Tennessee football: Will the Volunteer standard be restored in 2020?

Coming off of a mediocre 2019 campaign, Tennessee football and Jeremy Pruitt look to restore the Volunteer standard.

Well, it’s safe to say that Tennessee football has been through a lot in the past decade and a half. The Vols have been the SEC punching bag after numerous coaching failures, heartbreak losses, and administration blunders.

And truthfully, it’s hard to pinpoint just where the problems began. Was it after Lane Kiffin conducted an improvised press conference to announce his resignation before heading to Hollywood?

Or was it Tennessee’s mind-numbing decision to name Derek Dooley as their head coach? And of course, you can’t forget the Butch Jones era which dropped the Tennessee fanbase to their knees.

And when you think about it, all of these events, and a couple of things in-between, snowballed into what Tennessee football represents to the naked eye in 2020- a broken program with hopes to rise.

Let me assure you. There is hope, Vol fans.

Despite starting the 2019 season with losses to an abundance of inferior teams, Jeremy Pruitt managed to salvage the year by winning the final six games on the schedule.

But most importantly, Tennessee football showed improvement.

Oddly enough, the much needed improvements began after an unlikely game in Tuscaloosa where Pruitt’s team showed heart and toughness, but were eventually undercut by the obvious skill variance between the two programs.

After the loss to Alabama, Pruitt surged to a 6-0 record which resulted in the Vols landing a ticket to the Gator Bowl.

But most importantly, quarterback Jarrett Guarantano seemed to find his identity after it had been missing for most of the season. In the first six games of the year, Guarantano averaged just 143 yards per game through the air. But the switch was flipped and he improved to over 200 yards per game for latter portion of the season.

As for now, it’s uncertain whether or not Tennessee football will ride the momentum into next season. But if things go as planned, the Vols’ fanbase should prepare for a step in the right direction in 2020.

The Volunteers’ outlook

A glaring issue when looking at the Volunteer’s 2020 roster happens to be the loss of Jauan Jennings and Marquez Callaway– two solid receivers who proved to be Guarantano’s most valuable targets for the past couple of seasons.

This certainly doesn’t help a questionable quarterback situation that will rely on improvement from Guarantano. And if you talk to most Vol fans, they’re not entirely confident that he can successfully lead the team for a full season.

It’s evident, if the team wants to show refinement, Josh Palmer will have to step up and take on the number one receiver role with a head of steam. Behind Palmer, we will see a number of inexperienced receivers who will look to find their way amongst talented defensive backs in the SEC.

If Palmer can’t find his stride, Tennessee football will likely continue to deal with the struggle bug at quarterback due to a lack of weapons.

On the bright side, one of Tennessee’s offensive strengths is located at the running back position, which features a slew of experienced guys who are prepared to take some weight off of the quarterback position.

Eric Gray, Ty Chandler, and Tim Jordan all managed to get action during the 2019 season and will look to see an increase in production for the upcoming year. However, what makes the running game so appealing in 2020 isn’t the tail backs, but instead it’s the talented offensive line unit that features an overflow of former five-star players.

If Pruitt can find a way to put Guarantano in a position to succeed, we should see a healthy mix of production.

Defensively, Tennessee will have to replace outside linebacker Darrell Taylor who managed to rack up 8.5 sacks in 2019. It looks like Pruitt will rely on Kivon Bennett and Deandre Johnson to step up and fill the shoes that Taylor left behind. Luckily, Bennett and Johnson are two veterans that have experienced the grind of an SEC schedule and will look to battle it out for the starting position.

However, all eyes will be on the secondary group as Bryce Thompson leads the deep squad that plans to have a successful year. Historically, Tennessee football hasn’t necessarily fielded the most talented, or experienced defensive backs in recent years. That shouldn’t be the case in 2020.

Overall, the Volunteers’ coaching staff returns a load of returning faces that will be expected to exceed expectations on both sides of the ball.

Pruitt’s vision

Things are changing in Rocky Top, and coach Pruitt has a vision.

Now, is this vision just another false prophecy that will once again lead Tennessee down another road of destruction? Who knows. But it’s obvious that Pruitt is taking the correct steps to break the cursed trend. And an 8-5 record will be more than enough to keep the fanbase happy.

However, an 8-5 record will only keep Knoxville content for short-term. And really, you can’t blame them for wanting a speedy recovery. There’s really not a fanbase in college football who wants it more than the Volunteers. And the Big Orange is tired of pre-season hype, only to be let down once rubber meets road.

And while no one is certain whether Tennessee football will be competent this year, or whether or not the bleeding will finally stop. The question becomes, is Pruitt the straw that finally broke the camel’s back and ended the coaching curse in Rocky Top?

For the sake of the Tennessee program, let’s hope so.