Secondary comes first for Vols in spring

Fulmer understood his secondary being a weakness last season, with five of the top six defensive backs lost to graduation and another three injured or suspended.

But Fulmer also understands things have to get better. Pronto.

Defensive backs coach Larry Slade and his unit are meeting the challenge.

Through the first two weeks of spring, the Vols' secondary is the most improved unit on the team.

"The best example of how guys can make progress after having a year to understand the speed of the game is in our secondary,'' Fulmer said. "We were able to take two guys who played one year at cornerback, and move them to safety. Because of their experience and athleticism, they've come to look very comfortable.''

Defensive coordinator John Chavis, who helped orchestrate moving corners Jonathan Hefney and Roshaun Fellows to safety, said credit goes to Slade.

"Larry is one of the best teachers in the nation, and there's no one I'd rather have coaching our defensive backs,'' Chavis said. "You can talk about our secondary last year (ranked 88th nationally), but they were all inexperienced.

"But you look at the year before, and we wouldn't have won 10 games if it wasn't for our secondary. Then, the year before that, we had an inexperienced front and our pass defense ranked in the top five in the nation.''

Slade said he's just glad to have some hungry, experienced players returning.

"Last year, we were embarrassed,'' Slade said. "The biggest thing I'm enjoying is the attitude and work effort. I'm seeing a determination from the players, and if it keeps going the way it's going, it will turn out good.''

Slade told his players in the offseason that the best four defensive backs would be on the field - even if that meant playing four cornerbacks.

Experimenting with Fellows and Hefney at safety has apparently caught the attention of Corey Campbell, a former starting safety who suffered through a sophomore slump.

"Corey had his best scrimmage ever,'' Slade said. "He played really well and tried hard. All our guys sense the urgency. You take two guys who started at corner and move them to safety, and they know we're serious.''

Sophomore Antwan Stewart is expected to enter the fray in the secondary when spring practice resumes Tuesday, as will Jonathan Wade.

Stewart has been slow recovering from the knee injury he suffered last spring. Wade is finishing with his track responsibilities.

Antonio Gaines, Inky Johnson and Jarod Parrish also are pushing for playing time.

With more depth in the secondary, Chavis will be more flexible with his packages.

"We played less Mustang (six defensive backs) last year than we had in the past six years because we didn't have the people to play with,'' Chavis said. "You can try to put a square peg in a round hole, or you can find a hole that it fits into.''