Baylor School alum Colton Jumper, left, is practicing as a No. 1 linebacker for Tennessee this week as the Vols prepare to host Ohio on Saturday. Starter Darrin Kirkland Jr. was injured during last week's game against Virginia Tech, and Jumper finished the game in his place.KNOXVILLE - Colton Jumper is Tennessee's Plan A at middle linebacker against Ohio.
The Volunteers don't seem entirely clear yet on what Plan B might be.
On Wednesday, Tennessee coach Butch Jones confirmed the former Baylor School standout will start in place of the injured Darrin Kirkland Jr. when the Bobcats visit Neyland Stadium on Saturday, but the program's official depth chart didn't even include a backup to the former walk-on.
"I say this all the time: No individual is bigger than the team. If it was, you wouldn't have much of a team," defensive coordinator Bob Shoop said. "Our job is to prepare the players who are ready to go this week, and right now, because of the injury, Colton's our No. 1 linebacker. He prepares as hard as anybody.
"He's done that through the course of spring. He's done that through the course of the summer. This wasn't handed to him by any means. He's earned this opportunity, and he's going to play very well."
Jumper, awarded a scholarship in the offseason, finished last Saturday's game against Virginia Tech when Kirkland badly twisted his ankle in the third quarter. Jumper made three tackles.
He made six tackles in three starts last season, but his performances in games sometimes haven't matched what he's accomplished in practice to earn the trust of two different coordinators. More often than not Jumper is in the right position to make plays, and though his physical limitations may hinder his production, his ability to handle all the roles of a middle linebacker in terms of getting the defense lined up properly sets him apart in the eyes of the coaching staff.
"That's the thing about Kirkland, that he has a great command presence out there on the football field," defensive line coach Steve Stripling said. "And Jumper will have it this week. It is critical because he is setting the front, setting the blitz paths and all those type of things. There's got to be a great command presence, and there's got to be a great continuity."
Tennessee is giving extra work to Dillon Bates and Gavin Bryant, while freshman Daniel Bituli will split time between linebacker and the scout team, where he's been playing defensive end.
Shoop seemed to shoot down the notion of moving Jalen Reeves-Maybin from his Will (weak-side) linebacker spot to the Mike (middle) spot and inserting Cortez McDowell or even Quart'e Sapp into the lineup.
"The two linebackers in a 4-2-5 scheme are somewhat interchangeable," he said. "We're going to practice Colton. We're going to practice Gavin Bryant. We're going to practice Dillon Bates. Daniel Bituli continues to improve. Jalen, Cortez and Quart'e are playing the Will linebacker. Just because it's the Ohio week doesn't mean we'll not reassess it every single week. For Ohio, we're prepared to move forward with Colton playing Mike and Jalen playing Will and go from there."
Bryant is a redshirt sophomore whose main contributions have come on the kickoff coverage team, while Bates is a former four-star recruit who hasn't made a major impact beyond special teams due to an inability to stay healthy.
Whether it's Jumper, Bates or Bryant, the Vols will struggle to replace Kirkland, who likely will miss multiple games.
"We still have Maybin running the defense," defensive end Derek Barnett said. "Me, Vick (Kendal Vickers), O.B. (Danny O'Brien) up front. LaTroy (Lewis) is going to be vocal as well, and D.K. is still going to be vocal on the sideline and stuff. We'll be ready to play.
"Whoever steps up in the middle is going to be ready, so we'll be all right."
Jumper will get the first and perhaps only live audition this week against Ohio.
"To me, it's a long season," Shoop said. "For us to have expected us to go through the season without anybody getting injured would have been foolish. That's why you prepare all these guys. I'll say it again: Colton's prepared hard. Dillon's prepared hard - and not just suddenly Sunday they came in and said, 'What do I need to do?'
"They've been preparing hard all along, and they'll play to the best of their ability each week, I promise."
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.