Steven FowlkesKNOXVILLE – Steven Fowlkes has identified his role in Tennessee’s football defense.
Now the Volunteers’ journeyman is trying to perfect his pass-rushing specialization.
The 6-foot-5, 255-pound former receiver has the long arms and frame typical of a quarterback-hurrying defensive end, and the fifth-year senior has embraced his spot.
“I think that’s an important role for the team,” Fowlkes said after Thursday night’s practice, the team’s first since returning from its six-day getaway to Milligan College. “Coach [Derek] Dooley always talks about doing your role the best way possible. I understand that’s my role, so every day I try to get extra work on pass rush, try to watch more film and try to get my pass-rush game right.”
Fowlkes missed most of last season due to academics, though Dooley called him the Vols’ best scout-team player earlier this month. He’s played in just seven career games, and his last tackle was against UT-Martin in the 2010 opener. His winding road back to the program led him to a starting spot at the end of spring practice, but junior college transfer Darrington Sentimore’s training-camp surge and the run-stopping emphasis of coordinator Sal Sunseri’s new defense has turned Fowlkes into more of a specialist.