Fear and Loathing of NSD

Today was National Signing Day.

In the South, NSD is the equivalent of a holiday such as Labor Day. In fact, some football fans think that Super Bowl Sunday should be followed by three consecutive days off, exceeding my favorite holiday season of Thanksgiving: Monday as a recovery day from the hype and glitter of the game/halftime/commercials, Tuesday as a catch-up day on what college football has been up to since the National Championship game, and Wednesday for more hype and glitter of a much different kind.

I’m not one of those football fans.

Tommy Tomlinson at Sports on Earth and John Brandon at Grantland give me permission to remain detached.

Butch Jones: The Choice to Conduct Yet Another Rebuild at Tennessee

This morning, the University of Tennessee announced that Butch Jones, the University of Cincinnati’s head man for the past three seasons, is the choice of Dave Hart.

As of the time of the announcement, Jones was not the choice of the majority of the Vol Nation.

Even with the lucrative price tag of $18 million over six years, he likely wasn’t Tennessee’s first choice, or second choice, or third choice. He likely wasn’t in the top twenty of desired candidates for the vast majority of fans.

But, regardless of the secrecy of the actual process, executed priorities, and actual timeline of the search, Butch Jones is now the head coach of the Vols.

Is it Time to Push the Panic Button?

Not yet.

But that depends on what actually is going on.

Vol Nation Comes Back to Earth: Straight Down from Space without a Parachute

Grudenmania crashed and burned on Friday. The only thing that remains are ashes that still smolder.

Some Fun for a Change

Tennessee 37  Kentucky 17
24 November 2012 | Neyland Stadium | ATT: 81,841
Recap | Boxscore | Play-by-Play | Drive Chart | Photos | Video
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Tennessee avoided what would have been it’s first 8-loss season. The Vols also avoided a first-ever winless SEC season. But that is not the real story of this game. 

The Dreaded Snowman

Kentucky Wildcats vs. Tennessee Volunteers
Saturday 24 November 2012 | 12:21pm EST
Neyland Stadium (102,455) | Knoxville, TN | SEC Network

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If you are a golfer, you know what I’m talking about.

If you are a Tennessee Vols fan, you should know what I’m referring to.

Tennessee-Vanderbilt: A Microcosm of the Macrocosm

Vanderbilt 41 Tennessee 18
17 November 2012 | Vanderbilt Stadium | ATT: 40,350
Recap | Boxscore | Play-by-Play | Drive Chart | Photos | Video
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The Ancient Greeks saw the same patterns reproduced in all levels of the cosmos, from the largest scale all the way down to the smallest scale.

On Saturday night in Nashville, the Grecian Formula was in effect — the Volunteers exhibited the same deficiencies that we have seen all season long: (1) big plays/poor defense; (2) turnovers; and (3) coaching.