Sophomore surge? Callaway and Johnson ready to showcase their skills

Last season, both Brandon Johnson and Marquez Callaway had breakout performances on homecoming.

Johnson caught five passes for 64 yards against Tennessee Tech — almost his entire production on the season — while Callaway took a punt to the house for a 62-yard touchdown and recorded his only reception of his rookie campaign.

Following the blowout win, both freshman wideouts quietly slide back into the shadows the rest of the year, but now, Tennessee hopes its two budding young receivers are ready for a sophomore surge.

“I’m really looking forward to putting it all out there against Georgia Tech,” Johnson told VolQuest.

“We know what the stakes are,” Callaway added.

With Jauan Jennings and Josh Smith the two vets in otherwise inexperienced receiver room, Johnson, Callaway and a slew of other underclassmen are competing for playing time this fall. Just last week, first-year offensive coordinator Larry Scott said Tennessee’s young receiving corps “has really kind of been a surprise,” and Butch Jones noted that Callaway and Johnson “are challenging for a starting position.”

While both wideouts got a brief taste of college action in 2016, they’re eager to showcase their skills in an expanded role this fall — hoping to answer Jones’ recent challenge for playmakers to emerge.

“Johnson is just so smooth,” linebacker Darrin Kirkland Jr. said. “The routes. His cuts. He can really (play).”

Johnson had offseason shoulder surgery, limiting him during spring practice, but the 6-foot-2, 195-pound sophomore was so “driven” to be involved in practice that he jumped into pass-skeleton drills late in camp. Now fully-healthy, Johnson has continued to display his dogged work ethic during preseason practices and in the film room.

“It’s the biggest thing my pops ever taught me: Never let anyone question your effort,” said Johnson, the son of former MLB catcher Charles Johnson.

“Never let anyone outwork you. That’s all I know.”

Johnson is perhaps Tennessee’s most intriguing wideout option to pair with Jennings. He’s long, rangy and “super smooth.” In a unit filled with a variety of skills and talents, the second-year player from South Florida probably possesses the best combination of fundamentals, physical attributes and upside.

“I pride myself on being an all-around receiver, whether that’s my route running. I take pride in my blocking, my jumping ability and being able to go up and get the ball. Just being someone you can always rely on,” Johnson explained.

“You have to have the most confidence in yourself. That’s all it is really. Self confidence. Especially at the receiver position. That’s key. If you don’t believe in yourself, who will?”

The same can be said for Callaway. The Peach State sophomore is competing for a starting job at two spots — wideout and punt returner — and Callaway said his confidence and comfortability is lightyears ahead of where it was a season ago.

As is the case with many sophomores, “the game as slowed down.” A year in the system has allowed the 6-foot-2, 200-pound sophomore — deemed an "athlete" out of high school because he played defensive back and wideout — to really learn the nuances of the receiver position and the playbook.

Now, Callaway feels comfortable asking all sorts questions, saying, “We always nitpick Jauan and Josh’s brains.”

“Whatever they’re learning, we want to know too,” he continued. “That’s not just me. Just all the guys in our class. We ask a lot of questions. We want to know what the defense is thinking. We want to know what the quarterback is thinking. That’s one thing I really like about our class, we’re not afraid to ask what’s on our mind.”

Through two weeks of camp, Callaway has already noticed results from his increased film study and offseason development. When Tennessee breaks into 11-on-11 work or 7-on-7 stuff, Callaway said he’s “gotten a lot better at reading the defenses.”

“Now, if I have a route where I’m supposed to run a post, but depending on the defense, I can change it up. I definitely couldn’t do that last year.”

While both Callaway and Johnson are challenging for the same spot, there’s a friendly rivalry there between the two second-year players. They're super close friends, positively pushing the other. They both know a poor route, a drop or a bad block is all it takes for one to leapfrog the other on the depth chart.

“I love the vibe of the room,” Johnson said.

“There’s a lot of great competition going on there. Everybody is fighting for playing time. It’s elevating everybody’s play. Even the freshman coming in, they’re making everybody work. I love the competition in the room. It’s elevated the culture.”