VOLuntarilyConservative

You're next, Sparty!

Labels: Proving Everybody Wrong, UT Basketball

This is by far the busiest time of the year for me. Having tracked court activity for several years now, it's become apparent that my work in the courts kicks up a notch (which, especially this year, is hard to believe) between Labor Day and a few days before Christmas. With the recession (that will continue until jobs are actually created instead of lost, despite the claims of Obama's liberal economists) having enhanced poverty in this country, the amount of cases that we have accepted through appointment in the courts to assist indigent men, women, and children have kept us scrambling, for sure.

Bruce Springsteen performs his new song Wrecking Ball at Giants Stadium

Labels: Bruce Springsteen, Concerts, Firm Life, Football, UT Basketball

President Obama took some time from his 35-hour per week job to create an NCAA Tournament bracket on ESPN.

The good news is that he has picked our beloved Tennessee Vols to win their first round game against Oklahoma State. The bad news is that by being linked to President Obama, the value of a degree from The University of Tennessee just plunged 31% - equal to the drop in the Dow Jones since Obama was elected to the White House.

Labels: President Obama, UT Basketball

January has not been a kind month on many fronts, one of which for me has been with my health. After three straight days of a bench trial in the first week of January (which followed several days of trial preparation), my immune system was thoroughly depressed, so much so that a virus hit me within hours of the case being recessed until March. I tried to fight through the illness, lost my voice for two days, even started arguing cases through pantomime and interpretive dance, but I still kept trying to manage my caseload through the coughing, congestion, and laryngitis.

Like every man in my family, I stayed away from the doctor's office and thought that I could handle this on my own. Yesterday was Day 20 of the illness. Angela convinced me that I wasn't getting any better. After being on the witness stand for over an hour yesterday (yes, sometimes we lawyers have to take the stand ourselves, which, I must admit, is a strange feeling), I managed to drag my carcass to see the Doc. He said I was in pretty bad shape and prescribed antibiotics, a cough suppressant, and Prednisone. I'm already feeling quite a bit better, but the Prednisone seems to be doing quite a number on my system. Working from home and not getting out in this strange weather is probably helping, too.

Between the illness and a tough month for UT basketball, I can't wait for February to arrive.

Labels: Firm Life, Illness, UT Basketball

Labels: UT Basketball

Although it's Monday, I'm already eagerly awaiting Friday's Hawkins County Lincoln Day. Why, you might ask? Take a read over at their county party's blog to see why you should plan to be at this top-notch event (if you can find tickets) in what some are calling "the biggest night in the history of Hawkins County politics." Bob Corker, Bill Jenkins, Ron Ramsey, Mike Faulk, Phil Rowe, David Davis - that's lots of political star power for one night!

And you don't even have to miss the Vols play the Cardinals from Loserville, I mean, Louisville. UT drew the Thursday night slot, so all you will miss NCAA-wise are the Davidson-Wisconsin and Stanford-Texas games. And, as all sports animals know, that's what Tivo is for...

Labels: Lincoln Day, UT Basketball

Just a reminder, folks, that the Jefferson County GOP is having their Lincoln Day Dinner this Saturday at 7:00 P.M.

The dinner is set for the Stokley Cafeteria at Carson-Newman College, with the keynote speaker being 2nd District Congressman Jimmy Duncan. Tickets Are $25 and can be obtained by contacting County Chairman Hobart L. Rice At 865-548-8479.

And, no, I will not miss the UT/Memphis game by going. My plan is to leave at 8:25 from the Lincoln Day Dinner and still be at home in Knoxville by 9:00, when the Vols will begin the smackdown of the boys from Tiger High.

Labels: Lincoln Day, UT Basketball

Labels: UT Basketball

As regular readers are sure to remember, I usually liveblog National Signing Day for the Vols.

Not this year. Coach Fulmer, who gets to take much of the credit for past outstanding recruiting classes, gets to take the blame for this one. Fulmer supporters will resort to staff changes, arrests, negative recruiting, etc., as the reasons for this failure, but other schools (Alabama and South Carolina with staff changes, North Carolina, Clemson, Georgia and Florida with arrests) have had the same problems and all managed to spank Fulmer on the recruiting trail this year.

There are a few nice players in this class (Aaron Douglas, Marlon Walls, and Gerald Williams will all start for the Vols someday), but overall this has to be the worst class for UT in over a decade. No offense to the guys coming in who want to wear the orange, but it's hard to imagine UT keeping up with the Alabama's, Florida's, and Georgia's of the world when the lifeblood of the program doesn't represent the best athletes in the country.

Hopefully there will be some surprises today (Antoine McClain, Enrique Davis, Quinton Coples, and Jerrell Harris would all boost this class by leaps and bounds with surprise commitments to the Vols), but I wouldn't bet the farm on it.

Perhaps I should start covering basketball recruiting more. As nearly 20,000 observed last night at a raucous Thompson-Boling Arena, Knoxville has become a basketball town.

Labels: Football, UT Basketball

A Vols win in basketball.

A Vols win in football.

A Bears win in the NFL.

Quality time working on the nursery with my wife.

If only every weekend was this great!

Labels: Baby, Football, UT Basketball

Even Smokey can't stand it.

The whole area seems to be depressed. Our Vols were humiliated in the Swamp. They will have a tough time against a better-than-expected Arkansas State team this weekend. I have heard several fans state that they are not going to attend in an unorganized protest against the current coaching staff. (I can say that I will not be one of them, as it is when your team is losing that it is most important that you stand beside them.)

That being said, a source on the Hill has told me that "feelers" were put out to perspective coaching candidates yesterday in the event that the current staff can't stop the ship from sinking.

Of course, as I said after the first quarter of Saturday's game, we're just that much closer to basketball season. Oops...

Then came word yesterday that Coach Bruce Pearl is getting divorced.

It's just a bad time all around for the Big Orange.

Labels: Football, UT Basketball

With the unexplainable lack of timeouts, bizarre substitution pattern, and going away from a press that got you to this point, there is only one person to blame for what many will remember as the most painful loss in Tennessee basketball history:



But when you lose a 20-point lead on a neutral court...

A coach is supposed to control the tempo so that such a thing doesn't happen.

I love Bruce - we wouldn't be where we are without him and even with his shortcomings he is easily one of the best coaches in America - but this loss is hard to stomach. Several losses this year can directly be related to his inability to use timeouts to stop the runs of opposing teams. It's one of his only weaknesses, and it has been discussed ad nauseum on the Vol message boards this year.

The defense - well, it looked a bit like BuzzBall tonight.

I hope with all that is Big Orange that Chris Lofton comes back for his senior season, because this team could be special. While some will jump my case for saying this, this team will be better with Dane Bradshaw gone. Dane was a great player for UT last year and will always have a special place in the hearts of all Vol fans, but he was not so spectacular this year. A lot of his poor play could be contributed to his failing body (tendinitis in both shoulders), but opponents outscored UT more with Dane on the court than any other Vol player (think of a +/- stat like they have in hockey).

Yeah, this one's gonna hurt for a while. We've only made the "Sweet 16" four times. We've never made the Regional Final ("Elite Eight").

At least the Orange & White Game for UT football is only 8 days away...

Labels: UT Basketball

No, my bracket isn't completely busted. I still have 7 of my Elite Eight teams alive in the tournament, with Wisconsin being the only team that failed to survive the first weekend. (Daggone overrated Big 10...)

Of course, in an annual tradition, the VOLConWife's bracket is in much better shape than my own. She has 13 of the Sweet 16 and 7 of her Elite Eight still alive, and she is sitting in 3rd place in our 45-person group (filled of sports fanatics run by Duke Law Alumni Thomas Burns). Typical...

Labels: UT Basketball

1) No mention of it in most circles, but that was one LOUD crowd last night. Announced attendance was over 19,000, but it was more like 17,000 to be truthful. However, it may have been the loudest crowd at TBA - and I have attended nearly every game since the Jerry Green era.

2) Ryan Childress was our MVP last night. I said he was a waste of a scholarship last year. I stand corrected. As Dane's play has become a detriment to this team, Childress has taken Dane's hustle and combined it with his height and (dare I say it) superior shooting touch to become one vital player for UT.

3) Ugliest game I have seen - period. I commented several times that I thought I was watching women's basketball for a some parts of the game. Just awful. However, we won, and I don't care if it's the Debate Team, I love beating Alabama.

4) Congratulations to Pearl. For the first time this year, he seemed to use his timeouts to stop the bleeding. One could have been a bit earlier (when UT lost its double-digit lead), but a much better use of timeouts last night.

All in all, a great feeling come out of TBA last night to see the sad faces of the Alabama fans. Maybe they can cobble together another $30 million dollars and hire Pat Riley or Phil Jackson for their basketball team.

Labels: UT Basketball

Yeah, this about says it all. Especially for you "King of the Hill" fans:

Labels: UT Basketball

It was just days ago that Kevin Stallings referred to Coach Bruce Pearl as an "idiot a------."

"Genius Kevin" then, having set the table for a needed win against the Vols, proceeded to coach up his Commodores. It's a good thing that he did that, because otherwise they might have lost by 50.

I was one of the 21, 493 who witnessed that brutal beatdown that the Vols laid on the Commodores, a 27-point shellacking that could have been much worse if Bruce hadn't called of the dogs in the second half.

I even brought the VOLConWife - a Vandy alum - to witness the destruction. She wore her Vandy apparel, which made it all the more sweet as she slunk down as the lead crept up to 30 points. (In all fairness, she proudly wears the Orange to all other games except Vandy, although I have instructed her that the words to the song are "Rocky Top will ALWAYS be...", not "Rocky Top will SOMETIMES be...")

So, Kevin, if you're going to talk the talk, you had better make sure that you can walk the walk. Otherwise, you might come off looking like a, well, "idiot."

UPDATE: You can check out the highlights - including two sick dunks by Chism - at UTSports.com.

Labels: UT Basketball

Oh, what a fun time to be a Vol last night at TBA!

My question - Jeff Ward made Senator Jamie Woodson wear some disgusting Memphis sweatshirt last year when Memphis lucked into a win against the Big Orange, so what, pray tell, will Jeffy be wearing this year?

Any suggestions?

Photo: Associated Press.

Labels: UT Basketball