Vol-In-Tears

“I have a perfect horror of words that are not backed up by deeds.”

Those were the words of Teddy Roosevelt spoken at Oyster Bay, New York in July, 1915. Roosevelt didn’t like people who “talked big”. In fact, during his term as the governor of the state of New York, he fought privately with Tom Platt, the party chairman, over a political appointment. Platt came out publicly in the paper and said, “I’m going to ruin Roosevelt!”

Of course, that didn’t happen, Roosevelt went on to run for the Presidency, and eventually won. Platt was basically never heard from again.

Over the last 6-8 months, a lot of noise has come from Old Rocky Top. “We’re going to sing Rocky Top all night long in Gainesville after we beat Florida in the Swamp.” “We’ve closed the recruiting gates to Memphis.” In fact, Lane Kiffen has become the Mouth of the South.

The Volunteer Nation bought into the boy with a golden tongue. They ate the orange jello he was selling. They were infused with a dose of the citrus vitamin.

Then came the disease which seemed to permeate Neyland Drive.

Hoof and Mouth Disease. This disease causes painful blisters in the mouth and on the palms of the hands. It can, and often is, passed from one person to another. The blisters begin in the mouth, causing lesions that get on the hands. Much like spewing venom from the mouth and settles on the hands.

You could also call it “The Lane Kiffen Disease”. For all his venom spewing, it seemed to settle on the hands of his receivers. I am sure that is why they couldn’t catch a ball that was thrown to them. Maybe they should have stayed away from the orange kool-aid.

While all of that citronic clutter was being heaved from the rocky summit, down on the Plains all was quiet. Just work. Hard work.

When asked what was going on down there, the response was only: “We’re just doing what we do.” Do What We Do. DWWD. The Gene Chizic motif.

The showdown in Knoxtown was the tale of two programs. Hype, hoopla, Big Orange. Low key, quiet, flying under the radar Big Blue. I was there.

The final score was Auburn 26 – Tennessee 22. The game wasn’t that close. The Vols were dying from Hoof and Mouth disease. And Auburn was taking a page out of Teddy Roosevelt’s bag of quotes.

When asked about the incident with Tom Platt, his response was: “I have always been fond of the West African proverb: Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.”

Under Chizic, that’s what Auburn does. Kiffen, on the other hand, continues the truth of the old Southeastern Conference proverb: “No fruit sucks like the Big Orange.”

War Eagle!
WJLaneSR