The Vols, with starters and regulars missing aplenty on both sides of the football, worked inside Neyland Stadium today for the sixth of their 15 NCAA-allotted spring practice sessions.
Here are the VQ staff observations:
John's Take:
The defense continues to be a bit ahead of the offense, as evidenced by an early and almost immediate Cam Sutton interception of Josh Dobbs during live team action. Again, it's important to note that the Vols' offense is working without rough a half-dozen starters from the line to the skill positions.
Jalen Hurd looked good in very limited work; he had a really nice catch-and-run on a swing pass. Alvin Kamara clearly is bigger; more muscular.
Jason Croom did some solid work but coaches also continued to emphasize his room for growth from a blocking standpoint.
Kahlil McKenzie continued his solid spring, and Darrell Taylor showed up on some plays as well. Rashaan Gaulden was very active.
Preston Williams and Josh Smith both had stellar days.
Austin's Take:
I was very impressed by some of the veterans as players like Dylan Wiesman, Brett Kendrick, Josh Smith and others had solid days.
Smith made a great back shoulder one handed grab during 11-on-11 team work. Then Preston Williams made a great touchdown catch on a pass from Josh Dobbs. That made up for a Cam Sutton interception of Dobbs on the first set of downs during the team work. The receivers missed Jauan Jennings as he was held out. During individual time, it was Williams showing leadership again as he barked at Jeff George for dropping a pass.
Butch was very active on the mic as he was spirited with just about everyone with several remarks about how Tennessee does things and their culture. With several prospects at the stadium, I'm sure that was for their benefit.
Brent's Take:
Inside Neyland Stadium, Tennessee's offense got going in the second scrimmage period of the day after the defense set the early tone with a Cam Sutton pick of Josh Dobbs.
Dobbs found his way into the end zone with his feet then the passing game showed a little more life thanks to a great day from Josh Smith, who made several difficult catches in tight coverage. Smith seems to be the quarterback's security blanket and is playing his best football.
Preston Williams also caught a deep ball over Justin Martin on a throw from Josh Dobbs and a throw that had enough loft to let Williams go high point the ball.
Keep in mind the offense is without about a half dozen regular contributors/starters and the defense is without key contributors like Jalen Reeves Maybin and Derek Barnett.
I think it's safe to say that Rashaan Gaulden is shaking off the rust pretty good. Working as a first team safety Gaulden had a big hit and seemed active. I thought freshman Marquill Osborne showed up a couple of time as well. I think the secondary battle is going to be outstanding to watch over the next 5 months.
Another safety playing the run well is Stephen Griffin who had a tackle for loss and he crashed into the box. I like Griffin's physical play. Quart'e Sapp had a couple of nice open field tackles as well.
Tennessee's tailbacks caught the ball well out of the backfield also. And on third down Austin Smith seems to be rushing the quarterback well. I think Smith and Taylor both have to play the run better and the Vols run game gashed the defensive front on a couple of occasions for big runs.
In special teams work, Trevor Daniel continues to boot the ball well and the time standards that Jones demands in terms of getting the kick off are better as snapper Riley Lovingood seems to be delivering the ball quicker.
We continue to see Austin Sanders working at right tackle and Jack Jones worked as the starting right guard with injuries up front forcing several different lineup combinations. The coaching staff obviously limited the work of guys like Kamara and Hurd, but the offense with John Kelly did a nice job in the second part of the scrimmage work we saw of moving the pile in short yardage situations.
The second session of scrimmage work was definitely a nice bounce back for the offense after the defense handled the offense in the first session of work.
Rob's Take:
Preston Williams continues to impress. He had a really nice touchdown grab in the corner of the end zone today and for my money has flashed the most ability of any of the WRs in spring practice. He may not be the most consistent (I’ll give that title to Josh Smith) but Williams has shown some big time potential.
The biggest problem Williams had on Saturday was getting away from Justin Martin. Those two had some nice battles on the perimeter and Martin looks like he’s developing into the kind of player most had hoped to see.
Speaking of Josh Smith, he had two big time catches on short throws today, one for a first down with a defensive back draped all over him. It’s good to see him healthy and able to take advantage of the opportunities he’s getting this spring.
Smith also showed some fire today, jumping up after a catch and getting into a small flare up with Rashaan Gualden. It was nothing serious and didn’t escalate beyond some words and finger-pointing but it was a sign that this team has some spirit.
Gaulden delivered one of the biggest hits of the day (despite the Vols operating under ’Thud’ principles, no take downs) dropping Michael Lacey violently to the turf after a short catch.
Defensively Quarte Sapp showed up a lot. The kid can really cover some ground and is more physical at the point of attack than I expected.
One thing that jumps out—because it’s completely opposite of what we’ve seen in the recent past—is that the Vols finally have some admirable depth on the offensive line. Even with Coleman Thomas out (knee) today and Chance Hall and Jason Robertson missing spring, the Vols still were able to field a first unit that consisted of (left-to-right) Drew Richmond, Venzell Boulware, Dylan Weisman, Chance hall and Brett Kendrick.
That’s light years better than what the offense could have pieced together if it were down three starters at any point in the recent past and a reflection of the kind of recruiting Jones and his staff have been doing.
John Kelly got ample work today and looked good with the ball in his hands. He showed some big-time wheels and the ability to get to the edge on a couple of different occasions and also made some noise as a receiver out of the backfield.
Here are the VQ staff observations:
John's Take:
The defense continues to be a bit ahead of the offense, as evidenced by an early and almost immediate Cam Sutton interception of Josh Dobbs during live team action. Again, it's important to note that the Vols' offense is working without rough a half-dozen starters from the line to the skill positions.
Jalen Hurd looked good in very limited work; he had a really nice catch-and-run on a swing pass. Alvin Kamara clearly is bigger; more muscular.
Jason Croom did some solid work but coaches also continued to emphasize his room for growth from a blocking standpoint.
Kahlil McKenzie continued his solid spring, and Darrell Taylor showed up on some plays as well. Rashaan Gaulden was very active.
Preston Williams and Josh Smith both had stellar days.
Austin's Take:
I was very impressed by some of the veterans as players like Dylan Wiesman, Brett Kendrick, Josh Smith and others had solid days.
Smith made a great back shoulder one handed grab during 11-on-11 team work. Then Preston Williams made a great touchdown catch on a pass from Josh Dobbs. That made up for a Cam Sutton interception of Dobbs on the first set of downs during the team work. The receivers missed Jauan Jennings as he was held out. During individual time, it was Williams showing leadership again as he barked at Jeff George for dropping a pass.
Butch was very active on the mic as he was spirited with just about everyone with several remarks about how Tennessee does things and their culture. With several prospects at the stadium, I'm sure that was for their benefit.
Brent's Take:
Inside Neyland Stadium, Tennessee's offense got going in the second scrimmage period of the day after the defense set the early tone with a Cam Sutton pick of Josh Dobbs.
Dobbs found his way into the end zone with his feet then the passing game showed a little more life thanks to a great day from Josh Smith, who made several difficult catches in tight coverage. Smith seems to be the quarterback's security blanket and is playing his best football.
Preston Williams also caught a deep ball over Justin Martin on a throw from Josh Dobbs and a throw that had enough loft to let Williams go high point the ball.
Keep in mind the offense is without about a half dozen regular contributors/starters and the defense is without key contributors like Jalen Reeves Maybin and Derek Barnett.
I think it's safe to say that Rashaan Gaulden is shaking off the rust pretty good. Working as a first team safety Gaulden had a big hit and seemed active. I thought freshman Marquill Osborne showed up a couple of time as well. I think the secondary battle is going to be outstanding to watch over the next 5 months.
Another safety playing the run well is Stephen Griffin who had a tackle for loss and he crashed into the box. I like Griffin's physical play. Quart'e Sapp had a couple of nice open field tackles as well.
Tennessee's tailbacks caught the ball well out of the backfield also. And on third down Austin Smith seems to be rushing the quarterback well. I think Smith and Taylor both have to play the run better and the Vols run game gashed the defensive front on a couple of occasions for big runs.
In special teams work, Trevor Daniel continues to boot the ball well and the time standards that Jones demands in terms of getting the kick off are better as snapper Riley Lovingood seems to be delivering the ball quicker.
We continue to see Austin Sanders working at right tackle and Jack Jones worked as the starting right guard with injuries up front forcing several different lineup combinations. The coaching staff obviously limited the work of guys like Kamara and Hurd, but the offense with John Kelly did a nice job in the second part of the scrimmage work we saw of moving the pile in short yardage situations.
The second session of scrimmage work was definitely a nice bounce back for the offense after the defense handled the offense in the first session of work.
Rob's Take:
Preston Williams continues to impress. He had a really nice touchdown grab in the corner of the end zone today and for my money has flashed the most ability of any of the WRs in spring practice. He may not be the most consistent (I’ll give that title to Josh Smith) but Williams has shown some big time potential.
The biggest problem Williams had on Saturday was getting away from Justin Martin. Those two had some nice battles on the perimeter and Martin looks like he’s developing into the kind of player most had hoped to see.
Speaking of Josh Smith, he had two big time catches on short throws today, one for a first down with a defensive back draped all over him. It’s good to see him healthy and able to take advantage of the opportunities he’s getting this spring.
Smith also showed some fire today, jumping up after a catch and getting into a small flare up with Rashaan Gualden. It was nothing serious and didn’t escalate beyond some words and finger-pointing but it was a sign that this team has some spirit.
Gaulden delivered one of the biggest hits of the day (despite the Vols operating under ’Thud’ principles, no take downs) dropping Michael Lacey violently to the turf after a short catch.
Defensively Quarte Sapp showed up a lot. The kid can really cover some ground and is more physical at the point of attack than I expected.
One thing that jumps out—because it’s completely opposite of what we’ve seen in the recent past—is that the Vols finally have some admirable depth on the offensive line. Even with Coleman Thomas out (knee) today and Chance Hall and Jason Robertson missing spring, the Vols still were able to field a first unit that consisted of (left-to-right) Drew Richmond, Venzell Boulware, Dylan Weisman, Chance hall and Brett Kendrick.
That’s light years better than what the offense could have pieced together if it were down three starters at any point in the recent past and a reflection of the kind of recruiting Jones and his staff have been doing.
John Kelly got ample work today and looked good with the ball in his hands. He showed some big-time wheels and the ability to get to the edge on a couple of different occasions and also made some noise as a receiver out of the backfield.
