Today On Rocky Top: ESPN’s Analysis Of Tennessee Football Schedule

ESPN.com recently took a look at the Vols’ 2014 schedule and how it might play out.

Read more at ESPN.com

Butch Jones and Donnie Tyndall are hitting it off. Apparently they went out to dinner the other night and stayed out until 1:00 AM.

From UTSports.com

"Much like the student-athletes they mentor, college coaches are always learning.Some coaches read books. Some go on tours to talk with past and present coaches at all levels of their sport. Others step back and take a wider look at a variety of sports. This off-season, Butch Jones set his sights on basketball coaches. In the midst of his exploration of the craft, Tennessee hired a new basketball coach, and Jones’ off-season project helped form a quick bond with Donnie Tyndall.“It’s been great spending time with him, talking philosophy about developing toughness and mental conditioning, getting to know him not just as a coach, but as a person,” Jones said at the Big Orange Caravan stop Monday night. “We’ve really hit it off, so I looking forward to growing and elevating our relationship. There’s so many parallels between basketball and really any sport, really, with the grind that it is and working through some things.”The new Vols hoops coach, a fellow Michigan native, has been thankful for the attention.“Coach Jones has been fantastic,” Tyndall said. “He’s spent a lot of time with me, probably too much with as busy as he is. He’s a guy that has really gone out of his way to make me feel comfortable and to give me pointers and ideas. We went out to dinner the other night until about 1:00 in the morning just talking. He’s been unbelievably helpful and a great friend thus far. I wish I could help him as much as he helps me.”"

Bleacher Report’s Reid Akins takes a look at the issues surrounding Tennessee basketball that need to be fixed before the upcoming season.

From Bleacher Report

"New Tennessee Volunteers head basketball coach Donnie Tyndall has quickly overhauled the team’s roster, but replicating his recruiting success on the court may be a tall order with so many new faces on the team.Tennessee’s 2013-2014 season was full of ups and downs: There were some bad losses, some very bad losses, a widely circulated petition to bring back a certain controversial coach, a late-season rally and a surprise NCAA tournament run to the Sweet 16.Just when things appeared to be settling down in Knoxville following the Vols’ tournament exit at the hands of the Michigan Wolverines, Cuonzo Martin accepted the head coaching position at California and left the Tennessee basketball program in limbo."

The tweet of the day is from Vols’ defensive line coach Steve Stripling, who is apparently recruiting in style.