Tennessee was again back out on the practice field for a steamy Friday morning of work. It’s the second day in-a-row the Vols have hit the practice field and the second of three-straight prior to scrimmage two of fall camp. That’s coming up Sunday morning.
Roll call time.
Elijah Simmons was not practicing today as he continues to be banged up a little bit. Solon Page was doing stretches but working off to the side with no shoulder pads on. Same for Squirrel White as he did not have shoulder pads on today. I did not see Christian Harrison at practice today, once again suggesting he is getting work inside.
Cheyenne Labruzza was still in a red noncontact jersey (I know you guys wait on that update everyday) and Kamal Hadden continues to not practice. He’s present, going through stretches, but is not with the team during individual and other drills.
No change in some of the other players and their statuses. Bru McCoy was back in shoulder pads running routes on air with the rest of the wide receivers. Christian Charles looks healthy and continues to get a lot of work in with the cornerbacks. Jaylen Wright was in shells today, but still getting work in.
Routes on air looked better today from my vantage point. Not as many balls on the ground as in recent days, though I did see a Princeton Fant drop. Some have been asking for a Tayven Jackson update, and I hope to get one after the scrimmage on Sunday, but I did make it a point to watch him today and he looked good. Good feet, upward stance in the pocket, quick release, accuracy. It’s routes on air with no rush, but wanted to point that out.
One note worth mentioning – Dee Williams has strung together a couple of really solid days. He played well in the scrimmage on Tuesday and is becoming more comfortable in this scheme and the coaching of Willie Martinez. Now, what’s that mean? How much will he play – time will tell. But it appears he’s growing as a player and making that cornerback room more competitive each day. That’s what we have been talking about all offseason is healthy competition for those guys. That’s what Tennessee needs.
Speaking of healthy competition, Tamarion McDonald is having a good camp. We’ve made mention of that a couple of times already, but he’s really pushing for that starting spot at STAR. Wesley Walker, of course is still working at the nickelback spot with McDonald, but is also getting some looks at safety. The staff loves Walker’s football IQ, and he could be a guy who cross-trains daily and who could come into play multiple spots in game settings. It will be interesting to see how that plays out over the course of the back half of camp.
Speaking of things to be on the lookout for – left tackle. It’s not done and we maintain the belief that both JJ Crawford and Gerald Mincey will play against Ball State, but Crawford is carrying himself each day like he’s the starter already. He’s having a good camp and played well on Tuesday. Mincey has not been bad, but it feels like Crawford is growing in confidence every day. Let’s see what Sunday brings.
A lot of you have been asking about who the returners will be. Names have been thrown out by us (and coaches) like Squirrel White, Jimmy Holiday, Dee Williams, etc. Add one more name to the list, for punt return at least, and that’s Tre Flowers. No shock there as he’s getting plenty of work there over the years, but he’s in line to be an option to return punts this season.
Hearing good things about Juwan Mitchell and the camp he’s having. Jeremy Banks is having a very solid camp and Elijah Herring is continuing to grow as a player.
Back to the practice field, plenty of tackling work for all three levels of the defense on Friday. The offensive line were taking part in group work while the running backs were off running through the blaster and mimicking inside zone.
More NFL scouts were on hand this morning as representatives from the Seahawks, Bills and 49ers took in Tennessee’s Friday morning session. Defensive backs coach Willie Martinez will meet with us at about 11:15 and will be followed by Tamarion McDonald, Christian Charles, Warren Burrell and Brandon Turnage.
Roll call time.
Elijah Simmons was not practicing today as he continues to be banged up a little bit. Solon Page was doing stretches but working off to the side with no shoulder pads on. Same for Squirrel White as he did not have shoulder pads on today. I did not see Christian Harrison at practice today, once again suggesting he is getting work inside.
Cheyenne Labruzza was still in a red noncontact jersey (I know you guys wait on that update everyday) and Kamal Hadden continues to not practice. He’s present, going through stretches, but is not with the team during individual and other drills.
No change in some of the other players and their statuses. Bru McCoy was back in shoulder pads running routes on air with the rest of the wide receivers. Christian Charles looks healthy and continues to get a lot of work in with the cornerbacks. Jaylen Wright was in shells today, but still getting work in.
Routes on air looked better today from my vantage point. Not as many balls on the ground as in recent days, though I did see a Princeton Fant drop. Some have been asking for a Tayven Jackson update, and I hope to get one after the scrimmage on Sunday, but I did make it a point to watch him today and he looked good. Good feet, upward stance in the pocket, quick release, accuracy. It’s routes on air with no rush, but wanted to point that out.
One note worth mentioning – Dee Williams has strung together a couple of really solid days. He played well in the scrimmage on Tuesday and is becoming more comfortable in this scheme and the coaching of Willie Martinez. Now, what’s that mean? How much will he play – time will tell. But it appears he’s growing as a player and making that cornerback room more competitive each day. That’s what we have been talking about all offseason is healthy competition for those guys. That’s what Tennessee needs.
Speaking of healthy competition, Tamarion McDonald is having a good camp. We’ve made mention of that a couple of times already, but he’s really pushing for that starting spot at STAR. Wesley Walker, of course is still working at the nickelback spot with McDonald, but is also getting some looks at safety. The staff loves Walker’s football IQ, and he could be a guy who cross-trains daily and who could come into play multiple spots in game settings. It will be interesting to see how that plays out over the course of the back half of camp.
Speaking of things to be on the lookout for – left tackle. It’s not done and we maintain the belief that both JJ Crawford and Gerald Mincey will play against Ball State, but Crawford is carrying himself each day like he’s the starter already. He’s having a good camp and played well on Tuesday. Mincey has not been bad, but it feels like Crawford is growing in confidence every day. Let’s see what Sunday brings.
A lot of you have been asking about who the returners will be. Names have been thrown out by us (and coaches) like Squirrel White, Jimmy Holiday, Dee Williams, etc. Add one more name to the list, for punt return at least, and that’s Tre Flowers. No shock there as he’s getting plenty of work there over the years, but he’s in line to be an option to return punts this season.
Hearing good things about Juwan Mitchell and the camp he’s having. Jeremy Banks is having a very solid camp and Elijah Herring is continuing to grow as a player.
Back to the practice field, plenty of tackling work for all three levels of the defense on Friday. The offensive line were taking part in group work while the running backs were off running through the blaster and mimicking inside zone.
More NFL scouts were on hand this morning as representatives from the Seahawks, Bills and 49ers took in Tennessee’s Friday morning session. Defensive backs coach Willie Martinez will meet with us at about 11:15 and will be followed by Tamarion McDonald, Christian Charles, Warren Burrell and Brandon Turnage.
