At 6-foot-5 and 318 pounds, Addison Nichols would stand out just a bit on the University of Tennessee swim team.
Yet there has been a sink or swim element to his first few weeks in Knoxville.
The highest-rated football signee of Josh Heupel’s first recruiting cycle is among the 13 midyear enrollees for the Volunteers. The biggest unknown facing the former Greater Atlanta Christian standout nearing the start of spring practice was whether he would work at guard or tackle, but coaches instead decided to throw him in at center.
“It helps him learn the offense as fast as he can,” Vols offensive line coach Glen Elarbee said this week in a news conference. “When you play center, it’s the hardest position initially because it’s moving so fast and you have to make every single call. The speed of the game is faster inside as well.
“To help expedite his process – I’m not sure where he’ll fit in and play for us – the thought was to start him at center and let him learn the offense and branch him out.”