Day 1 practice observations: Vols officially start training camp
Fall camp has begun.
On a nice, overcast (and thankfully not too hot) Saturday afternoon, Team 121 kicked off practice.
One immediate takeaway: Zero green jerseys. It was jarring. Rob Lewis kept looking around for Jalen Hurd.
But really, Tennessee kicked off its 2017 training camp with a rather traditional first practice: lots of energy, drills mostly focusing on fundamentals and some freshman looking lost.
Onto the observations…
As expected, the offensive line immediately jumped into full-gear, with the competition continuing from the spring. Walt Wells and GA Cam Clemmons had those boys working hard Saturday and the first-five was essentially how UT ended the spring: (L-R) Drew Richmond, Jack Jones, Jashon Robertson, Trey Smith and Marcus Tatum. Coleman Thomas and Brett Kendrick started with the second-unit after missing spring practice. The unit did lots of work with the medicine balls and sleds.
This kid won’t play in 2017, but man, K’Rojhn Calbert has a great looking frame and is straight country strong.
The funniest moment watching the OL? When Wells shouted at a couple guys to get out of the drill because “They’re brother-n-lawing each other.”
The quarterbacks both looked sharp in basic pat-and-go drills, mosly throwing go routes, seams and crossing routes. Like in the spring, Quinten Dormady and Jarrett Guarantano were on opposite sides of the field, with Mike Canales mostly watching Dormady and Larry Scott keeping an eye on the redshirt freshman. Some balls definitely hit the ground, but overall, but the quarterbacks had a nice first day. At receiver, Brandon Johnson and Josh Smith, who was challenged by Butch Jones during one drills, both made some nice catches.
Defensively, Tennessee’s defensive line spent a lot of time working on leverage drills in the chute. Compared to other units, it wasn't the most spirited session but the group still got its work in. It's hard to make overarching reactions with a group not in pads, but Kahlil McKenzie has definitely changed his body.
The linebackers and safeties both did ball-tracking drills — defending the pass and run. With the LBs later switching to tackle dummy drills. It was good to see Quart’e Sapp looking explosive.
Finally, special teams. As usual, Tennessee repped a ton of guys at both kick returner and punt returner.
At KR: Evan Berry, Tyler Byrd, Micah Abernathy and Nigel Warrior were the main guys, while the PR were Tyler Smith, Marquez Callaway, Justin Martin, Jauan Jennings and Emmanuel Mosley.
QUICK HITTERS
* A lot of newcomers looked good up close, but tight end LaTrell Bumphus might've taken home the "First Impression Award." He looked all of 260 pounds, but the freshman was moving really well and showcased some nice hands. It’s in our highlight package, as Bumphus made a good adjustment on one rep that turned a lot of heads.
* Freshman defensive backs Maliek Gray and Theo Jackson both started with the safeties.
*Freshman wideout Princeton Fant was wearing a big brace on his left arm. Fant currently weighs 216 pounds and looks like Jason Croom 2.0. Would not be surprised if TE is in his future.
* Up close, freshman tailback Tim Jordan has the look of a SEC running back. The rave reviews from this summer appeared warranted. On the flip-side, freshman wideouts Jordan Murphy and Jacquez Jones are going to need some long hours in the weight room and lots of protein shakes. Josh Palmer did look good, though.
* Couple number changes: Marquez Callaway is now No. 1, Brandon Johnson is No. 7 and Jacquez Jones is No. 21.
* Injured players Darrin Kirkland, Daniel Bituli and Shy Tuttle were seen lightly running during practice. Kirkland wasn't wearing any brace on either knee.
* During the stretch period, Charlton Warren walked around his DBs and put odds on who would be the first to record an interception in camp. “T-shirts on deck?” Noting a reward for the winner. With some colorful language, Martin and Mosley were quite confident they’d be the one to net the first T-shirt.
* As noted on the board earlier (but in case you missed it), 2018 prospects OT Tanner Antonutti, LB/DE Andrew Johnson and CB Trey Dean were all at practice. Tailback commit Lyn-J Dixon was in attendance, too.