By design, Vols didn't go vertical

During the course of an 84-play scrimmage Saturday, Tennessee's coaching staff called plenty of runs, screens and slants.

Conspicuously absent, though, was the vertical passing game.

Denarius Moore had the longest reception of the day by a wide receiver, taking a slant from Jonathan Crompton 19 yards - and most of the gain came after the catch.

Aside from Moore, who led the receivers with four catches for 45 yards, the Vols threw mainly to tight ends and running backs.

The Vols rarely went vertical on Saturday, but a lot of that was by design.

"We're not going to work on everything," Crompton said. "We're trying to hone in on a few things here and few things there. I think that's what we're trying to do (Saturday)."

The Vols spent a lot of Thursday's practice working on third-and-long situations, and the coaches chose to spend more time on Saturday working on the run game and shorter passes, including a lot of screens.

"We're just working on things we feel like we need to," offensive coordinator Jim Chaney said. "We had a lot of third-down scrimmage stuff on Tuesday and Thursday during the week."

Chaney also added that full scrimmages are one of the few settings conducive to working on screen plays, which is why the Vols ran a number of those Saturday afternoon.

The emphasis on shorter passes could be part of the reason why the stats for UT's quarterbacks didn't exactly jump off the page, either.

Working with the first team, Crompton finished 9-for-16 for 90 yards with an interception, while B.J. Coleman was 17-for-22 for 112 yards. Neither had a touchdown, but head coach Lane Kiffin was optimistic about their performances immediately following the scrimmage.

"I thought it looked pretty good," Kiffin said. "I thought they threw it well. A couple drops today in crucial times that didn't help them out, but they can't control (drops). They seemed to play well. (I'll) go back and see the film and be able to tell you guys more Tuesday."

Zoning In: The offensive line has continued to make strides in a new scheme, particularly those aspects that have a ring of familiarity.

Inside zone runs have been more successful than the outside, or "wide," zone plays, said Chaney, who also coaches the offensive line coach.

"At times we're a little rusty with it," he said. "We're much more comfortable with the tight zone because it's a familiar thing. They've done it in the past. The wide zone is something we're a little rusty with, but we're getting better."

Big Day: Saturday marked the first time UT's coaches have gotten extended time inside Neyland Stadium during the day.

"It's our second day coming to the stadium," Kiffin said. "To be here in a day-game environment with great weather (Saturday) was a great experience for us, especially our coaches."

The Vols held their first full-contact practice in the stadium, although that was a night workout.

Hungry Ends: Junior defensive end Chris Walker continues to be one the best performers in spring practice, and that continued with his sack and forced fumble in Saturday's scrimmage. Fellow junior Ben Martin has been progressing as well, and defensive line coach Ed Orgeron has taken notice.

"It's kind of like a feeding frenzy a little bit," Orgeron said. "They're competing for sacks."

Next Up: Senior center Josh McNeil said the Vols must continue to work on taking care of the football this week in practice, a point that was driven home with two lost fumbles and an interception on Saturday.

"The next step is to quit turning the ball over," he said. "That's the first and main step we gotta quit doing. You can't win any game without the ball. What we really have to do is keep being consistent and growing in our consistency."

© 2009, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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