As spring practice nears, football fans tend to salivate. Everybody wants to know about which player looks the best, which looks the worst and who’s going to start. Well, here are some names to keep in mind. These are some guys that you can expect to hear a lot of good things about:
1. Kevin Cooper: The Baylor standout got to see limited playing time this past season in goal line situations starting with the UGA game. He’s a good sized kid with great hands and a great blocker. He dominated in the JV game against Hargrave. If Clawson emphasizes the I-Formation and having a lead blocker, you’ll hear Cooper’s name a lot, especially on play-action tosses in the flats. I fully expect him to have a great spring.
2. Chris Walker: This was one of the highly rated guys from the 2007 class. Everybody is worked up to see Ben Martin. Walker will surprise a lot of people this spring. He’ll come out of the spring as arguably the best pure pass rusher on this defensive line.
3. Cody Sullins: Hardworking walk-on will look to solidify a back-up role this spring with Josh McNeil being out. Fulmer loves this kid’s attitude and work ethic. He’s a throwback style football player. Mean, dirty and nasty in the trenches. Expect to hear him get bragged on by this coaching staff this spring.
4. Chad Cunningham: He’s got to look good. Britton’s suspended. He’s got the chance to solidify the starting spot for all next season, not just the first 5 games. He looked good last year when Colquitt was hurt. Hopefully he’ll build upon that.
5. Ricardo Kemp: One of the biggest reasons Tennessee left Lexington with a W last November. He’ll be battling it out with several players to be the nickel back and the right to back up Berry and Morley. He’s bounced around from position to position in his time on the Hill. Look for him to have a good spring and come out as a solid guy that provides depth in a key spot and make people forget the name Wardlow
Others just missing the cut: David Holbert – Can he come back from a serious knee injury and be a factor? Donald Langley – Will he provide the depth needed to take Tennessee’s defense to the next level? Daryl Vereen – Can he makeup for off-the-field incidents? Nevin McKenzie – Can he become the next great undersized outside linebacker at Tennessee?
But these are probably the most important guys in the spring:
Dave Clawson, Latrell Scott, Stan Drayton and Jason Michael – Now’s time to earn your money boys. A whole lot of people will be watching.