Marquez Callaway (1) eludes a Texas-El Paso Miner tackler last September at Neyland Stadium.KNOXVILLE - Tee Martin has a player comparison for Tennessee senior receiver Marquez Callaway.
And if the 6-foot-2, 204-pound Volunteer can live up to the expectations set forth by his receivers coach, he has the potential for an excellent final season.
"Marquez has a skill set that is very similar, to me, like JuJu Smith-Schuster, who was very intelligent," said Martin, who coached Smith-Schuster, the Pittsburgh Steelers' top receiving target, while at the University of Southern California. "He did everything on special teams. He can do anything on offense. He can play inside and outside. He'll play hurt. Anything you ask the young man to do."
Callaway has answered the call time and time again throughout his career at Tennessee. As a freshman he returned a punt 62 yards for a touchdown against Tennessee Tech, the first by a Vols freshman in three seasons. As a sophomore he led the Vols with five touchdowns, started 10 games and made 24 catches for 406 yards - both numbers ranking third on the team. His highlight that year was a four-catch, 115-yard game against Georgia Tech in the season opener, a performance that included two touchdown receptions - a jump ball over a defender and a 50-yard sprint after a spin move to the outside. He also had a 40-yard reception when he outjumped a pair of Yellow Jackets defenders.
There was also an impressive one-handed catch for a touchdown against Vanderbilt in the 2017 season finale.
As a junior he led the Vols in receiving, with 37 catches for 592 yards and a pair of scores, and he had an 82-yard punt return for a touchdown in 2018 and is a preseason second-team All-Southeastern Conference selection as a return specialist this year.
And the best part? He's gotten faster, having been timed at 4.4 seconds in the 40-yard dash.
Marquez Callaway (1) outruns a Sycamore for a touchdown. The Indiana State Sycamores visited the University of Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium in NCAA football action of September 9, 2017. "That is something I challenged this group with," Martin said of the receivers' improved speed. "They all went to the weightroom. They all had better times when they tested a couple weeks ago. So now we've just got to take that work and put it onto the field, and I think (Callaway) has the potential to be one of the best receivers in the SEC. And I'm not just saying that because he's here at Tennessee: His body of work to this point speaks for itself. If he just continues to take his game to the next level, I think he could be one of those early-round (NFL draft) guys."
It all sounds like a lot, but Callaway has bigger goals. Those goals aren't really personal in terms of on-field effort. Everything he seems to be suggesting heading into this season is doing whatever it takes to improve the team and make it more player-led than coach-led, especially for the senior class.
"We all know what's at stake," Callaway said. "We're all playing for more than ourselves. We've bought into a lot of teamwork and what Coach has been preaching. There's been a lot of people coming together; a lot of older guys have done a great job trying to make it known, so it's not just coaches preaching it. It's the players, and players listen to players more than coaches sometimes.
"I'm trying to make myself a better leader on the field. I know I can do a better job of that; it's one of my faults. I'm trying to work on that personally, and the receivers do a great job of reflecting back and telling me what I should be doing. Coaches do it all the time, but hearing it from players gives me the extra momentum to do it.
"Be a better leader and the other stuff will come."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3 or at Facebook.com/VolsUpdate.