2017 Tennessee Football Preview

Seth Raborn
Aug 25, 2017 · 6 min read
Photo Courtesy of Pete Fiutak — USA Today Sports

SEC football is just days away. Before toe meets pigskin on August 31st, The Wheelhouse crew has compiled our preseason SEC power rankings and a preview of each team. As we release our team previews, we’ll release them in the order of which each team is ranked in our preseason rankings to help the days until kickoff go by quicker.

The Tennessee Volunteers check in at №. 6 in our preseason SEC power rankings.

This time last year the hype train for Tennessee football was off the rails, and half-way through the season it seemed to be validated. However, early on in the season, cracks were found in the foundation. Those cracks being a 20–13 overtime win against Appalachian State in the season-opener and an 11-point win against Ohio. Still, everything fell into place after back-to-back wins over Florida and Georgia (thanks Jauan Jennings) that gave the Vols a 5–0 record going into games against Texas A&M and Alabama.

The orange-and-white then lost both games going into the bye week. Albeit disappointing, the Vols were still on track for a 10–2 record considering the weakness of the back-half of their schedule. That is until they lost to South Carolina coming off of a bye week. After beating Kentucky, Tennessee Tech and Misosuri, the Vols lost their final game to Vanderbilt. With the losses to South Carolina and Vanderbilt, Tennessee failed to win the SEC East and make it to Atlanta. Heading into the 2017, the Vols have to replace more than a few talented players that have moved on to the NFL. Can the Vols fill those huge roles and overachieve with lowered expectations this year?

Offensive Preview:

Although Tennessee will have to do without former quarterback Joshua Dobbs at the helm, it still possesses firepower on offense. John Kelly leads the running backs and looks to have a dynamic 2017 season. After unexpectedly receiving the starting job last year, Kelly certainly impressed with two 100-yard rushing games and a pair of 94-yard games in his six starts.

The Vols’ offensive line should be the strongest core on the team and is returning every player from the 2016 season with the exception of Dylan Wiesman. Even without injured tackle Chance Hall, the depth of the Tennessee offensive line is incredible. Center/guard Jashon Robertson is one of the leaders of the offensive line and appeared on the Outland Award Watch List, given to the top interior lineman in the country. Five-star true freshman Trey Smith has already impressed and brings even more depth to the offensive line room that returns a combined 110 starts.

Tennessee’s receiving core is still intact, even with the loss of Josh Malone. The Hail Mary king, Jauan Jennings, returns as the top receiver for the Vols. As for the rest of the wide receiver room, it’s essentially a toss-up. Marquez Callaway has turned heads over the offseason and is primed for a breakout year. Tyler Bird’s athleticism and speed continues to impress and Josh Smith has great hands, but is expected to miss time due to an AC Sprain in his shoulder.

The elephant in the room is the quarterback situation for Tennessee. Head coach Butch Jones has yet to name a starter for the 2017 season, but Quinten Dormady definitely has the upper hand as a pure passer. While Jarret Guarantano has better mobility, the redshirt freshman can also sling it around the gridiorn. Both quarterbacks are playing at a high-level in practice, but its expected Jones will start Dormady in the opener against Georgia Tech simply for the fact that he has more experience.

Defensive Preview:

Defensive coordinator Bob Shoop and the Vols defense have some work to do after last season. Barring any major injuries, fans could be in for a pleasant surprise. It all boils down to consistency and staying healthy for Tennessee after injuries ravaged them in the 2016 season. The defensive line has the most to prove this season and has no excuses not to be a solid group.

Defensive tackles Kahlil McKenzie and Shy Tuttle are both coming off of injuries last season and will look to finally have injury-free breakout seasons. On the outside, Darrell Taylor and Jonathan Kongbo fill out the defensive end position. Taylor has had one of the most productive springs and Kongbo needs to finally live up to his five-star rating coming out of JUCO. Senior defensive tackle Kendal Vickers brings a veteran presence that Tennessee needs for the defensive line and defensive end Kyle Phillips provides more depth.

Darrin Kirkland Jr. headlined the linebacker squad until he injured his knee recently in practice. Kirkland was limited due to injuries last season as well but has tallied 111 tackles in 21 career games. Senior Colton Jumper played in all 13 games last season for the Vols and filled in for the injured Kirkland. Senior Cortez McDowell is a solid SEC linebacker who appeared in 11 games last season, registering 54 tackles. Shoop will be switching it up between a nickel and 4–3 defense this year, so players such as Quart’e Sapp, Daniel Bituli and Elliot Berry will all see the field pretty regularly. With the absence of Kirkland Jr. for quite a while, the Vols will need solid contributions from all of these players.

The secondary is the biggest question mark for the Vols this season. Cameron Sutton is now gone and they are looking for someone to fill his shoes. Senior Justin Martin has assumed the role and has vastly improved since the 2016 season according to the Vols’ coaching staff. Graduate transfer Shaq Wiggins brings in more veteran leadership to go along side senior Emmanuel Moseley. The hard hitting Todd Kelly Jr. will be the starting free safety and Nigel Warrior will assume the starting role of strong safety.

Special Teams Preview:

Tennessee returns all of their special teams’ starters from the 2016 season. All-SEC returner Evan Berry looks to expand upon his 460-yards and one touchdown on kickoffs from last season. Punter Trevor Daniel heads into the season on the 2017 Ray Guy Award Watch List after an impressive 2016 campaign that included 3,000 total yards of punting. However, inconsistency from kicker Aaron Medley has created a position battle with Brent Cimaglia. The starting kicker remains uncertain for the opener against Georgia Tech.

Newcomers to Watch:

The obvious answer is the 6-foot-6, 313-pound Trey Smith who has already solidified himself as a starter in the offseason. However, freshman receiver Josh Palmer has been the standout of the Vols’ receiving core over the offseason and has earned a ton of reps early on in camp. He came in as a three-star recruit, but has clearly set himself apart as a true playmaker.

Schedule Breakdown:

The obvious games to watch for are against Florida and Georgia as those games usually settle who wins the SEC East. However, the games against South Carolina and Kentucky are as crucial as ever. Butch Jones has yet to win against Will Muschamp in his career and Kentucky is at the peak of their football program under Mark Stoops. This 2017 schedule is no cake walk and leaves no “easy half” of the schedule for Tennessee like it usually does.

Keys to a successful season:

The biggest thing the Vols will need to do in order to have success this season is to stay healthy. Last season was essentially ruined by the injury bug and they don’t have the depth for that to happen again. Another thing that is sorely needed for this team is for players to prove themselves. Tuttle and McKenzie have neither fully showed their potential due to injury and Kongbo has not fully come around. Justin Martin will need to step up as the starting cornerback and Todd Kelly Jr. will need to be faster in open space.

On the offensive side of the ball, John Kelly needs to solidify himself as the leader of the offense and one of the best running backs in the SEC. Dormady or Guarantano has to use the talent that Tennessee has at receiver and tight end to his advantage. At offensive line, this group has to separate themselves as the best core on the team. However, first-and-foremost this Tennessee team has to stay healthy.

Final Say:

The expectations are much lower for the Vols this season than they were in 2016 and that plays into their favor. They have the talent on defense to be even better than last season without any injuries. As for the offense, the only question is at quarterback. The offensive line is stacked and the receiving core is set with playmakers. Not to mention, Kelly is one of the most underrated running backs in the conference.

The key for Tennessee is consistency and staying healthy. With all of that falling into place they could have themselves a solid season.

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