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Josh Heupel sets expectations high for Tennessee WRs in 2024
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Josh Heupel isn’t shying from hyping his wide receiver room.
Tennessee pass-catchers accounted for 4,239 receiving yards during the 2022 season to remember, led by Jalin Hyatt’s 1,267 yards. The UT passing attack took a step back in 2023, and receiving production dipped to 3,162 yards as the Volunteers adjusted to life without Hyatt and QB Hendon Hooker.
Heupel turned some heads in the spring when he declared his 2024 wide receiver room his deepest yet. On Tuesday, he was asked to revisit that comment, and explained why he sees it that way.
“Well, just pure numbers,” Heupel said in his press conference. “We got here and there’s some things that we had to navigate with our scholarships on our roster. Recruiting bigs. They’re going to take a little bit more time to develop potentially. You end up being a little bit short at some skill spots. Wide receivers has been one of those.
“We’re the deepest that we’ve been on a roster, a number of scholarship players, but then the play-making ability of those guys, some of those young guys being in our program multiple years, got a lot of trust in those guys. Can’t wait to see it when we get to training camp, but guys that have a great understanding of what we’re doing offensively also have the ability to make plays and go up and attack the football and be consistent winners.”
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While “deepest” is yet to be determined, it’s understandable why Heupel is embracing elevated expectations for his pass-catchers. There is a little bit of everything in the UT receiver room.
Squirrel White was Tennessee’s leading receiver last season. As a sophomore, he logged 67 catches for 803 yards and 2 touchdowns in the 2023 campaign.
Bru McCoy, who has been good for 12.8 yards per catch in two seasons with the Vols, is back and healthy after suffering a season-ending injury 5 games into last year.
Dont’e Thornton Jr. provides more experienced production. Over his time at Oregon (2021-22) and Tennessee (2023), he has logged 39 receptions for 765 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Returning veterans White, McCoy and Thornton provide a solid foundation. The most excitement may center around the newcomers.
True freshman Mike Matthews was a 5-star recruit on the 247Sports Composite as the No. 24 prospect overall in the Class of 2024. Matthews has the advantage of being an early enrollee, and already made his presence felt in the Orange and White spring game.
Matthews isn’t the only heralded newcomer in the wide receiver room. The Vols made a portal splash in landing Tulane transfer Chris Brazzell. The 6-5, 200-pound Brazzell is coming off a 2023 season in which he recorded 44 catches for 711 yards, an average of 16.2 yards per reception.
White, McCoy, Matthews and Brazzell would make for one of the most exciting receiver rooms regardless of who’s behind them. Heupel, though, made a point of touting his younger receivers who are eager to show what they can do.
Chas Nimrod figures to be a breakout candidate. A speedster with a 6-3, 220-pound frame, he has the experience of playing in 15 games through his redshirt freshman season, logging 19 catches for 194 yards and 1 touchdown.
Another younger wide receiver looking to break out is Kaleb Webb. As a true freshman, Webb had 16 receptions for 166 yards and 1 touchdown.
For the Vols, the biggest issue may be having so many mouths to feed. Heupel, though, wouldn’t have it any other way.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
