Two Weeks Into Camp, Do Early CB Returns Change Calculus for 2020 DB Recruiting?

With a roster that has been drastically improved since Coach Jeremy Pruitt took over but still has a ways to go in order for Tennessee to be a true SEC contender, there realistically isn’t one position that can reasonably be considered in strong shape top to bottom.  There are certainly more blue chip players on the roster than there have been in a long time, and there is also hope that Pruitt and his very well-regarded staff can get step-up performances from a number of former 3-star recruits who were signed by the former regime.  But no matter how you cut it, there are needs at every position.  However, there are a finite number of scholarships in a given cycle, and staffs inevitably have to make concessions from one position to another as they put each class together. 

That said, projected numbers at each position in a class can fluctuate depending on a number of factors, most importantly of course the number and talent of the current and future players on the roster.  Specifically at Cornerback for Tennessee, three developments in camp so far have the potential to influence what Tennessee seeks to do at the position in the class of 2020:

  • After two weeks of camp and one major scrimmage, one name has been prominently and consistently mentioned among the breakout players – freshman and veterans alike – so far this fall: CB Warren Burrell.  Burrell was an even-at-the-time obviously underrated (by recruiting sites) prospects who chose the Vols over Florida, among others, and was an early enrollee who showed playmaking ability in the spring.  At over 6’0 and with long arms and a nose for the ball to go with the kind of attitude needed to be successful at the position, Burrell has taken his strong spring performance and run with it.  After receiving rare praise from Pruitt, Burrell by all accounts played most of Sunday night’s scrimmage with the starters at CB opposite Bryce Thompson and is at worst going to be the third CB in the rotation when the Vols start the season in less than three weeks, meaning the three top CBs will all be either sophomores or freshman.  Both of the other class of 2019 prospects signed to be CBs – Tyus Fields and Kenny Solomon – have also had their moments early in camp, showing the tenacity and speed/length they are known for, respectively
  • Tennessee’s only projected contributor in the secondary who is a Senior, Baylen Buchanan, has been injured since the spring and has not yet practiced.  At this point, though details of his injury are very scarce, it wouldn’t be surprising for him to take a medical redshirt year in 2019 and come back for the 2020 season.  If that happens, it would give the Vols another experienced CB in 2020 that they didn’t anticipate having
  • Jerrod Means, a late take in the class of 2019 as a WR, was moved to CB before the start of camp and has already shown flashes of real potential.  At 6’2 and around 215 pounds, Means has the length that is almost a prerequisite for a Jeremy Pruitt CB prospect.  He’s also a kid who ran a 4.4 40 and produced a 39-inch vertical at a Tennessee camp last summer, so his athletic ability is borderline elite for that size.  Everyone knows that Pruitt loves DBs who played both on both sides of the ball as that likely means they have ball skills that translate well to the secondary, and Means also played Safety in high school.  While it remains to be seen whether he sticks at CB and then becomes a good one, he’s got everything you’re looking for at the position and his move means the Vols added 4 true CBs in the class of 2019

Tennessee already has two CB commitments in the 2020 class in early enrollee Art Green – the nation’s #2 overall JUCO player – and Lovie Jenkins.  Jenkins is almost a carbon copy of Burrell in terms of size and length and chose the Vols over a heavy pursuit from Notre Dame as well as offers from Miami, Missouri, and many others.  Do the Vols need another CB in this class?  Maybe not, though it’s unlikely they’d turn down any of their top targets still on the board – namely Joel Williams (announcing in September,  leaning towards Bama) and Kendal Dennis (Vols in Top 2 with Auburn, UF and Miami trying hard, could announce in August) –  if they wanted in now.  But as things change during the season and the December signing day approaches, the Tennessee staff could certainly decide that the 3rd CB spot is needed more elsewhere, and given the developments above that wouldn’t be surprising in the least.  It’s a good problem for them to have to work through and a sign of the ever-improving roster as well as Pruitt and his staff’s evaluation acumen.

Injury Prevents the Defense of Your Dreams, Again

Wherever you might’ve placed Emmit Gooden on your “least afford to lose” list, his presence there at all speaks to the problem of his out-for-the-season absence. Two things we’ve been saying all off-season:

  • Defensive line is a bigger question mark than offensive line, because at least some of those guys on the OL played meaningful snaps and you’re bringing in five-star freshmen.
  • Other than those offensive tackles, there’s nowhere any newcomers have to step in and lead right away.

Well, now the first part is even more true, and the second part is probably a lie.

Darnell Wright and Wanya Morris are Tennessee’s two highest-rated signees. You have to go further down the list to get to Savion Williams, Darel Middleton, and Elijah Simmons. If you’re looking for good news, that’s two JUCOs and an 18-year old that looks like this:

(Like me and my almost-two-year-old son, that dude’s head circumference is in the 100th percentile. “He’s so good he doesn’t need a neck!” – Idiot Optimist by next week, probably.)

So, potential remains on the defensive line for Tennessee. Now you just need it to show up immediately.

The only good thing about early fall camp injuries is the amount of time you have to get over them before facing live fire. More newcomers (hopefully including Aubrey Solomon) will get more reps, along with important returning pieces like Matthew Butler, and we’ll re-calibrate as best we’re able.

But it’s okay to say, 3+ weeks from kickoff, that this sucks. Especially because it keeps happening to one of those defensive guys on the least afford to lose list.

Butch Jones is long gone, so we can say this without it sounding like an unnecessary defense of him: this is the fourth time in five years the Vols have lost one of their best defensive players for the year before the calendar hits October:

  • 2015: Curt Maggitt, Week 2
  • 2016: Jalen Reeves-Maybin, Week 3
  • 2017: Darrin Kirkland Jr., fall camp
  • 2019: Emmit Gooden, fall camp

You can argue whatever percentage you like between bad luck and the revolving door to the strength and conditioning department, but still…man. These posts are getting old.

Gooden’s injury: bad news, but no cause for panic

“You know unfortunately last night Emmit Gooden suffered a knee injury and won’t be with us this year.”

Jeremy Pruitt, 8/7/19

Heck of an opener there from Jeremy Pruitt yesterday. I didn’t see the video, so I can’t say for sure what his demeanor was, but from a cold reading of the text, that’s some remarkable restraint addressing some remarkably bad news.

What is Pruitt thinking? I mean, with the exception of quarterback Jarrett Guarantano, Emmit Gooden was probably the guy the team could least afford to lose to injury this season. As Patrick Brown said this morning, Gooden was the most proven player on the team’s most unproven unit. I’m relatively certain that every conversation I had or heard about the Vols this offseason included an unequivocal statement that the defensive line was the team’s biggest question mark. And now, the one thing we do know is that we can’t count on one of the guys we were counting on. Sigh.

If you’re counting the lost productivity, here’s how it all adds up. Defensive linemen Kyle Phillips, Shy Tuttle, and Alexis Johnson all started all 12 games last season, and they have all graduated. Today, you can add to that ledger that of the team’s most-productive back-up in Gooden, who started a game, played in all 12 and had 33 tackles, 7 TFLs, and a sack last season. You can probably also add any productivity from Kurott Garland to the mix, as he is making doe eyes at other schools through the transfer portal.

But here’s the thing. Pruitt does not sound distraught at all, pointing out that he still has “10 guys there right now.” Here’s what he’s talking about:

Apologies appear to be in order for Dawson Stephens and Gatkek Kueth, who apparently aren’t top-of-mind for Pruitt despite making the roster as DLs. But even without the walk-ons, that’s 12 guys. Take out Gooden and one other, and those are the 10 Pruitt’s counting on. Please, please, please let him be counting Garland as gone and Solomon as here.

At this point, I think it’s wise to trust Pruitt and to mirror his lack of panic concerning the loss of Gooden. Here’s why:

  1. There is still reasonable optimism that Aubrey Solomon will be granted eligibility to play this fall for the Vols. Yeah, it’s the NCAA, and yeah, that institution is as predictable as an inebriated roulette wheel, but come on. They don’t have to tap dance on a straight line while singing show tunes backward and blowing into the breathalyzer. We just need them to stay on the stool. You can do it!
  2. Correct me if I’m wrong about this, but I would think that the learning curve is not nearly as daunting along the defensive line as it is, say, for the offensive line. You do have to line up correctly, but the linebackers are there to assist with a well-timed smack on the butt if you happen to be wrong. After that, it’s just go get the ball until the whistle blows, right?
  3. These are some big bodies. Five of these guys are over 300 pounds, and Elijah Simmons is a monstrous 340. I’m pretty sure he’s harboring an illegal immigrant in each of his thighs.

Losing Gooden is most certainly not good news. But all is not yet lost. We still have the prospect of Solomon, and we have brute bulk and strength at a position for which that’s 90% of the job.

So, I’m not panicking. I would not be surprised to find that these guys do just fine this fall. Go get ’em.

Worth reading 8.8.19: Gooden out for season, Niehaus departs

If you read only one thing about the Vols today . . .

. . . make it this, from 247Sports:

Everything Jeremy Pruitt said after Wednesday’s practice

The big news in there is that (1) nose tackle Emmit Gooden has torn his ACL and will be out for the season, and (2) offensive lineman Nathan Niehaus has left the team.

Other Vols stuff worth reading today

  1. Rucker: Gooden’s injury already throwing wrench at Vols, via 247Sports
  2. Returning starter on OL leaving Vols, via 247Sports
  3. Pruitt: Vols ‘have to be patient’ with freshman OL Wright, via 247Sports
  4. LB To’o To’o impressing Pruitt in opening days of camp, via 247Sports

Keon Johnson and Corey Walker Make 2020 Class One of Tennessee’s Best

Keon Johnson’s commitment gives Rick Barnes three of Tennessee’s eight highest-rated signees in the modern recruiting era (247’s commitment list goes back to 2003):

  1. Tobias Harris
  2. Scotty Hopson
  3. Robert Hubbs
  4. Josiah James
  5. Duke Crews
  6. Keon Johnson
  7. Ramar Smith
  8. Corey Walker

Johnson is the second-highest in-state player in that group behind Hubbs. If Josiah James isn’t a one-and-done this season, the 2020-21 Vols will be one of the most talented teams in terms of recruiting stars we’ve seen around these parts.

In terms of wattage in an individual class, the 2020 group could also be in the mix as an all-time great. We don’t think of them as being in the same class today, but it’s hard to top Tobias Harris and Jordan McRae in 2010. Harris was a one-and-done who went 19th in the 2011 NBA Draft; McRae appeared in only ten games that season and played more than four minutes only thrice (via Basketball Reference), but became the dominant scoring option in Cuonzo Martin’s tenure. He’s played in 86 NBA games including 27 last season with the Washington Wizards.

The one that felt most important in the moment was in 2006: while Bruce Pearl was leading one of the most impressive year one turnarounds in SEC history, he also signed Duke Crews, Ramar Smith, Wayne Chism (#13 all-time among Tennessee signees) and Marques Johnson (#21, transferred to NC State). Only Chism would finish his career at Tennessee, but the first three were a part of two Sweet 16’s and a number one ranking in 2007 and 2008.

That 2006 group, on the heels of earning a number two seed in the NCAA Tournament helped change our impression of what Tennessee basketball could be. We’re seeing more of the same from Barnes now: a number three and number two seed in the last two tournaments with teams featuring four players who fought their way to the NBA after coming in ranked 36th (Jordan Bone), 40th (Grant Williams), 53rd (Admiral Schofield), and 62nd (Kyle Alexander) among Tennessee signees all-time. Also in that group: Jordan Bowden (54th). Lamonte Turner stands out at 28th!

What Barnes and that group have done is transform Tennessee basketball, already earning a month atop the polls and missing the program’s first number one seed by a hair while earning a winning record against Kentucky. The steps left to take are few, and the Vols are paying their head coach to be in the company of schools who take them. And now the Vols are earning commitments from the kind of talent that gets you a top five class.

In basketball.

Can Vols Make a Play for Former Georgia 5-star Brenton Cox?

With the news that former 5-star OLB Brenton Cox has decided to transfer (or, if you believe Georgia homers, has been dismissed) from UGA the logical question is of course where will he end up.  He’ll obvious be heavily coveted, assuming he doesn’t have serious skeletons in his closet, as he’s not only a former bluechip recruit but also comes with a full year of playing experience at the highest level of college football.  Last year he played in 13 games for the Dawgs, making 20 tackles including two tackles for loss and one sack.  He also started the Sugar Bowl and has 6 tackles in UGA’s loss to Texas. 

Cox was ranked as the #23 overall player in the 2018 class by the 247 Sports Composite and at 6’4 245 with elite athleticism is exactly what Pruitt and the Vols are looking for in an OLB.  While they are absolutely in the mix for elite edge prospects like BJ Ojulari, Reggie Grimes, and Savell Smalls in the 2020 class, to date they have not succeeded in bringing in a prospect of Cox’s caliber at the position and reasonably believe that it’s a major missing piece to get the Tennessee defense to another level.  Again assuming the reasons for his leaving UGA aren’t of the violent/felonious nature, the Vols should be all-in on trying to land him. 

The good news is that Tennessee has a major tie with Cox, as Pruitt was Alabama’s lead recruiter for him when he was their Defensive Coordinator.  And while he eventually signed with UGA after decommitting from Ohio State, Pruitt got Cox to take an official visit to Alabama in early December right before getting the Tennessee head coaching job and the Tide were thought to be his leader until Pruitt indeed left.  Given Pruitt’s reputation as a recruiter whose biggest strength is relationship building, one can assume that he and Cox had formed a pretty strong bond considering where Pruitt had gotten the Tide in that recruitment.  It’s also fair to assume that while current Tennessee ILB Coach Kevin Sherrer wasn’t Cox’s lead recruiter while at UGA that he and Cox are also very familiar with one another. OSU could end being a player given Cox’s prior status as a Buckeye commitment, but with Urban Meyer having departed Columbus they might be less of a factor. 

Either way, the expectation should be that every national power at least kicks the tires to gauge both the issues surrounding Cox’s departure and then his interest.  From there it will either be a quick decision – as some of these things end up being – or  knock down drag out fight for an immediate impact player.  Tennessee should be a factor here un the latter scenario if it wants to be.  Should they land Cox that would go a LONG way towards addressing one of the biggest needs in the 2020 class and he would be penciled in as an instant starter next season.  Stay tuned…

Defense: Can Vols Get Step-Up Performances from any Butch-era Bench Players?

We’ve taken a look at the potential for the 2019 Tennessee team were its former bluechip recruits on the offensive and defensive side of the ball to play up to their rankings.  When you look at it from that angle, there is reason for some optimism if you put a any amount of faith in Coach Jeremy Pruitt and his staff to coach them up.  However, we’ve also stipulated that regardless of whether or not that elevation in play from former 5 and 4-stars happens, the team does not have enough quality depth across the board despite Pruitt’s relatively strong efforts in his stub 2018 class and first full class of 2019. 

Yesterday we took a look at the true Juniors and RS Sophomores from the class of 2017 as well as the handful of seniors and RS Jrs on the offensive side of the ball who, if they step up and play the best ball of their respective careers, can have a meaningful impact on the 2019 season.  Whether its providing quality depth and rest for the first-teamers or even better make big plays when the opportunity presents itself, shoring up the bottom portion of the roster (from a star ranking perspective) with play that exceeds what anyone is expecting from them would simply be huge for Tennessee. 

Below we look at the defensive side of the ball from that perspective:

DL

Matthew Butler (Jr)/Latrell Bumphus (Jr)/Jaquain Blakely (RS Jr)

There is expected to be greater overall depth on the DL this season after Tennessee leaned (too) heavily on three since-departed seniors.  However, there is a big difference between a player who can provide actual quality depth and “Just A Guy.”  Butler  is without a doubt the Vols are counting on to if not push for a starting role than be a first off the bench kind of player.  Bumphus and Blakely, both of whom have played TE in their time in Knoxville, are big guys with athletic ability – if that can translate this season into meaningful skill and ability on the DL such that they can give the starters some real rest without a huge dropoff that would be big

OLB

Deandre Johnson (Jr)/Kivon Bennett (RS So)

Johnson has shown flashes and has actually played a lot of football.  Bennett hasn’t played much on Saturdays but had a strong spring.  These two, along with former 4-star JUCO Jordan Allen, are going to be given every opportunity to take the OLB spot opposite Darrell Taylor.  Whoever does win that job will also probably get a lot of 1-on-1 chances as the hope is that Taylor is commanding double teams on every play.  If either, or preferably both, of them can step up and grab the opportunity and be legit pass-rush threats while also effectively setting the edge in the run game that would take the defense to another level and give DC Derrick Ansely much more freedom and flexibility with his back 7

ILB

Shanon Reid (Jr)

Solon Page (RS So)

Reid was a breakout star in the spring, having completely reshaped his body (read: got a lot bigger) while not losing any of the speed that was his calling card in high school.  At this point it seems like the Vols are counting on him to if not start at ILB – pending what a stud freshman like Henry To’oto’to can do – than at least give them a ton of high-quality snaps. 

Page on the other hand still hasn’t found his niche on defense and is likely a special teamer.  However, there’s a ton of value there too, and if he can make some big plays throughout the course of the season on coverage teams, etc, that would give the Vols a big boost

DB

Shawn Shamburger (Jr)/Theo Jackson (Jr) – sdafadsf

Cheyenne Labruzza (RS So)/Terrell Bailey (RS So) – asfads

Shamburger and Jackson have played a lot of football for Tennessee in their careers – unfortunately it’s been on two of the worst teams in the program’s history.  However, they both do have talent, and Jackson in particular could be in line to start at S.  That’s particularly the case depending on what happens with the Nickel position, where there’s a real chance that Nigel Warrior could slide down and take snaps there. 

Labruzza and Bailey have not played at all on defense in their respective careers to date, and it remains to be seen if they will.  That said, Labruzza has generated some buzz in the offseason and does have a pretty solid pedigree as a prospect and is also finally healthy.  He’ll be in the mix at Nickel and will also play teams for sure.  Anything the Vols can get from these two would be counted as a bonus and would boost the overall play of the team

Hope is Undefeated in August

It’s the first day of practice, a preseason NFL game was on last night, and Madden releases today. Welcome to August.

The power rankings for individual off-season days used to be topped by the release of that year’s NCAA Football game. By the time actual practice started you could throw for 3,500 yards and go undefeated with any Vol quarterback from Heath Shuler to Justin Worley. I think I only bought Madden in 2000 when the Playstation 2 came out, and in 2005 on the Xbox 360, when you had to wait a whole year for a next-gen release in the college game. But since 2013, we’ve been stuck with Madden; child-like imaginations might find their way to an orange-tinted team (maybe the Browns this year!), but it ain’t the same.

Without the video game atop the off-season rankings, maybe your favorite day is the first time you get your hands on Phil Steele’s magazine (or Gameday on Rocky Top’s!). SEC Media Days always let you know things are getting closer. The announcement of kickoff times for the first three weeks lets you make tangible plans.

We don’t get an inside look at the first day of Tennessee’s practice, though Fan Day is available on Sunday. We’ll wait for names to pop in sound bites and behind paywalls, and hope some of those names are on the defensive line.

But, at least for me, one of my favorite days this time of year is driving through the neighborhood and seeing your local high school team practicing. I haven’t lived in Knoxville for 14 years now, and still miss the way orange slowly increases in the community over the course of August. But that idea of a group of people coming together around a team is still alive and well on every high school field this time of year.

This is the month when reason gives way to hope. Reality sets in for everyone in September. But no matter how long it’s been – and it’s been a while for us – hope is undefeated in the month of August.

We’ll start finding out what kind of hope this August will bring today.

Go Vols.