University of Tennessee Athletics
Vol Report: Homecoming Week Begins
October 31, 2016 | Football
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Head coach Butch Jones, along with offensive coordinator Mike DeBord, defensive coordinator Bob Shoop and tight ends coach/special teams coordinator Larry Scott, spoke to reporters at Monday's press conference in the Ray and Lucy Hand Digital Studio.
The Volunteers (5-3, 2-3 SEC) return home to Rocky Top following a 24-21 loss last Saturday visiting the South Carolina Gamecocks (4-4, 2-4 SEC).
Now entering Week 10 of the regular season, Tennessee looks to host Tennessee Tech (3-5, 3-3 OVC) this Saturday, Nov. 5 at 4 p.m. ET for Homecoming at Neyland Stadium.
The Vols and the Golden Eagles will match up for their sixth ever contest, with each game previously played in Knoxville. Tennessee is 5-0 all-time against TTU, with the last meeting between the schools resulting in a 68-0 Tennessee victory during its 1951 National Championship season.
Butch Jones | Head Coach
"It's good to see everyone. I have the same thoughts as Saturday night. We really missed an opportunity. There isn't anybody more disappointed than myself and our football team, but it is a new week and opportunity to work to be 1-0. Looking back, there were some positive things to build on, but again, we need consistency. We have to establish some drives and get explosive plays and tackle. We need to get off the field on fourth downs and convert on third downs. There is still a lot of football left to be played, and we are still playing in meaningful games. That is very important. I like this team's approach so far, and you can tell by what their temperament is after the game. There were a lot of individuals who were hurting, and that is a direct correlation to your investment. I believe in our kids, the program and our system.
"We live in a week-to-week season, and there are natural adversities that a long season brings about. You have to manage those adversities. Half of this industry loses each week. You have to keep things in perspective. The thing you can't do is be overwhelmed by the emotion of a loss like that. You have to work to get better and correct it. You have to learn from it and move on and make sure you're better because of it. Football is made up of adversities just like life. We always say football is life just sped up a lot faster. We will bounce back and have a great week. We have a great test this week. Coach [Marcus] Satterfield has done a great job with Tennessee Tech's football program. They play exceptionally hard. It's all about us. We are working to be 1-0.
"I met with Jalen Hurd this morning. We have a great relationship, but we had a conversation and Jalen informed me that he intends to transfer. I support him on that. I am very thankful for everything he has done for our football program, but it's all about our football program and team moving forward from this point.
"We have lost Shy Tuttle for the year. I feel for that young man. He worked so hard to get himself back into playing condition and worked so diligently in the training room. He has a knee injury and will miss the rest of the season and will be doing rehab throughout the course of spring practice. I love him to death. This is very unfortunate and part of the adversity in a football season."
Mike DeBord | Offensive Coordinator
Against South Carolina, sophomore tailback John Kelly posted career highs for carries (14) and rushing yards (94). With veteran Alvin Kamara continuing to recover from injury this week, DeBord sees Kelly making great strides and thriving in live game action.
"I've said it all along; we have great confidence in him. He has displayed his confidence at Texas A&M and this week [against South Carolina] and we have great confidence in John Kelly. He hits the hole really quick and he also has good quickness and speed, but he also has power. I just like what he brings that way."
Bob Shoop | Defensive Coordinator
Tennessee's defense accumulated a season-high six sacks against South Carolina's quarterback Jake Bentley, with defensive end Derek Barnett leading the charge and recording three of his own. By doing so, Barnett now sits in second place all-time for career sacks at Tennessee with 29, while linebacker Darrin Kirkland Jr. also added to the pressure against the Gamecocks by racking up a team-best eight tackles in his return from injury.
"I like to bring more pressure, anyway. Early on, we were bringing pressure and a couple teams did some things to negate that but we got back and I thought we were much, much more aggressive this week. We had a lot of tackles for loss, we had six sacks. It probably could have had seven or eight sacks really. We missed the quarterback a couple times. But I felt pretty good calling the game."
Larry Scott | Tight Ends Coach/Special Teams Coordinator
Scott spoke about the excitement and motivation that Team 120's newest players have entering Week 10 to go out, make plays and become key contributors.
"They've lifted the weights, they ran the sprints, they're in the meeting rooms, they work hard and they're here on scholarship. A lot of times, that's all that is needed for a lot of guys; an opportunity to go out and play... It's the opportunity that everyone is excited about."
More Sound Bites
Offensive Coordinator Mike DeBord
(On Joshua Dobbs having a number of turnovers this year)
"There is no one that can be harder on Josh Dobbs than Josh Dobbs and he is really hard on himself. If you saw him in the locker room after losses, you would know what this means to him and what Tennessee football means to him and what the team means to him... What he has done for us this season and prior seasons has been unbelievable and I am glad he is our quarterback."
Defensive Coordinator Bob Shoop
(On the challenge of starting new defensive personnel mid-season)
"If a defensive tackle makes a mistake, it could be a five-yard gain. If a linebacker makes a mistake, it could be a 12 to 15-yard gain and if a guy in the secondary makes a mistake, it could be a touchdown. Nigel Warrior had some good snaps. He'll learn from that and he'll move forward and obviously it's a product of the depth situation. Micah Abernathy wasn't able to play last week and Evan Berry had the 100-yard kickoff return and was gassed. We had to take him out for a series and then got the gash in the eye. Evan [Berry] played really well. I thought he was one of the bright spots. He improves our team speed and did a really good job."
Tight Ends Coach/Special Teams Coordinator Larry Scott
(On Jason Croom's progress transitioning from wide receiver to tight end)
"With Jason, we were worried about his mental approach every day. We're [focused] on him getting better and getting through that transition. Each and every week we see him do something a little bit better. That's not an easy transition. He's done a really good job each and every week... It's about daily improvement."
