JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – On New Year’s Day, Tennessee opened a new decade with the official TaxSlayer Gator Bowl team press conference at TIAA Bank Field in the Jaguars team meeting room, before spending some time with special members of the Jacksonville community.
Despite the new year beginning, the Vols are waiting to shift their focus, remaining zoned in on completing the 2019 season on a positive note.
“We kind of worry about where our feet are at,” head coach Jeremy Pruitt said at the presser on Wednesday. “And right now, I’m worried about this football team and finishing this season off the right way. When the game is over tomorrow night, we’ll kind of turn the page and move on to the next year.
“Right now, we owe it to the men that are sitting up here, everybody that’s associated with this program to put all of our attention, all of our effort and focus on Indiana.”
Pruitt credited the leadership of team captains and seniors Daniel Bituli, Marquez Callaway, Jauan Jennings, Darrell Taylor and Nigel Warrior, who attended the press conference, for spurring Tennessee’s turnaround this season. After a 1-4 start, the Vols went on to win six of their last seven games to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2016.
“Winning our last five games, six out of our last seven, can be attributed to the men that are up here,” Pruitt said. “You see the talent they have as football players, but one thing I’m thankful to be a part of is the character that these guys have. The toughness and the maturity that they have, the leadership, all the intangibles it takes to have success on the football field, away from the football field, these guys are going to be successful in life.
“These captains were voted on by their teammates and normally you have four. Well, the voting was so high, these are the five guys that got all the votes. I think these guys are phenomenal leaders. They are great men and they have really kind of laid the foundation for years to come here.”
Vols Bring Smiles to Dreamers
Pruitt and the Tennessee captains spent the late morning with several children from the Dreams Come True of Jacksonville organization, which is dedicated to bringing hope and joy to children battling a life-threatening illness, by fulfilling dreams.
Joined by UT’s cheerleading squad, Smokey the mascot and Smokey X, the Vols players signed autographs, passed out Tennessee gear, and took photos with the eager children.
Each participant received a Tennessee t-shirt with UT’s TaxSlayer Gator Bowl logo, and also gifted the Vol players with small cards that shared the children’s interest.
Before the team departed to prepare for their final bowl practice, they took a group photo with the Dreamers to commemorate the special moment.
-UT Athletics
