Today On Rocky Top: Vols Focusing On Florida & More
By Zach Ragan
Sep 7, 2013; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Butch Jones on the sideline against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers during the second half at Neyland Stadium. Tennessee won 52-20. Mandatory Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports
From The Times Free Press
"The University of Tennessee football team just had landed in Knoxville on Saturday following a 59-14 blowout loss at second-ranked Oregon when some of the Volunteers’ leaders told the players to reconvene the following afternoon.The tone of the players’ meeting and the message that came from it were rather straightforward.“We talked to the whole team,” senior right tackle Ja’Wuan James said Monday, “and said, ‘Keep your head up. This is Florida week. This is one of the most important weeks. It’s SEC time. That game is in the past, and we’ve got a long season ahead of us.'”The 45-point loss against the talented Ducks was Tennessee’s largest margin of defeat in more than a century, but the Vols have little time to rehash it with their SEC opener looming against the 19th-ranked Gators in Gainesville."
From NBC Sports
"When Florida opens up SEC play this coming weekend, the Gators will likely have three of their injured starting offensive linemen at their disposal.On UF’s most recent depth chart released Monday, Jon Halapio, D.J. Humphries and Tyler Moore are listed as the starters at right guard, left tackle and right tackle, respectively. Thus, barring a setback during practice this week, both should be on the field for the Tennessee game in Gainesville Saturday.Halapio has not played at all this season after tearing a pectoral muscle during summer camp. The past two seasons, Halapio started all 26 games at right guard. For his career, he’s started 33 of the 41 games in which he’s played."
From Rant Sports
"The Tennessee Volunteers were crushed by the Oregon Ducks in a 59-14 loss that revealed how poor the Volunteers’ offense really is. With Head Coach Butch Jones recently stating that he would open up the quarterback competition, Justin Worley’s time at starting quarterback may be coming to an end. But benching Worley for Nathan Peterman would be a huge mistake. Worley is in his first year of starting full time for the Volunteers and is having a dreadful time with accuracy. Tennessee is a run first offense, but without a deep passing threat the run game can become stifled fairly early on. It doesn’t matter that the Vols have the best offensive line in the country; a one dimensional team isn’t going to go very far in the SEC."
From WBIR
"After a lop-sided loss to #2 ranked Oregon, the Vols are ready to turn their attention to their first SEC battle of the year, and Coach Butch Jones says there’s a chance you could see a different quarterback.At his weekly press conference on Monday, Jones first acknowledged the 59-14 loss to the Ducks.“I continue to say it, we must overachieve in order to be able to compete and win football games. We did not over achieve. I do know this, I know our players are very prideful and the only thing you can do is roll your sleeves up and go back to work today and work on being better. That’s all you can do,” said Jones."