This morning’s kicking scrimmage officially marks the end of fall camp.
In years past, it’s been a ho-hum event. This year, however, there’s plenty of intrigue.
Foremost is kicker/punter Britton Colquitt, who is expected to kick for the first time since pulling the quadriceps in his right leg during last Saturday’s scrimmage.
But more than an interesting subplot is the Vols’ kickoff-return game.
Last year, Tennessee ranked worst in the SEC and 117th in the nation with an average of 16.1 yards per return.
UT coach Phillip Fulmer acknowledges the numbers were bad, but points to a few mental mistakes that cost the Vols lots of yards and more than a few spots in the rankings.
“I keep telling you all this, but if we don’t slip down on the 1 (yard line) and get two or three penalties, we’ve got a pretty decent average,” Fulmer said. “It wouldn’t have been one of the tops in the conference, but the middle of the conference probably. You all want to go the other way, like we’re just God-awful. Statistically, we were. But in reality we weren’t.”
Trooper Taylor, who coaches UT’s kickoff returners, is fully aware of this reality: Tennessee’s longest return of 2006 went for 40 yards.
That return came from LaMarcus Coker, who was reinstated Friday but will not play in the Vols’ season-opener at No. 12 California Sept 1.
The last time UT returned a kickoff for a touchdown was 2004 — and that was when Bret Smith took an onside kick 44 yards for a score at South Carolina.
“On kickoff return, you have to have a special guy back there, a guy with what we call dynamics,” Taylor said.
The Vols signed several of those players this season, and more than a few have a chance to make their mark.
Former Fulton High School standout Dennis Rogan and wide receiver Denarius Moore, both freshmen, have been impressive, Fulmer said.
On punt return — where the Vols ranked fourth in the SEC and Jonathan Hefney ranked 17th nationally — cornerback Eric Berry could prove an ample back up.
On those kick returns, though, Fulmer wants to pair a young player with a veteran. For the time being, that means either junior tailback Arian Foster and junior wide receiver Lucas Taylor will line up deep to start the season.
Foster would like nothing more than to take one back, but for that to happen, he says execution is key.
“Everybody’s got to do their job, get a hat on a hat as best they can,” Foster said. “Then it’s just making a play.”
Not just a play, but a smart play.
With kickoffs moving back 5 yards to the 30-yard line, kicking teams will try a variety of tactics to slow down their opponents.
That means a kick returner has to know how to handle a directional kick, a squib kick or anything else an opponent might decide to try.
“It’s not just catching it and running with it. There’s a lot of things that can happen,” Fulmer said. “You have to make a decision on a sideline, on a squib kick, who knows what. A little experience would help. But you’ve got to live in your hopes and not your fears.”
Taylor, for one, hopes UT’s kick returners make better decisions this season than they did last.
“We brought balls out that were 5 yards deep,” Taylor said. “We tried to pick up a ball from our knees, different things like that. We let the ball hit the ground a couple of times. We’ve got to do a better job as coaches. That’s on me.”
Today will go a long way toward determining who will be lining up deep against Cal. But so will the actual Cal game, as well as UT’s home-opener a week later against Southern Miss.
After that, though, Fulmer wants the question answered, hopefully for good.
“I want to know,” Fulmer said. “Once we get through with Cal and Southern Miss and get into the conference schedule, I want to have all that resolved.”
Drew Edwards covers University of Tennessee football. He may be reached at 865-342-6274.
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Comments » 20
BluetickBlues writes:
I do not agree with Fulmer. Foster has no business returning anything. We have all this speed with these freshman and they need to return the ball. Berry, Vinson, Jones, Moore, and the "spotted ape" Kenny O'Neal need to have their speedy hands on the ball from the get go. Our special teams has cost us games over the past few years and now we have gamebreakers and Phil doesn't want to use them? Come on
milldw02#366865 writes:
“I keep telling you all this, but if we don’t slip down on the 1 (yard line) and get two or three penalties, we’ve got a pretty decent average."
Like someone else posted recently, if Clint Stoerner doesn't trip and lay the ball down in '98, we have another head coach right now.
utvols1 writes:
"you’ve got to live in your hopes and not your fears.” another K-tel classic from Fulmer. I'll sound byte that with Johnny and his classic "scratching and clawing" comment.
Every Vol fan needs a defib near them for every kick off and punt return this season. Phill missed this part of the binder for the last 4 yrs.
andy112382#209793 writes:
Should be fun to see how it plays out. I could see Moore and Taylor being a solid pairing on kickoffs, at least for starters. I am betting that the coaches are waiting on guys like O'Neal to take care of business at their position before throwing more duties on them. If you are trying to iron out the wrinkles in one spot learning new stuff, the last thing you need is more thrown on you before you are settled down in that first position. BTW, please stop commenting CRVol. ONE WEEK LEFT!!! GO VOLS!!!
thevol writes:
Looking forward to seeing these young guys play THIS season. These new dynamic atheletes should give excitement not only to the return game but also the coverage units. Just watching TN play is always a good time for me. Go Big Orange!
thevol writes:
Even You Cr have to admit that some of our young players look very exciting. How can you not be excited about Berry, Moore, Rogan, etc.. Come on CR you have to a least see Berry's potential. Come on.
andy112382#209793 writes:
thevol - I am convinced CRVol would be that negative poster on any site, even if it was a message board about gift giving and charities, cr would find the dark cloud within the silver lining. But yes, this new class is VERY exciting. Ben Martin is another good example, I don't recall Fulmer flat out saying 'this guy will be an all-american' about someone, especially a freshman, at least in recent memory. Good times ahead guys. GO VOLS!!!
OldNumber7 writes:
This is a game of discipline. To hear Fulmer toss around comments like “I keep telling you all this, but if we don’t slip down on the 1 (yard line) and get two or three penalties, we’ve got a pretty decent average," shows why this team makes everyone in the Orange Nation hold their collective breaths for 60 min. Would Neyland say this? How about Bryant? or Paterno? A couple of fumbles here or there and we would have won our last bowl game...shucks. The team that makes the fewest mistakes wins, Phil....that IS the point, not beside it.
gvegasvol writes:
I simply don't understand how a group of young men who have been playing a game for upwards to 10 years still haven't grasped the fact you don't block someone if you can see the numbers on the back of their jersey. The special teams at UT are pitiful! That being said is it really Pumpkin's job to fix it? He is way to busy doing important stuff like eating Krispy Kreme's and looking through various take-out menu's for lunch, dinner and other food breaks. Give the man a break and let someone else deal with the problem! Bring back Randy Sanders and let him work his magic once again at UT!
gbrbossman#228379 writes:
It just seems that the special teams at UT are never "special" aside from the punters (the Colquitts). It is almost as if they are an afterthought. I am afraid this will be the difference-maker, in a bad way, this year. The Cal game will tell a lot.
If the east is as wide open as it seems something like special teams can win the division. Keep a close eye on what UGA has done in the off season. They brought in Beamer's son from VT to coach special teams. That is a little scary. We all know Beamer Ball took VT from a decent school to a national powerhouse.
invisiblekid writes:
Fulmer can continue to use variations of the "one play away" mantra all he wants but special teams has been an aberation for several years now. How about the other 36 kickoff returns? If they get 5 more yards on those, then they are in the top 50 and could be considered average. Which, that in itself should say something, a team with championship aspirations hoping to be average or decent or middle of the road in any given area better be exceptional everywhere else. Hopefully, our offense and defense is above average this year because I think we will do well to break even in special teams.
seaplane#216536 writes:
I'm more concerned with the kick-off and punt coverage then with the return game. It's been very weak the last few years and Cal has the no.1 return man in the nation. We need to use the fastest and best tacklers on special teams (even if it means our starters) to keep us out of the hole. The assumption of risk is worth it if it keeps them from starting from mid field. A viable option may be to kick it out of bounds and start at the 35. Play to win!
bloodrunsorange writes:
Crvol, I would really like to know where you played college ball like a lot of the rest of us. Also, where have you coached high school ball for years like a lot of the rest of us. You seem to want us to know that you know everything about everything. One thing you might think about is a new season is always a new season. Most men have the attitude when it’s over it’s over. Press on, just don’t try to make the same mistake twice. Remember you’re dealing with 18 to 23 year old young men (old boys). Some people just complain all the time like our folks south of us in Alabama. SOME US WERE BORN AND RAISED IN THE GREAT STATE OF TENNESSEE. Where are you from? SOME OF US HAVE SEVERAL DEGREES FORM THE ORANGE AND HAVE STAYED ORANGE THE REST OF THE SEVERAL DECADES OF LIVING. I know that section is now free, but you might consider some of us might know a little bit concerning football in our great state of Tennessee before you trash EVERYTHING!.
Bigger_Al writes:
That wasn't just "Luck" in 1998 Arkansas - that was my man Billy Ratliff driving into All American Brandon Burlsworth so fast and hard that he stepped back on Stoerner's cleat, which caused him to stumble as he pivoted. The rest is history.
You can lay back and hope for something good to happen, or you can give it your all and make it happen.
orangebloodgmc writes:
Those were 2 good posts, Bigger_Al and bloodrunsorange. It would be great to get back to days of winning the battle of the special teams. I was at a game here (in the 80's ?) when LSU scored just before half-time to take the momentum. But Carl Pickens hauled the ensuing kickoff all the way back. Totally took the wind out of their sails and we won.
BuckFama writes:
I played "coolege" ball. Did you? Or "havan't" you played at all? "NOt" trying to point out stupidity, merely having a little fun reading some of the earlier posts, say two or three earlier.
Most of the posters to this site want to have a civil discussion and maybe find out more information than is available in the articles. Some merely seem to want to "have fellowship" with other Volunteer fans. Some are very willing to show both the positive and negative in their comments.
Some, though, will never acknowledge that any good comes from the team's efforts, and through their convoluted reasoning they seem to want to try to convince us that they themselves are authorities where football is concerned, and that our coaches, the head coach in particular, have no idea as to what is occurring either on the field or off of it. We recognize these folks by their efforts to set themselves apart with what they consider to be biting commentary and a concerted push to show that they know something that is not apparent to other fans.
These people seem to be very bitter for some reason. Perhaps it's frustration that they have less firsthand knowledge about football in general, and the Volunteer program specifically, than they would like to have. You can see this by their use of the dingy refuge of losers and nonplayers everywhere - statistics.
Regardless, just let them have their say and they will be temporarily satisfied. Respond to them and engage them and they will be elated in that someone is finally paying attention to them. Or just ignore them and see what happens.
knoxtenor writes:
Before I die, I would like to see a year where our special teams played as well as our offense and defense. Why are special teams almost ALWAYS the weakest point in the Big Orange armor? We need to address this embarrassing history and turn it around.
thevol writes:
I'm with you wehhite, our special teams definitely brings the team down and are frustrating to watch. I think not having a special teams coach is a big part of the problem. There needs to be accountability for the mistakes. Luckily we have been blessed with the Colquitt family and good field goal kickers. I do think our infusion of young speed will help. Hopefully this doesn't bite us in the ass again this year. Go Big Orange!
thevol writes:
Thanks for the possitive response on the young kids CR. I knew you had it in you.
cwisenhower#637741 writes:
I know we're pulling out all the stops for Cal and Southern Miss, and that's a shame. No disguise for Florida....but let's not look ahead.
Our special teams was horrible in 2006. Hefney is great. Unfortunately, football is team ball, and Hefney is one person. He can't do it all. So hopefully, the coaches get it together this year. Middle of the pack would feel like first place to me.
Fulmer is the guy in charge of BS, period. I actually think it's in his contract!
But who can forget the punt block by Wordlow last year, alongwith the recovery for a TD? Not me, and neither can my UGA friends!
Remember, special teams isn't just running the ball back after punts and kickoffs. It's also blocking punts and recovering onside kicks.
Go special teams, and go vols!
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