Can Joshua Dobbs Live Up to Expectations?

I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve been sipping on some of that Tennessee-orange Kool-Aid. It is hard not to at this point. They’ve got the talent from some very strong recruiting classes in recent years, and what was once a very young team, is now a veteran team ready to take the next step. Their leader? The gifted Joshua Dobbs

Joshua Dobbs is an incredible athlete, and the dual-threat talent is undeniable. See the Georgia game from last year where he accounted for over 400 total yards and 5 total touchdowns. That game we saw the culmination of all his talents and the result was beautiful. But, are expectations too high for Dobbs heading into 2016? Does he deserve more blame for the way things went in 2015? Do we get the versus Georgia Joshua Dobbs, or do we get the “other” Joshua Dobbs for the season’s entirety in 2016?

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We can all admit that we blame Butch Jones for pretty much every bad thing that happened to Tennessee last year. Poor clock management and going too conservative with a lead were all valid criticisms of Butch Jones last year, and it allowed the shortcomings of the players to be absolved.

The fact remains though, in the 5 biggest games of the year, Dobbs was terrible in 4 of them. As previously acknowledged, Joshua Dobbs’ performance in the Georgia game was amazing, but it was truly an anomaly on the big stage in the regular season.

In the 4 losses against Oklahoma, Florida, Arkansas and Alabama, Dobbs averaged 153 passing yards per game, and he threw for 2 touchdowns total in those 4 games. Yes, he rushed for 136 yards on 18 carries against Florida, and he even caught a 58-yard touchdown pass in that game, but he only completed 10 of his 17 passes for 83 yards. You need more out of the passing game.

I know the argument will be that if he rushes for that many yards every game, that passing yardage will suffice. Well, expecting that against the elite competition he will face is ridiculous. In the other 3 losses combined, Dobbs had 37 rush attempts for a grand total of 38 yards. He had a total of 2 rushing touchdowns, and 2 passing touchdowns.

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He doesn’t seem to make the big mistake through the air, and I think that helps keep him out of the spotlight when looking to place blame on Tennessee’s heartbreaking series of losses last year. He threw a total of 5 interceptions last year which sounds great on top, but he also only completed 15 touchdown passes.

Those passing numbers have got to improve or his legs have got to be more consistent in order for Tennessee to live up to expectations that are soaring. Tennessee and Joshua Dobbs are a hot commodity right now, but we may need to pump the brakes because I feel like we’ve been here before.