KNOXVILLE - Tennessee defensive coordinator Bob Shoop said Tuesday that freshman Cheyenne Labruzza is moving from cornerback to safety as the Volunteers search for depth on their last line of defense.
Labruzza's position switch comes in the wake of injuries to Evan Berry and Todd Kelly Jr., who are the primary backups to starting safeties Nigel Warrior and Micah Abernathy.
Warrior and Abernathy were in the game for every defensive play in last week's 26-20 loss to Florida.
Shoop implied Tuesday that Kelly is out for the season after head coach Butch Jones confirmed Monday that Kelly is getting second opinions about a lingering knee issue. Berry's injury and timetable for return are unknown.
"We've got to get Evan Berry back," Shoop said. "If we get Evan Berry back, it's not Cheyenne. Right now with Evan out, Cheyenne and Theo (Jackson) can back those guys up."
Jackson, like Labruzza, is a freshman who has drawn praise for his performance in practice after enrolling at Tennessee during the summer.
Shoop said the staff is considering a redshirt for a third freshman safety, Maleik Gray.
Moving Labruzza to safety made sense, Shoop said, because he was already playing on special teams.
"He's a guy who I thought might transition to safety anyway," Shoop said.
Jones said Monday that the coaching staff will be looking for players to step up at the position.
"We have to continue to grow and develop depth there," he said. "We keep talking about nine games left and Micah and Nigel had to play every snap in the back end of our defense on Saturday. Not only on defense, but they have very large roles on special teams as well."
Contact David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com.