re: Is it reasonable to expect Tennessee football to turn around?

So getting back to the original question, I think the answer is yes. It is reasonable to expect Tennessee to turn it around.

In my opinion, consistent top 25 finishes with some in the top 10 is what should be considered as a turn-around, given the recent state of the program. Tennessee should be expected to compete for the SEC East annually. We should also expect to split UGA/Florida games. We should expect to be in the SEC Championship regularly, and play in New Years 6 bowl games every couple of years at least. Some of these expectations have been met in the last few years, and some haven't. However, I don't think a consistent pattern has been reestablished to show VOLS as back yet.

Nevertheless, Tennessee has many of the relevant factors in place. We still have great facilities and infrastructure, as well as solid fan-base support. The fans are beginning to move out of the post-Kiffin/Dooley shell-shock and will soon demand a higher level of performance, which will put pressure on the AD to make progress towards the top. Additionally, we have a growing in-state recruiting scene and still are able to pull quality players from neighboring states as well as nationally. We do have a few years of improvement in the books, which will continue to bolster recruiting.

Finally, history is history no matter how far back it is. When you teach a young football player about the legacy and history of a program, I think it doesn't really matter whether it is 10 years ago or 50. It's still something that the player hasn't experienced for himself. Unless you are Alabama, most programs don't have that level of recent, personally-experienced success to sell. They are selling history.

A natty from the '90s is about as real to a player as one from the '80s or '50s. The teams that have a natty in a current recruit's(2017 class) memory are FSU, Ohio State, LSU, Texas, Florida, Alabama, Auburn and Clemson. Everyone else is selling history and tradition, and ours is as significant as just about any other program in my opinion.

TL;DR: Tennessee has most of the important factors that can lead to consistent success and it is absolutely reasonable to expect competitive play from Tennessee going forward.