Everything Josh Heupel said after Tennessee Football started spring practice Friday

Everything Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said after Day 1 of spring practice Friday morning in Knoxville:

Opening Statement

“Great to get on the grass here as we start spring ball. The guys have had really good winter. A bunch of new guys, 27 new guys, 23 freshmen inside of the program. A lot of young guys just on our roster in general and probably what they’ve done, just strength and conditioning, (the) build-up, the lead-up to spring ball. Starting to get a grasp of what we’re doing on the football side as well. 

“Today is day one. As you would expect, great energy. Guys playing hard, too. There’s going to be a bunch as we go back and watch the tape. It’s the beginning part of the journey. And (we) challenged those guys after practice. Man, it’s about consistent growth. It’s about not making the same mistake twice and learning how to play the way that you have to. And that starts with effort, attitude and playing tough. And we’ll continue to grow on the smart side of it as we continue to go through spring, but in the lead-up to kickoff as well. 

“But really proud of what they’ve done in the beginning part, the first quarter of our offseason here as we kick off the second with spring ball. Excited about where we’re going.” 

A freshman quarterback in his first practice like Tennessee’s George MacIntyre, his advice to him on Day 1

“This is the beginning stages for a young quarterback. So recognizing signals, how to communicate, outside the line of scrimmage when we’re in tempo, dead-ball situations, the huddle, the sideline, learning how to control and command all of those things. You work on that in the lead-up, but once you get helmets on and we’re out on the grass, it’s a little bit different. Today he did a really good job understanding structure of defense, where are you taking your eyes? So that’s pre-snap, post-snap. 

“And then your fundamentals, got to play into being consistent, giving yourself a chance to be accurate with the football once you make a sound decision. Man, I just listed off a lot of things that got to happen. It’s Day 1. I like what he did today, but there’s going to be a lot of growth here through spring ball.

“I always say this to our young guys, you know, first time out on the practice field with us as you start spring ball and the first five days, man, it’s happening fast, right? The calls, formation recognition, the speed of the game, it’s all faster. Second five (practices), you try to find your groove and if you’re doing it right, by the time you get to the end of spring ball, you’re a dramatically different football player than you were at the beginning. So just to understand that, you just got to continually invest and you’ll reap the rewards as you go through the process.”

If he treats spring practice different when the Tennessee roster has so many young players on it, with the Vols replacing so many veterans

“I do feel like, first of all in college football, there’s always a cycle. And typically you end up having a bunch of young guys (on) your roster. That’s been the case for us since we’ve been here. This group of young guys have been really mature. I’m just talking about their approach, how they’ve handled offseason workouts to what daily life looks like as a college athlete. The extra things that they got to do to give themselves a chance to be prepared for day one out on the practice field, let alone what’s coming as we continue to grow through the spring. It’s been a really positive group. They’ve blended into the culture, the expectations of accountability, building trust and how we attack everything that we’re doing. They’ve handled that really well. There’s a bunch of young guys on our roster and when you go through spring ball, man, it’s about fundamental development. It’s about technique, it’s about learning how to play from snap to whistle. It’s learning how to reset from play to play. There’s a ton of growth that has to happen, but we have a ton of growth that we got to take them through and  it starts with all of those things that to get them to where they need to be. And we don’t kick off until, I don’t know what the date is, but September, there’s a long journey that we got to go through and they got to grow through that.”

If Tennessee’s early enrollees are more prepared now than a number of years ago

“I don’t know that I necessarily feel that way. I think the amount of mid-years, compared to a decade ago, that you have helps them, you know, get comfortable and assimilate to what’s going on as a collective group versus maybe five guys that were coming in at that time. It feels like they’re with their class, which I think is a positive thing for them. The process that we go through during the winter I think helps give them a chance to continually grow into the lead-up of spring ball where day one it is day one in helmets, but they feel like they’re prepared for that moment too.”

Tennessee freshman offensive lineman David Sanders’ mental approach, him as a person

“Man, super smart kid that (is) very engaging, very personable. He has a great family. Cares about the guys around him. He’s had great work habits since he arrived, continued to grow. There’s a lot of growth for him and every young guy that has come onto our roster. He’s put on weight, got to continue to do that, continue to grow into his frame, but he’s got great athleticism.”

The additions to the Tennessee offensive line room, what it’s like without Cooper Mays and Javontez Spraggins

“Like what we’ve done inside of that room, the portal additions that have experience ans years in college football. Body types that we like. Both smart guys as far as their ability to process information at the oline position. I’m excited, once we get to the pads, you tend to find out a whole lot more about the guys up front. Becomes real football, but really excited about them. The young players that we’ve added over the last couple of cycles inside of that position room. 

“Really excited about their growth and development. Physically there’s still a lot of that left out there for them as we continue to grow through our offseason before we kick off or get to training camp. Excited to see them grow on the football field fundamentally in technique in the cycle of college football. 

“We’ve been fortunate to have Coop and you mentioned Spraggs, for a long time. But that’s the great thing about college football too, is your roster changes and it’s exciting to have young guys that got to grow into it and take control and battle and fight and find out who’s going to be ready to play at a championship level.”

The addition to Seth Littrell to Tennessee’s coaching staff

“Yeah, always at the end of the day trying to make, just like you do in the recruiting process, make your roster as strong as you can. Try to do the same thing with your staff and the addition of Seth. But the other guys that we’ve hired, really excited about the experience that they have. the success that they’ve all had. My relationship with Seth I think makes it easy in the transition as far as, man, he’s going to be straightforward with me and be able to bounce ideas off of me. Just having sat in that chair as a head coach too and so excited about having him and the other guys here as we start spring ball.”

How he feels about the receiver room after all the turnover this offseason

“Opportunity exists and really like the group, their physical traits. They’re big, they’re long, athletic, really intelligent football guys, really mature. They grasp onto what we’ve given them up until this point in a really, really good way. So they did a really nice job out there, made some plays. So excited about that group.”

What the potential replacements at center need to do in order to be as successful as Cooper Mays

“Command and control of what we’re doing offensively, understanding defensive structures, the ability to communicate at a really high level and get all five guys on the same page. That includes your tight ends and running backs, too.

“Coop has done a really good job for a really long time here. We were fortunate to have him for a while, but we got a lot of guys that, you know, we have great belief in. They gotta continue to grow as players, but a ton of competition at that position as well. It’ll be multiple guys that are putting their hands on the ball and playing the center spot, but you know, I think there’s really good competition at all the spots that we’re continuing to grow inside of that room.”

What went into the decision to still hold a spring game inside of Neyland Stadium when many around college football are cancelling their spring game

“That’s not just the tradition of it. I do love the spring game. Opportunity for our fans to be here inside the stadium, but you know, it’s usually a great environment on campus that day. I think it’s important in particular for our young players to get a taste of what it’s going to be like in the fall to play in front of a crowd, a big stadium. We open up on the road this year. You don’t want that to be the first time that they’ve played in front of a bunch of people. And so that experience, I think it can create urgency, understanding what it’s gonna feel like as they finish up spring ball, go into summer. End of the day, we gotta accelerate their growth curve. A spring game in those settings is a part of accelerating their growth.”

What is on the to-do list for Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava this spring

“Yeah, command and control of what we’re doing offensively, better with his eyes, fundamental position to be accurate with the football, leadership. It’s the checklist of playing the quarterback position, all of those things. He’s got a chance to continue to get better. Like a lot of what he did. There’s some areas that, you know, that I was just talking about, that he can be better at. And as a quarterback, a big part of your job is creating urgency for the 10 guys around you to play at a really high level, too. 

“That leadership role, it’s not just verbally. It’s how you’re accelerating the mindset and the growth of guys around you. So all those things play into what he has been working on and what he’s gotta continue to do throughout the course of the offseason. “

What gives him confidence that Tennessee sophomore wide receiver Mike Matthews can take the next step heading into his second season

“Yeah, Mike’s had a really good offseason, just physically continuing to grow into his frame. You know, he’s as healthy as he’s been right now (in) a long time. Just during the course of the fall, kind of got nicked up early, late in the summer. Kind of re-injured himself a little bit in training camp and you know, kind of fought through the injury a little bug during the course of the season.

“In year two for him, growth of control in his mind, how he approaches everything every day, he has really matured in a really good way. And so I’m excited about what he’s done up until this point in the offseason, but really like what he did today on the practice field. We have high hopes and expectations for him.”

How he manages coaching football and managing a roster at the same time, if he delegates

“Man, college football kind of has been this way — I don’t know how many years now — it’s been long enough that (I) can’t count. You know, when we’re doing ball, it’s about ball. You get to the back end of spring, the portal opens up and then you know, you turn your attention to those things.”

What it was like to finally get back out on the practice field

“Yeah, you know, I really do enjoy every phase of the offseason. Guys get back, they’re excited about getting in the weight room and doing some stuff with them and on the conditioning side, some football, you know, it’s limited during your build up, ramp up during the winter. But now you’re back to what we’re all here to do, which is go play. You get on the grass, competition, energy, guys make plays, guys don’t make plays, how do you reset to the next play? It’s just, I love spring ball ’cause it’s an intentional time of fundamental technique. Just, you’re starting on the football side, on the ground floor. You reset every year. So, a lot of fun to get back out there with those guys.”