15 Thoughts is at a Crossroads

I'm going to be brief and will probably leave out some "thoughts" that you are certainly free to bring up in the comments.

1. There is only a single thought that matters this morning and that is the well-being of Nick Chubb who was injured on the first play of the game when he spun out of bounds on a toss-sweep and his foot appeared to stick into the sod.  His forward momentum caused his body weight to thrust forward and his knee hyper-extended.  As bad as it looked, is there a chance he will not require surgery? If so, that would be a minor miracle.

2. Special thanks to CBS for showing as many close-ups of Nick in obvious agony as their director and producer could allow.  Maybe we should use one of those sideline playcall posters as a shield next time because they don't work so well in their intended use.  Also, I loathe Gary Danielson.  There was a time when CBS games were marquee events.  This has not been the case for years now.  I literally turned off the volume after Reggie Davis' punt return.  By then, it was pretty obvious that Gary took Tennessee and the points for his Fan Duel account.

3. I'm at point #3.  I was hoping by now this post would be cathartic.  So far, it isn't.

4. We've got NFL talent at many positions on defense.  Secondary is not one of them.

5. That was the worst display of "bump" tackling since the 2008 game vs. Tech.  Yeah, I understand that our time of possession was slightly north of 10 minutes (I may be embellishing a bit here), but tackling is an issue.

6. I never thought this team would actually contend for a playoff spot.  Not when we are so unstable at quarterback and still too young at key defensive positions.  But I also thought we would certainly improve on defense in Jeremy Pruitt's second season.  Yesterday was an alarming regression.

7. Outside of Jay Rome catching a couple of passes, what happened to our other very capable tight ends?

8. Tennessee's offensive line should've been bashed, gashed and hashed.  In the end, they controlled the line of scrimmage.  Imagine that?  A patchwork assembly of mix-and-match players to shore up positions that have been devastated by injury.  Yeah, I understand our defense was on the field all day, but the Vols ability to just run it was inexcusable.

9. Turns out Jordan Jenkins has been playing hurt and couldn't continue.  Don't know if it would have ultimately mattered.  Davin Bellamy played a great game.  Rico McGraw improved as well.  There isn't a  player on defense that squeezes more out of his physical ability than Jake Ganus.  But I didn't see much else and our ability to defend the middle of the field has not improved at all.  Not just this game, either.  It's a real problem.

10. We need some play makers in the secondary.  Desperately.

11.  Our special teams play has become a liability once again. Our punting is bad.  Our field goal kicker is erratic.  We cannot fumble a kickoff ever.  Ever.  Kick returns are huge momentum changers - whether one is taken to the house of if you gaaaak up the ball like Sony Michel did just before halftime.  Inexcusable.  Yeah, I know the kid feels bad and I feel bad for the kid.  But it happened and it really, really hurt us.

12.  Mark Richt isn't going to be fired, so everyone who wants Mark Richt to be fired needs to channel your energies elsewhere.  But there may be a super secret clock ticking somewhere that will give him until the year 20__ to do something.

13.  We are possibly on the brink of signing the best recruiting class under Richt's tenure.  They had better develop sooner than later if they hold together.  One thing is for sure:  We are going to be playing a lot of youth for the rest of this season and next.

14. Our offensive line is overrated.

15.  I'm out of thoughts.  But please continue to pray for Devon Gales and for Nick Chubb.  Bad things happen to good people all the time.

As for the bad people?  Quite a few Tennessee "fans" really represented their school well during the game on Twitter.  (A Spalding County sheriff's deputy in particular, but I'd better not go there.)  I've got a few friends who are  part of Vol Nation and I realize that every fan base - our own included - have some downright evil people who view this sport more than it was ever intended.  Truly it is the ugly side of sports.  Please try not to ever emulate these people.  Be better.  Okay, I'm off my soapbox.  Thank you for your indulgence.

As Always, GO DAWGS!