The injury bug has turned into more of an epidemic around the Tennessee football program over the past two years.
After two of the Vols’ most important players — middle linebacker Darrin Kirkland Jr. and receiver Jauan Jennings — were lost for the year before the season really even started, UT received word over the past few days that they’d be without two more defensive starters — seniors safety Todd Kelly Jr. and outside linebacker Cortez McDowell.
Losing Kirkland and Jennings without question were major blows to the Vols. But the past two significant losses are only really significant due to depth, experience and leadership. Yes, all of those are important factors for a football team, but it’s highly probable that defensive coordinator Bob Shoop is now going to be forced to play even more physically gifted players.
Simply put: There’s at least equivalent if not more talented players ready to go; it’s just a matter of getting them out there and hoping they develop.
Before I get into this point, please don’t misinterpret. These guys’ injuries aren’t a positive. You never want to lose leaders like Kelly — a legacy — and McDowell, who’ve played some vital plays for UT over the past three seasons. It would be doing those kids a disservice to paint it that way, and that’s not the intent.
But Kelly has been forced to play much of the past two seasons with a hurt knee. If he can get surgery to clean it up and come back for a final season healthy next year, it will benefit him and the Vols down the road. The injury has kept Kelly from flying all over the field, and, at times, he’s been a liability in coverage because of it.
The Vols are a faster, more talented secondary when Nigel Warrior and Micah Abernathy are out there, and freshman Theo Jackson is going to see an increase in his role after coaches raved about him throughout the preseason. He’s the future at the position, along with commitments Brendon Harris and Trey Dean. If it seems that UT is always looking to the “future,” well, join the club. I feel that way, too. But the bottom line is this defense lacks SEC playmakers, and a trio of Warrior/Abernathy/Jackson advances that once those guys get in game reps.
Of course, the flip side of that is receivers getting behind you for 63-yard, game-winning, soul-crushing touchdowns, but then again, the bulk of that blame should go to Shoop, who had no business allowing that to happen.
At linebacker, McDowell and Colton Jumper on the field at the same time gave the Vols a seasoned duo who can get guys lined up and who knows all the calls. But it also is arguably the slowest linebacking corps in the conference. Though Jumper will continue to see significant snaps, McDowell’s injury means more playing time for speedy redshirt sophomore Quart’e Sapp.
I’m not at practice every day, and neither are any of the reporters. So, it would be unfair to comment on how these kids go about their business each day. But Sapp made several plays against the Gators once he got on the field and didn’t look out of place at all. He looked like an SEC linebacker with plenty of speed to boot. Also, there’s a possibility that UT will play freshmen Will Ignont and Shanon Reid with McDowell sidelined for the season. Of course, it probably means more Elliott Berry, but if Shoop knows what’s best for this team, he’ll get the young guys a lot of reps this week against UMass and get them prepared to play some meaningful plays in bigger games. Austin Smith could factor into the rotation, too, if he ever gets healthy.
So, while the Vols may have lost a veteran pair in TKJr. and McDowell, they got faster and more talented. That doesn’t mean they got smarter, and given the frequency of busts in the past two years, you could understand why Shoop can’t rely on them. Now, he may have to. That could lead to some bumps in the road, but it also could lead to the Vols having players that can do exciting things on defense rather than just plodding along.
One thing this coaching staff has struggled with — and it’s something that must be in the water in Knoxville — is playing the most talented players. Instead, they go with veterans, and that isn’t always the best. Remember when Phillip Fulmer insisted on Jarrod Parish at safety? How about Mark Levine when Jamal Lewis stood on the sideline? Who’s lurking over there on the sideline that we don’t know about?
After all, Daniel Bituli wasn’t expected to play that much, and he went out and got 23 tackles against Georgia Tech and has been the Vols’ best defender this year. Yeah, he might have gotten benched for a few series against Florida, but I can’t explain that, either.
When the Vols lost to Florida on Saturday, I wrote that when you have a young but talented team, you need to treat them more like they’re talented instead of young. Head coach Butch Jones would do well to heed that advice. What he’s been throwing out there isn’t always cutting it. Why not give other players a try?
Remember how excited we all were when Tyler Byrd flipped from Miami to Tennessee on national signing day eve? Where is that kid? He needs to play. Jones told the media on Monday that Byrd was going to have an increased role. Even if it’s on the wrong side of the ball, it’s about time. Dynamic athletes like that don’t need to stand on the sideline. As awesome as John Kelly is, this staff needed to have a package to get Ty Chandler more touches. We saw that against the Gators, and the freshman’s role needs only to increase.
There doesn’t just need to be “packages” for your difference-makers. They need to be on the field. If they can’t learn what they need to learn to be there, that’s on the coaches. It has come time for Tennessee to turn the corner as a program. There’s no way the Vols should be putting inferior athletes on the field. If they do, it’s an indictment of the program. None of us believe the Vols are out-classed on the field. Have you seen the past few recruiting classes? They’ve been plenty good enough to win.
If the development is where it needs to be, those kids need to be playing. If it’s not, there needs to be some serious changes. It’s time these coaches put some kids on the field who will make a difference on offense and defense, and, most importantly, in wins and losses.
Given the circumstances of the injuries and the players who will be getting their chances, I guess we’ll see the reason they’ve been on the sideline or see why they should have been playing all along. It’s that “next-man-up” mentality that every team needs. It’s why you recruit. It’s why you build depth. And it’s what killed UT a season ago.
For the Vols’ sake and for Jones’, hopefully that won’t happen again this year.