KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — As the Tennessee football program officially welcomed 29 signees on Wednesday, the sixth-ranked Volunteers took Haslam Field and continued preparations for the 2022 Capital One Orange Bowl. The postseason clash with No. 7 Clemson is nine days away as the two storied programs meet for an 8 p.m. kickoff on Friday, Dec. 30 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.
Redshirt-senior quarterback Joe Milton III, redshirt-junior wide receiver Bru McCoy and redshirt-senior tight end Jacob Warren met with members of the media after practice to preview the bowl matchup ahead of the holiday weekend.
Gearing up for his fourth start as a Vol, Milton discussed the challenges presented by Clemson’s defensive unit and what the Big Orange will need to focus on to continue the success from the regular season in which Tennessee led the nation in scoring (47.3) and total offense (538.1).
“Their front seven, their whole defense in general is a great defense,” Milton said. “They play fast, they play smart, they all play together. I feel like personally we have to block well, fix the run assignments that we have throughout the week. Make sure we understand what’s going on, making sure we can do it all the way around, running and passing the ball. Just being an efficient office and taking care of the ball.”
In addition to confirming his intentions to return for the 2023 season, McCoy also praised the ACC Champion Tiger defense in his comments on Wednesday and spoke to the opportunity to face an uncommon opponent.
“Super physical, they play fast, they play aggressive, super well-coached,” McCoy said. “They disguise coverages well, they move well, they play sideline to sideline, they’re going to scramble to the ball and they’re going to compete. I’m excited just to go out and play a team we wouldn’t normally get to play. It’s a good team and you can tell on film it’s going to be competitive. They got guys down, we do too, but I still think the products on the field will be super competitive. It will be a fun game.”
Select quotes from each player can be found below.
Redshirt-Senior QB Joe Milton III
On if his approach to the bowl game is to end the season on a good note or to get a head start on next season…
“Kind of both. We have to finish it off, obviously, for our brother Hendon (Hooker). He put a lot into the program, and if he was out there, he’d be playing his heart out. I feel like that’s what we’ll do as a team. Besides that part, it’s just getting a start for the new year. The game is played on the 30th, so it’s going into a new year. You get to sleep right on the first.”
On his growth now taking the bulk of practice reps…
“It helps a lot, for one. But two, even when I wasn’t starting, I was taking reps behind Hendon (Hooker). Every rep he had, I had to take. So, having more reps is a plus. Getting a feel for everything at the one-position is a tremendous jump. It’s the ball game, so you have to do what you have to do.”
On Clemson’s defense…
“Their front seven, their whole defense in general is a great defense. They play fast, they play smart, they all play together. I feel like personally we have to block well, fix the run assignments that we have throughout the week. Make sure we understand what’s going on, making sure we can do it all the way around, running and passing the ball. Just being an efficient office and taking care of the ball.”
Redshirt-Junior WR Bru McCoy
On his relationship with Joe Milton III…
“Me and him have always had a great relationship from when I first got here, he’s one of the guys that kind of helped me get more involved. With him stepping up and being the guy this game, me and him have taken reps. I’m confident, I think we’re both confident in one another. We’ve already got a great rapport. We’re just going to continue to build on it. We’ve got a good opportunity here to go showcase that.”
On his intentions for the 2023 season…
“Without a doubt I will be coming back next year. As far as a role, I just want to be the best teammate I can be. Continue to grind and work and do what I can to help win games. Ultimately, just set more team goals than I do personal and just go out there and have success.”
On how long it took to get accustomed to the offense…
“Now, very comfortable. Obviously, it’s a bit of an unorthodox offense. Coming from more traditional offenses, seeing football your whole life, then you come into something that is a lot of rule-breaking stuff. After you adjust and learn how to function in it, it’s really smooth and easy to understand. Now, I’ve got a great grasp on it, so I’m able to help other guys learn and help myself take my game to a next level because I have a better understanding of the whole field` and I feel really comfortable in the offense now.”
On what Clemson does well defensively…
“Super physical, they play fast, they play aggressive, super well-coached. They disguise coverages well, they move well, they play sideline to sideline, they’re going to scramble to the ball and they’re going to compete. I’m excited just to go out and play a team we wouldn’t normally get to play. It’s a good team and you can tell on film it’s going to be competitive. They got guys down, we do too but I still think the products on the field will be super competitive. It will be a fun game.”
Redshirt-Senior TE Jacob Warren
On if the tight ends expect to have a bigger role in pass game against Clemson…
“We’ll get our opportunities inside. I think we’ll have a lot of guys step up too. I think this is a good opportunity for our young slots and our young outside guys to step up and show their playmaking ability and kind of get a glimpse of what it’s going to be like next year for this team.”
On looking back at how far he’s come at Tennessee…
“It’s crazy. On Snapchat, we get these memories where it will say for, “Five years ago today,” this is what happened, or this is what you were doing. Yesterday, it popped up the picture of me at Signing Day and a couple of my friends sent it to me how they had pictures of me on Signing Day, and it was five years ago. You look back and it’s crazy how far I’ve come and how much more I have to go. It’s cool to look back and think and see these guys now like Nico (Iamaleava), these guys are just now starting that journey is pretty crazy. It’s cool to see for sure.”
On if he and Princeton Fant are the leaders of the tight end room…
“We’re just doing what we can. I think we understand this offense really well. We understand what’s asked of us and the details of what we need to get done. We can sit in there and watch the film and be able to diagnose it and be able to tell what’s going on, but it’s good to have some of our younger graduate assistants and quality control guys step up and try to help us out on details or something we maybe aren’t seeing big-picture wise that can help us out.”
-UT Athletics
