Tennessee defensive lineman Jakob Johnson (44) sings Rocky Top with the team after the Vols’ season-opener football victory against the Aggies on Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014, at Neyland Stadium.KNOXVILLE — Jakob Johnson’s first career start for Tennessee seemed to go the way first starts typically do for freshman football players.
There was a mix of good and bad for the inexperienced linebacker.
Either way, though, the player the Volunteers used to replace suspended All-SEC A.J. Johnson in the loss to Missouri on Saturday night should be able to build on his first taste of significant action.
“Jakob did a very, very good job from a mental standpoint of getting us lined up, setting the front the right way, setting the schemes the right way,” Tennessee coach Butch Jones said Monday. “He did a very, very good job, really a remarkable job, when you look at here’s a young man that’s a true freshman (who) hasn’t had much live game opportunities.
“We missed some productivity from a tackle standpoint from our Mike linebacker position, and I think that’s just youth, that’s experience of understanding schemes and where the ball is going.”