Jermod McCoy is running low on doubters.
Once a modest three-star signee out of Whitehouse, Texas, the 6-foot, 193-pound McCoy was an instant success last season at Oregon State, making five starts as a freshman cornerback and leading the Beavers in passes defended. He is now starring as a Tennessee sophomore on the nation’s top-rated defense.
“I felt I could always play at this level,” McCoy said this week in a news conference. “Coming out of high school, I thought I should have been here.”
The No. 4 Volunteers will be seeking a fifth consecutive victory to open the season when they face Arkansas in Fayetteville on Saturday night (7:30 Eastern on ABC). Tennessee’s 4-0 start has transpired by the average score of 54-7, with its defense yielding just 176.0 yards per game.
McCoy has started all four games, tallying eight tackles, three pass breakups and an interception.
“We thought Jermod had a chance to be special, just based on what we saw in the spring,” Tennessee defensive coordinator Tim Banks said, “and it carried over to the fall. I just think it’s his work ethic and his communication. He doesn’t get too high, and he doesn’t get too low. He’s very even-keeled in terms of his preparation and how he performs on Saturdays.
“We’re excited for him, and we think his best football is still ahead of him.”
In Tennessee’s most recent contest, the 25-15 win at Oklahoma on Sept. 21, McCoy was the definition of a shutdown corner. He was targeted just four times in 48 coverage snaps and did not allow a single catch while tallying an interception and a pass breakup.
McCoy was recognized nationally for his performance in Norman as the Jim Thorpe Award Defensive Back of the Week, and his current Pro Football Focus coverage grade of 89.7 is second in the country among cornerbacks with at least 100 defensive snaps.
“I’m playing with a lot of confidence right now, I’ll be honest,” McCoy said. “With the situations Coach Banks is putting us in, it just adds to the confidence.”
The immediate standout for Banks and Vols secondary coach Willie Martinez freely admits that he continues to model his game after Jalen Ramsey of the Miami Dolphins. Ramsey was a consensus All-American at Florida State in 2015, a NFL all-rookie selection with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2016 and has been a seven-time Pro Bowl selection since.
“I just think he’s the top corner in the league, and I want to be like that,” McCoy said. “When the ball is in the air, it’s his, and he’s a super sticky coverage guy. You don’t really see him in bad positions ever.”
Sounds like McCoy through his first month with the Vols.
Familiar captains
Arkansas announced Thursday that fifth-year senior defensive back Doneiko Slaughter and redshirt sophomore center Addison Nichols would be among the four team captains for Saturday’s game.
Slaughter and Nichols are in their first seasons with the Razorbacks after beginning their college careers at Tennessee.
“With Neiko, we needed a guy who had played in this league and played well in this league,” Arkansas coach Sam Pittman said Wednesday on the Southeastern Conference’s weekly Zoom call. “We went after him hard once he got into the portal. He’s a mature guy, and I just really liked him once I got a chance to talk to him.
“Addison was a huge need as well, and I had recruited him out of high school back to his freshman or sophomore year when I was offensive line coach at Georgia. They’ve both been great additions.”
A new look
Tennessee’s third game away from Neyland Stadium this season will be the first in which the Vols wear white jerseys and orange pants. They wore all white against North Carolina State in Charlotte and again at Oklahoma.
The last occasion when Tennessee wore white jerseys and orange pants was last November’s 36-7 loss at Missouri.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.