LSU Football did something this spring that the Tennessee Vols need to do
The LSU Tigers did something this spring that the Tennessee Vols (and college football in general) needs to do. According to The Athletic's Brody Miller, LSU allowed reporters on Saturday to watch an entire padded practice. Miller said it was the first time since before Nick Saban was in Baton Rouge that LSU reporters were […]
The LSU Tigers did something this spring that the Tennessee Vols (and college football in general) needs to do.
According to The Athletic's Brody Miller, LSU allowed reporters on Saturday to watch an entire padded practice. Miller said it was the first time since before Nick Saban was in Baton Rouge that LSU reporters were able to watch an entire practice.
Saturday, LSU allowed reporters to watch an entire padded spring practice for the first time since the Gerry DiNardo era in the 1990s. It meant we got to see 7-on-7 drills and full-team scrimmages and players going head-to-head in pass rush drills. We saw coaches passionately getting after players without a filter. And we got a better sense of where this LSU program stands under new coach Brian Kelly.
More programs, including Tennessee, need to do this.
Reporters who cover the Vols are currently allowed to view a few periods of practice, which usually is just stretching and some individual work. Once the team periods start, reporters are kicked out of practice (last year, practice at UT was completely closed to the media during the fall).
Tennessee hasn't had completely open practices since spring practice in 2009 when Lane Kiffin allowed reporters to stay for the duration of practice.
Former Vols head coach Phillip Fulmer used to close practice after 30 minutes, though he allowed reporters to stay for scrimmages.
I don't understand the idea behind closing practice. My assumption is that it's so programs can "control the narrative" and keep anything negative that happens during practice (fights, arguments, etc) from creating headlines.
But I think the lack of transparency actually hurts their goal.
Now if something negative makes it to the media, it ends up looking worse because it's a lot of hearsay and second-hand reporting.
Fights and arguments happen all the time in sports at all levels. It's not indicative of a bad culture or anything like that — it's just part of playing team sports.
Pulling the curtain back a bit and revealing some of those tough, intense moments could accomplish a couple of things.
For one, it would give diehard Tennessee fans a better glimpse into what makes their favorite program tick. What are Josh Heupel and his assistants like behind the scenes? What's the intensity of practice like? What is the personality of the team?
It would also make those tense moments appear normal (because they are normal).
Additionally, it would give fans some more certainty when it comes to position battles and who should or shouldn't be starting.
LSU is one of the top programs in the nation. If they're willing to open an entire practice to reporters, then Tennessee and other programs should be able to as well.
The Vols aren't gaining an advantage by closing practice. Neither is any other program. All they're doing by limiting access is sparking widespread speculation when it comes to the football team.
Maybe Heupel and the Vols will come around and realize that only good things can come from opening practices to reporters (and even fans).
Featured image via Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
