Gene Frenette: College football could use Tennessee, new blood crashing the CFP party
If any sport is in need of an up-and-comer to spice up the same old menu for its marquee event, it’s college football.
That’s why Tennessee rising behind second-year coach Josh Heupel, whose unbeaten and No. 3-ranked Volunteers are in prime position to make the four-team College Football Playoff, could be a refreshing change for a sport whose postseason is pretty much another version of the movie “Groundhog Day.”
Gene's previous 3 columns:
Better now then later: If Gators coach Billy Napier must have a terrible defense, better it happens now
Defensive letdown: Jaguars' defense fails to reciprocate productivity of Trevor Lawrence, rushing attack
Rush to judgment: Jaguars have patience to ride through Trevor Lawrence inconsistency
Since the CFP began in 2014, four schools — Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Oklahoma — have claimed 21 of the 32 spots. Of the 24 CFP games played, ‘Bama, Clemson and Ohio State walked off winners a combined 18 times.
The only other schools to win on the CFP stage are Georgia (3-1), LSU (2-0) and Oregon (1-1).
Nobody knows whether this stunning UT season will be a one-hit wonder. But it’s a welcome sight for college football, which desperately needs new postseason blood from a resourceful, high-profile Power 5 program.
Many thought USC under new coach Lincoln Riley was the best candidate, and the Trojans are still in play, but last week’s loss to Utah might have been a CFP killer for them.
Tennessee is in a different place. With road wins over Pitt and LSU, plus last week’s monumental 52-49 win over Alabama, the Vols are essentially playing with house money. The Vols can finish 11-1 with a loss at Georgia on Nov. 5 and still have a good shot at reaching the playoff.
What Heupel’s team has done is make a wildly entertaining offense so potent, it brings a welcome air of mystery to an all-too-predictable playoff system. The CFP highlights a sport where parity (contrary to the myth perpetuated by the sport’s media sycophants) is almost non-existent.
College football can always use a different narrative, and Tennessee is delivering at a good time.
Quarterback Hendon Hooker outdueling Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young in an epic battle — with a big assist from ‘Bama running back Jahmyr Gibbs dropping a simple pass that led to a missed 50-yard field goal, allowing Tennessee 15 seconds to answer with a FG at the gun — might go down as the greatest regular-season victory in UT history. It certainly rivals the 20-17 overtime win over Florida in the Vols’ 1998 national title season.
But the larger point is college football lacks diversity when it comes to teams challenging for the big prize. LSU rose up to win it all behind Joe Burrow in 2019, and Oregon finished runner-up in 2014, but neither program really threatened to make the playoff any other year.
Seeing Heupel’s offense turn the SEC upside down with a QB transfer from Virginia Tech, it raises the possibility of Tennessee becoming a consistent challenger to Georgia and ‘Bama in the future. Or maybe this is just an outlier like LSU, which fired coach Ed Orgeron less than two seasons after the Tigers hoisted the championship trophy?
For now, Tennessee is the most ascending program in the country. Perhaps other unbeatens like No. 7 Ole Miss, No. 8 TCU and No. 9 UCLA will run the table and crash the CFP party, but none of them have UT’s resume.
College football needs fresh, compelling story lines, and the resurrection in Knoxville — where administrators are giddy over goal post removals and paying a $100,000 fine for fans storming the field — fits that bill.
One thing is certain: fans of Florida, Florida State and Miami are looking at the UT euphoria and wishing they had a team pulling off such a glorious turnaround.
Jaguars weapons on good track
Based on their current per-game averages, this would be the final 2022 numbers for the Jaguars’ four most important offensive weapons: QB Trevor Lawrence — 3,952 passing yards, 25 TDs, 11 INTs; RB James Robinson – 964 rushing yards, 8 TDs; RB Travis Etienne — 852 rushing yards, 0 TDs; WR Christian Kirk — 71 catches, 1,025 yards, 11 TDs.
It’d be hard for head coach Doug Pederson or any Jaguars’ fan to not feel pretty good about all those numbers if that’s how they shake out at season’s end.
Georgia’s most unique legend
Of the 29 SEC football players who have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, it’s hard to find one with a more distinguished football resume and life than Georgia legend Charley Trippi, who passed away Wednesday at his Athens home at age 100.
With all due respect to Heisman Trophy recipients Frank Sinkwich and Herschel Walker, the versatility of Trippi sets him apart. He made his mark as a running back, quarterback, receiver, defensive back and return specialist. Trippi, who led the Chicago Cardinals (now Arizona Cardinals) to their one NFL championship in 1947, remains the only player in league history to have 1,000 yards rushing, receiving and passing. He twice led the NFL in all-purpose yards.
Trippi was the third SEC player inducted into the Pro Football HOF in 1968, preceded by Green Bay Packers receiver Don Hutson (1964) from Alabama and running back Steve Van Buren (1966) from LSU. The only Hall of Famer to live longer than Trippi was Clarence “Ace” Parker, who died in 2013 at age 101.
Irsay not afraid to address Snyder
Everyone knows Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay is a loose cannon and as transparent as any owner in NFL history. But that doesn’t mean he was out of line to speak his mind about his colleague, the Washington Commanders’ Daniel Snyder.
As an ongoing investigation by former Securites and Exchange Commission chair Mary Jo White examines multiple allegations about workplace violations and improper treatment of women by Snyder for two decades — as well as looking into whether he withheld money from owners — Irsay tackled the topic head on at the NFL owners’ meetings.
He acknowledged there was “merit” to removing Snyder as owner, to which the Commanders’ owner responded by saying Irsay was allowing false media reports to sway his opinion.
There’s no denying Snyder’s tenure has been marked by repeated charges of improperly running a franchise and lacking professionalism in his treatment of employees, particularly women.
Credit to Irsay for showing backbone, sticking his neck out on a controversial topic that other owners won’t touch. All Irsay did was say what many other owners probably think, but are afraid to say: Snyder is a bad owner and the Washington franchise deserves a better leader.
Baby, payback is hell
Why do athletes insist on poking the bear? It’s not enough to enjoy the fruits of a great play anymore, some just can’t resist the allure of taunting opponents.
So when the Cleveland Guardians’ Josh Naylor homered off New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole to cut the lead to 3-2 in the fourth inning of Game 4 of the ALDS, he broke out his familiar “rock the baby” celebration with his arms as he trotted around the bases, suggesting the pitcher is his son.
While that makes for great TV and fans love the bravado, it was almost poetic justice that the gesture came back to bite Naylor. When the Yankees got the final out in Game 5 on a force out at second base to clinch the series, it was appropriate second baseman Gleyber Torres immediately celebrated with his own baby-rocking routine.
Moral of the story: always wait until victory is under lock and key if you’re going to rub something in the opponent’s face.
Quick-hitting nuggets
When Indianapolis Colts quarterback Matt Ryan led his 46th career game-winning drive last week, it also marked the 33rd straight loss for the Jaguars in which they trailed by 4 or more points in the fourth quarter. The last time the Jaguars won a game under those circumstances was in December, 2019, when QB Gardner Minshew led the team back from a 16-6 deficit to beat the Raiders in the final game at the “Black Hole” in Oakland.
Sports talk-show legend Chris “Mad Dog” Russo, 63, will be inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame on Nov. 1. Russo, who became famous once he went to WFAN in New York and did a show for two decades with Mike Francesa, now has his own sports radio channel to air multiple shows and also does an ESPN podcast with Stephen A. Smith. Russo, a history major at Rollins College in Winter Park, actually got his start in Jacksonville in the mid-1980s, filling in occasionally for the late Jay Solomon on WJAX, a precursor to 930 AM.
Pigskin forecast
Jaguars over New York Giants by 3 (NFC losing streak goodbyes); Tennessee Titans over Indianapolis Colts by 1 (convenient bye week); Las Vegas Raiders over Texans by 6 (Derek Carr reparations); Denver Broncos over New York Jets by 3 (Russell Wilson ARP cards); Miami over Duke by 17 (thousand empty seats); Ole Miss over LSU by 1 (punters-not-needed matchup); Clemson over Syracuse by 13 (thousand ACC Championship ticket orders). Last week: 4 right, 3 Shaquill Griffin bench callings.
Gfrenette@jacksonville.com: (904) 359-4540
Gene Frenette Sports columnist at Florida Times-Union, follow him on Twitter @genefrenette
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Sports nuggets: College football should welcome Tennessee, Jaguars, more
