KNOXVILLE - Justin Martin may be one of the most asked-about players on Tennessee's football team this season.
After missing most of preseason training camp with a knee injury, the junior college transfer cornerback finally made his biggest impact of the season last week against Alabama. Martin played most of the game at one corner spot in the 19-14 loss in Tuscaloosa and could make his first career start when the Volunteers play Saturday night at Kentucky.
Defensive coordinator John Jancek wouldn't go that far just yet, however.
"He's in a very competitive situation with Emmanuel (Moseley), working to earn that starting position," Jancek said after Tuesday's practice. "I think he did a lot of good things on Saturday. I've got a lot more confidence in him, I know Coach (Willie) Martinez has more confidence in him and he's in a competitive situation with Emmanuel.
"I really wanted to see Justin get out there and execute," Jancek added. "He's been in some ballgames, but really that was the most significant playing time he's had, obviously, in a big game for us. He did a good job. A couple things here and there, like always. They've got to learn from them. I was pleased."
The 6-foot-1, 183-pound Martin, who played at Nashville's Overton High School before spending last season at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M, handled the smaller portion of a timeshare with starter Moseley against Arkansas and Georgia, but he made seven tackles in his most extensive action of the season against the Crimson Tide.
He also broke up one pass and got a hand on Alabama's two-point-conversion pass late in the fourth quarter.
"He did great," safety Brian Randolph said after the game. "He earned those reps. He earned them in practice. He got hurt early in camp, so that kind of set him back a little bit. But he's been showing up every day in practice, knowing the game plan.
"(He's) very smart so he picked up the defense very fast, so that's probably why he got more reps today."
Tennessee fended off Ole Miss and LSU to land Martin in February, and he was circled as one of the most promising pieces of the Vols' 2015 class.
Less than a week into training camp in August, though, he was rolled up on by a pile of players and didn't return to the practice field until less than two weeks before the season opener against Bowling Green.
Martin may have cracked the rotation in Tennessee's secondary much sooner had he not missed what's probably the most valuable time of the preseason, especially for newcomers.
"It just doesn't happen overnight," Jancek said. "You start talking the variables with one coverage: the split of the receiver, if there's motion, the different route combinations that they're going to try and attack you with - there's so much. Then you throw in a running game and being a factor in the run, which those guys need to be at times.
"There's a lot, and it takes time, and Justin is making progress."
It showed at Alabama.
Martin's best play came in the first half, when he shook off a cut block from a receiver and tripped up Alabama receiver ArDarius Stewart as he rounded the corner on a jet sweep that would have been a big gain.
He was in position to make a couple more plays, but the Tide completed one back-shoulder throw on him - those are impossible to defend when executed perfectly - and Stewart hauled in a jump ball against Martin on Alabama's winning drive.
Head coach Butch Jones on Monday acknowledged that Martin is still raw as a cornerback, but his instincts and competitiveness are exciting attributes.
"(Alabama) made some great plays, but Justin was always there," Jones said. "I thought he did a good job of tackling in space and leveraging the football. I thought he had a very productive day for us. I thought he played winning football for us."
A couple of weeks ago, Jancek said Martin, who plays on multiple special teams units, was a "spot" player on defense. His status may have changed now.
"Justin's very competitive," Jancek said. "He's got the right mindset. He wants to play; he wants to learn. He's willing to put his face on people, he's physical and he just has a unique trait that you want in a corner, and that's length. He's got a good combination of speed and change-of-direction.
"It's just a matter of experience for him to be consistent and be the type of player he wants to be and that we want him to be."
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.