Blake Toppmeyer is in his third season covering the Tennessee Volunteers for the Knoxville News Sentinel and the USA Today Network.
Toppmeyer took the time to speak with The Dispatch this week ahead of Mississippi State’s game against Tennessee Saturday in Knoxville to discuss the Vols’ quarterback situation, Jeremy Pruitt and more.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
A full version of the interview can be found on Bully Banter, a new podcast produced by The Commercial Dispatch. The link to the first show can be found here: http://bullybanter.buzzsprout.com/645052/1844044-episode-1-the-opener-feat-blake-toppmeyer-of-the-knoxville-news-sentinel
Q: It’s no secret at 1-4, Tennessee is trying to find its way slogging through the SEC grind. In your opinion, do you think there’s any team in the SEC more desperate for a win?
A: They’d rank high up there. Maybe Vanderbilt? Both of those programs are pretty desperate. I think in Tennessee’s case, I felt like they played pretty well for most of a full half against Georgia. But sometimes you see that from struggling teams. They can play well for a half, but doing it for a whole game is something that eludes those teams and it can elude them for an entire season. So, I’m curious to see if they can start putting it together for a whole four quarters.
Q: On that front on where Tennessee is at with Jeremy Banks getting kicked off the team and that whole ordeal with Jeremey Pruitt and the phone call, how is that been addressed this week and what’s the mood been the last two weeks with all that going on?
A: Well, I don’t think it’s created much drama with the team. With Pruitt, it’s interesting because I felt fan support had been fairly strong for him despite the start he’s gotten off to. Certainly, there are some people that are ready to make a change now, but considering his lack of success for a season and a half, I really felt like he was enjoying a fair amount of support from Tennessee fans. I think the situation with Banks though, that hurt Pruitt’s popularity as much as anything has. People that were even firmly in his camp were displeased with how that situation was handled. Particularly there wasn’t more discipline for Banks’ conduct in the back of the police car. With people able to see the whole video, it changes people’s opinion. That certainly was a wild week for Tennessee. For Pruitt and Tennessee, they’re trying to move past that.
Q: You look at the Banks situation and the lack of on-field success, can you tell that Pruitt is just getting drained week after week as you see him at his press conferences?
A: He actually wears it pretty well. He’s not someone that seems to be impacted much by public opinions. If he is, he hides it well. His predecessor, Butch Jones, really let that get to him more. And perhaps that’s because Jones spent five seasons in Knoxville and Pruitt’s only been here for two years. Jones would crack in the media sessions. He was very aware of what was said about him and his program, and he’d allow that to come through in his message. Pruitt isn’t really doing that, and I think that’s for the best. It offers a sense of composure and he’s at least sending a message that there’s no reason to panic here.
Q: Looking at more on-field questions, Brian Maurer got his first start at quarterback last week and had some success with more than 200 passing yards in the first half. Jarrett Guarantano had only gone over 200 yards five times in his entire career. What are people saying about him and is Maurer the quarterback going forward?
A: I think he’s the quarterback going into this week, and we’ll see how he does. I don’t think we’ve seen the last of Guarantano, but I do think Maurer is going to have every chance to make the remainder of the season his. He played pretty well considering expectations. They weren’t pretty high, considering the opponent was Georgia. I thought offensive coordinator Jim Chaney had a really good game plan and executed it well. Maurer was quick and decisive in his reads, if the first two weren’t there, he threw it away. For a young quarterback with an offensive line that has been shaky in pass protection, that’s a smart approach.
For Toppmeyer’s thoughts on Tennessee’s running game and his prediction on who wins Saturday, listen to Bully Banter, The Commercial Dispatch’s Mississippi State centric podcast.
Hodge is the former sports editor for The Dispatch.
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 42 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
