> A portion of bowl practices is basically a mini-spring or mini-camp in some ways, so it's not unusual to see some experimenting in terms of position switches. That appeared to be the case on Tuesday morning with a couple of Tennessee freshmen. The current staff recruited neither
Trinity Bell nor
Kaemen Marley and hasn't gotten to see much of either since their arrivals in the summer, and the Vols look to be evaluating those athletes in different positions.
After working with the tight ends on Monday, Bell was going through drills with the defensive line on Tuesday. The 6-foot-7 freshman, listed at 265 pounds, was in a non-contact jersey with a brace on his leg as he isn't yet 100% cleared from his knee injury he suffered nearly a year ago. Bell was a two-way player in high school, lining up at tight end and defensive end, and Tennessee appears to be assessing him at both this month.
Marley, the former Top247 prospect, was listed as a defensive back after he enrolled in June and started out at wide receiver back in the preseason, but he appearing to be working with the linebackers on Tuesday morning. Marley played safety on defense in high school and very much looked like he was new to linebacker drills as he needed correction on multiple reps as the Vols drilled their footwork in shooting gaps under the chute, but he seemed willing to take the coaching. He's another versatile athlete the Vols are still evaluating because he didn't get much of a preseason due to injury.
> Elsewhere, still no
Cade Mays (ankle) with the offensive line. The trio getting early reps in individual work at right tackle were
Dayne Davis,
Jeremiah Crawford and
William Parker. The trio repping at left tackle were
Darnell Wright,
K'Rojhn Calbert and
RJ Perry.
> Players still in non-contact jerseys: Running back
Jaylen Wright and defensive backs
Theo Jackson and
De'Shawn Rucker.
> 2022 signee
Jordan Phillips again went through drills with the defensive line as he gets a jumpstart on his Tennessee career.
> After its usual turnover circuit, Tennessee's defense dove into individual work. The cornerbacks got some drills on defending the bubble screen/swing passes while the safeties drilled their coverage drops then tackling. It was a lot of footwork drills for the linebackers with
Brian Jean-Mary focusing on the steps and running through their gaps in run defense. It was mostly agility and hand violence work for the defensive line.
Routes-on-air with the quarterbacks, wide receivers and tight ends included mostly the quick passing game (drags, comebacks, outs) before the wideouts ran some post-corners.
> Scheduled for interviews after practice: Offensive coordinator and tight ends coach
Alex Golesh, quarterback
Hendon Hooker and wide receivers
Velus Jones Jr. and
Cedric Tillman.
