Tennessee Football: 5 thoughts entering the 3rd week of fall camp
By Ethan Stone
Published:
Tennessee concluded its first scrimmage of fall camp on Saturday, which means the Vols now have just a few weeks of practice remaining before they do it for real on Aug. 30 against Syracuse.
The Vols are a bit of an enigma right now, to say the least. Between the starting quarterback competition, Boo Carter drama, Jermod McCoy returning from injury and so much more, it’s hard to precisely predict the quality of the product Vols fans will see put to the field in Week 1.
That doesn’t stop everyone and anyone (including us here at Saturday Down South) from offering their take on the state of things, however. Without overreacting, here are 5 thoughts I have surrounding Tennessee football post-scrimmage No. 1.
1. George MacIntyre is still in the race for QB1. How much will he play this year?
Josh Heupel — not surprisingly — declined to name a starting quarterback following Saturday’s scrimmage. There was some minor news of interest on the QB front, however. Heupel mentioned that all 3 quarterbacks — Joey Aguilar, Jake Merklinger and George MacIntyre — are still in competition for the starting job.
It’s hard to say who has the edge right now. Lately my working assumption has been that Aguilar’s experience as an FBS starter will give him the advantage heading into Week 1, with the possibility that he and Merklinger will continue the battle into the season. In that scenario, I imagined MacIntyre as a project. I still believe Aguilar will win the job, but I’m not sure I’ve been giving George MacIntyre enough credit.
The true freshman has quietly put together a really impressive offseason, and the fact that he’s still being considered for the job is proof of that. Heupel made it clear Saturday that that the Vols do not plan on “dramatically changing the reps” for all QBs post-scrimmage. He had more to say about the former 4-star from the podium:
“George… we challenged him post spring ball in some of the areas that he had to grow, some of that physical, some of that fundamental and technique,” Heupel said on Saturday. “You’ve seen a lot of that growth from him, and you’ve seen his level of play be dramatically different than where we finished spring ball and that’s from day one of training camp. He’s had good presence, good control of what we’re doing. There’s some areas that he’s going to have to continue grow in, as all of our players have to do at this point. But I really like what George has done so far.”
Of course, it’s important to note that MacIntyre has largely, if not exclusively, been working with the second and third teams in practice and during the scrimmage on Saturday, according to reports. Regardless, I’m becoming more convinced that we will see MacIntyre in some capacity this season, perhaps even before the Vols face Georgia in Week 3.
2. Buy stock in Tennessee’s cornerbacks, especially Colton Hood
At the end of June, I put Colorado transfer Colton Hood on my list of the 5 most important newcomers for Tennessee football. Now, I’m even more confident he belongs on that list.
Hood thrives in coverage — especially against the run-pass option — which means he should be right at home with Jermod McCoy and Rickey Gibson in Tennessee’s secondary. He spent a lot of time as an outside corner with Colorado, but also saw reps as the Buffs’ dime defender, all while allowing 0 touchdowns in coverage and amassing 6 PBUs with 2 interceptions. I’m interested to see where he lines up this season.
So why didn’t he play more at Colorado? Well, for most of the year he sat behind Heisman trophy winner Travis Hunter, and he broke out against Kansas State, a game Hunter missed with an injury.
Speaking of superstars, let’s shift gears to Jermod McCoy, who made his return to practice on Aug. 8 after suffering an ACL tear in January. “It was cool to see the way his brothers were excited for him in that moment,” Heupel said of McCoy on Saturday. “He broke us down before practice. He’s done an elite job throughout his rehab. There’s still more that he’s got to continue to do. But, excited to get him back out with us.”
McCoy is working through individual drills, and there has still been no update on his status for the start of the season. Still, his participation in practice is a fantastic sign. Even if he doesn’t start in Week 1, it’s hard not to be confident in what Tennessee has with Hood, Rickey Gibson and Co.
3. Tennessee’s TE room may be asked to pick up the slack in the passing game
It’s hard to feel worse about Tennessee’s receivers heading into mid-August.
The Vols have been without Mike Matthews, Braylon Staley and Chris Brazzell — 3 projected starters — for a good portion of fall camp. Brazzell’s case has been especially concerning as he was arrested for driving with a suspended license on Friday, not exactly a strong look for the most experienced option in the group.
It doesn’t appear that any of the aforementioned injuries are particularly serious — it’s very likely that WRs coach Kelsey Pope is just being careful — but keep in mind, this is a group that desperately needs reps. There’s been all this talk about who QB1 will be, but it’s equally important that whoever wins the job has solid options to throw to, and it’s unclear right now who will be in a position to step up.
Thankfully, Tennessee’s tight ends appear ready to pick up the slack.
I’ve seen positive buzz surrounding all 4 tight ends in the group at some point or other these past few weeks. Miles Kitselman and Ethan Davis have the most time in the system and will likely see the most reps this year, but freshmen DaSaahn Brame and Jack Van Dorselaer have been generating some buzz as well. Both are former 4-star prospects and both have earned praise from TEs coach Alec Abeln.
Kitselman is the first and so far only Tennessee TE to eclipse 300 yards receiving under Heupel, and I’m bullish on his outlook heading into his senior year. Perhaps the TE I’m most interested in watching grow is Ethan Davis, who Abeln has said has “all the ability in the world.” Can he take a much-needed step for Tennessee’s offense this year?
With the receivers struggling and the stock up in the tight end room, I feel we are going to see considerably more 12-personnel compared to past Heupel years.
4. Who will lead the way in Tennessee’s backfield?
DeSean Bishop, Peyton Lewis and Star Thomas all bring something different to the Vols’ RB room.
Bishop and Thomas both earned nods on the preseason Doak Walker Award watchlist, but there’s reason to believe Peyton Lewis can be the best running back on the team with his top-end speed and underrated toughness. All 3 will see plenty of carries in a rushing attack that may have to be borderline elite for Tennessee to reach its ceiling on offense, especially with all the question marks in the passing game.
It’s unlikely that Tennessee leans on one running back like it leaned on Dylan Sampson last season. In a lot of ways, the dependence on Sampson was out of necessity — Bishop was injured in November, which mostly derailed a strong start to his redshirt freshman year.
At his best Bishop was rushing for 6.15 yards per carry, which ranks 3rd among SEC backs heading into this season. That’s on a modest 74 carries, too. He’s probably the most elusive runner in the group with underrated quickness — there were some plays last season where his first few steps genuinely wowed. The big question is this: Can he stay healthy in an expanded role?
Thomas brings much-needed experience to the group, and he’s probably the most versatile back in the room. He totaled 871 yards rushing last year at Duke — more than Bishop and Lewis have in their careers combined — and also hauled in 20 receptions for 153 yards and a touchdown. He had 151 and 200 yards receiving his first 2 seasons at New Mexico State. Thomas and Lewis should get the vast majority of handoffs near the goal line.
Speaking of Lewis, the sophomore back may very well have the highest ceiling of the 3 mentioned, but first he has to realize that potential. Lewis’s balance and frame, at least as shown last season, appear superior to Bishop. He also probably has the highest top-end speed of any of the backs mentioned.
Two other backs to keep an eye on are freshmen Duane Morris and Justin Baker.
5. Which freshman will have the biggest impact on defense this year?
Four Tennessee freshmen have been especially interesting to follow this offseason: Jordan Ross, Jadon Perlotte, Edwin Spillman, and Isaiah Campbell. Tennessee is tripping over young talent on defense, so who among the freshmen can make an impact this year?
The Vols are deep along the defensive line, so I’m led to believe it’ll be one of the linebackers, perhaps Perlotte or Spillman. LBs coach William Inge, who has done an excellent job at getting blue-chip talent to Knoxville, mentioned earlier that Perlotte has been going “150 miles an hour” in camp and that the true freshman has pleasantly surprised the defensive coaches after missing spring ball due to surgery.
The pair of redshirt freshmen mentioned earlier are intriguing prospects to watch, too. Spillman appears to be turning heads, and his taking a step would be a welcome development behind Arion Carter and Jeremiah Telander. Inge called Spillman a “monster” when describing his presence in the LB corps last week.
Finally, Ross is a guy Tennessee fans especially would love to see drastically improve. The former 5-star prospect blocked a punt and returned it for a score to start last year but fizzled out as the season wore on. With James Pearce and Omarr Norman-Lott off to the NFL, the Vols will need someone to step up in the pass rush. Ross isn’t the only option to fill that void, but will he be the one to ultimately answer the call?
Ethan Stone is a Tennessee graduate and loves all things college football and college basketball. Firm believer in fouling while up 3.
