Tee Martin talks up the potential of Marquez Callaway: He’s similar to JuJu Smith-Schuster
Published:
Tee Martin may not have known exactly what he was getting in Tennessee’s receivers when he arrived this offseason as the program’s new receivers coach but following his first spring back on Rocky Top, one of his players immediately jumped out to him.
During his pre-training camp media availability, Martin talked up Marquez Callaway and noted he sees some similarities in the Tennessee receiver that he saw in a former USC standout and now NFL receiver, JuJu Smith-Schuster.
“Marquez has the skill set, very similar to me, as a JuJu Smith-Schuster, who I had a USC,” Martin said on Thursday in a video shared online by Marshall Hughes of WATE 6/ABC Knoxville. “(Smith) was very intelligent, did everything on special teams and everything on offense, could play inside, could play outside, will play hurt, everything you asked a young man to do.
“I didn’t know Marquez persay, coming into the spring but he always eager to jump in and do whatever you asked him to do. And he loves the game, this is his last year, ran for 4.4 (40-yard dash) flat, in the summer. So he’s gotten faster since a season ago – that was something that I challenged this group with an offseason was to get faster, and they all went into the weight room and they all had better times when they tested a couple weeks ago. So now, we just got to take that work, and put it onto the field, and I think he has the potential to be one of the best receivers in the SEC, and I’m not just saying that because he’s here at Tennessee, his body of work to this point, speaks for himself. And if he just continues to take his game to the next level. I think he could be one of those early, early-round guys.”
The same things Martin sees in Callaway has been noticed around the SEC as the senior receiver is the only Volunteer to the media’s All-SEC preseason team. Heading into his final year on Rocky Top, Callaway has caught 62 career passes for 1,011 yards and seven touchdowns.
If Callaway has improved this offseason as much as Martin claims, there’s a chance he matches his career numbers this fall in his final season on the field for the Vols.
A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Michael Wayne Bratton oversees the news coverage for Saturday Down South. Michael previously worked for FOX Sports and NFL.com
