Tennessee's brotherly bonds this football season will have to be carried out by the Garlands.
The most notable siblings on last year's Volunteers were starting offensive linemen Cade and Cooper Mays from Knoxville, but Cade is now in the NFL after getting selected by the Carolina Panthers in the sixth round. Next season, Tennessee is expected to have linebackers Elijah and Caleb Herring out of Murfreesboro Riverdale, with Elijah currently a freshman and Caleb the top in-state commitment for the Vols.
For now, though, it's fifth-year senior defensive tackle Kurott Garland and redshirt junior linebacker Kwauze Garland keeping things in the family.
"We definitely feed off of each other," Kurott said this week in a news conference. "My first year was rough, and it was a steep learning curve, but once he hopped on - we room together and everything. It's just basically like we're back at home.
"It's really good."
Tennessee players had Wednesday off following Tuesday's initial preseason scrimmage.
Tennessee Athletics photo by Andrew Ferguson / Tennessee redshirt junior linebacker Kwauze Garland arrived in Knoxville as a walk-on defensive back before earning a scholarship after the 2020 season.The Garlands hail from the Atlanta suburb of Conyers, with Kurott a 6-foot-3, 310-pounder with 40 career appearances that have yielded eight starts, 57 tackles, five tackles for loss and a sack. His most memorable performance occurred in last November's 60-14 rout of South Alabama, when he collected two tackles for loss, including a sack that resulted in a safety.
"I've been stout in the run game, but I've got to do a better job of getting to the pocket, reading draws and reading screens," he said.
Kwauze Garland is a 6-1, 225-pounder who joined the program as a walk-on defensive back before moving to linebacker during the 2020 season and earning a scholarship after that year. He has played in 17 games, mostly on special teams, and tallied tackles last year against Tennessee Tech and Alabama.
"Our parents really wanted all of us to go to the same school," Kwauze said. "Our parents have nine kids, and they didn't want to travel so far when game days happen. This has been like a flashback from high school.
"I've loved it."
Each Garland enters the 2022 season equipped with a nickname, with Kurott called "Prime" after the sizable transformer "Optimus Prime." Kwauze is called "Pakk" after the Pac-Man video game and his ability to gobble up the opposition.
"I feel like my name is better," a smiling Kwauze said.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DavidSPaschall.