Today On Rocky Top: David Climer On The Vols Defense, UT Releases Self-Reported Violations
By Zach Ragan
September 29, 2012; Athens, GA, USA; Tennessee Volunteers fullback Austin Bolen (45) runs the ball in the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium. The Bulldogs won 51-44. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports
From The Tennessean
"I couldn’t help but notice Tennessee has two Vols on the Bednarik Award Watch List for the nation’s best defensive player.Must be a misprint, right? Based on what we saw last season, UT didn’t have anybody worthy of a mention. The Vols put up only token resistance in 2012. They couldn’t get lined up properly, couldn’t cover and couldn’t tackle.But the Bednarik list includes Vols linebacker A.J. Johnson and defensive tackle Daniel McCullers. Believe it or not, somebody actually thinks those two bear watching this season."
From Go Vols Xtra
"Two minor football recruiting violations were among seven secondary NCAA rules violations reported by Tennessee to the SEC offices in the past six months.The documents were released to the News Sentinel on Tuesday in response to a request made under Tennessee’s open-records law.Universities routinely self-report secondary violations to their conference offices and the NCAA. In most cases, the SEC and NCAA accept the university’s self-imposed punishments and take no further action. The News Sentinel periodically requests documents related to NCAA violations, and UT also posts summaries of the violations on its website."
From Rocky Top Talk
"There haven’t been many highlights in the last five years. There have been, at best, five wins that have inspired any real confidence. And that’s if you include a 52-14 beatdown on an Ole Miss team that lost to FCS Jacksonville State and a fumble-induced win as a touchdown favorite over a 7-6 South Carolina team.The other three are the 2009 Georgia game, the 2011 Cincinnati game, and the 2012 North Carolina State game. All rode shocking offensive outbursts. All were marred somewhat by the coach that led them. But when we look back and try to remember the positive moments from 2008 to 2012, one game is going to stand out: the 2009 Georgia game."
"Tennessee tight end/special teams coach Mark Elder’s name became prominent last year as former coach Derek Dooley attempted to salvage in-state recruiting. As strange as it may seem, Elder’s name came up almost as often as any coach from Dooley’s staff even though Elder was an assistant coach at Cincinnati last year. Elder was well-known in Tennessee, particularly in Memphis.Those preexisting relationships should only help the Vols close the border on the Volunteer State. It already has four highly rated commitments from Tennessee."
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