Let’s continue the series with a look at the Tennessee defensive backs depth chart exiting spring with a prediction of what to expect this September.
Spring practice — like most all the springs before of the Butch Jones era — didn’t tell us much. But after what we saw and read, we can make some prognostications about what we may see, or at least expect to see, once fall practice starts. So, over the course of the next couple of weeks, I’m going to break down position-by-position what we saw, what we read and what I’ve heard about to project who’s gonna play where come opening weekend against Georgia Tech.
We’ll continue this series with our look at the defensive backs.
Tennessee Defensive Backs
A season ago, Tennessee defensive coordinator Bob Shoop and defensive backs coach Willie Martinez didn’t see eye to eye on scheme or philosophy. Fast-forward a year later, and Shoop is getting used to a new DBs coach in former North Carolina assistant Charlton Warren, who hopes to take all that talent the Vols have accumulated on the back end and mold it into something much better than it’s been the past couple of seasons.
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Teaching the defensive backs to turn their heads around and actually look for the ball would be a start. Outside of Cameron Sutton, finding actual, impressive development among UT’s defensive backs during the Martinez era is difficult. The Vols simply struggled at cornerback and safety despite recruiting fairly well at the position.
Now, Warren must try to help those guys regain their form they displayed as top recruits, especially with Sutton now in camp with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Let’s take a look at what UT has on the third level.
Cornerbacks
The post-Sutton era may be a bit rocky, but it certainly doesn’t have to be, especially considering the Vols got a very big boost with a graduate transfer who should step right in and not only help right away but start. That would be Shaq Wiggins, who will be playing for his third program after starting his career with Georgia before leaving Athens for Louisville along with defensive coordinator Todd Grantham.
Though Grantham and defensive backs coach Terrell Buckley tried to get Wiggins to follow them to Mississippi State, he elected to finish his career in Knoxville, where he has some friends, including former UT running back Alvin Kamara, who helped recruit Wiggins to UT. He’ll have every opportunity to win one of the starting corner jobs, and the Vols are thrilled to have a player with his talent and experience to insert into a rotation needing an alpha. In three seasons, Wiggins has 57 tackles, including 4.5 for a loss and four interceptions. The 5’10”, 172-pound senior needs a big year for Warren on Rocky Top.
Also at cornerback, the Vols have a pair of rising seniors who’ve experienced up-and-down careers at UT and need to finish on a high note. Both are talented enough to, but neither have been very dependable as of yet. I’m talking about Emmanuel Moseley and Justin Martin.
The latter of the two came in with huge fan fare as a 4-star prospect who was recruited by virtually everybody in the Southeast and seemed set to go to LSU before John Chavis left for Texas A&M. As it turned out, the former Overton High School standout came back from his Oklahoma JUCO to Tennessee, and the Vols thought they were getting a stud in Martin. Throughout his first two years, it hasn’t panned out that way. However, he admittedly has grown up a lot. He told GoVols247’s Wes Rucker this spring that the arrival of Warren really helped with a fresh start.
“In particular, I think what made everything click was, really, this is my last year, and I knew I could do it,” he said. “I knew I was talented and capable enough to do it, but just getting a fresh start with the new coaching staff, that was pretty much it. Coach Warren is a real good coach. I appreciate him.”
After a spring where he balled out and was not only one of the best defensive backs but one of the best players on the team, Martin looks poised for a big senior year. It would be big news for UT if he lived up to the athleticism that once had him as an NFL prospect.
As for Moseley, he started his career at UT in just the opposite way. He was a 2-star player committed to Charlotte when the Vols flipped him, and though he wound up a 3-star, he was largely overlooked as a skinny defender. However, Moseley added weight quickly, stepped right in and started some games as a true freshman. It looked like his career was ready to take off. But he sort of plateaued, and he’s never really gotten over the hump. In 2016, he had 57 tackles and 3.5 tackles for a loss but had no interceptions. He’s the poster boy for not getting his head around, and teams have picked on him because of it. If he can get his mechanics down, Moseley could end in good fashion. He’s definitely proven he has the talent to.
Those are the big three at cornerback and the guys who should get the most reps for the Vols if everything falls the way they think. But there’s talent behind them. First, I’m excited to see sophomore Baylen Buchanan develop. He was forced into action too early a season ago, but the son of Ray Buchanan has a lot of talent, and he should get better under Warren’s tutelage. Senior former JUCO transfer D.J. Henderson looks like he’s more of a special teams player, but he could possibly play in a pinch.
At nickelback, the Vols simply must stay healthy and get better play than they had a season ago. Rashaan Gaulden, a 6’1″, 185-pound redshirt junior, has immense potential and was one of UT’s best defenders a season ago with 68 tackles and six tackles for a loss. But he needs more difference-making, game-changing plays. Actually, UT needs that from everybody on the back end, but Gaulden should be a leader who steps up and provides that. Behind him, Marquill Osborne enters his sophomore year with a chance to get on the field and make a difference. He has the versatility to play cornerback or nickel, and Osborne is too talented not to be in the rotation. In a pinch, Micah Abernathy has proven he can play nickelback as well, though the Vols would love for him to stay at safety.
UT wound up with three cornerbacks in the 2017 recruiting class, and though none of the signees were higher than 3-star players, they had huge offer sheets, and the Vols had to fend off big programs to keep them in the fold. It all starts with Louisiana product Cheyenne Labruzza, who was wanted by home-state LSU as well as Florida, but he committed to UT early and stuck through the Vols even when they got rid of Martinez. He has the potential to be an immediate-impact player if some of the upperclassmen falter. Then, there’s little-recruited Shawn Shamburger, who fans gave a collective “WHO?” when he committed. Toward the end of the recruiting process, however, in-state Georgia and Kirby Smart tried to get him to visit Athens and steal him late in the process. He also stayed true to his pledge. Terrell Bailey is another Louisiana product who was coveted by Notre Dame late in the process but came to UT.
The Vols love their cornerbacks class, and those guys are going to have the opportunity to come in and fit in.
“I really am excited to watch these guys,” Shoop said at the Big Orange Caravan stop in Chattanooga recently, according to GoVols247’s Patrick Brown. “I haven’t seen them do anything athletically, I have to say, but Labruzza makes such a positive first impression. We’re talking about a 4.0 student, high character, smart, tough, unselfish. I feel the same way about Sham and Terrell. All three of those guys, they know they’re in a position to compete.”
Safeties
At safety, the Vols should be able to go four deep with a pretty strong unit if they’d play up to their potential, and a pair of youngsters could help as well.
Senior Todd Kelly Jr. needs to have a big year. The 5’11”, 208-pound enforcer has eight interceptions in his career, but he needs to get a step quicker and make a difference on the back end more consistently than he has in the past. Kelly is a sure tackler who had 71 a season ago, and he has the potential to be an elite player on the back end. He just needs to take the next step. He’s more of a linebacker on the third level, and he needs to anticipate plays a little quicker than he has. Still, that’s nitpicking considering TK has been UT’s biggest playmaker besides Sutton throughout his career. He’s a leader and a solid contributor who you can write in ink as a starter.
He needs to will UT’s secondary to a better season with his play and his leadership.
The guy everybody wants to see is sophomore Nigel Warrior, who took a huge leap this past spring after a freshman year where he struggled to stay on the field due to his inability to get lined up and grasp the scheme quickly. Now, with a year in the system, it appeared a light came on for Warrior during these 15 film sessions. He’s easily the most talented player in Tennessee’s secondary, and if he can click the way many expect he will, he’s a guy who could develop into an All-SEC player in a hurry. There’s a reason why Georgia, Alabama, Auburn, LSU and everybody else wanted him. But Warrior is Dale Carter’s son, and the Vols legend’s legacy seemed destined to wind up in Knoxville. Now, it’s time for him to dominate.
The duo of quality backups should be Micah Abernathy, who started a lot of games a season ago, and special teams monster Evan Berry, who spent most of 2016 injured. Abernathy is a quality player who very easily could be a starter as a junior, and he’ll probably be in the lineup in his fair share of games. The 6’0″, 195-pound junior started 10 games a season ago and finished with 69 tackles, three tackles for a loss and two interceptions. Warrior may well be too talented to keep out of the starting lineup, but don’t expect Abernathy to give it up easily. It’s excellent to have a player of his ilk back there, even if he’s a versatile guy who provides quality snaps off the bench.
Then there’s Berry, who is one of the best kick returners in the nation. In the bowl game two years ago, it looked like a light was coming on for him at safety where he was playing fast and furious. Last year, it just never came together. He played in nine games, starting three at free safety. He needs to be a lot more consistent on defense, but if he can be, his elite athleticism will help with key reps.
That leaves the two freshmen, including LaVergne’s Maleik Gray, who is one of the prize recruits of this past cycle. The 4-star player chose UT over tons of offers, and the Vols came on and swept him away from Florida State and USC, his early favorites. He could grow into a linebacker, but the Vols want him to stay at safety, where they expect him to be a playmaker soon. He’ll at least help on special teams this year and has the potential to crack the rotation. Then there’s Theo Jackson, who is also from the Midstate. While he probably needs a year in the weight room and a redshirt, he’s a guy the Vols love, and he could be a steal. Jackson is a player who could start a lot of games down the road.
Conclusion
If you look across this list, you’re probably pretty excited, right? After all, the names above are a lot of guys many of us were excited about when they committed and signed. Names like Warrior, Gray, Abernathy, Kelly, etc., were huge recruiting wins.
It’s time for them to be difference-makers on Saturday.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a lot of fans who were thrilled with Martinez’s coaching the past couple of years, and now that he’s gone, a lot is expected of Warren. He was a good hire by most accounts, and he’s got a lot of talent with which to work. If that sounds familiar, the same was said for Shoop a season ago, and we all know how that worked out.
It’s time for a lot of these kids to play like they deserve scholarships, and it’s time for the coaches to coach like they deserve their salary. Above, you see a lot of big names and some decent statistics, but the Vols need game-breaking, drive-killing plays from their secondary. Those have been missing throughout the past couple of seasons, and UT needs to get back to that. This is the unit that has the potential to carry the defense.
It needs to do it.
Prediction
CB — Shaq Wiggins, Emmanuel Moseley, Baylen Buchanan
CB — Justin Martin, Emmanuel Moseley, Cheyenne Labruzza
NB — Rashaan Gaulden, Marquill Osborne, Micah Abernathy
S — Todd Kelly Jr., Micah Abernathy, Maleik Gray
S — Nigel Warrior, Micah Abernathy, Evan Berry
