GoVols247: A Tennessee Volunteers athletics podcast

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Episode 166: Bitter exit for Vols in Sweet Sixteen Mar 29, 2019

Show notes

GoVols247’s Wes Rucker and Grant Ramey went into the GoVols247 Mobile Studio in Louisville to break down the good, bad, ugly and the pain of Tennessee’s 99-94 overtime loss to Purdue at KFC Yum Center.

There’s never a good way to end a season unless you win a national championship, but some ways hurt more than others. The Vols’ loss to the Boilermakers is one of the more painful ways for it to end, considering the magnitude of the game and the way it ended.

Was there some good? Yes. Plenty of it.

Was there some controversy? Yes. Plenty of it.

But Tennessee’s mature team tends to look first in the mirror, and the Vols could and should have done several things better against Purdue. But they didn’t. And they lost.

There’s plenty of time to break down this full Tennessee season, and plenty of time to look at the now-departed senior class, and there’s plenty of time to discuss whether Vols junior stars Jordan Bone and Grant Williams should declare — at least without an agent — for the NBA Draft and go through the process before making a final decision. We’ll address all those things in future episodes.

For now, though, let’s just discuss Thursday’s loss and Tennessee’s overall performance in the NCAA Tournament.

Episode 165: Spring break reset for Vols football Mar 22, 2019

Show notes

GoVols247’s Wes Rucker and Ryan Callahan went into the Fort Rucker Sun Room — the Fort Rucker Studio is almost (but not quite) reconstructed — to break down the first five practices of Tennessee’s second spring camp under coach Jeremy Pruitt and the things we’ll be looking for out of the Vols when they return from spring break and get back on the field next week.

Both lines of scrimmage were concerns for this team heading into spring camp, and they remain questions going forward, but one of those groups has showed some at least some signs of promise early in camp, while one side is clearly working on things.

Of course, even the more promising side of Tennessee’s line of scrimmage has plenty of questions to answer at the moment. Those questions were never going to be answered in five practices, and they haven’t been, but there have been some promising developments so far in camp.

Both side of the line of scrimmage are discussed in detail on this episode, but other position groups — from the linebackers to the secondary (especially the safeties) to the wide receivers to the running backs — also were given plenty of discussion in this episode.

A recruiting update also wrapped up this football episode, as per usual, and there was even some basketball discussion. Callahan and coworker Patrick Brown no longer cover Tennessee basketball on a daily basis, but both still keep close tabs on the program and have covered more than enough hoops in their careers to offer interesting insights that are worth a listen.

Episode 164: Vols NCAA Tournament preview Mar 21, 2019

Show notes

GoVols247’s Wes Rucker and Grant Ramey went into to GoVols247 Mobile Studio in Columbus to breakdown Tennessee’s path to a potential national championship, which starts with a Friday afternoon game against No. 15 seed Colgate in Downtown Columbus’ Nationwide Arena — home of the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets.

There’s plenty to discuss heading into this tournament for Tennessee — which lost its spot as a No. 1 NCAA Tournament seed when it lost to Auburn in Sunday’s SEC Tournament title game, but still heads into March Madness as a respectable No. 2 seed in the South Region and a trendy pick to advance to the Final Four for the first time in program history.

Of course, Tennessee’s most recent game was hardly memorable for the right reasons, and it’s fair to wonder what that 84-64 loss to Auburn did to the Vols psychologically. Discussion on that topic is included in this episode, and you — assuming you’re a Tennessee fan — probably will like what you hear in that regard.

There are plenty more topics to discuss, though, and we discuss some of those, as well. What do we know about Colgate? Is Colgate a legitimate threat to Tennessee. Where could the Raiders cause Tennessee problems? Assuming the Vols beat Colgate, what do we know about No. 7 seed Cincinnati and No. 10 seed Iowa and how they would match up with the Vols? What Tennessee players need to emerge in this tournament? Which trending story — or stories — would be poetic justice for the Vols after crashing out of last season’s tournament in a second-round shocker? What kind of tournament does this team need to cement its legacy as one of the program’s best all-time teams? Is this team ready for this moment and the pressure that comes with it? Is Rick Barnes ready to get over the hump and flip the script on the postseason struggles that have highlighted parts of his career?

See, we told y’all. There’s lots to discuss. So let’s do that.

Episode 163: Hot spring start for Vols' offense Mar 15, 2019

Show notes

GoVols247's Wes Rucker, Patrick Brown and Ryan Callahan went into Fort Rucker Studio to discuss all things Vols through the first four practices of spring camp.

Second-year Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt hasn’t made it a secret that his offense has essentially kicked the defense’s tail for much of camp to this point, which is something you don’t usually see early in a spring camp or preseason camp, especially when an offense has a new coordinator.

The Vols seem to have taken well to new offensive coordinator Jim Chaney, though, and their experience on that side of the ball certainly has helped smooth than transition process.

Has the past couple of weeks been cause for hype on offense, or has it been a cause for pause for a Tennessee defense that has a new coordinator (Derrick Ansley) but is running the same system it did last season? Or does it really matter? Is there any way to say for sure, especially when much of camp to this point hasn’t been played in full pads?

Discussing of Tennessee’s spring camp is the primary talking point in this episode, but there’s also discussion of Tennessee’s annual Pro Timing Day and which former Vols might have helped their cause during the Thursday morning workout for NFL scouts.

Episode 162: Spring football has sprung Mar 08, 2019

Show notes

Looking for a recap of Tennessee’s first spring camp practice and a discussion for the road ahead?

There's a GoVols247 Podcast for that.

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Patrick Brown went into Fort Rucker Studio — or the Fort Rucker Sun Room, again, in this case — to break down Tennessee’s first spring camp practice snd discuss the road ahead.

Pruitt and his team — at least the returning players — looked a bit bigger. Which players really changed their bodies in the offseason? Which players are lined up in new or surprising spots? Which players and position group need to step up this spring?

Also … can a dog be listed a as a co-host of the GoVol247 Podcast?

These and several other questions are tossed around in this hour-long discussion on all thing Vols football.

Vols basketball’s march into postseason play will be the topic of a podcast early next week.

Episode 161: Vols crush Kentucky, send statement Mar 03, 2019

Show notes

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Grant Ramey went into Fort Rucker Studio — or the Fort Rucker Sun Room, in this case — to break down seventh-ranked Tennessee’s 71-52 win over fourth-ranked Kentucky in a rocking Thompson-Boling, and what it means for the Vols moving forward.

Those suggesting Tennessee was in trouble following a rough loss to Kentucky two weeks ago and a tough-luck loss at LSU last weekend probably aren’t singing the same tune after the Vols avenged that 17-point loss in Lexington with a 19-point win in Knoxville and kept themselves tied atop the SEC standings heading into the final week of the regular season.

Beyond the SEC championship race, though, Saturday’s win had even bigger implications for the bigger prizes. Tennessee is virtually certain to climb back into the top-five of both major polls when they’re updated Monday afternoon, and several NCAA Tournament bracket experts moved the Vols back into the No. 1 seed line — though a potential SEC Tournament semifinal game against Kentucky might settle that.

Tennessee’s defense has reemerged at a good time. The Vols held Kentucky to 14-of-44 shooting from the field, and Kentucky had never made so few field goals in any game in the Calipari era. What has changed so suddenly for the Vols on that side of the ball? And how have the Vols done that despite the suddenly unavoidable foul trouble for senior forward and defensive anchor Kyle Alexander? And why can’t Alexander seem to catch a break these days? Those questions are discussed in this episode.

Several more topics — especially Tennessee junior point guard Jordan Bone’s career-best offensive performance against Kentucky, and Vols junior Grant Williams arguably wrestling back the SEC Player of the Year award (which he won last season) from Wildcats star PJ Washington — also are discussed in this episode.

Episode 160, Vols bolster staff, add big commit Feb 23, 2019

Show notes

GoVols247's Wes Rucker, Patrick Brown and Ryan Callahan went (sort of) into Fort Rucker Studio to discuss another week full of Tennessee football news.

Jeremy Pruitt has now officially disclosed his staff heading into his second season with the program, and quite the staff it is.

You want big names? Check. You want big salaries? Check. You want SEC experience? Check. You want VFLs? Check. It’s tough to find holes in Pruitt’s staff, as it should be when you’re afforded the luxury of shelling out big-time money to restore a proud program to its customary place in college football’s food chain.

That was hardly the only interesting Tennessee football news to emerge in the past week, though.

One of the Vols’ biggest SEC Eastern Division rivalry games looks set for a new place on the schedule starting in 2020, and the Vols recently added a Top247 defensive lineman to their 2020 recruiting class.

Spring camp is right around the corner, but why wait until then? Come get the latest on Tennessee football now.

Episode 159: Vols hoops fading, or nah? Feb 21, 2019

Show notes

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Grant Ramey went into Fort Rucker Studio — or the Fort Rucker Sun Room, in this case — to break down Tennessee’s recent struggles in a loss at Kentucky and an ugly home win over Vanderbilt.

The Vols lost their first game in nearly three months and their No. 1 national ranking with their loss in Rupp Arena, and they responded with an ugly 58-46 win over Vandy at Thompson-Boling Arena.

What should we make of the Vols’ past two games? Is this team fading? Or is this just a small funk every team goes through every season? That’s one of the two main topics in this episode.

The other main topic is Tennessee’s game at LSU on Saturday.

LSU is long, athletic and aggressive, and it attacks the offensive glass with vigor, and that’s at least a small concern for a Tennessee team that has been exposed at times in that area. The Tigers also have a point guard (Tremont Waters) capable of giving Jordan Bone a fair fight, which could potentially nullify an advantage both of these teams have in most games.

Where can the Vols hurt the Tigers? Where can the Tigers hurt the Vols? And what does this game mean, aside from putting the winner in pole position for an SEC championship?

Those are the questions this episode tries to answer.

Episode 158: No. 1 Vols, No. 5 Cats clashing in Rupp Feb 15, 2019

Show notes

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Grant Ramey went into Fort Rucker Studio — or the Fort Rucker Sun Room, in this case — to break down Tennessee’s as-expected win over South Carolina on Wednesday, the Vols’ upcoming showdown at Kentucky and the SEC championship race.

LSU threw a wrench into the SEC title race with a Tuesday win at Kentucky, so now only the Tigers — not the Wildcats — are one game behind the unbeaten Vols in the conference standings. So now Tennessee isn’t just playing Kentucky in Rupp Arena. It’s playing an angry Kentucky team in Rupp Arena.

The Wildcats rarely lose two consecutive games in Rupp, so Tennessee’s tough challenge now looks even tougher. But the Vols are ranked No. 1 nationally, have won 19 consecutive games and have won in several hostile environments this season, so they’re as up as anyone could be for the challenge.

What matchups look good for Tennessee? What matchups looks less than good for Tennessee? Where could Kentucky hurt the Vols? Is Tennessee’s perimeter defense a concern? And did LSU’s win at Kentucky make the Tigers favorites to win the SEC, since Tennessee still has to play Kentucky twice, at LSU and at Auburn? Those and several other topics are discussed on this episode — an episode recorded outside the studio while the studio is being renovated

Episode 157: No. 1 Vols still chasing history Feb 10, 2019

Show notes

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Grant Ramey went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down a week that featured double-digit wins over Missouri and Florida and the challenging stretch run coming in the next few weeks.

Saturday’s 73-61 win over Florida extended Tennessee’s program-record winning streak to 18 games, and the Vols controlled most of the game — as they did in Tuesday’s win over former Tennessee coach Cuonzo Martin and his Missouri Tigers.

There’s plenty of Tennessee basketball to discuss at the moment, and this episode hits on several of those important topics: Yves Pons’ injury and the timetable for his return, the strong play of junior guards Jordan Bone and Jordan Bowden, Tennessee’s businesslike mentality, the Vols’ room for growth, Tennessee’s improving defense and the Vols’ tough four-week schedule to end the regular season.

As well as Tennessee has played so far this season, Kentucky and LSU are still only one game behind the Vols in the standings. And Tennessee still has three games against those two teams, with two coming on the road. The Vols also road trips to face Auburn and previously-ranked Ole Miss, and a previously-ranked Mississippi State visits Thompson-Boling Arena.

Tennessee’s best basketball is still ahead of it, according to coach Rick Barnes, and the Vols probably need to take things up a notch in order to secure a second consecutive SEC championships.

But how important is the SEC championship when you’re also firmly in the mix for an national title? That’s an interesting question, and it’s also tossed around in this episode

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