Josh Heupel updates Tennessee DB Rickey Gibson II's status for N.C. State game
Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel said during his weekly press conference on Monday that he expects sophomore cornerback Rickey Gibson II to be available for Saturday night’s game against North Carolina State in the Duke’s Mayo Classic at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.
Gibson did not play in the season opener against Chattanooga on Saturday because of a hamstring issue.
“We held a couple guys (out) on game day,” Heupel said. “You might have seen him warm up. End of the day, he’ll be be ready to roll this week.
“It was just felt like for our football team and the longevity, all of it, there were a couple guys that we held out that could have played in that one but will hold for this week.”
Up Next: Tennessee vs. N.C. State, Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET, ABC
Freshman receivers Mike Matthews and Braylon Staley also did not play in the 69-3 win over Chattanooga on Saturday.
Tennessee (1-0) and N.C. State (1-0) are scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time start Saturday on ABC.
“Really good opponent that we’re playing,” Heupel said. “They play all three phases of the game really well together. Defensively, they’ve been really good and it will be a great test for us up front and on the perimeter.
“And at quarterback and offensively, they got a really experienced quarterback, got playmakers around him and the special teams are really good too. So (it’s a huge) huge test for us this week. One that we’re excited about.”
Gibson last season had nine tackles, one tackle for loss and a pass defended.
Tennessee’s starting secondary in the season opener was Jermod McCoy and Jalen McMurray at corner, Christian Harrison at the Star and Will Brooks and Andre Turrentine at safety.
Rickey Gibson II is ‘a super, super talented player … really dynamic’
Brooks led the team with five tackles against Chattanooga. Turrentine and McCoy had two tackles each and McMurray and Harrison both had one tackle.
Jourdan Thomas was lost to a season-ending knee injury during training camp, with Harrison replacing him as the starting Star with freshman Boo Carter also getting time there.
Gibson was a four-star prospect in the 2023 class, ranked by On3 as the No. 173 overall prospect in the country and was ranked No. 17 among cornerbacks. He was the No. 13 overall player in the state of Alabama, out of Hewitt-Trussville High School in Trussville.
“He’s obviously a super, super talented player,” Brooks said on Monday. “He’s really dynamic as well. Really excited to have him back and be able to play this week.”
