Vols won't find Tide's tandem a snap to cover

It’s in an experienced secondary.

"They’re without question the lead unit on our defense," Chavis said. "It would be really sad thinking about where we would be if those guys hadn’t played as well as they have."

Their job gets even tougher against Alabama on Saturday.

The Tide’s receiving duo of DJ Hall and Keith Brown have combined for the second-most receiving yards in the nation.

Hall has four consecutive 100-yard receiving games, 613 total and five touchdowns.

Brown has 37 catches for 513 yards and three scores.

"They’re outstanding receivers," UT cornerback Jonathan Wade said. "It’s going to be a tough challenge.

"They’re going to make their plays and we’ve got to do our best to limit their big plays, but they are good. We’ve got a long Saturday ahead of us, but we’re going to do the best we can."

Wade has two interceptions, including a key one against Georgia to spark a second-half rally.

Free safety Jonathan Hefney goes into the Alabama game as the first UT player with interceptions in three consecutive games since Rashad Baker _in 2002.

"DJ Hall likes to push it up the field and Brown likes to do everything," Hefney said. "I played more against Brown my freshman year when I was at corner.

"We were both young at the time, but now you can tell he has grown up a whole bunch and he’s more physical than ever from what I see."

The Vols’ defensive backs have one bonus: They get to practice against another of the nations top receiving duos, Robert Meachem and Jayson Swain (combined for 1,053 yards and 11 TDs).

"Speed can only get so much faster than the ones we have here," cornerback Antwan Stewart said. "It gives us a good feel for the game."

Inky Honorary Captain: Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer announced Turk McBride, Arron Sears, Jayson Swain, Marvin Mitchell, Ben Greene and Antwan Stewart would be UT’s regular game captains against the Tide.

He also said injured cornerback Inky Johnson would be an honorary captain.

"We’re really glad to be able to do that," Fulmer said. "I just think this is a nice way to honor him on a special Saturday and for the Tennessee people to join us in honoring him for what he has done here and the type of person he is. He’s just a wonderful young person."

Tailback Rotation: Fulmer doesn’t care who starts at tailback on Saturday. He just wants to see production.

Arian Foster, LaMarcus Coker and Montario Hardesty each had his opportunities to shine this season.

Foster returned from an ankle injury to rush for 63 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries against Georgia.

Coker is No. 7 in the SEC with 63.5 yards per game, including 100-yard games against Marshall and Memphis.

Hardesty has 212 yards and leads the threesome with four TDs.

"All three of them will play, and hopefully all three of them will play well," Fulmer said. "To me, it doesn’t matter who starts the game. It’s whoever is playing hot will play the most."

Colquitt Tops In Nation, Sort Of: All Britton Colquitt needs is a few more opportunities.

Not that any UT fan wants to see more of Tennessee’s sophomore punter, but the former Bearden High School star would be leading the nation in punting with his 47.2-yard average.

The problem is Colquitt’s 3.2 punts per game doesn’t meet the NCAA’s minimum number of 3.6 to be listed among national leaders. Kyle Stringer of Boise State is listed as the NCAA’s leader with his 46.8 average.

Local Ties: Baron Huber, who played at Central and Powell high schools, is getting some work in with Alabama.

Huber (who wears No. 40) has played in every game this season on special teams . The redshirt freshman is also listed as a third-team fullback.

Former Morristown West standout Brandon Fanney hasn’t played.

KOR, Big Deals?: Maybe kickoff returns aren’t such a big deal after all.

The Vols moved up to No. 111 in the nation with decent runbacks against Georgia.

Trailing UT?

No. 1-ranked Ohio State is 113th and No. 6-ranked Louisville is dead last at 119th.

Mike Strange contributed to this report.