Tennessee freshman defensive end Kyle Phillips stretches before the Vols’ practice at Haslam Field on Aug. 11, 2015.KNOXVILLE — Amid the preseason hype surrounding Tennessee’s first-year defensive tackle duo of Kahlil McKenzie and Shy Tuttle, another freshman seemingly got lost in the mix.
That doesn’t appear to be the case anymore, though.
Defensive end Kyle Phillips, like McKenzie a former five-star recruit, became the first freshman to lose the black stripe on his helmet on Monday night.
Losing the stripe, which under third-year coach Butch Jones all newcomers have worn until they earn the right to remove it, is a sign of respect and recognition from the player’s teammates.
“I have been very, very proud of Kyle Phillips,” Jones said after Tuesday morning’s practice. “Kyle Phillips gets better every single day. He has a motor. He’s actually made our teaching clips about three times this training camp in terms of effort and swarming to the football and running to the football.