New Vols DC explains what he would’ve dialed up on fourth down vs. Florida
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Unfortunately, new Tennessee defensive coordinator can’t be Scott Bakula in “Quantum Leap” and go back in time “to put right what once went wrong.”
However, it’s still interesting to know what Shoop would’ve called with the Vols winning by six points and Florida at its own 37-yard line on fourth-and-14.
Then-defensive coordinator John Jancek played back, only rushing three with a QB spy while dropping into a deep zone. Of course, the result was former Gators QB Will Grier throwing past the sticks and hitting WR Antonio Callway, who took it 63 yards for the game-winning touchdown.
Shoop says a star on the Vols’ defense asked him what he would’ve done, and he told “The Tony Basilio Show” what he said to that player.
“Jalen Reeves-Maybin asked me that question,” Shoop said. “He said, ‘What’s your identity as a coach?’ I said, ‘My identity as a coach is, fourth down, game on the line, I’m coming after you.’”
Shoop went on to describe how difficult it is with the variety of offensive styles that defenses must face every week.
“Someone used the phrase that football is transitioning from an interval game to a continuous game, with play after play,” Shoop added. “That’s the challenge nowadays. Our identity is we want to attack. I think our players have bought into the culture we’re trying to create.”
Born and raised in Gainesville, Talal joined SDS in 2015 after spending 2 years in Bristol as an ESPN researcher. Previously, Talal worked at The Gainesville Sun.
