JD PicKell emphasizes the importance of Tennessee replacing Jalin Hyatt, Cedric Tillman on offense

On3’s JD PicKell has been tackling some of the biggest headlines in college football before the start of the 2023 season. And on a recent episode of The Hard Count, the college football expert took some time to explain the importance of the Tennessee Volunteers finding replacements for their former wide receiver duo of Jalin Hyatt and Cedric Tillman.

“I’m a firm believer that in order to figure out who has to step up, we have to figure out what we lost. Gotta figure out what to replace before we figure out who can replace it,” said PicKell.

“So I look at Jalin Hyatt, and the first thing is just a production. 15 receiving touchdowns, over 1200 yards. Like the dude was a stick of dynamite for them on the outside and playing in the slot. He did it all for Tennessee; a ton of production. But from a gameplay standpoint, I look at Jalin Hyatt, and what he brought to the table was putting pressure on the safeties. Speed, speed, and more speed; that’s who Jalin Hyatt was.”

When it comes to the category of speed, Tennessee might not have to look much further than sophomore wide receiver Squirrel White. In his freshman campaign, the five-foot-10 Birmingham, AL, native was able to show off his speed and shiftiness on the field whenever given the opportunity.

“The reason why it’s important for this Tennessee offense, they run the ball effectively. And so, when those safeties creep up, you gotta be able to have that pop play. The branding of Tennessee’s offense last year… was Jalin Hyatt probably catching one or two deep bombs from Hendon Hooker. That was what made them so explosive and allowed him to score 44 points a game. So, who has to step up to replace Jalin Hyatt? What you have to replace is the speed and the pressure he put on the safeties and, ultimately, those explosive plays.”

White would finish last season with 30 catches for 481 yards and two touchdowns. And he saved his best performance for Tennessee’s final game of the season, their Orange Bowl matchup against Clemson. There White would finish the game with nine receptions for 108 yards and one touchdown.

PicKell on Tennessee replacing Tilman

“With Cedric Tillman, you have to replace the physicality that he brought to the outside: Six-foot-three, 215 pounds, just a grown man playing out there. And you can’t teach big. The good news, Tennessee fans, you already have seen Tennessee step up with different players on this offense to make up for when Cedric Tillman was hurt last year.

“Never a good thing when one of your best receivers is hurt, but being able to kind of have a preview of that with a guy like Bru McCoy stepping in. That’s encouraging for Tennessee fans. So, what you have to replace; is the production and the speed of Jalin Hyatt. The physicality on the outside with Cedric Tillman with the blocking and in the redzone, being able to win 50-50 balls. Gotta replace that.”

Physicality-wise, Tennessee has a number of options. But arguably, the primary receiver looking to fill the role Tillman played in the offense last year is McCoy. McCoy was second on the team in two of the main statistical receiving categories receptions (52) and receiving yards (667), and was third on the team in touchdowns (4). In 2022 he proved himself to be a vital part of the Volunteers’ offense and fans should not expect that to change in 2023