SB Nation - Stephaun Raines

Post-game awards: Tennessee Volunteers vs. Vanderbilt Commodores

Joel — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:15:38 -0000

Best are-we-sure-they're-not-conjoined-twins. Cody and Cory Sullins, who were both named the scholar athlete of the week and were pictured together for the sponsored award. They play next to each other on the line, right? Is anyone certain that this is not the case?

Best word for the seniors. Kiffin telling the seniors, specifically Rico McCoy, on Friday night not to say that they hadn't won any championships for the Volunteers because of their contribution to the foundation upon which championships will be built in the near future.

Best start, offense. Lane's guys, who went 60 yards in 7 plays to put 7 on the board on its first series.

Best start, defense. Monte's guys, who forced Vandy into a three and out on its first series.

Best bounty hunter. James Wilhoit, G.A., who, upon being told by Kiffin to go find a place kicker with eligibility, found Devin Mathis, who'd played in a junior varsity game here awhile ago but had only recently returned to Tennessee after studying in Mexico.

Best debut. Mathis, who not only kicked the ball over the scrimmage line, but through the uprights for three points on Tennessee's second possession.

Best TFL. Chris Walker, who graduated from Unblockable to Untouchable, blew through the line unscathed, and swallowed Vandy's running back as soon as he had gotten the handoff, driving the Commodores back to their own two yard line.

Best sarcasm, I. Kiffin, who said of the first pass interference penalty on the Vols, "I thought the refs did a great job all night long, and I'm sure that was a penalty on me, on us right there."

Best drive. Jonathan Crompton, Luke Stocker, and the Volunteer offense, who closed the first half with a 4-play, 61-yard touchdown drive in 30 seconds.

Best catch. Luke Stocker, who closed the Best Drive with an outstanding nab in the end zone, leaping backwards, snatching the ball out of the stratosphere, and securing the thing even as he landed flat on his back in the checkerboards.

Worst timing. David Oku, who turned a catchable pass from Crompton into a tip drill in the third quarter, giving Vandy an interception and denying Crompton's bid for the record of pass attempts without interceptions two shy of Casey Clausen's 143.

Worst news. Linebacker Greg King is out for the season with some sort of cracked bone injury, which I think makes McCoy and Shane Reveiz our only remaining linebackers on the roster. I supposed I should clarify that that's exaggeration, because it's close enough to being the truth that it could be mistaken for fact.

Most insufficient sarcasm. Kiffin, on the second pass interference call to deny the Vols an interception in the end zone, who breathed an audible sigh into his lavaliere, said, "I thought that was a great call by the ref throwing the pass interference there. I'm sure that we were at fault . . ." but then said to Bob Kesling, "You can say whatever you want. He can't fine you. Don't worry. Go ahead. Say what I wanna."

Best tag team hit. Stephaun Raines and Reveiz, on 2nd and goal down by 11 early in the 4th. Raines sent Warren Norman, who'd just hauled in a screen pass, head over heels and into the torpedoing Reveiz.

Best sack. Wes Brown, on the very next play, who threw off the blocker, closed in on the QB, and, just when you'd thought the QB had escaped, dived and shoestring-sacked him.

Best hands. Bryce Brown, who seized control of the ball on Vandy's onside kick by grabbing it at its highest point and covering it up immediately.

Orange-est blood. Wes Brown, who said the night before the game, "I would rather go to Tennessee and lose every game than go to another school and win every game."

Best revenge. Kiffin, who ended his portion of the Lane Kiffin Show by telling Bob Kesling, "Thanks, Bill," which was retribution for Kesling accidentally calling Lane "Lance" last week.

Best play, offense. See Best Catch above.

Best play, defense. Wes B's Knees.

Player of the game, offense. Montario Hardesty, who rushed 32 times for 171 yards and a touchdown.

Player of the game, defense. Tie between McCoy, who had 15 tackles, and Brown, who only had three tackles, but whose stat sheet includes a nine-yard sack, a nine-yard TFL (same play?), a QB hurry, and the 25-yard pick six.

Add yours below.

Tennessee 31 Vanderbilt 16 - Survive and Advance

Will — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 04:33:28 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

On senior day, two guys who've been here since 2005 and seen all the ups and downs helped the Vols get bowl eligible. Hats off to Crompton and Hardesty.

Browse more photos »

The best and worst of Tennessee's 2009 season were on display at different points tonight, but in the end the Vols did just enough good to keep Vanderbilt at bay, and Wes Brown put the nail in the Commodores' coffin.

Tennessee's 31-16 win over their in-state rivals makes the Vols bowl eligible, a guaranteed improvement over last year and a nice start for Lane Kiffin. It will get even nicer if the Vols can win at Kentucky next week, with the SEC's bowl outlook cloudy but still leaving plenty of solid options for a 7-5 Tennessee team.

On senior day, Tennessee's seniors carried the load on both sides of the ball. The Vol defense also featured plenty of brand new faces, as a unit decimated by injuries at linebacker and still struggling to find itself without Janzen Jackson struggled at times. But Monte Kiffin's bend-but-don't-break style continued to pay off, as the Vols kept Vandy out of the end zone at every crucial juncture in the second half.

We'll take any win we can get this season, even when we don't play quite as well as we'd like against Vandy. The ups and downs of tonight's game:

The Good

Jonathan Crompton didn't put on his Peyton Manning mask this week, but was more than fine in his final Neyland Stadium performance: 20 of 34, 221 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT that wasn't his fault. Crompton's decision making continues to impress in comparison to where it was in September (and all of last year), and his ability to put the ball exactly where it has to be also led to...
Luke Stocker's incredible touchdown catch, one of five on the night for Stocker to lead the team. Seriously, quit throwing to this guy, because the NFL is going to notice.
Montario Hardesty, on senior day, finally got the sort of workload we thought he'd see all season, and delivered the expected results: career highs with 32 carries for 171 yards. Hardesty now has 1125 yards on the season, and yes, it's a longshot, but if he does that again against Kentucky and in the bowl game, he'll give Travis Stephens' single season rushing record a run for its money. Hardesty needs 339 yards in the final two games...and even if he doesn't get there, he's had a fantastic season.
The 4th quarter hit by Stephaun Raines and Shane Reveiz, two guys who've had to step in to fill holes in Tennessee's defense. Their one-two shot in the red zone drew "OOOOOOOHHHH"s from the crowd and helped hold Vanderbilt to a field goal on the drive.

The Bad

Ole Miss flashbacks on defense. The Vols didn't break, but did bend just enough to make you worry. Vanderbilt may not have had the offensive weapons to fully exploit Tennessee's defense (Warren Norman gets 91 yards of offense), but Derrick Locke and Randall Cobb are putting on a show in Athens right now. If you just look at the box score, the numbers don't show a huge cause for concern - Vols outgained Vandy 422-297 - but there were enough plays where the Commodores had guys running free and breaking tackles against our banged up defense that you have to be concerned about UK.
Season-long flashbacks on special teams. Hats off to Devin Mathis for literally coming out of nowhere and making his first field goal. But when the Vols would rather go for a first down (that they wouldn't get) than kick a 40 yard field goal to ice the game, you know we've got problems. The Vols went for it three times on fourth down instead of kicking field goals, and only converted once. When the Vols called a fake punt, a penalty negated it. When Vandy punted, the Vols got called for the incredibly rare snapper interference penalty, and I'll add my name to the list of people who've never, ever seen that called in a game before. Which leads us to:

The Ugly

Penalties. Of Tennessee's 9 penalties for 95 yards - remember when we saw the fewest flags in the conference? - some were deserved. We got one replay of that snapper interference call, but I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt on that one - it's so rare, I'm not even sure what I'm supposed to be looking for. But two pass interference calls might cause Lane Kiffin to break out his checkbook in the next 48 hours: one in the first half was completely phantom on Rico McCoy, who made absolutely zero contact and was, in fact, a full step behind the intended target when the ref threw the flag. The second was potentially much more damaging, negating Dennis Rogan's end zone interception that would've sealed it with the Vols up 24-13 late, which again looked to be completely phantom on a slant route. I've never seen such inaccuracy on two pass interference calls in a single game - this wasn't even "well there was contact, but...". There was no contact, twice. And if Vanderbilt was more capable of taking advantage, it could've really cost the Vols. Instead, Vandy got only a field goal, the Vols almost ran out the clock, and then...

The Beautiful

Wes Brown is a senior with bad knees, and therefore no real football future. We've been hearing the "this guy can barely practice" line since fall camp. But playing next to senior Dan Williams (who also had a big night tonight), Brown picked up the rare DT interception last week at Ole Miss, then topped himself with the game-sealing DT pick six tonight, carrying a Commodore the final ten yards for the end zone. Bonus points for Lane Kiffin decking Jonathan Crompton during the sideline celebration.

It's hard to feel great about beating Vanderbilt, and though you'd better take seriously a Kentucky team that's going to win in Athens tonight, it'll be hard to feel great about beating Kentucky for the 25th year in a row. But while beating the Cats in Lexington will be no small task, doing so should send Tennessee to a bowl game where they'd play a bigtime opponent, giving this team one more chance to win a big one and end the season on a very high note. It may not have been pretty on every play tonight, and the Vols may have serious defensive depth issues...but Tennessee got the job done tonight, surviving Vandy and advancing to postseason play. What's become a big test at Kentucky comes next, with a chance to make a good bowl now fully back on the table.

Opening Our Files: Roundup on Tennessee Previews & Other Volunteer Notes

Nestor — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 10:00:26 -0000

So let's officially open up our collective notebooks on Tennessee Volunteers. The Vols under first year head coach Lane Kiffin is coming off a picture perfect opener against newly minted D-1 Western Kentucky. The numbers the Volunteers piled up against the Hilltoppers were pretty sick. From the Tennessee team report posted over at Yahoo! Sports:

Western Kentucky turned Jonathan Crompton into Peyton Manning Lite, as the senior quarterback tossed five touchdown passes Saturday in a season-opening 63-7 annihilation at Neyland Stadium.

"To see Jonathan throw for five touchdowns today, more than he threw for all of last year, was really good for him," Kiffin said. "This is a quarterback and an offensive line that has been torn apart for a while now."

Crompton and the O-line did the tearing in front of a sun-drenched crowd of 98,761. Tennessee finished with 657 yards and 34 first downs, numbers that would have required three games to amass last year when the team went 5-7 and cost Phillip Fulmer his job.

Tailbacks Montario Hardesty and Bryce Brown each rushed for more than 100 yards and scored a touchdown. Hardesty rolled up 160 and Brown, a highly touted freshman, ended with 104.

Monte Kiffin’s defense had the Hilltoppers in minus numbers during the third quarter and allowed only 83 yards in 46 snaps. Western Kentucky picked up just six first downs.

The Volunteers piled up video game numbers on both sides of the ball, racking up 657 total yards and 34 first downs on offense, while limiting the Hiltoppers to 6 first downs (apparently their only first down in first half came via a penalty).

Yeah, I know it's kind of easy to dismiss those crazy numbers because they were taking on a hapless Hilltoppers bunch that was apparently playing their first D-1 game. However, I am not going to discount this kind of performance in their opening game under new coach, because it (at least on paper) shows that they are trying to put together a team with lethal killer instincts.

Bruins will have a puncher's chance though (even though at this point I am not seeing how we can pull out this win with a freshman QB and a completely revamped OL). The Tennessee team we are going to play this season is going to be a bit different than the one we shocked at the Rose Bowl. I have gathered some of the pre-season notes on their personnel from around the web with the latest update from our colleagues at Rocky Top Talk (RTT), after the jump.

So Kiffin (or should I say the Kiffins?) will be waiting for the Bruins with a team that returns 12 starters (7 on offense and 5 on defense) from last year's team. Paul Meyerberg from the New York Times has the following lowdown on the key losses from last year's team:

Key losses: Tennessee’s losses on offense are most felt at receiver, where the team lost two 2008 starters to graduation and another pair of potential 2009 starters to injuries. Lucas Taylor was one of Tennessee’s more dependable targets last fall, making 26 grabs for a team-leading 332 yards. The Vols also lost the part-time starter Josh Briscoe, who made 14 receptions for 176 yards and a score. Making matters worse, U.T. lost the senior Austin Rogers (14 for 180) for the season in the spring because of an A.C.L. tear, and may also be without the junior Denarius Moore for much of 2009. Moore, who made 11 receptions for 271 yards (a team-best 24.6 yards per reception), broke his left foot two weeks ago and may miss as much as three or four months. The team also faces a gap on the right side of its offensive line, where it lost guard Anthony Parker and tackle Ramon Foster (27 career starts). In the backfield, running back Arian Foster (570 yards, 1 touchdown) might have had a disappointing senior season, but he still departs as the team’s second-leading career rusher (2,964 yards). As a junior, Foster earned all-SEC honors after rushing for 1,193 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also added 83 career receptions, 19 as a senior. The would-be junior Lennon Creer, the team’s second-leading rusher last fall with 388 yards, opted to leave the program in April.

On defense, Tennessee lost a pair of starters at each level: the line, linebackers and secondary. The biggest is most likely end Robert Ayers, who earned all-SEC honors as a senior. He seemed to put it all together in his final season, making 49 tackles, a team-best 15.5 for loss, and 3 sacks. At tackle, the 21-game starter Demonté Bolden had 35 stops (6 for loss) as a senior. Middle linebacker Ellix Wilson led the team with 89 tackles, and added a sack and an interception; a fine season for the first-year starter and team leader. Rounding out the losses at linebacker are Nevin McKenzie (53 tackles, 10 for loss, a team-best 5 sacks) and Adam Myers-White. The U.T. defense must also replace cornerback DeAngelo Willingham and safety Demetrice Morley. Willingham, a two-year starter, finished second on the team with three interceptions. The would-be senior Morley added 42 tackles and 2 interceptions, but was kicked off the squad after violating team rules. That’s the second time Morley has been kicked off the team in three years; he won’t get a third shot.

Now don't get lulled into a false sense of comfort after reading those grafs. ~~First of all not sure where NYT got their info on Lucas Taylor because I still see him listed in Tennessee's depth chart this season. So that's a mistake~~. As for their losses at WRs, they have plenty of youngsters sprinkled through their depth chart (PDF) (HT hooper at RTT via Chattanooga Times Free Press).

Also, despite the loss of Paker and Foster at the OL, the Voluntees will have a powerful, huge veteran OL ready for the Bruin front-7 this weekend in Knoxville. If I read their correctly everyone except their center is over 300lbs and all of their starter are upper classmen (except for Jarrod Shaw, the 6-4, 332 Jr. who is listed as "Co-No-1" with Aaron Douglas, 6-6 282 red shirt freshman) From Athlon Sports' pre-season capsule on the Tennessee OL:

Chaney (OC John Cheney, who who Kiffin pried away from the St. Louis Rams, - BN Ed.) has brought with him a zone blocking scheme that has enabled the Vols’ linemen to play with more aggression. The interior line is strong with fourth-year starter Josh McNeil at center flanked by fellow seniors Jacques McClendon and Vladimir Richard. Senior Chris Scott has a hold on left tackle duties, while Jarrod Shaw and converted tight end Aaron Douglas are battling for the starting job at right tackle. "Last season was rough," Richard says. "But Coach (Kiffin) is a competitor. He loves smacking people in the mouth." After years of defensive dominance in practice drills, the UT offensive line stepped up and proved it could hold its own in the spring.

On other key returnees let's go back to that capsule from the NYT:

Players to watch: He’s undoubtedly the best defensive player in the F.B.S. But in my mind, the strong safety Eric Berry is the best player in the country – regardless of position. Yeah, there’s that quarterback down in Gainesville, so maybe Berry’s coming in second. That shouldn’t detract from what we’re all seeing from the talented junior: he’s the best defender U.T. has developed since Reggie White, and in my mind, if Tennessee shocks the SEC and wins 9 or 10 games, Berry should receive very heavy consideration for the Heisman. Through two seasons, Berry stands second in the N.C.A.A. with an SEC-record 487 interception return yards, a total coming off of 12 interceptions. His single-season outputs in this category rank first (265 yards last fall) and third (222 in 2007) in SEC history. Last fall, Berry tallied 73 tackles (8.5 for loss), 3 sacks and 7 interceptions, two of which he returned for scores. (He may have been Tennessee’s best offensive weapon.) For his efforts, Berry was a unanimous all-American – U.T.’s first since 1990 – and the SEC Defensive Player of the Year. The only college safety I’ve seen match Berry’s combination of speed, ferocity and ball skills was the late, great Sean Taylor. So, as you see, he’s the king of the U.T. defense. Who will help carry the load? The Vols return the junior Dennis Rogan at one cornerback spot, as well as the 2007 starter Brent Vinson. Also competing for a starting spot at corner are the sophomores Art Evans and C.J. Fleming, though I wouldn’t be surprised if one of Tennessee’s heralded incoming freshmen make a push for playing time. U.T. will look toward the freshmen Prentiss Wagner and Rod Wilks or the sophomore Stephaun Raines at free safety. The senior Rico McCoy (87 tackles and a sack last fall) is the lone returning starter at linebacker. Making the push to join him in the starting lineup are the juniors Nick Reveiz (middle) and LaMarcus Thompson (strongside), each of whom played important roles on special teams a season ago. Besides McCoy, U.T. is very young and untested at linebacker. The situation is a little clearer on the line, where the juniors Ben Martin (18 tackles, 1 sack) and Chris Walker (15 tackles, 3 sacks) have secured their places as the starters at end. You’ll likely find the senior Dan Williams (48 stops, 8.5 for loss) on the nose, while the senior Wes Brown (37 tackles, 2.5 sacks) finds himself in competition with the freshman Montori Hughes for the second starting spot on the interior.

On offense, the senior Jonathan Crompton will again be the starter at quarterback. Let’s ignore the fact that his starting job has come by default. Quite simply, Crompton must be better in 2009 than he was a season ago. It shouldn’t be too difficult, as he did not play up to his potential last fall: 86 of 167 (51.5 percent) for 889 yards, with four touchdowns against five interceptions. He can – and should – be better, but some aspects of Crompton’s game must improve. His touch, for example. Crompton lacked it last fall, when he seemed to throw every pass as hard as he could. His decision-making must also improve. His only competition for the starting job is the junior Nick Stephens, who has missed most of the last five months while recuperating from a hand injury. Stephens started six games last fall, putting up numbers similar to Crompton’s (840 yards, 4 touchdowns, 3 picks). The senior Montario Hardesty ascends to the top spot in the backfield after rushing for 271 yards a season ago. That total leads all returning Volunteers. He may be the lead back, but the Vols will also give carries to the sophomore Tauren Poole and the true freshman Bryce Brown, the nation’s No. 1 recruit in the 2009 cycle. Brown chose U.T. in part because of the potential for immediate playing time, so expect to see his number called early and often. Three starters return up front, led by the potential all-conference center Josh McNeil. The senior enters his final season with 35 career starts, the most of any active Volunteer. McNeil was a freshman all-American in 2006 and an honorable mention all-SEC selection in 2007. He’s joined up front by the senior left tackle Chris Scott and the senior left guard Vladimir Richard. I’m intrigued by the potential of the redshirt freshman Aaron Douglas, a former tight end who is in the hunt to start at right tackle. Given his experience and lack of prototypical size (he’s only 282 pounds, my word), can Douglas be the presence required of the right tackle in the run game?

Well as mentioned above looks like Douglas impressed the coaches sufficiently enough that he earned a spot on the depth chart as "co number 1" (whatever that means) with Jarrod Shaw. In some ways, Douglas sounds like he is the same situation as Nate Chandler found himself last year (when we were hurting for bodies at OL) as the coaches are doing whatever they can to incorporate his size and athleticism into the lineup.

Now in terms of what to expect next week, my bet is that Kiffin and Cheney will devise a plan on offense in which they will rely on a power running game. Again from Pete Fiutak's preview at Scout.com:

What to watch for on offense: Power running. The coaching staff will try to pound the ball, rely on the tremendous defense, and try to control the game and the clock. The passing game will try to push the ball deep a little more to stretch things out, but the offense will spend most of its time using its humongous, veteran line to pave the way for a fantastic group of backs. The backfield was good enough to get by, and then came the recruiting class with Toney Williams, David Oku, and the No. 1 prospect in America according to CFN, Bryce Brown, all ready to make a huge impact and upgrade the stalled ground attack.

What to watch for on defense: A ton of interceptions. All the pieces are there for the secondary to come up with a phenomenal year. Not only is there track star speed across the board, but there’s all-everything safety Eric Berry as the sheriff in the Tampa 2 scheme, but the pass rush should be better. Even with Robert Ayers off to the NFL, the Vol defensive front should be more active with Ben Martin and Chris Walker two speedsters on the ends who should be camped out in opposing backfields.

Going back to their offense, I am still shocked at how the Tennessee coaching staff from last year forgot to run the ball down our throats last season at the Rose Bowl. They had piled up around 180 yards rushing and 2 TDs running the ball against our defense last year yet for some inexplicable reasons they decided to go away from that and depend on Crompton's arm. I just don't think Kiffin is going to make the same mistake. I fully expect them to come after our front-7 all evening long with their powerful OL, and do what they can to wear us down on their home turf. This is going to be a huge challenge for our defense.

I think the key for us on Saturday is going to be somehow get on the board early. If they we can get on the board early and then force them to go away from the game plan of running the ball down our throats, we will have a shot.Needless to say special teams is going to be a huge factor. We are going to need our kickers to give us good field position as much as possible forcing the Volunteers to go long drives. Otherwise if we fall behind early and make early mistakes on offense, the situation has the potential to snowball out of control like last year in BYU.

It will take supreme concentration and focus on our part to hang in there early against the Volunteer emotion, and then somehow put ourselves in position to steal the game in second half. My head tells me that we are simply too young and inexperienced (on offense) to pull this off. My heart is pulling for our guys to make me eat crow on Saturday night. So that's what I have for initial notes on the Volunteers to get the scouting started for this week. I will throw it back to you start filling up the info. folders on Tennessee (either via comment thread here or in the FanPosts).

GO BRUINS.

Talking points: Eric Berry is "full of crap" and the offense still lives

Joel — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:43:17 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

4 months ago: Tennessee running back Montario Hardesty is tackled during football practice Saturday, Aug. 8 2009 in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

Browse more photos »

Offense. It's still alive! It appears that the offense is continuing to build on Saturday's successful scrimmage. Bryce Brown and David Oku each scored short-yardage touchdowns to end two-a-days on Monday, giving the offense a 6-4 win, and Jonathan Crompton apparently threw several very nice passes and again had no interceptions (same link). Crompton's roommate, Wes Brown, also disclosed that Crompton had an ankle injury and several concussions for much of last year, which could further explain some things.
Liar. Eric Berry may win the Heisman, but he's "full of crap," according to freshman defensive back Janzen Jackson. When Jackson was told about Berry saying that Jackson and Darren Myles were more ready to play as freshmen than he was, Jackson rolled his eyes and set the record straight:

"Oh, man, he's full of crap. He's full of crap," Jackson said with a laugh and a shake of his head. "Eric's a good guy. He's real humble, and I couldn't ask for a better tutor. I call him a tutor because he helps me out all the time. It's a pleasure learning under him because he knows everything. . . ."

Injuries are beginning to mount. The unavailable list now includes LB Rico McCoy, CBs Art Evans and Brent Vinson, DE Chris Walker, LB Herman Lathers, and S Stephaun Raines. Additionally, the NCAA Clearinghouse kicked freshman CB Eric Gordon off the field Tuesday, although Scout.com cites sources that the matter was quickly resolved ($) and that Gordon would return today.
Well that's not so bad. DT Montori Hughes has "superstar" potential, but, like many true freshmen, lacks consistency at this time. Apparently, if you get him angry, watch out, but if you can lull him into apathy, you can have your way with him. John Adams likens him more to Albert Haynesworth than John Henderson in that regard, but either way, that's a pretty favorable comparison, at least from a talent standpoint.
Beating Ben. Gerald Williams is now a DE and worked Tuesday with the No. 1 unit for the second consecutive day ahead of Ben Martin.
Nu'Gun. Same as the old gun. Kiffin experimented a bit with Nu'Keese Richardson at QB. Richardson threw a couple of incomplete passes and handed off to tailbacks, once fumbling the exchange.
Appeal. Austin Rogers is appealing for a sixth year of eligibility, and counting 2009 he meets the requirement of having missed two seasons due to injury, but predicting what the NCAA will do is hazardous.
Cody Sullins must be quite good. Josh McNeil has made the Outland Trophy Watch List despite not having locked down the starting center gig.
The morphing of Scott. Chris Scott has "changed his whole body type" in the offseason, according to OL coach James Cregg, which may explain why we haven't heard any more of the "Chris Walker is unblockable" talk this fall.
It's not talking to the internet. Congratulations to Drew Edwards, who has joined the UT staff as the assistant director of Internet communications.

Talking points: Nick Reveiz outlifts Dan Williams edition

Joel — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 11:36:10 -0000

Tennessee Football

This actually came out yesterday, but everybody's piling on today, so I will, too. At their first meeting, Lane Kiffin made the understandable assumption that Nick Reveiz was a -- gasp! -- kicker. Yeah, well, coach, most kickers don't outlift your linemen.Lance Thompson, by the way, jokes that with every play Reveiz makes on the field, he "seems to be getting a littler taller."
Suddenly, the secondary looks . . . different. With Demetrice Morley dismissed, Eric Berry held out of full contact, and Brent Vinson recovering from shoulder surgery once again, a bunch of new folks are getting looks in the secondary. Art Evans is No. 1 at one of the CB spots at this time. C.J. Fleming is actually working with the ones at CB more than former starter Dennis Rogan, who's been getting some playing time at that "other" safety position. Also vying for that "other" safety spot, though, are Stephaun Raines and Prentiss Waggner, although Rod Wilks is gettting some looks there, too. Daryl Vereen, too, is in the mix in the secondary, and this fall, five-star DB Janzen Jackson and four-star DB Darren Myles, Jr. will throw their helmets into the ring. Eric Berry's been named to the 2009 Lott Trophy Watch List.
Misc. . . . Cody Pope's been moved from right tackle to right guard. . . .It's true, fullbacks are in fact catching passes in practice. Austin Johnson recently made a "nifty, one-handed catch on the sideline" and another 40-yarder. . . .B.J. Coleman's favorite target is Tyler Maples, and they recently hooked up once for a 50-plus-yard gain. . . .The offense gave up zero turnovers on Tuesday.