KNOXVILLE -- As he entered the University of Tennessee's grand football complex Monday morning, Volunteers quarterback Josh Dobbs tucked a shiny black and white, odd-shaped object under his right arm as easily as he does a football on autumn Saturdays.
"That's my hover board," Dobbs said as he prepared to meet the media during UT's weekly football news conference. "I ride it everywhere. I think I'm the first person on campus to have one, but I'm starting to see more of them every day. I guess I'm a trendsetter."
The Big Orange Nation desperately wants him to start another trend this Saturday afternoon in Gainesville, Fla. The fans want Dobbs to lead the Vols to a victory over Florida for the first time since 2004, and their first inside the Gators' Swamp since 2003.
"It's the same preparation as we do for any other team," Dobbs said. "Every Saturday is a season unto itself. It's just another opportunity to play football."
UT coach Butch Jones walks onto the field in the game against Western Carolina on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2015, at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville.This is what every coach wants from his quarterback, especially UT coach Butch Jones, king of the non-statement statement. He wants bland; he wants vanilla; he wants words for a recycling bin instead of a bulletin board.
In other words, what he really doesn't want is someone popping off as Auburn defensive back Jonathan Ford did concerning LSU running back Leonard Fournette before last Saturday's 45-2, LSU win over AU in which Fournette ran for 228 yards and three touchdowns, as well as shedding Ford from his shoulders as if the DB was a speck of lint.
So when Dobbs was asked if winning this game wasn't perhaps a tad more important than the Vols' other 11 regular-season contests, he dryly replied, "I'm here to win every game. Every game is important."
Another example of intelligence over insolence?
When a reporter attempted to bait Dobbs into discussing whether the Vols might be better off throwing to fewer receivers than the nine who caught at least one pass in Saturday's 55-10 victory over Western Carolina - the belief being that playing too many hinders the crucial chemistry between the pass catcher and his QB - Dobbs replied, "You don't develop chemistry in the middle of a game. You develop it in practice and the offseason."
If you don't think this is music to his head coach's ears, consider Jones's response to the same question.
"Not really," he began, "because of the inordinate amount of time they spend together. They spend so much time together in the summer, in training camp, all that goes into it. It's all about the trust."
So there.
But this week is different, no matter what anyone on the inside says. A win signals a massive turning point for a Big Orange program that's lost 10 straight to the Gators, eight straight to Alabama, six straight to Auburn, six out of seven to Georgia and five of six to LSU.
Beyond that, given that Florida has a new coach in Jim McElwain, UT hasn't beaten a coach in his first season at any of those schools since handing LSU's Les Miles his only SEC loss in his first season directing the Tigers in 2005.
"Does this game mean a lot to a lot of individuals? Absolutely," Jones said. "But again, everything is about our preparation. It's important because it's the next game on our schedule."
Yet if that next game becomes a loss, the belief from many corners is that a lot of those individuals whom Jones referred to will hop off the coach's bandwagon, tired of waiting yet another season to topple the Gators, as well as quite possibly the Crimson Tide and Georgia's Bulldogs.
But something young Dobbs said about his hover board is also worth considering, regardless of Saturday's outcome.
Asked about the fact that his hover board is devoid of the handles that typically help steer a Segway, Dobbs - ever the aerospace engineering major - noted, "It really helps your balance."
On the slightest of chances that the quarterback and his teammates can't buck the trend of losing to the Gators, balance would be a good trait for Vols fans to consider as they assess the overall state of the UT program today as opposed to when Jones took over three years ago. They might even become trendsetters for how fans should support their team, win or lose.
Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@timesfreepress.com.