GoVolsXtra (subscription required) again has excellent coverage of yesterday’s game against UAB. Here are links to and summaries of what’s available:Game Recap

John Pennington says the coaches pulled Ainge too soon and made a mistake rotating the quarterbacks, that despite Gerald Riggs’ 100+ yards, the offensive line wasn’t as good as billed at run blocking, the secondary doesn’t appear to be any better this year than last, the receivers dropped too many easy catches. On a more positive note, he says Jason Allen was the game’s MVP. No argument here. On one series, Allen showed his mastery at several different skills. First down: excellent, tight coverage on a receiver that almost resulted in an interception. Second down: Excellent, sure, hard tackle on a running play (if memory serves). Third down: Excellent, sure tackle on a hard-to-bring-down scrambling quarterback. Pennington concludes that Vol fans shouldn’t make too much of the UAB game, as in college football, one week often doesn’t have much to do with the next.

John Adams observes that in three short hours, the Vols went from trying to be best-in-the-nation to trying to beat the third best in Conference USA.

Mark Burgess notes the calming effect Clausen had on the team. The story is loaded with good quotes, including this one from Clausen, who is all class:

“I’m just happy with the win,” he said. “Wherever the quarterback derby, or whatever you want to call it, goes from here, it doesn’t matter.
“Basically, the questions about the whole quarterback thing — I’d like them to stop. We’re worried about winning football games. We’re not worried about who the quarterback is going to be. We’re worried about Florida and having a good open bye-week.”

Dave Hooker points out the importance of two particular red zone plays: the interception by Justin Harrell after UAB had driven the field and were threatening the end zone and true freshman Demetrice Morley’s touchdown-saving deflection on fourth down.

Mike Griffith’s story centered around the fact that the running game, like the rest of the game, did not live up to expectations and quoted Coach Fulmer as saying that it “looked like a bunch of mush at times.”

Griffith also grades the UT units and gives the entire team a C-.

And dont’ miss this Best and Worst column, probably my favorite feature of the Knoxville News Sentinel’s game day coverage.

Apologies to The Vol Abroad, a Tennessee alum living in London. According to this post, he (or she) was looking forward to the opening game of the season as much as the rest of us were, only, living in London, his options for catching the game were quite limited. He figured out a way to get an audio download of the game, but due to the time difference, he was going to download it overnight and listen to it the next morning as if it were live. An attempt to create a next-best-thing to being there.But when he logged into the Rocky Top Brigade, we, more specifically, I, ruined it for him by giving him information about the game before he had a chance to experience it for himself.

If it had been me, I’d have been really disappointed. I miss being in Knoxville during game day, but, living in the Tri-Cities, I can still get a taste because I’m still in East Tennessee and can catch most, if not all, of the games on t.v. So, I can feel for him, and I hope to avoid doing the same thing to him or another expatriate in the future.

How? Well, for any post that’s within 24 hours of the game, I’m going to try making sure that the title of the post doesn’t in any way disclose the outcome and that the post begins with a spoiler warning. I encourage other Rocky Top Brigadiers to do the same as a service to expats.

This is meant to be a collection of Rocky Top Brigade bloggers’ posts on the Tennessee v. Alabama-Birmingham game. As of right now, there’s only three, but I’ll update tomorrow. If you’ve posted on the game and I’ve missed it, email me, and I’ll link to your post.Big Orange Michael wonders whether Erik Ainge is the Ben Rothlesberger of college football and whether the Volunteers can ever be ready in time for the Florida game.

Haiku of the Id, on the other hand, thinks it was just your “typical first-game-of-the-season-type goofs.”

Tennessee Everything chalks it up to poor choice of Ainge over Clausen, rust, lack of focus, and a nothing-to-lose UAB team.

Also, see my post below, where I conclude that today’s contest was the perfect game at the perfect time, a much-needed jolt to an over-confident team before they head to hostile territory.

Uh, oops.Not quite the 100-point bludgeoning the fans were hoping for. Or even the 24-point route the handicappers were betting on.

It almost wasn’t even a win.

Are the UAB Blazers that good, or are the Vols about half as good as everyone thought they were?

Or is it the Vols being the Vols, playing up — and down — to the competition?

Gerald Riggs had a solid game with 110 yards. Jason Allen was a monster, always in the right place at the right time making textbook tackles and denying wide receivers receptions. Jesse Mahelona was double-teamed all day and still managed the Vols’ only sack. Rick Clausen came off the bench and made a case for starting against the Gators in two weeks. I think he ought to.

Starting quarterback Erik Ainge had a tough day, throwing several balls high with two of them finding the hands of Blazer defenders. Receivers dropped easy catches. Parys Haralson picked up this season where he left off last season, earning 30 yards in personal foul penalties. Two times today and several times last season at key junctions in the game. Thought he would have learned.

Still, I think this is just about the perfect place to be for the Vols. The expectations and confidence levels were too high, and this game should serve as notice that they need to work, focus, and concentrate, or they will get blown out at the Swamp and in Baton Rouge.

An ugly win is the best medicine for an over-confident team heading into hostile territory.

Less than a week until Football Time in Tennessee.The Knoxville News Sentinel’s GoVolsXtra site kicked off the season with a huge 14-page special section. The first page of The College Football Preview ’05 (large file, and registration is required) is classic Daniel Proctor: a full-page color cartoon made to look like the Candyland board game, except that instead of sugar plums and lollipops, the multi-colored, segmented road is decorated with gators, tigers, and leprechauns.Proctor’s Rocky Road to the Rose Bowl graphically portrays the Vols’ difficult road ahead. After the UAB “Free Turn” game (which really could be anything but a walk in the park), the Vols’ must escape the Gators in the Swamp (U. of Florida) and the Tigers in Death Valley (Louisiana State U.) on consecutive weeks.

Then they entertain Ole Miss at home and have a difficult game against the Georgia Bulldogs before having to travel south where they must survive the Crimson Tide.

And then Tennessee’s former (and current again?) nemesis Steve Spurrier brings his new team — the South Carolina Gamecocks — to Tennessee before the team travels to always dangerous South Bend, Indiana to take on the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame.

Round the corner to finish with Memphis and Vanderbilt at home and the Wildcats of Kentucky up north, and the Vols’ should end up in Atlanta and the SEC Championship. Win that, and they should be in the Rose Bowl and the National Championship.

A rocky, treacherous road to be sure, but if they can drain the Swamp, survive Death Valley, hold the Tide, best the Irish, and then take care of business at home against Georgia, South Carolina, and the others, they will have earned the right to play for the trophies.

Check out Proctor’s graphic. It encapsulates the entire season’s challenges, dangers — and fun — ahead.

Five days to Football Time in Tennessee.