Jones is a popular target... but Jones was simply a 'post turtle'. he tried, really hard, and within the boundaries the school allowed, which was narrow.
the Pirate said it best... that mess had (has?) all the makings for a movie. intrigue, bad actors, greed, sacrificing something they inherited through power plays and politics for monetary gain... it goes on along those lines. The situation there was stupid.
UT couldn't find a coach because of the environment they'd created. nobody in their right mind would go there and try to resurrect a program under the conditions and limitations the 'bad players' fostered. Nobody with an up and coming career would waste it by going to UT. ..... the Pirate would have, because he's one of those who do more with less and thumbs his nose at authority. But even the Pirate would have misfired under that structure.
part of that structure is gone- or neutralized, anyway...
but that was 'then'... this is 'now'... and Saturday was inexplicable. On talent alone UT outweighs Georgia State by a hefty margin. The play selection was decent Saturday... the scheme put the players in position... they didn't execute. the line may as well stood back and let the GS DL walk straight through. There is something else going on there. there was an absolute lack of motivation, and an abundance of apathy. they just didn't care. Pruitt seemed unaffected by any exterior stimuli... Cheney just looked hungry... I don't even know where the DC was... the team was less than animated... it was absolutely flat- and an air of entitlement as if they literally expected GS to fall at their feet and beg for mercy- but didn't care one way or another....
if Pruitt is pushing 'just go to work', he needs to stop it... they need to go way beyond 'going to work' and 'realize they're going to have to play at the top of their game just to have a single win this season'.... seriously.