KNOXVILLE - Uncertainty about the schemes first-year offensive coordinator Larry Scott will use has Tennessee's tight ends optimistic about their chances for increased touches.
Scott coached that position last season, leading some of the tight ends to hope they could be heavily incorporated into the passing game with Scott calling plays.
"We're near and dear to his heart. We just need to continue to make plays, and I think we'll be utilized a lot this year," Jakob Johnson said.
"I think the tight ends could be featured a little bit more," fellow senior tight end Ethan Wolf added after Tuesday's practice, the Volunteers' eighth of this preseason.
Wolf did note that it's "hard to tell" at this point what differences Scott will bring. Wolf and departed tight end Jason Croom each made 21 catches last season under former offensive coordinator Mike Debord. Whether the tight ends play a greater role with Scott calling the plays, Wolf and Johnson are intent on capitalizing on their final opportunities as college football players.
"It's about the most cliché statement you can hear, but it seems like yesterday I enrolled here and was going through spring ball," said Wolf, who has NFL aspirations.
Johnson and Wolf lived on the same hall when they arrived on campus as early enrollee freshmen in spring 2014. At the time, Wolf had what he described as "baby fat" and Johnson was a linebacker.
The years may have flown by, but they have brought plenty of change. Wolf, who is from rural Ohio, said he finally has found a solid playing weight of approximately 255 pounds, none of it baby fat. Johnson, who is originally from Germany, is entering his third season as a tight end with the confidence of being named the most-improved offensive player during the spring. He has completed his undergraduate degree in kinesiology and is considering a future in medicine.
Before that, there's one season of football left.
"Since I made the switch from linebacker, I've had a quiet couple years," Johnson said. "But I've been working every day getting better at the things I need to improve, and I think it's paying off."
Johnson caught two passes last season, both in a homecoming rout of Tennessee Tech, and hopes the productive offseason that led to the most-improved designation will also lead to a greater inclusion in the passing game. Hours spent working with teammates on catching machine-launched footballs and tennis balls have given him confidence to that end.
"That kid right there is self-made," Wolf said. "Everything he does is one-hundred and ten percent. We always joke with him because maybe a year and a half ago he couldn't catch a cold out here on the field."
Wolf noted Johnson's extra work, and he has seen it pay off.
"Now I don't think I've seen him drop but five or six passes between spring and camp so far," Wolf said. "He's a real physical guy, obviously, and he's really transformed himself into what we needed at the tight end position to add some depth. We all have the utmost respect for Jakob, and as a group we're all really close. He knows that, too."
Scott is preaching physicality to the offense in preseason camp. He also expressed being open to using tight ends in the slot to catch passes, meaning versatility is a must.
Physicality is more natural for Johnson with his linebacker background. For Wolf, developing that peak physicality has been the latest development in a college career he reflects on with appreciation for the things he has been taught.
"I think through the things I learned freshman, sophomore and even last year, and the hard work we all put in this offseason," Wolf said, "I think it's going to really transform my game and that I'm going to be a different player this year that could really send me where I want to be."
Contact David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com.