KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – With classes underway and the preseason winding down, No. 15 Tennessee will use this week as a mock game week before turning its full attention towards preparation for the 2024 season opener against Chattanooga on Aug. 31 at Neyland Stadium.
“Wrapping up training camp today, guys are off to class,” head coach Josh Heupel said during his Monday press conference. “You can feel the energy with all the students coming back to campus. A couple of weeks, a little bit less than that, until we go kick off in Neyland Stadium.”
While there is still plenty of work to be done prior to gameday, Heupel was confident in the work that has been put in throughout preseason camp.
“Love what we have done throughout the course of training camp,” Heupel said. “You have seen individuals get better throughout the course of it, you have seen units get better.
“I think during the course of training camp, individual growth, fundamentals, technique, alignment, assignment – you have seen steady growth. None of that is going to be monumental in one day. It’s continuing to take the right steps every single day. This group plays extremely hard. They compete extremely hard, they are really consistent in that.”
Despite preseason camp being in the rearview mirror, competition for playing time and roles in a variety of position groups is at an all-time high.
“No depth chart being handed out yet,” Heupel said on Monday. “As we head into this week, there is still a lot of competition. I have said it to our team since January, our coaches included, I think I have mentioned it to you guys too, we need to have multiple guys ready to play (at every position).”
One of the position battles with the most intrigue heading into the season is at STAR, where Heupel and defensive coordinator Tim Banks will look to fill the void of Jourdan Thomas, who will miss the entire season as he recovers from an injury sustained during fall camp.
Junior Christian Harrison and true freshman Boo Carter, who was tabbed a preseason Freshman All-American on Monday by On3, are the two frontrunners for the job heading into the season opener against the in-state Mocs.
“With Jourdan going down, Christian playing there, Boo Carter — you guys have asked about him too — both of those guys have done a great job of growing in the fundamentals of playing the position, the communication that takes place there with the guys beside them, back behind them, making plays,” Heupel said. “Really excited about what both of those guys have done on the practice field up until this point, and both of those guys will play a lot of ball.”
The Vols have an off day tomorrow before getting back to work on Wednesday at Haslam Field.
Extremely limited tickets for UT’s season opener against Chattanooga still remain and can be purchased by visiting AllVols.com, so don’t miss your chance to see the Big Orange in action to open the 2024 campaign at Neyland Stadium.
Head Coach Josh Heupel Transcript
Opening statement…
“Wrapping up training camp today, guys are off to class. You can feel the energy with all the students coming back to campus. A couple of weeks, a little bit less than that, until we go kick off in Neyland Stadium. Love what we have done throughout the course of training camp. You have seen individuals get better throughout the course of it, you have seen units get better. Good teams get better throughout the course of the season. We still have a lot of things we have to clean up before we get ready to go play. Competitive group, like what they have done.”
On what he has learned most about the team throughout fall camp…
“I think during the course of training camp, individual growth, fundamentals, technique, alignment, assignment – you have seen steady growth. None of that is going to be monumental in one day. It’s continuing to take the right steps every single day. This group plays extremely hard. They compete extremely hard, they are really consistent in that. Been really physical, so I like that part of our football team right now. As you get into the season, I think everybody grasping their role, working and competing for the role that they want. At the same time, growing as a player is really important, and keeping your team chemistry that you have built is really important as well. Those are things that as you embark on the season here at this point, you get ready to go play. Your coaches and players have to do a great job.”
On Nico Iamaleava’s status and the overall health of the team…
“He’s fine. Had a stomach bug. He’s been out on the field here the last couple days, so he’s great. As a football team, healthy. At the same time, you look at training camp, the physical grind of it. There are some guys that have to continue to be at their best by the time we get to kickoff, but that’s always true this time of year.”
On transitioning from camp to a mock game week…
“You’ll get into some of the structure, some of the things that you maybe don’t get in your work against another unit within our program. You try to emphasize some of those things to help your players, in all three phases of the game, continue to grow as a player for some of the things that they’re going to see during the course of the year. For us, it becomes a little bit more like a regular game week, but you’re still doing a lot of good-on-good work too. So, it’s kind of a combination, but it’s a good taste for the new guys that have never been through fall with us of what a game week kind of looks like.”
On the recent success in recruiting and how Tennessee’s footprint has evolved…
“Tennessee is unique in all the states that touch it, how close in proximity it is to so many great players to the north, south, east and west. I think the success in recruiting for us isn’t something that just happens in the last six weeks. There is so much hard work that goes into it from your staff and from your players here on campus when recruits come to campus. At this point in our tenure, having long-standing relationships with coaches, people that have their feet on the ground, the recruits themselves, their families, us being able to recruit to the culture that we’ve built here, the success that we’ve had on the field, who we are and how we live out every single day, all those things parlay itself into the success that we’ve had on the recruiting trail — in particular here over the last month and a half. For us as a program, we have to keep taking steps forward. We have elite players with physical traits that have high character, and that allows us to continue to recruit the right type of person and player to this program.”
On balancing the type of information shared with in-helmet communication…
“I will be a combination of all those things. When it first came out, I think I said it. It gives you an opportunity to have a little more description of some things that are unique within your game plan, situational football in particular. Four-minute situation, reminding them of the play clock. You have four downs here, you don’t have four downs. Some of those things. That really happens on both sides of the football.”
On success in recruiting out of state…
“It’s time on task. That’s with coaches. It’s with people coming into contact with some of these players — trainers, for example. It’s being able to get them here to campus and having the opportunity to see what Rocky Top looks like, the stadium and visuals of gameday experience. It’s them being here for gameday. Ultimately, it’s the culture. It comes down to your players in your locker room being able to be real with them about what it is like to live out and be a player here day-in and day-out. Then you look at the success on the field, the growth and the development of players — as a man and as a player — where they have an opportunity to go fulfill their dreams.”
On how to successfully recruit guys from bordering states…
“Time on task, with coaches it is people that come into contact with some of these players. It is trainers for example, it’s being able to get them here to campus then having the opportunity to see what rocky top looks like. The stadium, visuals of gameday experience, them being here for gameday. Ultimately it is the culture. It comes down to your players in your locker room being able to be real with them about what it’s like to live out and be a player here day in and day out. Then you look at the success on the field. The growth and the development of players, as a man and as a player, where they have an opportunity to go fulfill their dreams.
On the competition at left guard…
“No depth chart being handed out yet. It’s been really good, Dre (Andrej Karic) missed a couple of days but came right back. He has played really well. Sham (Shamurad Umarov) is playing really well; Jackson Lampley has the versatility to play multiple sides as well. As we head into this week, there is still a lot of competition. I have said it to our team since January, our coaches included, I think I have mentioned it to you guys too, we need to have multiple guys ready to play.”
On Squirrel White’s outlook going into the season…
“He had a really good camp. He has great command understanding what we are doing, the fundamentals and technique that go in with the different coverages that he is going to see based off the route concept. He plays extremely hard, plays extremely physical, catches the ball well. He’s had a great training camp.”
On what Christian Harrison has done to position himself to potentially start the opener…
“With (Jourdan Thomas) going down, Christian playing there, Boo Carter — you guys have asked about him too — both of those guys have done a great job of growing in the fundamentals of playing the position, the communication that takes place there with the guys beside them, back behind them, making plays. Really excited about what both of those guys have done on the practice field up until this point, and both of those guys will play a lot of ball.”
On the secondary’s available personnel for the season opener…
“I feel really good about where we’re at with that group. Not just the first guy you might see on Saturday, but the guy that’s going to come in and play a lot of football behind him too. They’ve had a really good camp. They’ve continued to get better, so I have really good trust in those guys.”
On what characteristics fit the mold of Tennessee’s culture…
“Smart, tough, relentless competitors, love football, care about the people around them. Want to be great as a man, not just as a player, and are going to go chase it every day.”
On what the team has done to improve offensively and defensively in red zone opportunities…
“Time on task, we have spent a bunch of time in that area of the field on both sides of the football. Schematically, subtle changes to what we have done. We have to be efficient, prolific throwing the football when you are off-schedule down there. When we get into the season, you have to be elite running the football. Defensively, you have to be able to match people out. That’s zone coverage and man principles as well. At the end of the day, we have to go prove it, but we’ve continued to grow in that area.”
