan expects from their athletic dept., and that is to hire the best coach possible regardless of race.