Holy Bench Press, Batman!

Justin Groves, of Rock Solid Sports on WUTK Radio (UT's student radio station), just reported that Jacques McClendon broke the Tennessee bench press record by pressing 635 pounds! Good Lord, man, that's like 1.5 Manginos.

Vladimir Richard also benched an amazing 600 pounds today. This furthers my belief that Vlad is the baddest man in the world, and maybe even the entire campus. If Tebow is a Baby Rhino, then Vlad is like a .... Real Rhino. Too bad Vlad isn't on the defensive line to create a Rhino v Rhino matchup in September.

Lastly, Groves said Gerald Jones, of Orange and White game dominance and future legend of the program, benched 335 pounds and had a 41 inch vertical leap today. It's as if he's athletic or something. Gerald, he of 72 inches and 190ish pounds, can bench press a Phil Fulmer. That's sick, both literally and slang-edly.

Groves, against his own wishes, is going to be a roundabout contributor to The Power T in the future. I'll have his insights from the Orange and White game up as soon as I get the energy to e-mail him the questions. Blame me, and Canada.

O&W Game Brings 2 Commitments

The Orange and White game (which we'll have some coverage later) not only brought the annual "ZOMG WE'RE GOING TO B TEH BESTEST TEAM IN AMERICAZ" feeling from me and just about everybody else, it also brought two very nice verbal commitments for the 2009 signing class.

First, Dominique Allen, HB/FB from Henry Co. High School in Paris, TN, committed after the Orange and White game. He's teammates with Marsalis Teague, an athlete with an offer from UT. Allen will probably bide his time behind Kevin Cooper and Austin Johnson at FB when he arrives in 2009, but it could also give UT the flexibility to move Johnson back to LB. Allen is rated at Rivals yet, but at 5'11", 235, Allen could provide what we all thought Cory Anderson was going to: a threat to block and to run. I love this quote he said to Austin Price at Volquest: "I just feel the love, like I'm already part of the family here."

Second, a surprise commitment from Virginia athlete Damien Thigpen. How this young man is rated 250th in the Rivals 250 is beyond me. Sure, he's a bit short at 5'8", but his 4.34 40 yard dash should boost his rating. His 4.08 shuttle time is certainly awe-inspiring, and he already benches 295 pounds while only weighing 170. Many people have pointed out to me, and I agree, that he seems to be Clawson's UT version of Brian Westbrook, in theory. Some speculate he could be a cornerback, but with his breakneck speed, I'd love to see him in a Gerald Jones-esque role in our offense come 2010 when he's a sophomore. I expect he'll have a plethora of Rocky Top Jars.

Lastly, while we didn't get commitments from anybody else, our recruiting momentum right now is insane. Logan Thomas, Cody Ledford, Marlon Brown, and a slew of many others have Tennessee on, or near, the top of their lists. Our new staff is really doing well on the trail, and from different quotes, it sounds like the new staff shares a vision on what players they want - something the old staff didn't necessarily have.

Great weekend for the Vols, no doubt.

GREAT WIN! Sweet 16 here we come

I wish I had Photoshop, and not GIMP.

First Weekend Enemies

There will be much disagreement inside our fanbase over the next 4 days about whether our boys should have been a 1 seed or a 2 seed. In the end, it doesn't matter. What does matter are match ups. Not all 7 seeds are created equal, as Miami would have been an easier game than Butler will potentially be. What I'll be doing in this entry is comparing (with HTML tables - sexxxxxxy) the variables that our enemies have that will benefit or hinder our run in the tournament.

The stats I'll be looking at are completely decided by looking at Ken Pomeroy's Game Plan tool that I find far, far better than his ratings. It shows, statistically, the most important factors for a team's offensive and defensive efficiency. I'm sure Bruce Ball Blog will cover these things as well, probably more eloquently. Anyway, Pomeroy's GP tool says that the biggest (and only certain) factor in Tennessee's offensive efficiency is our own turnover percentage (TO%). Thus, for our opponents, I'll list their defensive TO%, to see if they cause turnovers. For our defensive efficiency, it improves when our opponents turn it over more, and to a lesser, but still strong degree, their ability to get to the free throw line (free throw rate). I'll also compare the pace, effective heights, experience, and percentage of minutes the bench gets for our enemies. If it gets confusing, leave a comment and I'll expand.

AMERICAN

Def TO%	TO%	FTR	Pace	Eff. Hgt	Exp.	Bench Min
19.2% (270)	21.3% (196)	31.4% (20)	60.9 (324)	-0.5 (202)	2.1 yrs (46)	25.1% (294)

BUTLER

Def TO%	TO%	FTR	Pace	Eff. Hgt	Exp.	Bench Min
22.6% (85)	16.6% (8)	27.1% (103)	60.0 (330)	-1.6 (265)	2.2 yrs (30)	26.7% (262)

SOUTH ALABAMA

Def TO%	TO%	FTR	Pace	Eff. Hgt	Exp.	Bench Min
20.0% (214)	20.3% (130)	32.5% (12)	66.9 (175)	+0.5 (136)	2.1 yrs (48)	24.7% (299)

I know you're in a bit of an overload right now with all the numbers. For the effective height numbers, it's in inches. For example, South Alabama, above, is +0.5 inches taller than the average team. For pace, the number is how many possessions they average in a 40 minute game.

Overall, none of the three teams are actually overwhelmingly bad match ups for us. American can get to the free throw line a lot, as evidenced by their 20th ranking in that department. However, I believe our athleticism will keep us in less situations where a player is beaten and has to foul. American ranks 270th in causing turnovers, so our offense should be just fine, and they are below average at 196th in turning the ball over, which helps us defensively. While American is definitely experienced with each player averaging 2.1 years in the program, those players aren't big enough to exploit our poor post defense, they aren't deep enough to run with us if we push tempo, and they play a plodding pace, which only matters against us if the opponent is any good. American, obviously, doesn't pose a huge threat. They do shoot well from 3 point range (3rd overall), but our perimeter defense is some of the best in the land.

Butler will be a battle - they are above average (85th of 341 teams) in causing turnovers, and the 8th BEST TEAM (!!!) in ball security. They also rank 103rd in free throw rate, which is above average, as well. They play a slower pace than American, with better talent, and is the main reason we lost to them in 2006. However, we're both different teams. Butler isn't big, especially in the post, so I believe our bigs will have a nice day if we play. They also have major experience and lack a deep bench. If we get past Butler, we fans should have some increased confidence, as on paper, it's a difficult game.

South Alabama is not as talented as Butler, but had a good resume in terms of what the committee likes. Pomeroy doesn't like them nearly as much, ranking them as the 75th best team in the country. South Alabama doesn't cause many turnovers and protects the rock just a little better than average. They will get to the line and knock free throws down, which doesn't help Tennessee's flow of offense. USA is above average in height, but still not as tall as Tennessee, and they are not deep at all. USA, even though it's not mentioned in the chart, is a good perimeter team, ranking 52nd in 3 point defense.

Overall, while at first response, I felt like the match ups were awful, they actually aren't. They are the best we could have gotten, but with focus we should overcome them rather easily. Butler will obviously be the toughest test if it happens, but they have to play USA in Birmingham, as well.

Lastly, this is only half the equation. Tomorrow, I will post what factors effect American's, S. Alabama's, and Butler's efficiencies, and post where Tennessee ranks in those areas.

#2 Seed in Charlotte

I'm already working in an entry breaking down things about the 3 teams in our most immediate future: American, Butler, and South Alabama. It should come later today.

But for now, there are some things to talk about.

1. I've already noticed tons of Vol fans assuming that because we're the #2 in the overall #1's region means we were considered the worst #2 seed. I'm almost 100% positive that's not the truth. The S-curve is gone, as far as I know, and I believe they tried to give respect to Tennessee by putting us close to home for the quarters and regionals. Sure, playing North Carolina in Charlotte is tough, but we have a better chance of beating the Heels than UCLA or Kansas.

2. I'm disturbed by the potential match ups. Butler was a 5 seed for Lunardi and a 6 seed at Bracketography, yet we somehow get them as a 7 seed, and they are, on paper, one of the worst possible match ups for us. Also, if talented South Alabama upsets Butler, we get to play USA in ratsa fratsa Birmingham. Not very fair, if you ask me. And lastly, of all the 3 seeds, the worst match up for us is Louisville, and of course we get them in our bracket. Their defense would cause us problems if we make it that far. I know no matter what, we are playing tough teams, but the match ups don't favor us.

3. I'm sick and tired of bubble teams whining. Win more games and you won't have to complain. Virginia Tech - beat Richmond, Old Dominion, or Penn State and you're in. Syracuse - don't lose to Rhode Island and Massachusetts at home and you're in. Arizona State - don't get embarrassed by a bad Illinois team in Hawaii, don't lose to Washington and Cal at home, and you're in.

4. Back to Tennessee - when you undoubtedly start to dissect a possible Butler game, please don't put too much weight on 2006-2007's game. It was the fifth career college game for Ramar Smith, Duke Crews, and Wayne Chism, and the first game of their college career outside the state of Tennessee. Also, this one guy, not sure if you've heard of him, Tyler Smith, wasn't on the squad. Lastly, according to Ken Pomeroy's metrics, Butler was better last season than they are this season.

So, those are my first thoughts after the selection announcements. Check back for the comparisons to American, Butler, and South Alabama.

Chomp, Collaborate, and Listen

We're NUMBER ONE

The Hype is in Full Effect!

Now that our BasketVols have disposed of the bad Tigers, it's officially time for Memphis. Granted, the hype began when Tyler Smith was allowed to join the UT team immediately after his transfer decision. That day was when Tennessee jumped from Sweet 16 contender, to possible Final Four contender, alongside the Memphis Tigers.

Basically, since October, this has been the biggest game on our schedule, and the biggest game for ESPN since the last Tobacco Road game.

But is this game as big as a $10,000 ticket would make you think? Not to be Debbie Downer, but no. Is this the biggest regular season game this season for college basketball? Probably. Is this the biggest regular season game in UT history? I believe so. But it's not bigger than our 1st round game in the NCAA Tournament. It would be easy to say it is, but really, if we beat Memphis on Saturday, then 3 weeks from now lose to Stephen F. Austin, you'd more pissed than Big Red after he didn't get the ol' "you're going to Hollywood" line.


Don't get me wrong - my snack and drink line-up for this game is challenging my menu for the Super Bowl 3 weeks ago. I'm more pumped about this game than any basketball game ever, outside of the Sweet 16 game we won't talk about. However, let's all keep in mind that we shouldn't grab a chair and noose if we lose. We can lose this game, and still march in March to the Final Four. We can win this game, and not make it out of the first weekend. Keep it in perspective.

Tomorrow, I'll go in depth with some interesting stats from Ken Pomeroy's site.

And yes, the American Idol clip from above was a way for me to give an excuse to show this amazing Idol clip, which made me laugh so hard, a little pee came out.

This is Getting Disgraceful