SEC Preview Tennessee

Vols aim to rebuild with youth

Tennessee head coach Butch Jones watches his team warm up before an NCAA college football game against Western Kentucky on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013 in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)
Tennessee head coach Butch Jones watches his team warm up before an NCAA college football game against Western Kentucky on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013 in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

HOOVER, Ala. -- Tennessee Coach Butch Jones didn't explicitly say it, but the Cliff Notes version of his opening address at SEC media days would say he hinted strongly at it.

The Volunteers are still in rebuilding mode.

Tennessee glance

LAST SEASON 5-7, 2-6 (sixth in SEC East)

COACH Butch Jones (5-7 in second year at Tennessee, 55-34 in eighth year overall)

RETURNING STARTERS Offense 5, defense 5, special teams 0

KEY RETURNING PLAYERS QB Justin Worley, LB A.J. Johnson, DE Curt Maggitt, WR Marquez North, RB Marlin Lane

SEC TITLE SCENARIO The Volunteers are so short on veteran talent in the trenches and have such a demanding schedule that it appears no set of circumstances could produce a path to the SEC title. Tennessee was 12th in SEC total offense last year, and senior Justin Worley faces a battle at quarterback to open camp.

Tennessee schedule

DATE;OPPONENT

Aug. 31;Utah State

Sept. 6;Arkansas State

Sept. 13;at Oklahoma

Sept. 27;at Georgia*

Oct. 4;Florida*

Oct. 11;Chattanooga

Oct. 18;at Ole Miss*

Oct 25;Alabama*

Nov. 1;at South Carolina*

Nov. 15;Kentucky*

Nov. 22;Missouri*

Nov. 29;at Vanderbilt*

*SEC game

If Tennessee finishes below .500 in Jones' second season at the helm, it will make a fifth consecutive year with a losing record for a program that had 25 winning seasons in a 27-year span under Johnny Majors and Phil Fulmer from 1980 to 2007.

"We are still going through the realities of building a college football program," Jones said. "We're the only school in the country that has to replace both starting interior lines, both offensively and defensively. We have to replace our entire kicking game."

Jones also pointed out that most college football programs replace about a third of their personnel each season, while the Volunteers' roster is about half newcomers.

Jones said he is excited about the Vols' massive influx of youth, a 32-man signing class that featured 14 early signees and prompted Jones to give the season a theme.

"You'll hear me talk about the power of one," Jones said. "The one is very powerful with this football team because, being so young, we have to focus on the moment.

"We have to win one moment at a time, one play at the same time, one practice at the same time, one day at the same time, have one unity of purpose, one common commitment and one mindset."

Tennessee's recruiting class drew a consensus top 10 rating, including No. 5 by ESPN.com, and the Volunteers project to have freshmen and newcomers manning positions on both sides of the ball. Big back Jalen Hurd, 6-3, 230 pounds, is expected to split carries with senior Marlin Lane at tailback.

Transfer Von Pearson and freshman Josh Malone project as big contributors at receiver, along with sophomores Marquez North and Jason Croom. Linebacker Dillon Bates, son of former Vol Bill Bates, will likely land in the two-deep and is one of five signees whose fathers played for Tennessee.

Tennessee will face one of the nation's most brutal schedules, which includes SEC crossover opponents Alabama and Ole Miss and a road game at Oklahoma to start a home-and-home series. The Vols take on nine teams that played in bowls last season, and their opponent winning percentage (.652) ranks third in the nation behind Arkansas and Virginia. Analyst Phil Steele projects the Volunteers' schedule as the second-toughest in the nation behind Notre Dame.

Senior Justin Worley leads a pack of four quarterbacks, three of whom got starts in 2013. While Worley is seen as having lesser physical talent than redshirt freshman Riley Ferguson, he could be a safer bet to open the season.

The Volunteers are devoid of returning starters on both lines, but they are not void of skill talent. Lane rushed for 552 yards and averaged 5.3 yards per carry last season. North had 38 catches, second-most for a Tennessee freshman, for 496 yards.

The starters on the defensive front will be all new, but six players with starting experience return in the back seven, including linebacker A.J. Johnson and hybrid end Curt Maggitt, who missed part of 2012 and all of 2013 while rehabbing a torn knee ligament.

"Being able to get him back on the grass for our football team, he's going to be a presence," Jones said. "He'll add an edge presence to our defense, but also we'll move him around at linebacker.

"He demands respect. He's accountable to his teammates. So to be able to have his voice on the field when we're in the battles is going to be critical in us moving forward."

Maggitt talked at SEC media days about how Jones has received him as a defensive veteran.

"I think he sees guys look to me," Maggitt said. "I know he sees my passion for the game and how much I enjoy playing football and how much I enjoy just being on the field."

While Oklahoma is the big name on Tennessee's nonconference schedule, the Volunteers open with a couple of games that could be tougher than expected against Utah State and Arkansas State, the three-time defending Sun Belt Conference champion.

Up next: Missouri

Sports on 07/25/2014

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