Fingers
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If there’s anything “new” it is offensive tackle Lance Heard. He appears to be recovering from a minor knee issue and had a sleeve and large brace on his left leg. The LSU transfer, Tennessee’s projected starter at left tackle, was able to go through some reps of individual drills, but was not involved when the offensive line went through some full-unit work.
Wide receiver Bru McCoy was back on the field and going through stretch, but we didn’t see him running any routes. Five-star freshman wideout Mike Matthews also was out on the field, but we didn’t see him running any routes after he went through stretch without a helmet. Nathan Leacock was back in practice with a large brace on his knee.
Running back Cameron Seldon was able to go through non-contact drills in a red jersey, which was good to see. He is dealing with a shoulder injury, so it’s a matter of when he’s cleared for contact. Seldon looks like he has remained in pretty good physical shape, though.
Most everyone who was out for the spring, including offensive linemen Andrej Karic and Javontez Spraggins and linebacker Arion Carter, looked to be back out there practicing normally, but it appeared that freshman linebacker Jordan Burns was limited.
Judging by how many players put on weight over the course of the offseason, it appears Tennessee plans to be a stronger, more powerful football team, and the Vols wasted no time getting physical in practice despite the pads still a couple days away from coming on.
Let’s get this out of the way: Tennessee has some dudes on its offensive and defensive lines. Those two units have a lot of bodies and a lot of bodies who look like they belong in the SEC. This is a result of evaluations and recruiting on the personnel side of things and the development from the strength and nutrition staffs.
Freshmen offensive linemen Jeremias Heard and Bennett Warren have massive frames that will continue to be molded. Heard still looks lean at 6-foot-8 and 320 pounds and Warren is every bit of 6-foot-7 and 342 pounds. Larry Johnson III is another big body who has re-shaped his frame over his 18 months in the program.
Some of Tennessee’s most impressive specimens on the defensive line are underclassmen. Tyree Weathersby is a grown man, Daevin Hobbs looks a very lean, very athletic 300 pounds and even Nathan Robinson has filled out his frame nicely. Ross does not look like a freshman as he showed up on campus in good condition, and Caleb Herring has come a long way from the spindly athlete who showed up in January 2023.
You have the big bodies at defensive tackle and springy athletes like James Pearce Jr., Joshua Josephs and Emmanuel Okoye at the LEO spot.
A non-defensive lineman who does not look like a freshman is linebacker Edwin Spillman, who has filled out his frame over the summer.
During a full-unit drill in the final period of practice, the first lineup had Dayne Davis at left tackle, Andrej Karic at left guard, Cooper Mays at center, Javontez Spraggins at right guard and John Campbell Jr. at right tackle. (Keep in mind that Lance Heard was limited.) The second lineup went Larry Johnson III at left tackle, Shamurad Umarov at left guard, Vysen Lang at center, Jackson Lampley at right guard and Jesse Perry at right tackle.
The best battles were between Dont’e Thornton Jr. and Jermod McCoy. Their first rep saw McCoy play tight coverage on a corner route, but Thornton still created enough of a window for Nico Iamaleava to fit the football into – it was on the far side of the field, so unclear if he caught it inbounds. The second rep saw Thornton put a hard stop route on his defender, but McCoy stayed right on him, but a slight slip on the turf allowed Thornton to complete the contested catch on another tight-window throw from Iamaleava.
All three tight ends had good reps. Ethan Davis, now sporting No. 0, caught a short dig on Christian Harrison and then shoved Jakobe Thomas off of him by a good few yards at the top of his route to make another catch. Miles Kitselman used his frame to create separation against Will Brooks (but the throw was wide), and Holden Staes made a one-handed snag on an out route.
Squirrel White was a tough matchup in the slot with his option-route quickness leading to catches against Boo Carter and Jourdan Thomas.
Chas Nimrod got open against Jourdan Thomas but dropped the pass, and Chris Brazzell II had a pass thrown badly behind him go through his hands before a mix-up on his route led to Rickey Gibson III coming up with the PBU.
p.brownTennessee LEO James Pearce Jr. was a no-show for a scheduled rare interview appearance at media day on Tuesday, but the star defender looked very engaged in practice this morning.
Of note, left tackle Lance Heard had a bulky brace on his left knee and did not take part in most drills. He was there and in uniform, but was more of a spectator while the media was present. Taking his spot at left tackle with the first group was Dayne Davis. Freshman wide receiver Mike Matthews was also limited, working off to the side without a helmet on.
During stretches, tackle Larry Johnson and wide receiver Chris Brazzell did not have helmets on, but both picked them up later and were going through team drills. Running back Cam Seldon was in a red no-contact jersey, as expected. Cooper Mays and JaVontez Spraggins were full-go from what we could see.
It was a typical first practice in terms of the football hitting the ground more than normal between quarterbacks and wide receivers. We thought the first couple of groups looked decent while the last couple of groups were pretty sloppy in routes on air.
Quarterback Nico Iamaleava and Gaston Moore threw the ball well. Both, along with freshman Jake Merklinger, took part in pocket presence drills earlier during individual and took turns handing off to running backs during the mesh drills. Cam Seldon was present for the mesh drill, but again, in a red jersey.
Ethan Davis made a nice catch over the middle and he dropped one as well. Squirrel White did the same – as far as the nice catch. Dont’e Thornton reeled in a highlight reel catch during 1-on-1 work with a defensive back, crashing into the [padded] pillar and hanging on for the catch. Chris Brazzell made a really nice play on the ball over the middle on a post pattern.
The first couple of groups of receivers (in drills) looked like this on Wednesday: Bru McCoy, White (slot), Kaleb Webb. The second group was Brazzell, Chas Nimrod (slot) and Thornton. The third group consisted of Nate Spillman, Braylon Staley (slot) and Nathan Leacock.
During inside run, the first offensive line group was Davis (LT), Andrej Karic (LG), Mays (C), Spraggins (RG) and John Campbell (RT). Remember, Lance Heard was more of a spectator with a bulky brace on his left knee. The second group was Larry Johnson (LT), Sham Umarov (LG), Lang (C), Jackson Lampley (RG) and Jesse Perry (RT).
One thing that jumped out to us was how James Pearce was taking on a more active leadership role during the drills. He was helping setting up and taking down the drills (bags) and was giving pointers to freshman Jordan Ross in a 1-on-1 setting.
We thought Joshua Josephs and Tyree Weathersby looked noticeably bigger today. It looks as if they both had a strong offseason in the weight room.
MTSU transfer JaKobe Thomas is a big guy and will bring a certain physicality to the position in the backend. Speaking of physicality, that’s something freshman Boo Carter must prove over the next couple of weeks when he’s down around the line of scrimmage. He was never asked to do that in high school, but the STAR position moves all over the place here and he will often be asked to come off the edge and take on a tight end.
e.cainArion Carter has a lot to gain this fall camp with a chance to step into considerable playing time opposite of Keenan Pili on Saturdays. Of course, Jeremiah Telander can play both spots as well and he had a good spring.
Cam Seldon only one in a red no-contact jersey
Mike Matthews and Bru McCoy seemed to be somewhat limited
r.sylviaGaston Moore was QB2 ahead of freshman Jake Merklinger
McCoy was in the wide receiver lines, but he didn’t run routes or catch passes during the periods open to media. Instead, he coached Dont’e Thornton before and after every route his teammate ran.
Freshman Jordan Ross made his practice debut after enrolling in June.
The 6-foot-5, 245-pounder was arguably the No. 1 edge rusher in the 2024 class. And he looks far more developed than most freshman defensive linemen.
Ross is long, lean and athletic. But despite his talent and upside, he was near the back of the line during drills.
That speaks to UT’s depth on the defensive line. Projected first-round draft pick James Pearce, Joshua Josephs and Caleb Herring make up a talented trio ahead of Ross at edge rusher.
Freshman Peyton Lewis went through drills at full speed and showed the explosion that excited the Vols when he signed last December. He was limited in the spring after undergoing shoulder surgery.
Sophomore Cam Seldon wore a red jersey in the first practice. He injured his shoulder in spring practice and underwent surgery. He could return somewhere around the start of the season, but that timetable is uncertain.
Linebacker Arion Carter didn’t show any problems from the injured shoulder that ended his 2023 season.
He displayed speed and explosion while hitting the blocking sled with his shoulder during drills.
Wide receivers were a little shaky to start the first practice. They dropped several passes, especially on short and intermediate throws from starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava.
a.sparksHowever, Squirrel White was the exception. He was smooth in his routes and caught every dart thrown to him.
On the offensive line, nearly everyone was full go after a number of key players were held out for large portions of spring practice. Dayne Davis worked as the first team left tackle while Andrej Karic was the first team left guard. The rest of the first team offensive line (working left to right) was Cooper Mays, Javontez Spraggins and John Campbell Jr.
Lance Heard worked as the second team offensive tackle while Jackson Lampley worked beside him. Would be pretty shocking if Heard isn’t the starting left tackle when the season begins but that is still worth noting. The left guard battle between Karic and Lampley is one of the most interesting in fall camp so it was interesting to see Karic work with the first team on day one.
At running back, everyone was full-go besides Seldon. Freshman Peyton Lewis missed spring practice but is just an incredibly impressive prospect for a freshman. We’ll see how much he can learn and hit the ground running in fall camp but with opportunities available at running back, he’s one I’ll be watching.
Less injuries or absences on the defensive line. Defensive end Dominic Bailey and freshman linebackers Jordan Burns and Grier Short (walk on) did not have helmets on and did not go through drill portions of practice. I also didn’t spot junior linebacker Kalib Perry on the practice field but it is possible that I just missed him.
Junior college transfer Jamal Wallace did earn some yelling during one drill. The managers received more yelling from Garner than anybody else while I was watching as they didn’t have things set up for two separate drills that Tennessee was doing.
The linebacker room was a little light with the noted absences but the three main guys in that room— Keenan Pili, Arion Carter, Jeremiah Telander— were all full go and looked good going through drills. I also really like the physical makeup of freshman Edwin Spillman. I think he would be able to hold up between the tackles as a freshman, but how he plays in space and in pass coverage will be the question.
One note in a healthy defensive backfield is that Christian Charles worked with the corners during the drill portion of practice. Defensive coordinator Tim Banks told us Tuesday that he would be working at safety though so we will see.
r.schumpertWe’ll get to more of it in a second, but Jordan Matthews had a real nice day at corner. Rickey Gibson also looks more fluid and confident out there while Jermod McCoy is the most physically put together of the three sophomores.
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