TAKE FIVE
Five observations from the open portion of Tennessee’s practice on Tuesday:1. Star running back Jalen Hurd was not dressed in full pads, but he was active in helping the other running backs during practice. Coach Butch Jones said Hurd is dealing with tendinitis. It’s likely Hurd receives a minimal workload the rest of spring.2. Tackling was the focus for the defense. For the defensive linemen, that meant fighting off a blocker and chasing down a padded tire rolled parallel to the line of scrimmage during one drill. Kahlil McKenzie, the biggest of the oversized Vols, showed he’s moving pretty well.3. New defensive coordinator Bob Shoop continues to spend the bulk of his practice time working with the defensive backs. That’s to be expected. He’s a secondary coach by trade.4. At wide receiver, Josh Smith got some work out of the slot.5. Also at wide receiver, Preston Williams picked up where he left off before the break. He looks like a different player, one who could have a breakout sophomore season. Jones praised him for working hard over the break as Williams sent his coach text messages with videos of him running routes in the sand during his beach trip.
KNOXVILLE – Tennessee’s last spring football practice before Tuesday was nearly two weeks ago, but the team’s injury list still managed to grow during its break last week.
Two more Volunteers will spend the final three-plus weeks of spring drills on the shelf.
Star linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin is out with a shoulder injury that has him wearing a sling on his left arm, and sophomore linebacker Dillon Bates also is sidelined with an undisclosed injury as the inability to remain healthy continues to mar his career.
Coach Butch Jones said after Tuesday’s practice that both players are expected to be healthy again by early June.
“They should not miss any reps for the season,” Jones said, “but it’s other opprtunities for other players to really assert themselves and put their football identity on video.”
Tennessee already was down six defensive linemen, including star end Derek Barnett, and another potential defensive starter in safety Evan Berry.
Cortez McDowell and Colton Jumper began the spring as second-team linebackers behind Reeves-Maybin and Darrin Kirkland Jr., but Quart’e Sapp is the first player Jones mentioned Tuesday.
The former four-star recruit received a medical redshirt after foot surgery cut short his freshman season, and he’s a lanky, rangy defender who will have the chance to show what he can do at an outside linebacker spot.
Bates certainly could have benefited, too, from the extra work he would have gotten in Reeves-Maybin’s absence, but another injury will prevent that. A torn labrum cut short his freshman season in 2014, and that injury lingered into the offseason. He still played in every game last season on special teams and as a defensive reserve.
“It’s very unfortunate, because Dillon has worked extremely hard to get back (and) put himself in position to compete,” Jones said. “But you know what, that’s the breaks and that’s the mental toughness that we talk about. He’s shown great resiliency and perseverence.
“He’ll bounce back and he’ll be better for it, but now what do you with that time? You can still get better. Even though you’re missing, you can become better mentally.”
Another spring of injuries and absences isn’t making anything easy for the Vols, who are installing a new defense under first-year coordinator Bob Shoop.
“We have linebackers that need those repetitions,” Jones said. “In the back end we have a number individuals vying for playing time. Where it really limits you is up front, kind of like last spring. We’re not able to do as much. We cut practice short a little bit today.
“It also hurts your development a little bit offensively, too, because you can’t play as much football, because you have to get through the entire spring. The spring game may end up being a spring practice. We may have to call it an ‘Orange and White Festival’ or something, just because of our lack of running backs right now and defensive linemen.”
Future spring tour?
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh made some waves by having the Wolverines spend a week of spring practice earlier this month in Florida at the IMG Academy, whose football team is loaded with blue-chip recruits.
Might Tennessee follow suit in the future?
“We’re working on trying to go somewhere for spring practice,” Jones said.
On Twitter earlier this month, Michigan State coach Dantonio and Arkansas coach Bielema joked about meeting for lunch at IMG Academy, and Jones then asked if he could join them.
A day later, Harbaugh fired back at Jones, telling his “Rocky Top colleague” he should devote his “time and focus attending to your present team.”
Asked where he’d want to move spring practice, Jones said he’d be interested in touring the Vols around their home state.
Kelly time
The Vols are expected to be cautious with star running backs Jalen Hurd and Alvin Kamara this spring, which means sophomore John Kelly will get as many carries as he can handle.
In many ways Kelly is working toward the 2017 season, when Tennessee will have a backfield void with both Kamara and Hurd likely NFL-bound after this season and Joe Young’s career in question due to health concerns.
“John, he works every day,” Kamara said. “He has a lot of improving to do, and he knows it. The expectation in the running back room is high, so we’re hard on him. I’m not going to give him too much love.
“He has a lot of improving to do, and he knows it. It’s a high expectation in the running back room. You’ve to live up to (it), so you’ve got to come to work every day.”
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.