KNOXVILLE – The top-rated player from Tennessee’s 2018 signing class, linebacker J.J. Peterson, arrived on campus over the weekend and practiced Monday for the first time since the NCAA cleared him late last week.
Peterson, who played at Colquitt County High School in southern Georgia, needed to finish academic coursework to be eligible at Tennessee. His delayed enrollment took longer than expected, leaving him months behind compared to his teammates in conditioning and schematic understanding.
“I wouldn’t put unrealistic expectations on him,” Volunteers coach Jeremy Pruitt said Monday. “We’ll put him out there and start trying to teach him the fundamentals of things we are trying to get done, and we’ll see where it goes from there.”
The Vols’ other freshmen arrived either in January and participated in spring practices or in the summer, in time for conditioning drills and player-led practices. Arriving early also allows freshmen to get an academic head start.
Peterson will be enrolling in fall courses nearly two weeks after they began.
“Well, for one it’s going to be the first time he has attended a college class,” Pruitt said. “I think it’s important for freshmen to get here during the summer so they can kind of get acclimated to the routine. There will be lots of adjustments for him. He obviously missed all of summer conditioning and fall camp.”
Peterson is undergoing an NCAA-mandated five-day acclimation process that requires players to practice without pads at first. He ran through inside linebacker drills with no pads during a period of practice open to media on Monday.
The rest of the team wore shoulder pads Monday on an overcast late afternoon at Haslam Field.
A new NCAA rule allows freshmen to participate in up to four games and still receive a redshirt. That could be an option for Tennessee’s staff with Peterson, who was recruited by many of the nation’s top programs.
Injury update
Sophomore running back Ty Chandler left Tennessee’s 40-14 loss to West Virginia on Saturday early in the second quarter after appearing to take a knee to the helmet. Pruitt described Chandler as “day-to-day” on Monday.
“Ty got his bell rung Saturday,” Pruitt said. “So our physicians are going through the normal routine with that.”
Chandler ran sprints under the direction of the strength and conditioning staff during the open period of Monday’s practice.
Redshirt senior safety Todd Kelly Jr. did not travel with the team for the West Virginia game as he continues recovering from lingering knee issues that derailed his 2017 campaign.
“He is getting close, but he’s not ready just yet,” Pruitt said.
Alone at quarterback
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Jarrett Guarantano is alone in bold at the top of the quarterback depth chart this week after his 19-of-25 passing performance against the Mountaineers.
“He didn’t turn the ball over, which is always a positive from the quarterback position,” Pruitt said. “I thought he was accurate.”
Pruitt said there were a few run-pass option plays on which Guarantano could have chosen to pass but did not. Pruitt also complimented Guarantano for his toughness.
Graduate transfer Keller Chryst, who competed with Guarantano for the starting position during preseason practice, is expected to play some Saturday when the Vols host East Tennessee State from the Southern Conference.
Freshman Jacob Saylors from Marion County ran nine times for 70 yards in ETSU’s 28-7 win over Mars Hill. Classmate Quay Holmes gained 118 on 17 runs, and quarterback Logan Marchi was 17-for-29 for 273 yards and three touchdowns.
Contact David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DavidWCobb and on Facebook at facebook.com/volsupdate.