‘It’s very obvious’ – Former Vols assistant coach David Cutcliffe gives his honest thoughts on how he feels about Tennessee QB George MacIntyre
Tennessee Volunteers quarterback George MacIntyre is 2-1 as the starter on Rocky Top.
Tennessee sophomore quarterback George MacIntyre played a great game against South Carolina last Saturday — certainly better than what the box score indicates — but a few untimely penalties and a botched fourth-down conversion overshadowed what would’ve otherwise been a great day for the young signal-caller.
MacIntyre had three touchdowns called back because of the penalties that had no impact on the outcome of the plays (and the three touchdowns were tremendous throws by MacIntyre).
It’s obvious to anyone who has watched every snap MacIntyre has played that he’s getting better each week.
Don’t take my word for it — just listen to what former Volunteers offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe had to say on Tuesday during an appearance on The George Plaster Show.
“What I have seen is I’ve seen George getting better and better,” said Cutcliffe. “It’s very obvious that he’s gotten better. It’s obvious that his confidence is growing. Nobody gives you confidence — you have to earn it, and you earn it in the meeting room. You earn it in your own study. You earn it in practice. And I think he’s that kind of young man.
“I know the family well. I think George is [moving] in the right direction and getting better. And again, don’t let the results of a game — good or bad — get in the way of getting better. Definitely, he has accuracy. There’s things that all of us need to work on, but if you’re 6-foot-6, you’ve got to really work on being a little bit more compact than elongated, if that makes sense. Your eyes and your brain see something, and for your body to respond to it, it has got to come in a compact motion, or you’re behind. So if you’re going to be amazingly accurate — and even part of taking care of the ball in the pocket is that compact high and tight — I would hope that he would work on that because that’s the magic of accuracy in my humble opinion.”
It wasn’t perfect for MacIntyre against South Carolina — there will be plenty of opportunities for growth when he watches the film (which obviously he already has at this point) — but he took a step forward on the road against the Gamecocks. And he’ll look to take another step forward after the bye week when the Vols host Kentucky in a massive SEC showdown.
