Backup can be a downer

Why aren't you playing?

Are you staying?

"I hear it a lot," said Schaeffer. "It's the same old stuff. If somebody asks me if I'm staying, I say, 'Yeah, I just have to work to get on the field.' "

It was Schaeffer's first comments to members of the media since Sept. 29. Tennessee has not made the freshman quarterback available because of a new policy limited media access to freshmen.

Schaeffer, who started the first three games, failed to play for the first time this season last Saturday against Alabama. He has only attempted eight passes in the last four games. Watching freshman Erik Ainge rise to stardom with the Vols (6-1) has had its effect.

"He kind of went in the tank there for the last couple of weeks," UT coach Phillip Fulmer said of Schaeffer's preparation. "Before that he was great.

"He's had a very good week of practice. I'm very pleased with the way he's gone about his business."

Fulmer said Schaeffer's demeanor and work ethic has improved since being publicly challenged last week. Last Thursday, Fulmer told the media that it was no time for Schaeffer to throw a "pity party" and individual egos were not nearly as important as UT winning a championship.

"He's getting pulled from a lot of different directions," Fulmer said. "I think he's very focused on this football team being a better team. That's the way it should be."

Schaeffer disagrees with Fulmer's assessment. He said the lack of playing time has not affected his confidence nor his preparation.

"I came out this week with an attitude to work hard and play hard," Schaeffer said. "I don't think my attitude has changed at all. Every week of practice I came out and gave it my all."

Schaeffer said while he wishes he would have played more against Alabama, he took pleasure in the win and celebrated with his teammates after the game. Schaeffer said it has been tough to keep a positive attitude amidst the growing number of critics who question UT coaches and how they've handled the quarterback situation.

"I know the situation," Schaeffer said. "They don't know the situation."

"We're starting to go back to basics more this week and do what we've been doing."

Back to basics may be a good plan for UT's offense. The Vols gained 195 total yards against Alabama. UT averaged 405 total offensive yards per game going into the Alabama game.

"It's just mental," said Ainge. "We had a lot of busts on offense. If we can eliminate those, which we have done in practice, then we should be fine.

"It's all about execution. You don' have to run tricky plays to go out and beat teams. With the players we've got ... we should be fine."

"Early in the season we did a lot of base stuff. That's why we didn't have many busts then. The last game, we had so many (busts) because we had so much new stuff in and Alabama didn't play the type of defense we thought they would play."

Because of their young quarterbacks, the Vols have been forced to signal in offensive audibles, or freeze plays, from the sideline after UT's offensive players have lined up. Fulmer said Ainge is not yet ready to call freeze plays on his own at the line. Ainge said signaling plays in from the sideline has allowed opposing defenses to counter-adjust to UT's audible tendencies.

"After a while it can a little bit," Ainge said. "The advantage of that is we see the defense they're in. Then, we're running a play that should be tough for them to stop."

The mental challenge continues on Saturday against South Carolina. The Gamecocks use a hybrid coverage scheme that utilizes man and zone coverage simultaneously.

"They run a lot of coverages and try to mess with you," Ainge said. "I'm sure they'll try to mess with me. They do a good job disguising their pass coverages.

"They won't do anything we haven't seen because we've seen it all. Teams have tried to confuse me and confuse Brent."

Asked about UT's recent offensive slowdown, Ainge said: "It's a little bit frustrating. But as long as we're winning games, that's all that matters."

UT's freshman quarterbacks are dealing with frustration. Ainge with a suddenly sluggish offense; Schaeffer with a reduced role in Tennessee's offense.

Asked if he expected Schaeffer to play against South Carolina, Fulmer said, "We'll just have to wait and see."