Full Practice Observations:
I was fortunate enough to witness a full practice earlier this week and man what a great view it was. They basically went 1vs1’s, 2vs2’s, and a mix of some 3rd teamers mixed in…
Overall Atmosphere:
The overall atmosphere was pretty pumped up, no there was no mics or ©rap music blaring because that would interfere with the work to be done…It was all about Ball!! and not BS. The practice was completely organized and not a second was wasted. If you weren’t a 1 or a 2 you were on the other field getting tons of reps with GA’s and other coaches. Very impressive how they were maximizing reps for guys, zero standing around, attention to detail and intense instruction. The support staff was super cool and very engaging, very welcoming and the family atmosphere every recruit talks about was in the air. Great practice environment and I’ve been to practice under every coach here since Fulmer…Kiffin was a lot of yelling and craziness, Dooley was like watching paint dry and BJ was a complete circus, very cheesy. Pruitt’s practice was so focused on the hard work and some serious coaching. Cheany was very demonstrative and brutally honest. As coaches do, he was at times going berserk, he really challenged his guys and every time they responded. One ST rep a freshman DB wasn’t sure where he was supposed to line up and Pruitt got in his ear pretty good and pulled him out of the rep with Tyler Byrd racing off the sideline saying I’ll do it coach, tell what to do and then he did as he was instructed and blew down there to cover the kick…Pretty impressive for a guy who’s career hasn’t panned out…it’s obvious he feels the urgency, cool to see. Overall I was seriously impressed with their coaching abilities. Once JG finished his reps with the 1’s and he walked off the field and Pruitt went up to him and challenged him that hey, don’t be standing over here alone, go communicate with your guys like you would in the game…JG took it to heart and he absolutely was on fire from then on…again, older guys taking coaching and applying it was impressive. Met Curt Maggit, he was so happy to have been accepted into the MBA program and such a nice guy, he will be a super successful guy, very impressive.
On to the team and individual guys:
Offense:
QB: JG is impressive looking these days, so much bigger than he’s ever been, he was on target with some really beautiful passes and especially on the move both left and right. He was in total command at the line and not sure CJC ever really had to get on him for his performance, only yelling at him to run the damn play when the D was subbing..."don't wait on them to get set, run the damn play". In warmups that Hubbs and crew got to see I would have pulled JT Shrout’s scholly, then they started with live reps and wow that kid has what it takes, was very vocal with his guys, throws with velocity and has great touch…He was all over the line, backs and WR’s if they had a bust (remember he was working with the 2’s), had no issue leading his team and threw some absolute darts across the middle and out wide down the field. He too was very effective on the run. Mauer was on the other field getting reps with the walk-ons and less experienced TE’s and WR’s…He looked great in warmups, he throws a great ball and he too was very vocal but didn’t get to see him vs the 1’s or 2’s so not much else to say other than he’s built solidly and a pretty big guy.
Look for a big year from JG.
RB: Eric Gray is for real, the guy has some serious burst but more than anything he has great feet and vision. He made some cuts that were just straight up next level. He caught the ball effortlessly and in space he is going to be a load to handle. Very excited to see how many ways CJC deploys his skill set. Be excited Vol fans, he’s going to be great. Also, as a guy who came in as a smaller guy or so I thought, he’s not, he is very solidly built. He is especially a lot bigger in his lower body that I thought he’d be and wasn't afraid to run between the tackles in the chances he got...No Fear.
Ty Chandler is the truth, he is so much better built this year, he is a tougher inside runner than he ever was LY…He is a bigger version of Gray, I must disagree with Jesse, he does have the burst and wiggle needed to play at a high level. He too will be so dangerous in space, he and Gray on the field at the same time will give DC’s heartburn in this league. That’s a ton of speed in space that should only help the line look better and raise JG’s completion percentage.
Jordan is a lot bigger and more rocked up than LY, he will be a tough short yardage runner and very solid in pass pro. Banks looks good and he is a really well built back who will be a very effective one cut and go guy. I expect him to overtake Jordan at some point during the season. Great competition in that group and it’s obvious they love coach Johnson.
WR:
Where to start, JJ is completely healthy, dude ran some 9 routes that were NFL level…He missed a beautiful ball from JG when he rolled right, prettiest pass of the day and JG challenged him to catch the ball, to his credit JJ came over and they started discussing the play with JJ walking away complimenting JG and said I won’t miss that again…Some of JG’s best leadership on the day, good to see two older guys challenging each other to be their best…Good to see. Calloway is going to have a monster year, dude is ripped up and he was jumping out of the gym on some high throws, high pointed the ball and snatched it out of the air like a pro. Those two are going to have massive seasons, especially when Ty and Gray are on the field together, too much firepower.
Palmer has a perfect build for a wideout, ran some precise routes and caught everything, high pointing it and never letting it get into his body, very impressive, 3 wideout sets with JJ in the slot is gonna be damn good. Johnson, Murphy and even Byrd had some really impressive catches and all three blocked like mad. This group is going to be deep, Tillman also made an amazing catch on a ball thrown too high by JT over two defenders, damn impressive. Special note here, we have a walk-on, Isaiah Montgomery #22 who is going to be a stud, he made the best catch of the day deep down the right sideline fade from Mauer over two DB’s, an absolute NFL looking play. He’s well-built and everyone I spoke to said to keep an eye on him and he did not disappoint at all. He’ll be on scholly sooner rather than later. As most fans I love an underdog who nobody knows about yet, he had some offers for a full ride but chose to come here instead from Atlanta, GA. I’m sure he’ll RS this year but he will be in the rotation in coming years.
I was fortunate enough to witness a full practice earlier this week and man what a great view it was. They basically went 1vs1’s, 2vs2’s, and a mix of some 3rd teamers mixed in…
Overall Atmosphere:
The overall atmosphere was pretty pumped up, no there was no mics or ©rap music blaring because that would interfere with the work to be done…It was all about Ball!! and not BS. The practice was completely organized and not a second was wasted. If you weren’t a 1 or a 2 you were on the other field getting tons of reps with GA’s and other coaches. Very impressive how they were maximizing reps for guys, zero standing around, attention to detail and intense instruction. The support staff was super cool and very engaging, very welcoming and the family atmosphere every recruit talks about was in the air. Great practice environment and I’ve been to practice under every coach here since Fulmer…Kiffin was a lot of yelling and craziness, Dooley was like watching paint dry and BJ was a complete circus, very cheesy. Pruitt’s practice was so focused on the hard work and some serious coaching. Cheany was very demonstrative and brutally honest. As coaches do, he was at times going berserk, he really challenged his guys and every time they responded. One ST rep a freshman DB wasn’t sure where he was supposed to line up and Pruitt got in his ear pretty good and pulled him out of the rep with Tyler Byrd racing off the sideline saying I’ll do it coach, tell what to do and then he did as he was instructed and blew down there to cover the kick…Pretty impressive for a guy who’s career hasn’t panned out…it’s obvious he feels the urgency, cool to see. Overall I was seriously impressed with their coaching abilities. Once JG finished his reps with the 1’s and he walked off the field and Pruitt went up to him and challenged him that hey, don’t be standing over here alone, go communicate with your guys like you would in the game…JG took it to heart and he absolutely was on fire from then on…again, older guys taking coaching and applying it was impressive. Met Curt Maggit, he was so happy to have been accepted into the MBA program and such a nice guy, he will be a super successful guy, very impressive.
On to the team and individual guys:
Offense:
QB: JG is impressive looking these days, so much bigger than he’s ever been, he was on target with some really beautiful passes and especially on the move both left and right. He was in total command at the line and not sure CJC ever really had to get on him for his performance, only yelling at him to run the damn play when the D was subbing..."don't wait on them to get set, run the damn play". In warmups that Hubbs and crew got to see I would have pulled JT Shrout’s scholly, then they started with live reps and wow that kid has what it takes, was very vocal with his guys, throws with velocity and has great touch…He was all over the line, backs and WR’s if they had a bust (remember he was working with the 2’s), had no issue leading his team and threw some absolute darts across the middle and out wide down the field. He too was very effective on the run. Mauer was on the other field getting reps with the walk-ons and less experienced TE’s and WR’s…He looked great in warmups, he throws a great ball and he too was very vocal but didn’t get to see him vs the 1’s or 2’s so not much else to say other than he’s built solidly and a pretty big guy.
Look for a big year from JG.
RB: Eric Gray is for real, the guy has some serious burst but more than anything he has great feet and vision. He made some cuts that were just straight up next level. He caught the ball effortlessly and in space he is going to be a load to handle. Very excited to see how many ways CJC deploys his skill set. Be excited Vol fans, he’s going to be great. Also, as a guy who came in as a smaller guy or so I thought, he’s not, he is very solidly built. He is especially a lot bigger in his lower body that I thought he’d be and wasn't afraid to run between the tackles in the chances he got...No Fear.
Ty Chandler is the truth, he is so much better built this year, he is a tougher inside runner than he ever was LY…He is a bigger version of Gray, I must disagree with Jesse, he does have the burst and wiggle needed to play at a high level. He too will be so dangerous in space, he and Gray on the field at the same time will give DC’s heartburn in this league. That’s a ton of speed in space that should only help the line look better and raise JG’s completion percentage.
Jordan is a lot bigger and more rocked up than LY, he will be a tough short yardage runner and very solid in pass pro. Banks looks good and he is a really well built back who will be a very effective one cut and go guy. I expect him to overtake Jordan at some point during the season. Great competition in that group and it’s obvious they love coach Johnson.
WR:
Where to start, JJ is completely healthy, dude ran some 9 routes that were NFL level…He missed a beautiful ball from JG when he rolled right, prettiest pass of the day and JG challenged him to catch the ball, to his credit JJ came over and they started discussing the play with JJ walking away complimenting JG and said I won’t miss that again…Some of JG’s best leadership on the day, good to see two older guys challenging each other to be their best…Good to see. Calloway is going to have a monster year, dude is ripped up and he was jumping out of the gym on some high throws, high pointed the ball and snatched it out of the air like a pro. Those two are going to have massive seasons, especially when Ty and Gray are on the field together, too much firepower.
Palmer has a perfect build for a wideout, ran some precise routes and caught everything, high pointing it and never letting it get into his body, very impressive, 3 wideout sets with JJ in the slot is gonna be damn good. Johnson, Murphy and even Byrd had some really impressive catches and all three blocked like mad. This group is going to be deep, Tillman also made an amazing catch on a ball thrown too high by JT over two defenders, damn impressive. Special note here, we have a walk-on, Isaiah Montgomery #22 who is going to be a stud, he made the best catch of the day deep down the right sideline fade from Mauer over two DB’s, an absolute NFL looking play. He’s well-built and everyone I spoke to said to keep an eye on him and he did not disappoint at all. He’ll be on scholly sooner rather than later. As most fans I love an underdog who nobody knows about yet, he had some offers for a full ride but chose to come here instead from Atlanta, GA. I’m sure he’ll RS this year but he will be in the rotation in coming years.
