Poole (partially torn meniscus) plays tough

For two guys who have only been on campus barely more than three months, Tennessee's Tauren Poole and Austin Johnson are already making their presence felt.

Playing with a partially torn meniscus in his knee, Poole carried the ball eight times for 9 yards during Saturday's scrimmage.

Johnson, who moved to fullback from linebacker this week, had an 8-yard touchdown reception called back after coaches ruled Nick Stephens down for a sack.

Still, UT's two midterm enrollees showed enough Saturday to let coach Phillip Fulmer know they can contribute in the fall as true freshmen.

Fulmer praised Poole's toughness after revealing the partial tear, which is not unlike the injuries fellow tailbacks Lennon Creer and Arian Foster dealt with last fall.

"He's got a slight tear in the meniscus and he's played through it," Fulmer said. "I'm hopeful he'll get the work, and he's a tough guy. He's a good player and definitely has a chance to make an impact on our team this year."

Both Creer and Foster underwent surgery during the offseason, however Fulmer did not say whether Poole's injury would require surgery after spring practice.

Poole had missed some practice time because of the knee.

With Tennessee's depth thin at fullback, Johnson has a chance to make an impact as well, Fulmer said.

"He's intelligent," Fulmer said of Johnson, who played fullback in high school. "For just a few days over there, he's picked it up really fast. He's a tough guy. He's athletic. He can catch the ball. Not afraid. He's got to get a lot stronger, but that won't happen tomorrow.

"But I think he'll help us this year. He'll help us on offense and he'll help us on special teams."

Paige Presence: A little good-natured ribbing from Fulmer might have done the trick for sophomore wide receiver Ahmad Paige.

"I was real disappointed in the Tuesday scrimmage until I watched the film," Fulmer said. "He was blocking everybody. I said, 'If you can't catch it, we'll make you a wide blocker. You don't have to be a wide receiver.'

"I think today he thought he better catch a couple balls."

Paige got the message Saturday, catching seven passes for 73 yards.

"He's getting better," Fulmer said. "He has a million miles to go."

Brown Out: Defensive end Wes Brown missed most of the scrimmage after suffering a concussion.

In his absence, sophomore Ben Martin worked with the first team.

"It's nice to be able to put Ben out there with the first group and have to go against our No. 1 offensive line," defensive ends coach Steve Caldwell said.

Sophomore linebacker Chris Donald also worked some at defensive end, however that move is not a permanent one.

Tennessee survived Saturday's scrimmage without any significant injuries.

More D-Mo: Safety Demetrice Morley provided another highlight, this time on special teams.

In the final portion of UT's scrimmage, Morley blocked a Daniel Lincoln field-goal attempt.

Last week, safety Eric Berry blocked a field-goal try as well.

Red-Letter Rogan: Sophomore defensive back Dennis Rogan had another monster scrimmage.

In addition to his 82-yard interception return for a touchdown, the former Fulton High School standout nearly had another score.

On his only punt return of the day, Rogan shed two would-be tacklers and seemed poised to score - until punter Chad Cunningham stopped him for a 53-yard return.

Specialties: Cunningham was solid, punting five times for a 40.6-yard average.

Aside from a missed 29-yard field goal, Lincoln was solid.

The sophomore All-American hit from 41, 43, 31, 31 and 51 yards. He also missed twice from 43 yards.

Drew Edwards covers University of Tennessee football. He may be reached at 865-342-6274.