Practice #3 Updates 8.3.16

#Vols Fr LB Daniel Bituli made some noise today in the Tennessee Drill. Gave Fr TE Cody Pope a country whoopin.

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Daniel Bituli (apparently) pancaked someone (early indications are Austin Pope) in the circle of life drill (of which are view is blocked)

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#Vols HC calls out Daniel Bituli and @cboystunna3 for this one-on-one for all to see Mike Griffith on Twitter: "#Vols HC calls out Daniel Bituli and @cboystunna3 for this one-on-one for all to see https://t.co/q9eenJNEoc"

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Pretty much Tennessee's entire defense enthusiastically swarmed Bituli after his rep, and he found some cameras to flex at, too.

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Chance Hall pushing thru in practice #3 for Vols. Watch our camp coverage tonight at 11 on @wvltRick Russo on Twitter: "Chance Hall pushing thru in practice #3 for Vols. Watch our camp coverage tonight at 11 on @wvlt @Volquest_Rivals https://t.co/ClJVCOaTQz"

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Probably the most anticipated match up was Drew Richmond and Johnathan Kongbo. It appeared Kongbo might have slightly got the best of him.

Maintenance work continues for guys like Latrell Williams and Shy Tuttle. In green were Austin Smith, JRM, Jauan Jennings.

On the receiver front, I thought Preston Williams continues to look good catching the football. I also like Tyler Bryd. Micah Abernathy looks to be playing fast and continues to get off to a good start this fall camp.

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But, outside of that, it was a pretty uneventful night. Evan Berry worked with the first team kickoff return and DJ Henderson had some reps with the second team. Alvin Kamara and Tyler Byrd got in some work there as well.

I continue to be impressed by the wideouts and their ability to catch the ball really well. In years past the young guys just always seem to have trouble catching the ball early but this group seems to be catching the ball well.

On the offensive line, I really like the way Chance Hall is practicing right now. I think he's going to have a really good year.

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I was also very impressed by the quarterbacks during the open periods. It was very impressive with how they threw the ball with a crisp pace. Josh Dobbs threw it well during the open portion. During period 2 that we could watch but not shoot, Hurd worked on his one catch game with Joe Young and Hurd was quite impressive.

Defensively, there was no Shy Tuttle but that isn't a surprise. It's going to be a wait and see daily routine with him. Marquill Osborne impresses me by the day. It was a short night so not a lot from me.

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Continue to be impressed with the depth on the offensive line. It's just abundantly apparent that they're so much better equipped up there. Like all three freshmen, think they're good looking prospects, and it's a sign that this program is getting back on firm footing that none of those guys have to do anything but learn and get acclimated this year.

Carlin Fils-Aime showed some real toughness against Bituli. Fils-Aime's quickness really jumps out at you.

Continue to be impressed with Kyle Phillips, we've talked about him some, but I think he looks like a guy poised to have a nice year.

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Multiple folks told me, "He looks every bit as good as (John) Henderson did, maybe even better." Again, Kongbo is physically remarkable. And his explosion is obvious, plus he continues to learn to work the small details. I watched him today when he was not involved in a DL drill, having already taken his turn, grab another teammate and work swim motion. It was a heady thing to see from a guy who still is so relatively new to the game.

There are some occasional drops and misses, but this chatter about the passing game struggles seems a bit unfounded at this point, to me. Jarrett Guarantano just looks sublime; Josh Dobbs has without question improved. Room for all to improve? Of course. Quinten Dormady still slings it extremely well.

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Junior walk-on receiver Jay Rochelle, from Duluth, Ga., will be added back on to the roster when it swells up to 120, according to a UT spokesperson. Rochelle was one of three players left off the 105-man roster, released on Tuesday.

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•Incoming freshmen offensive linemen Ryan Johnson, Marcus Tatum and Nathan Niehaus will all begin working outside as offensive tackles, according to offensive coordinator Mike DeBord.

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Just finished practice report, so here's what stood out to me: Daniel Bituli pancaking Austin Pope, strong KR game, O-line physicality.

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O-line thoughts: I spent a few minutes watching the offensive linemen work on Wednesday. As is customary, coach Don Mahoney and coach Mike DeBord worked together during individual drills with the line, splitting up the tackles and the guards. Several players such as newcomer Marcus Tatum were moving around to different spot as they try to create depth and versatility along the offensive front.

This is no surprise, but I thought Chance Hall looked like he’s gotten even bigger and stronger over the offseason. He was moving well too after missing spring with an injury. It’s tough to get much insight on the battle over at left tackle until we see some more hitting, but Drew Richmond certainly looks the part of somebody ready to compete there. The interior trio of Jashon Robertson, Coleman Thomas and Dylan Wiesman looks like it could be formidable with plenty of depth from Jack Jones, Charles Mosley and Venzell Boulware in there.

Ryan Johnson again stood out as the most physically ready of the newcomers to contribute.

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• Tyler Byrd made some nice catches in individual drills, following up a nice rep on Tuesday when he beat D.J. Henderson in a one-on-one drill near the goal line

• Marquez Callaway is just a very smooth athlete. He does wow you with size or speed, but he has enough of both and he has very good hands and seems to be a natural athlete. He did a good job fielding punts as

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McDad said:

Fingers, can I get your digits?

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Fingers said:

http://www.volnation.com/forum/tennessee-vols-football/258329-practice-1-updates-8-1-16-a.html
http://www.volnation.com/forum/tennessee-vols-football/258377-practice-2-updates-8-2-16-a.html

Begins at 6:35. Be back in about an hour or so to post updates. Feel free to start without me!

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Vol$_Deep_11_9 said:

Been looking forward to it all day!

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joevol33 said:

I've been waiting for you all day baby😘

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In years past the young guys just always seem to have trouble catching the ball early but this group seems to be catching the ball well.

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Multiple folks told me, "He looks every bit as good as (John) Henderson did, maybe even better." Again, Kongbo is physically remarkable.

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BigSteve09 said:

There we go



Mother of God

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Multiple folks told me, "He looks every bit as good as (John) Henderson did, maybe even better." Again, Kongbo is physically remarkable.

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