[0]My first impression of the new UT coaching staff was a positive one. The Vol walk was the best I’ve ever seen for an Orange & White football game and that was largely due to the enthusiasm generated by Monte Kiffin, Ed Orgeron, and the defensive staff. Monte Kiffin was raising his arms and giving high fives to everyone in sight, and the crowd responded by chanting “Monte, Monte”
Once inside the stadium you could see that things are not the same in Big Orange Country. I crowd of 51,488 came to see their first glimpse of what the Vols will look like under new head coach Lane Kiffin. The first thing that I noticed was that Lane Kiffin was present in the huddle calling the plays and the coaching staff was on the field for the most part barking out instructions. It was the most hands on approach to a spring game I’ve seen at UT.
[0]On to the game itself. The game although fairly exciting in the first half lacked the spark that I expected. The crowd was certainly into the ballgame and seemed to enjoy it, but by design, the coaching staff elected to go conservative in their approach to the game plan.
Coach Kiffin mentioned in the post-game media session that the offense only used approximately 20 percent of the newly installed offense. Kiffin said the game will be shown on regional television and he didn’t want the Vol opponents to get a good look at much of the offense that the Vols plan to use this fall.
I’m not sure that we really can make any true observations on the progress of the football team because what we really saw today was nothing more than a designed scrimmage. The defense game plan going in was “vanilla” according to Lane Kiffin. The defense was forced to use very few of the packages they have in their arsenal and rarely blitzed. 
[0]For the first time in a long time I am confident that the Vols have what it takes to win more of their share of battles up front when a yard is needed for a first down. The offensive line opened up some nice holes for the running backs and did well in pass protection for the most part. The Vols stable of running backs run with authority and today they seemed to find the holes more often than not. Tauren Poole rushed 18 times for 83 yards, and Toney Williams gained 79 yards on 13 carries.
It was good to see the Brandon Warren that we had hoped to see last year. After making the switch to wide receiver he has really looked comfortable. He has good speed, good hands, and a knack for making big plays. Warren caught 4 passes totaling 50 yards and 2 touchdowns. Quintin Hancock looked good; he is a physical receiver and looks to be a good possession receiver with the ability to stretch the defense. Hancock caught 8 passes for 96 yards and a touchdown.
[0]The offense had very few penalties and only one turnover. There looked to be much more discipline on both sides of the ball and the players were where they were supposed to be.
Jonathan Crompton played fairly well and led the offense on some long drives, but I’m still not sold on his ability to be an effective quarterback in the SEC. Crompton finished the day 14 for 27 with one interception and he threw one touchdown. He still had some passes that left you shaking your head, but after talking with him after the game, he hasn’t seemed to have lost any confidence in his ability to lead this team.
B. J. Coleman threw the ball well and looked to be in command of the offense, but it is evident he is a long way from being an SEC caliber quarterback. I like his confidence and his athleticism. Coleman was 13-22 with no interceptions and 2 touchdown passes.
I like the new attitude of the team and the intensity of the staff but only time will tell how much this coaching staff can do with this team that had a losing season last year. I really didn’t see anything today that stood out as a sign of significant improvement, but there were glimpses of improvement in the play of the offensive line, and the wide receivers. There is no doubt that Lane Kiffin has brought a new excitement to Vol football and for the first time in a while Vol fans can’t wait until the Vols kick off the season in September.
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