UTVols News and Opinions

Autumn looms in the offing, and a new scent wafts through the freshening breeze on the Hill.

It’s not yet time to break out the North Face gear, or sip some hot cider, or dust off your leaf rake. The warm autumn hues of russet brown, fiery gold, and scarlet reds have not yet begun to grace the verdant hillsides. The sweet smell of freshly cut hay has yet to be replaced with the crisp, heady aroma of fall as it comes into full strength. And yet, the time is fast approaching when Tennessee football is at its most vibrant, its most nostalgic, its most flagrantly passionate.

With the blooming of the crimson, orange, purples, vibrant yellows, and whites of the chrysanthemums, comes the full flower of the might of SEC football. A few short weeks, and the spirit of the hills will fully waken, and its rumbling breath will be felt throughout football country. In a few short weeks, we will begin to hear the full throated chorus of a million souls, thrumming to the rhythm of the 2006 football season in time with the heartbeat of the land.

The first stanza of the score has been written, and sung. Many of us listened for a more somber tone, but instead welcomed with gladness in our hearts the uplifting strains of a victorious, joyful chorus. The prelude to the heart of the score, the great anticipated matchup with California has come and passed. Vol fans were thrilled to witness the beginnings of a very satisfying reversal of fortunes…enough so, perhaps, to wash away the sour taste of last year’s defeats and leave only a faint, lingering bitter aftertaste to eventually vanish forever.

Mind you, it’s only our first taste of what could be a very good season. It’s perhaps a telling testament to the long road followed by the Tennessee faithful, that so many of us with sad but wise hearts understand that the line between glory and despair is a devilishly thin one. The long suffering fan knows, that the truest test of our newly fashioned team lies before it in conference play. Only then, when the mighty weapon—forged by our master smith in the fires of winter, and tempered in the August heat—will be truly known. Ring the blade true on the anvil of the SEC conference, and listen to its song. Is the sound still sweet? Will the blade still cut?

The victory over the Golden Bears was indeed impressive for a football team striving with a burning intensity to regain its former status as a league elite. The often second-guessed, doubted, and much maligned signal caller, Erik Ainge, was vindicated. He’s answered the questions that have dogged him throughout the offseason. The experiment of going back to the future with offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe certainly seems to have paid off.

So, why, I ask myself, do I have any lingering…misgivings? A nagging voice reminds me that there are three logical possibilities that lie at the heart of this welcome ‘surprise’ win for Tennessee:

1. This Tennessee team is much, much better than most people thought and could be a very special team indeed.
2. This California team was vastly overhyped and overrated.
3. Maybe a little of both (1) and (2).

It really is anyone’s guess right now, still, as to how good each of these teams truly is. Lee Corso certainly seems to think California is a special team this year, and could go unbeaten in the Pac-10—a pretty tall order with their neighbors to the south at USC. As for Tennessee, well, I believe that the coaches and players all seem to feel the heart of this team has yet to be tested. The biggest challenge still lies before them in conference play.

An even bigger surprise, maybe, from Saturday’s contest lie in the way Tennessee won. We saw some things we haven’t seen in a long time. Big plays on both sides of the ball. Tailbacks breaking tackles. Receivers making significant yards after the catch. Confident, poised quarterback play. For once, the offense carried the fight to the opponent instead of relying solely on John Chavis’ always stellar defensive platoon to give the offense a chance to win the game late in the 4th quarter. A shutout well into the second half. Explosion on offense. All things that gladden the snobbish hearts of the Tennessee faithful, as we remember past glories. Fulmer and his staff gave the fans what they needed desperately; an outright throttling of a highly ranked, highly touted opponent. National recognition as a powerful team.

However, as one UT receiver was heard to say recently, “…we don’t play Cal anymore.” On to the next challenge. As always, we have a very formidable schedule ahead with all the usual suspects—Florida, Georgia, Alabama—along with a vengeance-minded LSU team looming ominously in the distance. We are certainly capable of beating all of these teams, with the kind of play we saw from the Big Orange this past weekend. We have the talent, we have the speed, we have the size, we have the coaching. All we have to do now is prove it. Over and over again, on every down in every game. There can be absolutely no letup with that brutal schedule.

We’re accustomed to winning, sure. But we have been trained to expect slim margins and gritty, defensive slugfests where the winner is the one left standing at the end of the 4th quarter. That formula has worked pretty well for us. However, this new look—now this is something the average fan can truly get excited about! Finally, some red meat for a hungry mob starving for something to really sink its teeth into. The fact that Cal finally mounted some successful offensive series late in the game makes no difference to the fans. The rout was already on, and the Orange Nation would not be denied. For a crowd filled with bitterness and angst from last season’s emasculating humiliation in front of the whole nation, this blood-letting was the sine qua non for Fulmer and his staff.

The shining blade, forged in adversity, must be continually polished and sharpened. There will be nicks that mar its smooth finish, as it meets its true test in the raging SEC battles to come. If it’s a worthy blade, then it will yet win through to cut into the hearts of its foes. The true mettle of the team has yet to be measured, but from all indications it appears as though our beloved smith has crafted, if not yet a masterpiece, at least a stout and sharp weapon to be respected by our enemies.

So, yes, while we celebrate yesterday’s victory, we are ever mindful of the true prize. The California game will be forgotten with lightning speed if we commit mental mistakes and look foolish against any of our SEC brethren. The best thing—and a very necessary thing—that we gained from the California game isn’t a better ranking, or some nice stats to go in the books, or even national publicity. It’s the confidence to be able to feel as though we belong on the field with anybody we stand against. It’s the expectation that we should win every game we play. Fear in the hearts of all but the stoutest opponents, and a nagging doubt in the minds of those. It’s swagger—it’s intimidation. And that’s something we haven't had around here in a couple of years.