Author Archives: Brad Shepard

Remembering Bill Nowling, Willis Tucker, Rudy Klarer and Ig Fuson: Four Tennessee Legends You Need to Know

It’s easy to remember Peyton Manning, Reggie White, Doug Atkins and Johnny Majors for their on-the-field achievements, and they all have legitimate reasons for having their names and jersey numbers enshrined, retired and hanging on the facades of Neyland Stadium for the rest of time.

But you may not know that much about Bill Nowling, Rudy Klarer, Willis Tucker and Clyde “Ig” Fuson, whose Nos. 32, 49, 61 and 62 hang alongside those of the other four. It’s their contributions off the field that led to former athletic director Mike Hamilton’s decision to retire their numbers for good in 2006.

It was one of the few good things Hamilton did as UT AD.

Because, while Manning, White, Atkins and Majors may have been Tennessee legends, Nowling, Klarer, Tucker and Fuson are national legends. They paid the ultimate sacrifice, dying for our country in battle so that we can remain free.

This Memorial Day, while we are all enjoying our lake trips and weenie roasts, we need to remember what the holiday is actually for. And, it would be good for you as a Tennessee fan to remember a little about the four former Vols who left this world ensuring we can have the same rights we enjoy today in ours.

Hopefully one day when your child is sitting beside you in Neyland Stadium — hopefully watching a worthwhile football team again — and he or she looks up and asks you about these men, you’ll be able to tell them a bit about them.

 

Back in 2009 on our old Rocky Top Talk site, I wrote essentially this same article in our “100 Days of Vols” series. I’m writing it again. It will never be enough to say thank you. Then, I wrote:

Bill Nowling, Rudy Klarer, Willis Tucker and Clyde Fuson are names that don’t immediately come to mind when you think of the Tennessee greats. A few years ago when we counted down the top 100 Vols of all-time on my old blog, 3rd Saturday in Blogtober, none of those guys made the list. But they’re the biggest heroes to ever wear the orange and white.

Nowling (No. 32), Klarer (No. 49), Tucker (No. 61) and Fuson (No. 62) gave the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom in World War II. They died so we could be free and so we could stand out there today, eat hot dogs, have cold beverages, shoot fireworks and practice our beliefs — whatever they may be. They died for more than a petty football game. It’s easy in the South for football to be “life” and “death.” We talk about plays killing us and about the field of battle and use all these sports cliches to describe what we see on those yard lines.

But a lot of us have no idea what true battle, true war, is. The ones of us who do know that a football game is just a football game.War is war. Life is life. And when you put that precious life on the line for a bunch of strangers, and you lose that life, that’s the most selfless act imaginable. Nowling, Klarer, Tucker and Fuson did that. For you. For me.

UTSports.com provided a little information on them all when they were honored back in ’06.

Nowling played from 1940-42 for General Robert Neyland (whose rich war history you should read about, as well). According to the article, Nowling was a three-year starter at the all-important position of fullback. In ’40, the Vols were the national champions, and Nowling was a big part of that. Those were some of the best teams in school history. Just how good?

The Vols lost just four games during Nowling’s three seasons.Nowling was a St. Petersburg, Florida, native who died August 9, 1944, while serving in World War II at the age of 23.

Klarer was a teammate of Nowling who played in 1941-42. He started in his final year for the Vols after serving as a backup his first season.

The native of Louisville, Kentucky, was a key member of the 1943 Sugar Bowl champions, but he left the team immediately after the win over Tulsa for Officer’s Training in the Army at Fort Benning, Georgia, according to the UTSports.com article. “Klarer was a 2nd Lieutenant and platoon leader in Germany during World War II. He was killed in action on Feb. 6, 1945, and Klarer received the Silver Star citation posthumously,” the article states.

Tucker was a hometown boy, a Knoxville High School graduate who played two years on the offensive line for a pair of dominant UT squads in 1939 and ’40.

He was a backup at center and guard on the undefeated ’39 team, and then Tucker earned a letter on the national championship team the next year while also standing out as a sprinter for the track team. Tucker, who was named the top track athlete in Tennessee from 1900-50, lost just two games during his career at Rocky Top, and never lost a regular season game, according to the UTSports.com article.

Tucker was killed in action in Germany just prior to the Battle of the Bulge on Nov. 28, 1944, at the age of 26.

Finally, Fuson played just one season for the Vols, sharing time with Nowling at fullback on the 1942 team that finished 9-1-1.  He, like Klarer, was a Kentucky native, hailing from Middlesboro. He enlisted in the Army in 1943 and was killed in action in Germany on Dec. 4, 1944, while serving with the 84th Infantry Division.

“These four courageous men made the ultimate sacrifice for this country,” Hamilton said at the time he made the decision to retire the numbers. “We recognized them in the past, but this is a good opportunity for us to recognize their families on the field. It is of significance the ceremony will be during the Air Force game, when UT plays one of the many honorable branches of the military.”

These four men are legendary, just as are the others who died fighting for us throughout the years. Hollywood may glamorize death, but those that come in battle are often gruesome, gritty and heartbreaking to those left behind. It’s easy to think of football as a safe haven, no matter how violent it is, but the bottom line is these are 18-22-year-old kids “battling” on our television sets. During World War II, these were the same kids who were dying by the thousands on foreign soil.

So, enjoy your day off tomorrow. Enjoy all the trappings of freedom that we have. But find a soldier and thank him or her for the sacrifices they and their families make every single day. Then think of those who didn’t make it home to hug their loved ones one last time.

We may “live and die” with every Vols play. But these men literally died protecting us, preserving our way of life and honoring what it means to be an American. Thank you all, gentlemen — and to all the ladies and gentlemen who serve us still.

You are the legends, in the truest sense of the world.

Maybe These Vols Want to Be Coached, After All

 

The Tennessee Vols are soft, they said. They haven’t been coached. They’re awful. The program is in shambles. There’s going to be a mass exodus of players this offseason once the new sheriff comes to town.

Right?

Well, we’re waiting.

Where are they?

Still waiting…

You haven’t seen it yet? Me, either. Instead, what we saw was a bunch of the same ol’ Vols going through spring drills, getting the tough love dished at them every day from new coach Jeremy Pruitt and his no-nonsense staff. And, while there may yet be several defections — there always are every year, after all — we haven’t seen any. All we’ve heard is praise, folks buying into the new way; what little we heard from the players this spring.

It’s enough to make me think that we won’t see anymore than the normal attrition that every major college football program has every year, regardless of — and especially when there’s — a coaching change. Has it occurred to anybody that maybe these Vols wanted to be coached, all along?

Has it occurred to you that maybe it was the former UT coaching staff that was soft, and not the players?

After all, Butch Jones and crew are the ones who did these kids a disservice by employing three strength and conditioning coordinators in the past three years, one of which who was a glorified intern, at best. These are the ones who fudged the injury list every game after the ridiculous cloak-and-dagger game that included, many times, blatant lies to the media about players who were hurt. (Anybody tripped over a helmet lately???) These are the ones who threw their players under the bus at times, talking around the idea that eventually, the coaches stop and the players must play.

But what if players aren’t taught how to play?

Part of player development is teaching young men how to be men. That includes playing when you aren’t feeling at your best, reaching down and grabbing a little more that you didn’t think you had in you, pushing the limits and digging for that something extra that made them, in a way, transcend what they thought they could be. For all the talk about 63 effort — about making three effort plays within the six-second timeframe that a standard play takes — how much effort was the former staff putting into pushing these kids?

Not only did they do them a disservice getting them ready to play football, many times, they erred on the side of not playing on the field any time there was a minor issue.

Listen: This is football; there are injuries. Players get hurt. We saw plenty of them this spring, and it’s not always easy for people to realize the difference between being injured and being hurt. That line was too often blurred during the Jones era, and that goes in both directions. Ask Brett Kendrick about playing through a concussion.

Like he proved in every aspect of the game beyond promotion, Jones was in over his head.

But we’re not just talking about injuries here. We’re talking about literal development — player improvement over the course of time. Jones proved he couldn’t do it, and though Pruitt hasn’t proved he can either as a head coach, his assistant resume speaks for itself. So do the many players his staff have placed in the league over many years across many programs.

You think guys don’t see that? You think they don’t want it? What Todd Kelly Jr., Shy Tuttle or Jarrett Guarantano wouldn’t have given to actually be coached the first few years of their careers. For players such as Khalil McKenzie and Jashon Robertson, the transition came too late. Whether Kelly, Tuttle, Jonathan Kongbo, Kyle Phillips [and similar talented, underutilized, undeveloped players] can surge enough in 2018 to salvage the semblance of what they were expected to be in college remains to be seen, but they can do a lot to help UT have a respectable season this year and salvage something for the program’s future.

So far, Quay Picou has left the program. That’s really about it. Again, there will be more, sure. But we aren’t seeing the floodgates open. If Keller Chryst comes in and starts over Guarantano, you could make an argument that he could leave. But, really, if he can’t beat out a graduate transfer in Year 3, can he really blossom into an SEC star, anyway?

Pruitt said after the Orange & White Game that some players “flat-out quit.” He didn’t call out any names, but he alluded to there being difficult conversations post-spring that would essentially be “come-to-Pruitt” meetings. I personally expected five or six dudes to hit the road soon after those drills ended. They didn’t.

Hey, listen, they may still. We may see a deluge of guys exit the program over the next couple of weeks, and I’ll look back at this column and feel like an idiot. Truthfully, there are probably a few guys — if not more than “a few” — hanging around the program who should leave if they ever want to play a down of football. Pruitt even experimented the last week-plus of spring putting players out of their comfort zones, trying them in other positions. Part of that reason is to see if there was any “hidden talent” that could help the team right away. Part of the reason was he realized some of the dudes he moved simply weren’t every going to contribute where they were.

Tis the nature of the game.

Some players will go; move on to lesser programs where they can play. But after the “soft” Jones era, I expected a bunch of his recruits to see that things were going to be my-way-or-the-highway under Pruitt and say, “Screw this, I’m taillights.”

That hasn’t happened. I’m kinda proud of that.

Maybe a lot of these kids want to learn to play football, after all.

Tennessee Recruiting: Vols Stay Hot; Gain Pledge from Top JUCO LB Lakia Henry

 

Things may have gotten off slowly for new Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt in 2019 recruiting, but things certainly have picked up lately. The Vols received a huge pledge on Sunday, getting a commitment from Lakia Henry.

The nation’s top-ranked JUCO linebacker according to the 247Sports composite rankings visited Knoxville this past week and followed it up with trips to Nebraska and Ole Miss. But he couldn’t get Rocky Top off his mind.

Now, though he told GoVols247’s Ryan Callahan that he still plans on taking some trips, he chose to commit to Tennessee, Pruitt and lead recruiter Kevin Sherrer. The defensive coordinator recruits South Georgia, where from where the Dodge City (Kansas) Community College prospect originally hails, and the two have established a strong bond. The Vols will continue to recruit Henry with teams such as Alabama and Texas A&M hot after him, too, but Henry is in the house with a verbal pledge.

You can give an assist to UT graduate assistant Joe Osovet, a former JUCO head coach who was instrumental in luring Henry.

He told Callahan that UT is “the place I want to be.” That’s a big deal considering the Vols desperately want him, too. He’s the nation’s top-ranked JUCO LB and the third overall transfer pledge in the class. With Pruitt trying to rebuild and reload the Vols in a hurry, he immediately fits what Tennessee needs.

Henry is 6’0″, 233 pounds, can fly, and arrives with a vengeance. He is a versatile ‘backer and a weapon that looks like an Alabama or Georgia linebacker, much like J.J. Peterson, UT’s big ’18 commit of the Pruitt regime. Henry can play sideline-to-sideline, and the Vols should be able to use him much the way Pruitt did with Reuben Foster at Alabama.

Much like the Vols have done with virtually all their pledges of the Pruitt regime, Henry adds to the size on the roster. Tennessee must essentially revamp its roster, purging it from the Butch Jones mentality of speed and eschewing size. Pruitt needs bigger bodies for his 3-4 scheme, and he wants bigger bodies on the offensive line and at tight end and the skill positions to run a pro-style scheme. Henry continues that trend.

He’s the third commit for Tennessee in the past nine days, joining tight end Sean Brown and wide receiver Ramel Keyton. The Vols’ recent surge began with 5-star offensive lineman Wanya Morris, and the run in Georgia started then, too. All of the mentioned prospects hail from the Peach State, which is going to be a major part of UT getting back to where it wants to be.

Tennessee continues to inch up in the SEC rankings, moving to 15th nationally and eighth in the conference with the latest pledge. Though this isn’t supposed to be a huge class, the Vols currently sit in a favorable position with some of the nation’s top players.

Five-star running back/outside linebacker Quavarius Crouch and 5-star offensive lineman Darnell Wright, 4-star cornerbacks Tyus Fields, Devin Bush and Jaydon Hill, 3-star outside linebacker/defensive end Terrell Dawkins, defensive end Savion Jackson, weak-side defensive end Khris Bogle, running back John Emery, wide receiver Jalen Curry, receiver Khafre Brown, linebacker Kane Patterson, athlete Ronald Thompkins and more hold the Vols in high regard.

It’s going to be interesting to see the class shapes up over the next few months. Some storylines to follow are what the Vols are going to do at quarterback, if they begin to surge with running backs and if they can continue the momentum they’ve built with Crouch and Wright.

One thing is clear: Pruitt is recruiting with the big boys, and Henry is the latest example. UT’s class is really just starting, and the Vols are filling it with some elite playmakers. They’ll have to battle to keep Henry, but this is a big piece of the puzzle who should be able step right in and play immediately.

 

Tennessee Recruiting: Ramel Keyton is a Vol

On the surface, Wednesday’s decision by 4-star wide receiver Ramel Keyton to pick Tennessee over Auburn, Florida and others is big-time news. The nation’s No. 188-ranked overall player and the No. 31 receiver in the class, per the 247Sports composite rankings, is always going to be a nice addition to your haul.

Dig below the surface, however, and the 6’3″, 186-pound pass-catcher’s pledge is even more vital to the Vols’ success in the 2019 class and perhaps even further.

Not only does this signify that coach Jeremy Pruitt and his staff is going to have a resounding presence in the Peach State [Georgia can’t keep all those studs, after all] but it also paves end-roads into one of the richest talent beds for the next two classes.

It’s essentially just as big of a get from the relationships standpoint as 5-star offensive lineman Wanya Morris, who hails from Grayson High School, which produces a slew of playmakers each year. Though Owen Pappoe committed to Auburn on that same day, the Vols are still going to try to flip him to Rocky Top.

Keyton is a gateway to another talent-rich school: Marietta High.

His pledge marks the seventh known UT commit in this class, and now four of those hail from Georgia [tight ends Sean Brown and Jackson Lowe as well as Morris]. The Vols are going after several more studs in a state that led the nation in NFL draft natives this year with 29 players selected hailing from the fertile grounds of Georgia, according to Rivals.com’s Chad Simmons.

They aren’t just gearing up for this class, either. The Vols are already hot and heavy after 2020 quarterback Harrison Bailey, who really likes UT at this early juncture. He may be the top target on the board at the all-important position, and having Keyton can’t hurt. Stud tight end Arik Gilbert, safety Rashad Torrence and defensive end B.J. Ojulari are on that team too.

Tennessee wants all those kids, and Keyton can help recruit them — this year and when he’s on campus in the future.

As for Keyton, the prospect, he’s an excellent prospect in his own rights. He’s big and physical, and though nobody will mistake him for being the fastest kid on the field, he plays faster than he runs in camp settings. He’s big enough at 6’3″ to go up and get balls against smaller corners, and he runs good enough routes to get open over the middle and provide mismatches. Because he’s never going to be a burner, it wouldn’t hurt him to add 20 or more pounds to his frame.

Though he probably doesn’t have quite as high of a ceiling as A.J. Brown, he’s not dissimilar in stature or skill set. Everybody always wants to say, “He’s like Dez Bryant,” with big-bodied receivers, and obviously, that’s best-case scenario, but the bottom line is Keyton fills a big role in this offense. He’s exactly the kind of player UT needs on its roster. If you want a fair comparison at this point, Tennessee leading receiver Brandon Johnson wouldn’t be a bad comp.

Keyton can be a dynamic player for the Vols if he comes in, works hard, improves and continues to listen and develop his skill set. He also can be the kind of vocal presence around the Atlanta area that UT needs, a guy who can trumpet what Pruitt and Co. are selling perhaps better than Morris, who seems to be a quiet, lunch-pail kid.

Keyton told the media on Wednesday that Tennessee was “going to win a championship” while he’s in school. That seems like a long way away, but getting the caliber player with the skills and connections he has is a great start.

247Sports director of recruiting Barton Simmons told GoVols247’s Ryan Callahan he believes Keyton could be an “elite” player who could come in and make an instant impact. That’s high praise from a guy who’s proved he knows recruiting.

This is a big win on the recruiting trail.

Tennessee Football: Heaping Expectations on the Unexpected

 

Tennessee first-year football coach Jeremy Pruitt told the media before his Big Orange Caravan stop in Chattanooga this past week that he expects the 27-30 players the Vols will infuse into the roster who didn’t help this spring will totally change the complexion of the team.

According to GoVols247’s Patrick Brown, Pruitt said:

“I think if you looked at the guys who participated in the Orange & White Game and you count the signees and you count the guys that was injured, there could be anywhere between 27 and 30 guys who didn’t participate in the Orange & White Game that’ll be there in the fall, which will completely change our football team.”

UT hopes — and expects — that change will be for the better. If star offensive lineman Trey Smith, returning receiver Jauan Jennings, graduate transfers Keller Chryst and Madre London, linebackers Daniel Bituli and Darrin Kirkland Jr., safety Todd Kelly Jr. and others can live up to expectations, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Tennessee can go from an eight-loss team to a bowl participant.

That’s not even counting JUCO players like Dominick Wood-Anderson, Kenneth George Jr., Jahmir Johnson and Emmit Gooden.

But what about some of the guys who are already on the roster and went through spring? Who needs to take a major step forward? Who are some under-the-radar Vols who are capable of catapulting from obscurity to dependability?

The Vols simply need to get production from unexpected areas to leap back to respectability. Let’s take a look at some candidates.

K’Rojhn Calbert

You’ve got to love a story like Calbert’s, the massive McMinnville, Tennessee, native who camped for Butch Jones’ staff, eagerly awaited an offer from the Vols despite having offers from schools like South Carolina and Florida. And, when he got one, he committed quickly thereafter.

Leg problems (mostly knee issues) plagued much of his high school career and his freshman year at UT, but he began to improve and ultimately shine this spring. The redshirt freshman was a pleasant surprise in the Orange & White Game, and he looks like he can help Tennessee right now. Calbert is one of the few big, physical linemen on the roster who is athletic enough to be a difference-maker. He looks the part, works hard, and — if he can stay healthy — could be a major asset to the offensive line.

This is an area that was atrocious under the Jones regime, but with long-time quality assistant Will Friend leading the way, the unit was decent this spring. There are some players there, and Calbert — who can play tackle but likely should be a guard — emerged. If he can continue to take strides in strength and conditioning, he could become a starter this year and thrive.

Chance Hall

Talk about raising from the dead …

What a major help for the Vols Chance Hall would be if he could come back from his chronic knee problems that threatened his career. The Virginia native started as a true freshman against Alabama, Georgia and others and looked like a budding star and long-time starter on Rocky Top. Then came the injuries that began back in his high school days (much like Calbert’s). Much of the past two years have been lost.

Now, Hall is back. But is he all the way back? That’s a major question mark. If he’s just working on the sideline at practice, then big whoop. If his rehabilitation is complete this summer and he rounds back into form, that’s basically a quality player that’s the equivalent of house money. At least from a fan’s perspective, nothing else was expected of Hall in his career. Now, we’re looking at the next couple of years of eligibility believing that if he can somehow recapture the stuff that made him a go-to guy as a first-year player against some of the SEC’s best teams, he could solidify the exterior of the line while Pruitt builds back the unit.

That’s a tantalizing thought.

Will Ignont

Don’t go back and watch the Orange & White Game looking for Ignont highlights. It was bad. Really, really bad.

He missed tackles, led with his head, struggled to make any plays and generally looked like he lacked any physicality. The Buckhorn (Ala.) High School product looks like the prototypical 3-4 inside linebacker, but he played an awful spring scrimmage. Plus, when Bituli and Kirkland gets back, Ignont’s going to have a difficult time finding starting reps. JJ Peterson will further crowd the center of the defense as well.

But it isn’t all bad for Ignont. He was in position to make A LOT of plays in that spring-ending scrimmage. He’s big, he’s fast, and if he ever gets motivated, he’ll be a player for UT — whether it’s this year or next. If the light comes on under the tutelage of defensive coordinator Kevin Sherrer, he can be a difference-maker as early as this year. I’m that high on his potential.

But Ignont has to dedicate himself to being the type of player who can make an impact on the field. That starts off the field — in the weight room, film room, and out of trouble. Then, he’s just got to let his instincts take over. When he does that, he’ll shine. Will it be in 2018?

Theo Jackson

Perhaps the least-surprising player on this list is Jackson, who may not even belong. After this spring, the Nashville native has firmly put himself in position for some quality reps this fall, if not a starting role. He can play Star (his most likely spot) or safety, but he’s too aggressive to keep on the sideline.

The thoughts of a defense that boasts him and Nigel Warrior flying around on the back end is intriguing, especially if Micah Abernathy can return to as good as he was as a sophomore two years ago.

But Tennessee doesn’t just need a “starter” or a “contributor” on the back end. It needs a star. It needs somebody who can obliterate guys with the ball, force turnovers, make plays. Warrior needs to be that guy, but there needs to be more than just him. Jackson is a difference-making candidate, and if he is, that can change UT’s defense.

Pruitt is a known defensive back developer, and Jackson looks like the perfect ball of clay. That transition from “just another potato” to use a Dooley-ism to a stud needs to start right away. The Vols need playmakers on the back end stat.

Tim Jordan

Another player that won’t sneak up on anybody anymore is sophomore running back Jordan, who showed up and showed out in a spring game that simply didn’t have many stars. He showed the ability to hit a hole, drag a defender and make plays.

Is Jordan going to be as dynamic as Ty Chandler? No. Is he the type of hard-nosed, between-the-tackles bruiser that Michigan State transfer Madre London is? Uh-uh. But Jordan is perhaps the best combination of the two. He can do a lot of things, and he deserves reps because of that. Nobody is expecting a 1,000-yard season from Jordan, but to get through the rugged SEC season, you need two or three quality rushers, at least. Jordan is pretty big and pretty fast and can do a lot of things with the ball.

What you saw isn’t an aberration; he’s a good-looking back who had a great film and looks like he can be a good SEC player. Can he do it against good defenses, though? We’ll all see that this fall because he should get some opportunities.

Marquill Osborne

What the heck happened to Osborne? You remember when he committed to UT in September of his junior year, giving the Vols and Jones one of his biggest early commits? Even when powerhouses like Clemson and Ohio State came calling, Osborne stuck with UT.

Where is that player?

So far at UT, the North Carolina cornerback hasn’t made a blip on the radar screen. Much like Abernathy was the player coveted by OSU and Georgia as a prep player, the Vols need those guys to live up to their potential. There are two cornerback spots wide open on UT’s roster. Nobody has staked a claim to them. Freshman Alontae Taylor looks like a natural and could be fine there if he stays on defense, and Baylen Buchanan did some nice things this spring.

But Osborne has that pedigree. Why can’t he flash? Is he just a bust, or will the light come on and he surprise some folks? The Vols need for the latter to happen. They need somebody who can neutralize opposing receivers. I’m not sure Osborne is that guy, but a lot of good programs once thought he may be.

Is all he needs coaching?

Austin Smith

Where art thou, Derek Barnett? The Vols certainly missed their all-time sack leader a year ago as he was off winning a Super Bowl with the Eagles as a rookie. The pass rush was stagnant at times and nonexistent at others for UT a season ago. When you look up and down the roster, there aren’t a lot of exciting players who look capable of getting after quarterbacks.

Maybe Darrell Taylor will flash from the second level. Perhaps Jonathan Kongbo and Kyle Phillips can have breakout senior seasons after ho-hum careers.

But Smith is a guy I’m excited to see. There were times throughout his career where the former staff tried him at defensive end, where he was too small. They moved him to linebacker, where he was perhaps too big for a 4-3. Now, in a 3-4 scheme, he may have found a home.

The Vols would love for a guy like JUCO Jordan Allen to emerge and be a pass-rushing threat, but Smith could be hard to keep off the field. The bad thing about UT is he’s not going to be a film-flasher. Maybe he’s steady, and maybe he’ll make some plays. But is he going to make big plays?

This is his junior year. If he’s ever going to do it, it needs to be now.

Latrell Williams

Other than maybe the linebacking corps, the position group that stands to see the most improvement in 2018 is wide receiver. After all, it’ll be hard not to improve on the less-than-stellar coaching chops of Kevin Beard. Before him, Zach Azzanni never really developed anybody but Josh Malone, either.

When you’re running horizontal routes in the boring Butch offense, it’s hard to establish any playmakers.

With David Johnson coming over to coach receivers from Memphis, though, the group could see a huge boost.

Everybody is excited about getting Jennings back on the team to go along with Marquez Callaway and Brandon Johnson. That’s a quality trio right there. But UT needs a guy with game-breaking, difference-making chops with the ball in his hands.

Tyler Byrd doesn’t look like he’s ever going to be that guy. Jordan Murphy is young. Josh Palmer needs to learn how to consistently catch the ball after running his strong routes.

Williams is this year’s “pick to click.” He has blazing speed, and though he’s battled injuries during his freshman season, he got a redshirt and has three years left to shine in Knoxville. He may be raw and won’t always run the best routes, but UT is going to have a lot of guys to do those things. If Williams and whoever is quarterback can find a way to just get the ball in Williams’ hands, the Florida speedster can do some things with it that most can’t.

It’s going to be interesting to see if this offense can get guys in space where Jones’ offense failed. If they can, Williams could really emerge.

Tennessee Recruiting: Tight Ends? Check. Vols Sew Up Position with Sean Brown Commitment

The Tennessee Vols got some anticipated excellent news on Friday night when Coosa, Georgia, tight end Sean Brown decided to end the recruiting process and commit.

The 6’5″, 245-pound 3-star prospect chose UT over other finalist Auburn. He boasted 16 offers total, including LSU, Kentucky, Virginia Tech, Vanderbilt, Purdue, N.C. State and others. Though the Tigers from the Plains seemed to hold an advantage for a while, Brown visited Knoxville earlier this spring, fell in love with the message Jeremy Pruitt was peddling and knew he wanted to be a Vol.

The rest was just details.

Brown wound up committing to Tennessee and joining Cartersville native Jackson Lowe as the Vols’ duo of tight ends in this year’s class. They’re the top two guys UT went after, and emerging ace recruiter Brian Niedermeyer is responsible for both of those guys. Brown’s offer sheet doesn’t match his pedestrian ranking, as he is currently the No. 957 player nationally according to the 247Sports Composite rankings and the No. 37 tight end.

He’ll join Lowe for a formidable duo that can do a lot of things at the tight end position, a spot that looked problematic from a talent perspective this spring. Though depth isn’t an issue, it’s a matter of finding players who can make an impact in the SEC. Right now, it’s uncertain if anybody can do that.

This spring, walk-on Eli Wolf and redshirt freshman Austin Pope got many of the reps. Freshman Jacob Warren needs to add a lot of weight and show more physicality to be a force in the rotation. The Vols got exceptional news this week when reports surfaced that the nation’s No. 1-ranked JUCO tight end, Dominick Wood-Anderson, qualified and is set to arrive in Knoxville soon. Wood-Anderson chose UT over Alabama and a host of other schools and should vie immediately for playing time, if not starting reps.

But versatility shouldn’t be an issue at the position in the future, especially if Wood-Anderson can give the Vols two solid years and UT can wind up signing Lowe and Brown. Both players are physical prospects who are good blockers, can play in-line and also catch the ball on the perimeter. Neither are burners, but they’re exactly the kind of tight ends that offensive coordinator Tyson Helton wants in his pro-style scheme.

That scheme, a lot of times, calls for two-tight end sets, and Brown and Lowe have a good rapport and should find themselves on the field together a lot in future scenarios.

The Vols swooped into North Georgia to fortify the position, and they zeroed in on those two guys as the primary targets at a major position of need. Brown told VolQuest.com’s Jesse Simonton that running track has kept him in great shape, and UT sees him as an all-around tight end. He went in-depth with Simonton in an interview posted tonight.

 

Brown knows Pruitt’s style from watching him at Alabama, a team he’s been rooting for. He told GoVols247’s Ryan Callahan that he wanted to be a part of rebuilding the Vols and knows that Pruitt and his staff are going to get it done.

Niedermeyer is flat-out getting it done on the trail. Though he may be UT’s least-known assistant, he’s proving adept at landing prospects. His name is prominently mentioned with the Vols’ two highest-profile targets as well — offensive lineman Darnell Wright and running back/outside linebacker Quavarius Crouch. If he can land one (or both) of those guys, his star will continue to rise.

Brown is his latest big coup. He’s UT’s sixth known commitment in the 2019 class, and his pledge marks the second straight time the Vols beat out Auburn for an important target. Offensive lineman Wanya Morris also had AU as a finalist, and, next week, 4-star receiver Ramel Keyton will choose between the Vols and Tigers. UT feels good about its positioning in that race, too.

The Tigers did beat out UT (and Georgia) for stud outside linebacker Owen Pappoe, but Pruitt and Co. are holding their own against the Plainsmen. Those are the types of battles you need to win to pull down big-time classes. The Vols aren’t there yet, as this class ranks 31st currently and 10th in the SEC, but it’s only beginning.

Brown isn’t going to do a ton to surge UT up the rankings, but that doesn’t matter. He’s a guy this staff believes should be one of the top two tight ends on their big board, and they went out and got both of those. That’s huge.

On film, Brown’s pass-catching abilities don’t flash, which actually isn’t a bad thing considering in all the commitment stories, his coach talks about that part of his game really coming on recently. His big hands should be an attribute on the next level. But what really looks good is his physicality and athleticism, and playing both ways (as most high school kids do) will help him, as will running track. This is really a kid that’s only now beginning to realize his potential, and once he gets into a college program, he can really take off.

Will he be able to come in and help immediately in 2019? That depends on how he develops over the course of the next year. But he has that ability because his body already is in the right shape, and he has the type of frame that can add 15-20 extra pounds with no trouble. He’s a very projectable prospect who can split out or play inside and block. Brown has a high ceiling and should only continue to rise in the rankings.

Tennessee Football: Pruitt’s Early Success Will Be Determined By Diamonds

Every first-year regime is going to experience a recruiting kick from prospects enamored with the “newness” around the program. Jeremy Pruitt nabbing 4-stars J.J. Peterson, Jerome Carvin and Jeremy Banks were prime examples of this.

Say what you want about Pruitt’s early recruiting victories — they mean very little. Every first-year head coach gets a few of those guys. Pruitt will get his fair share of elite recruits as the years roll on as long as the Vols show marked improvement on the field. The long-time assistant has long been known as a dynamic recruiter and relationship-cultivator, and that isn’t going to change.

It’s the lesser-known prospects — especially in these first couple of recruiting cycles — who will tell us a lot about Pruitt’s abilities to recruit, coach and develop.

It was the other way around for Butch Jones. He did fine recruiting and even molding many low-level recruits into serviceable SEC players. But “serviceable” doesn’t win big in an elite conference. Where Jones and his coaches struggled was taking big-time recruits and developing them into big-time SEC players. Those guys simply never got better during Jones’ tenure. The staff wasn’t good enough, the strength & conditioning program failed them, and Jones never truly had enough faith in his players to allow them to make plays with the game on the line; he was too conservative and played too much “by the book” rather than by feel.

Pruitt may wind up like that, but it would be a major change. He’s never done that as an assistant, and there are no signs (as there was on Jones’ resume) that he’ll do it in Knoxville.

So, it’s important that we look at some of the “reaches” that Pruitt takes and how they mature and develop. Are they really reaches, or are Pruitt and his assistants just exceptional evaluators? Are they getting key-fit kids who have the developmental bodies to slide into important roles within the framework of the defensive or offensive schemes? Or are they just warm bodies to fill gaps in the class?

We can’t know the answer to that yet, but we will soon enough. If it’s the former, that’s an exciting thing for Tennessee fans that Pruitt knows what he wants — stars-be-damned — and goes out and gets them. Also, even if he isn’t getting his first or second choices at a position, it’s important for any coach to get kids who fit that role and turn them into playmakers.

That will be the difference in how long it takes Tennessee to get back under Pruitt.

It’s going to be very interesting to see how lightly recruited defensive linemen Kingston Harris and Kurott Garland fit. These guys should give us an idea of how Pruitt and his staff evaluates and develops.

Harris is a 6’3″, 285-pound defensive tackle from famed IMG Academy. That means that basically everybody in the nation saw him play when they were evaluating other prospects, yet didn’t offer. 247Sports thought there were 1,210 players better than him in the cycle. Is Harris a recruiting oversight? Or do Pruitt and Co. see something in him they believe they can shape into an SEC stud? The same, really, goes for Garland, who had offers from Tulane, Coastal Carolina and Eastern Kentucky. The Vols saw him when they were also scouting teammate and Florida State (former UT) receiver commit Jordan Young, and they wound up taking him on National Signing Day.

Young was overlooked, and it’s possible Garland was, too. It’s also possible these kids are major reaches. That’s not a knock on those guys; but the SEC is the best of the best. Maybe these guys are future stars, multi-year starters and important pieces to the rebuild.

Maybe they aren’t.

They’re worth watching if we’re going to see just how good this staff Pruitt put together is. To a lesser degree, John Mincey is a mid-level SEC recruit from Homerville, Georgia, who was recruited by Arkansas and South Carolina. The Vols were thrilled to get him on National Signing Day, but he is far from an elite recruit. Can the coaches turn him into a guy we’ll look back on and call a steal?

This is three defensive linemen — Harris, Garland and Mincey — who could be high-upside players. They have big bodies, projectable frames and attributes this staff believe translate into a 3-4 defense. Some of the guys committed to the prior regime (such as ultimate FSU commit Jamarcus Chatman) were not considered fits. Even though they had a higher ranking, they weren’t the type of players this staff believed it needed. It’s OK to be skeptical, but it’s not like Jones ever had a good idea of what it took to build an SEC winner, so I have no issues with going in a different direction.

The same can be said on the offensive side of the ball, too. Could Tennessee ultimately hang onto former quarterback commitment Adrian Martinez had Pruitt and offensive coordinator Tyson Helton put on the full-court press when Nebraska and Scott Frost came calling? The Vols fought there to keep Martinez in the fold, but how hard? Nobody seemed overly disappointed when he went to the Cornhuskers, and after a strong spring game, it looks like he could be a true freshman starter in the Big Ten. The same goes for dual-threat quarterback and former UT commitment Michael Penix, who this new staff did not want. He signed with Indiana and has a legit chance to start as a true freshman for former UT offensive coordinator Mike DeBord and the Hoosiers in ’18.

Instead, Helton and Pruitt zeroed in on California commitment JT Shrout. It didn’t take long for the pocket passer to visit Knoxville and flip from his home-state Bears to the Vols. This is a kid who threw a ridiculous number of interceptions in high school and was a 3-star prospect. On paper, he doesn’t blow anybody away. But this is what Helton wanted — a piece he believes he can mold into a legitimate dropback SEC passer. The Vols are transitioning away from a dual-threat-oriented, spread offense into a more pro-style scheme, and Shrout definitely fits that.

How will Shrout develop? Will he make us forget Martinez and Penix?

Las Vegas receiver Cedric Tillman is another player like Harris. He played at a national powerhouse in Bishop Gorman, and he had teammates with high-FBS caliber offers, but he wasn’t one of those guys. UT saw his size (6’3″, 205 pounds) and his ball-catching ability and offered him.

So that’s Harris and Garland and Mincey and Shrout and Tillman. I’m not saying these five guys will make or break Pruitt’s tenure at Tennessee — that’s just silly. But they are proverbial “diamonds in the rough” that are, at least at first blush, developmental prospects. What do you do with developmental prospects? You DEVELOP them. They either turn into stars, or they take up a scholarship spot and are urged to transfer at a later date. Maybe Pruitt will recruit over them, and maybe they’ll become cornerstones for a foundation of success.

Watch them; maybe not in 2018, but throughout their careers. They may tell us a lot about Pruitt and his staff.

Jeremy Pruitt Lands Early Bell Cow of 2019 Recruiting Class in Wanya Morris

As much as I wanted to make an awful Boyz II Men reference in that headline, it would have buried the news on just how important 4-star offensive tackle Wanya Morris‘s pledge to Tennessee was on Tuesday.

After all, not only is this the nation’s No. 46 overall player, the seventh-rated offensive tackle and a 6’6″, 293-pound physical specimen at a position of need from a powerhouse program loaded with talent in this and future classes, it also helps flip the narrative on new coach Jeremy Pruitt’s recruiting.

The Vols had a rousing early signing period in the last cycle, but, let’s face it: Pruitt and Co. needed a recruiting win. Tennessee was largely shut out of landing any marquee names other than stud linebacker J.J. Peterson in the late period, mostly going silent following the flip-of-the-calendar all-star games. This recruiting cycle hasn’t started with sterling momentum, either, scarred by Memphis defensive end Bill Norton visiting Knoxville and committing to rival Georgia on the day he returned home.

All the while, though, Pruitt has kept swinging for the fences. And, as my good buddy Dylan wrote earlier this week, it’s setting up to be a marvelous May for Tennessee. It got off to a rousing start on the first day with Morris’s commitment.

The Grayson High School product out of Loganville, Georgia, had offers from virtually everybody in the nation, and it ultimately came down to Auburn. The topsy-turvy recruitment had its share of ups and downs and momentum swings, but, somehow, Tennessee turned Morris’s opinion in its favor for good with an official visit two weekends ago.

At the time, many recruiting pundits had Morris penciled in to the Tigers on the Plains’ loveliest village, despite UT holding early sway in the race to land his signature. Morris was expected to take his final official visit to Auburn this past weekend, which would have given the Tigers the final chance to convince him. But Morris must have made his mind up in Knoxville last weekend, because he chose not to make that visit.

Now, he says his recruitment is “over” and he’ll sign with Tennessee in December.

As we all know, this is recruiting. These are 17-year-old kids. There is a lot that can happen between now and then, especially considering the 2018 season doesn’t (at least on paper) look like it’s going to be a banner campaign on the field in Rocky Top. Auburn has some nice pieces on its roster and could contend with Alabama (and Mississippi State) in the West. Could that sway Morris’s decision?

It’s at least worth mentioning, but so is the fact that Morris said he’s done. Knoxville is where he wants to be, and while early playing time is obviously a massive factor on his agenda, so are relationships. Both he and his mother love Pruitt and offensive line coach Will Friend, who has a rich history of developing SEC linemen. The Vols have massive holes along the front and need building blocks around which to build their pro-style scheme.

Morris is one of the best early pledges they could have gotten. Now, much of the attention turns toward the nation’s top tackle in Darnell Wright, who loves Tennessee and Alabama and could make a decision before his senior season. Pairing the West Virginia lineman with Morris would be a massive coup, especially considering in-state lineman Jackson Lampley is already firmly in the fold.

Tennessee is still going to swing hard after Morris’s prep teammate and good buddy Owen Pappoe, one of the nation’s top linebackers who also made his choice today. Much like we’ve discussed with Morris, though, these are just verbal, non-binding commitments until they sign on the dotted line, and the first time that can happen is December.

Still, this is a huge early-cycle statement for Pruitt, who is still catching up on relationships in this cycle. He joins 4-star lineman Lampley, 4-star tight end Jackson Lowe, 3-star defensive tackle LeDarrius Cox and JUCO lineman Darrel Middleton as 2019 pledges.

With some players like linebacker Terrell Dawkins, cornerbacks Tyus Fields and Jaydon Hill, receiver Ramel Keyton and others feeling Tennessee right now, the Vols could wind up fleshing their class out with some big names soon. None will be bigger than Morris, who is an incredible piece to a class that’s only going to grow from here on.

This is an indication of the kind of recruiting battles Pruitt won while he was at Alabama. Hopefully, it’ll be one of many he pulls while the head coach at Tennessee.

Fore to Play One: Tennessee Basketball Gets Important Transfer in Richmond Point Guard

Any piece basketball coach Rick Barnes can add to his 2018-19 basketball team that will play critical minutes on a team that should make a deep run in the NCAA tournament is important. That’s why Monday night’s news that graduate transfer point guard Khwan Fore of Richmond was big news.

The Vols earned Fore’s pledge over Auburn and a host of others following the guard’s visit to the Plains this past weekend where coach Bruce Pearl tried to lure him to play for the Tigers.

In the end, the Vols won a rugged SEC battle of the top two regular-season teams as both look to put finishing touches on quality groups returning next season.

Fore made his decision public over Twitter.

The 6’0″, 175-pound guard is a pivotal piece who should step in nicely for the departed James Daniel, who transformed his game from a big-time scorer at Howard to a table-setter during the 2017-18 campaign for the Vols. Daniel split time with explosive point guard Jordan Bone and was an integral part of UT’s resurgent team.

Fore, though, is more of a pure point guard; something UT has been missing in recent years. The former Huntsville, Alabama, native will joint fellow North Alabamian Lamonte Turner on the Vols roster. Tennessee has enjoyed success in that area in recent years, also landing former guard Detrick Mostella from the area. Fore is an experienced player who’s appeared in nearly 100 games for the Spiders. He started 26 games this past season and averaged 11 points per game.

Though Fore isn’t known for his marksmanship, he is a quick guard who can slash to the basket and whose game thrives on penetration, much like Bone’s.

A couple of weeks ago, Fore told VolQuest.com’s Rob Lewis:

“I definitely want to go somewhere where we’re going to be able to win and make the tournament, with the kind of success they had here already they’re definitely set up to do that,” Fore said in an interview following his trip to Knoxville two weeks ago.

“The coaches told me that they need a guy like me, someone that can penetrate, finish and play tough on the ball defense. Those are my strengths.

“One thing that I really liked about Coach Barnes was that he didn’t just talk about the things I could do, he talked about my weaknesses and how they could help me get better.”

Though Barnes’ high school recruiting hasn’t landed many marquee names, he’s shown a propensity for evaluation, development and fit. The Vols are thriving because of it. Barnes also is proving he knows how to go out and add important missing elements to his team. Daniel was a major part of the success of the past season, and though JUCO guard Chris Darrington didn’t pan out, Darrington’s transfer led to the opportunity to sign Fore.

He’ll be a vital piece this year, and the Vols could go a long way. Getting another guy who can penetrate and dish to a group of players poised to win big is big news.

The 5 ‘Musts’ For Tennessee Football To Succeed in 2018

 

Most of us are realists who realize that six wins in 2018 is going to be a chore. That doesn’t mean we’re going to be satisfied with it or even give coach Jeremy Pruitt a pass if he coaches the Vols to it, because no matter how much the failures of the past decade-plus want to change us, we still expect the best.

It’s part of the diabolical frustration that comes with being a Vols fan.

We know that it’s going to be hard to get bowl-eligible, but asking for three conference wins [or just two and an upset of West Virginia] shouldn’t be too much. Pruitt is looking for quick-fixes with hopeful plug-and-play transfers like Keller Chryst, Madre London, Kenny George Jr., Jahmir Johnson, Dominick Wood-Anderson and Jordan Allen.

So, if those guys pan out, it’s because Pruitt thinks they can help the Vols get closer to where they want to be.

The question everybody wants to know in the post-Butch Jones, near-apocolyptic roster situation is this: What’s it going to take for Tennessee to be good again in 2018?

First, it depends on your definition of “good.” It would be stunning for the Vols to get to eight regular-season wins, but “good” for this year after ’17’s 4-8 debacle would be a 7-5 regular season. That won’t be “good” deeper into Pruitt’s tenure, but given what he has to work with, it’d be fine in 2018. Probably not good enough for him, and definitely not good enough for us to be pumped, but it would be fine.

Here are five things UT must have happen if it’s going to reach seven [or, heck, even six] wins in 2018.

1. Quarterback play must be much-improved

Jarrett Guarantano got much better this spring. He had a long way to go, but he took some steps forward. The redshirt sophomore from New Jersey is going to have to continue to get better and even thrive in Tyson Helton’s offense if he’s going to be the man in ’18.

Stanford transfer Keller Chryst is coming this summer, and he’ll elevate the play at the position just by being the type of quarterback tailor-made to run a pro-style offense. Is Chryst a star? No. He has accuracy issues and hasn’t proven he can lead a top-shelf team, but neither has Guarantano.

Last year, Tennessee simply didn’t have a player at the position who could take over a game. Now, the Vols must find somebody who can advance the ball downfield, take care of possessions and make all the throws. This has to be a more vertical team if it’s going to keep defenses honest and balance things. Also, with the expected offensive line issues, running the ball against good defenses, at times, will be tough. So, Tennessee has to get the ball in the hands of potential playmakers like Jauan Jennings, Marquez Callaway and Brandon Johnson.

That will fall on the shoulders of Guarantano or Chryst. One of them must take a massive step forward if the Vols’ offense is going to be stout. There’s no way around it. This team doesn’t have enough talent on the roster to win with mediocre quarterback play.

That’s a harrowing reality for this team that has yet to prove it has anybody dependable throwing the ball.

2. The rush defense has to see a dramatic turnaround

Tennessee’s rush defense in ’17 — and in Bob Shoop’s entire two-year tenure — was atrocious. It was one of the worst marriages of any team and coach in recent memory. The Vols were dead-last in the SEC a year ago, allowing 251.25 yards per game. They were 126th nationally, which means just four FBS teams were worse.

That’s pathetic.

Quite frankly, the Vols didn’t look much better in the Orange & White Game, either. Shy Tuttle played one of the worst games I’ve ever seen him play in the scrimmage game, and while I hate to call out kids, he’s an upperclassman and cannot be showing up like that. It was really bad. With possible starting inside linebackers Darrin Kirkland Jr. and Daniel Bituli out, that unit was bad, too. Quart’e Sapp was ineffective, and Will Ignont — who everybody hoped would take a major step forward this spring — looked like he was playing patty-cake out there. Maybe they’ll get a wake-up call when they review the film. It was bad.

How bad was the rush defense? The first-team defense allowed 140 rushing yards, even against an offensive line that was missing many of its top players.

I don’t know how you improve that rush defense that much, but you can’t do what Tennessee has been doing in the SEC in recent years and have success. Getting Kirkland and Bituli back will help. Getting Darrell Taylor acclimated to a new position will help. Having Tuttle play like he can will help. Kyle Phillips and Jonathan Kongbo need to be much better. Newcomers like JJ Peterson and Kurott Garland could help. Something has to, or it’s going to be another long, awful year.

3. A patchwork offensive line must overachieve

Tennessee got some players back this spring as guys like K’Rojhn Calbert, Chance Hall and Nathan Niehaus did some things in pads. That’s huge for an offensive line that desperately need them all and for them all to surge.

Hall’s knee issues have derailed a once-promising career that began with him having some dominant SEC games as a true freshman. Can he return to that form? If so, it’ll be a MASSIVE help to the exterior of the offensive line. Who knows what Niehaus will give the Vols, but though we don’t know too much about Calbert, he’s big and athletic. He played a lot this spring, and once the redshirt freshman matures, he could be a force. He actually looks like an SEC tackle.

True freshman mid-term enrollee Jerome Carvin definitely looked like he could help the team out right away this spring, and there are other important “musts” like Drew Richmond playing like he was expected to when he came in as a blue-chip prospect, Marcus Tatum being able to put on and add weight and play at a consistent level, and JUCO prospect Johnson to come in and thrive.

But the biggest thing the Vols need — without question — is for superstar sophomore Trey Smith to return.

He’s battling an undisclosed medical issue that kept him out all spring, and though Smith worked on the sideline, his future is very much up-in-the-air. Folks around the program and my sources are optimistic that he’ll be able to play again, but that isn’t a guarantee. If he does, he automatically becomes an anchor that is not only a potential All-SEC player but a possible All-American.

He’s that good, and he can help the Vols right away immensely. First, he’s got to get out there. If he doesn’t, it’s hard to envision this line being SEC-worthy.

4. The Vols simply can’t have injuries

There really aren’t any words to describe the bad luck Tennessee had in the injury department the past couple of years. On one hand, you had to believe players struggled to learn the difference between “hurt” and “injured” during that tenure. It may sound harsh, but it’s true. Some players were accused on being “soft” during that regime, and it manifested itself on the injury report.

But, even in that, I blame Butch.

After all, there were four strength and conditioning coaches in this program in five years. That’s pathetic. It’s a disservice to the kids and the assistant coaches who lost their careers because of coaching malpractice. Different strength coordinators — like coaches — have different philosophies. But when that happens and you’re changing them year after year, you’re screwing around with players’ bodies. That’s what’s been happening in Knoxville.

One year, the Vols may want to get bigger; the next faster. One year, the Vols may want to work agility-heavy, and the next, there would be an emphasis on power-lifting. There’s no consistency, no continuity, and bodies broke down.

That shouldn’t happen under Pruitt, who has been part of the program with the best strength & conditioning program in the nation. UT is paying Craig Fitzgerald a ton of money to make sure that doesn’t happen. This team needs to get healthy after a few offseason surgeries and some clean-up from the Jones tenure.

Once they get there, they need to stay there.

5. They’ve got to find a pair of quality cornerbacks

Let’s close back on the field. That’s where the Vols desperately need to find some cornerbacks who can stick with some of the top receivers in the SEC.

The league is a bit down at pass-catcher in ’18 which helps the Vols, but they’re still going to have to contend with players like Ryan Davis, Deebo Samuel, Bryan Edwards and the stable of Mizzou receivers.

This spring, junior Baylen Buchanan blossomed into a guy Pruitt believes he can trust. Is he a true No. 1 cornerback? Eh, I wouldn’t go that far. But he took some big steps forward, and he has the NFL pedigree and the potential to be a very solid player. Also, Marquill Osborne’s time to shine is now or never for the Vols.

But while Buchanan could emerge, there are vacancies. And it isn’t like he has a spot locked down. Pruitt is a defensive back guru, and he wants to find some guys back there on which he can depend.

Alontae Taylor is intriguing. Though he wants to play receiver, the top UT prospect and true freshman moved over to the defensive side to get a look and showed instant promise. That’s where Pruitt wanted him when he was with the Crimson Tide, and it’s where UGA wanted him, too. That’ two pretty good defenses that saw massive potential from Taylor at corner, and he showed why quickly. Will he stay there? Could he play on both sides of the ball some? Don’t rule anything out.

Two other names to watch are incoming JUCO transfer Kenneth George Jr., who was a late addition to the class and boasts 6’0″, 200-pound size. There’s also Treon Flowers, from the Atlanta area, who UT beat out Clemson for in one of a few late-signing period victories.

Both of those guys have the potential to step in and be forces in the race to be starting cornerbacks. The opportunity is now here.