Get used to a familiar sight around Tennessee football practice.

As day one of spring workouts wrapped up late Thursday afternoon, Erik Ainge was one of the last players to leave Haslam Field.

The Vols' quarterback was too busy picking the brain of offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe.

Ainge understands he has something to prove, not only to himself, but to Cutcliffe, and especially his teammates.

"I just want to show I'm the guy and that I'm going to be the guy," Ainge said.

"My job to all those guys on the team is to go out and solidify myself as the starter on this football team and prove to them that I'm here and I'm ready to play from day one."

Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer already has said Ainge is the No. 1 guy going into this spring, but competition will be provided by highly touted freshman Jonathan Crompton.

"I expect us to be good at quarterback," Fulmer said. "There's just a lot of work to do at the position, fundamentally and assignmentwise.

"If the defense gets their hands on one ball, that's one ball too many. It (Thursday's practice) was an OK start and that's about the best you can do right now."

It's a work in progress for Ainge, a 6-foot-6 junior-to-be from Oregon.

Ainge admits his confidence was at times shaken during the course of 2005's 5-6 season, he was confused at times, and he tried to do too much in his on-going quarterback duel with Rick Clausen.

During the offseason, Ainge's eyes were open watching himself struggle on tape.

"I just think I could tell watching myself that I was confused, that I'd be dropping back confused sometimes," he said. "Not confused on what routes people were running or anything like that, but just trying to be too smart, trying to be too perfect."

The results were a 45.5 completion percentage with seven interceptions and five touchdown passes.

It was a big change from a true freshman season when he threw for 1,452 yards and 17 touchdowns in nine games.

"Last year I tried to be too cute and tried to be too perfect, instead of just playing football," Ainge said. "There were times I felt like the game was going too fast and I was trying to do too much."

Cutcliffe plans to change that mentality as soon as possible.

A return to the basics was step one.

Thursday was the first day Cutcliffe could work with Ainge on the field, but the two have been steady companions in the film room.

"The way you gain confidence is absolutely knowing what to do with the ball every time the ball is snapped," Cutcliffe said. "That doesn't happen overnight.

"Right now I don't want them (Ainge or Crompton) to worry about anything but being a good football player. The rest of it will take care of itself."

Ainge said he "subconsciously" fell into some bad mechanics after suffering a turf toe injury during a September loss loss against Florida.

"I hate to make excuses, so I'm not going to say it affected me that much," Ainge said. "There were days when it affected me some and days when it didn't.

"I was told I started to throw off the side of my foot so I wouldn't have to step on my toe. But I wasn't consciously doing it."

Cutcliffe was quick to say there will be some changes made to Ainge's footwork.

"He's got a nice motion and a nice arm, but there are some things we've got to change with his lower body and we've just got 15 days," he said. "We've got about 12 teaching days (not counting scrimmages) and we've got to utilize every one of those."