KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – As Tennessee prepares to visit Kentucky on Saturday, the No. 17/17 Vols’ focus centers on consistency and growth on both sides of the ball.
Wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope praised his unit’s daily approach and competitiveness, pointing to the maturity of young playmakers like Braylon Staley and Mike Matthews, who have embraced larger roles midway through the season.
“I think for one, those guys are very talented. I think also to their credit, they come in here, they buy in and they work. I think what we’re doing on offense, what we’re coaching these guys, it translates. I think it’s as simple as that. I know a lot of guys, teams in this league, would love to have three guys who can go out and put up numbers. I think we’re showing it week in and week out. That has to stay consistent. We can’t get off our routine there.”
Outside linebackers coach Levorn Harbin said his group is intent on cleaning up and finishing plays. With Kentucky’s physical offensive line and ground game up next, Harbin stressed execution and discipline as the defense looks to reestablish its edge.
“Well first of all, we’re planning to stop the run. They’re a very physical team. They like to get the ball on the edge, running backs run hard. The tight ends and tackles, they are very physical, and they do a good job with their hands. They’ve got a really good offensive line coach that we’ve been facing. He was in Kentucky, then he went to Alabama and now he’s back at Kentucky, so we’ve got a lot of respect for him. We know we have a challenge ahead in the run game, and then also they do a great job on play-action pass. so we’ve got to do a great job playing the run and then trying to convert on reversing the pass.”
Outside Linebackers Coach Levorn Harbin
On adjustments needed after his unit’s performance against Alabama…
“Alabama has a great offensive line. They have a couple of guys that are probably going to be first-round draft picks, but there are some things that I can do better to help the guys out that I will have to coach up this week. The guys were in position a couple of times, but didn’t finish how we would like to. We’ll clean that up this week, and we’ll move on to being better than what we were last week.”
On his approach to encouraging his players after a loss…
“I’m the same every week, but also, you have to go back and evaluate what you’re doing and maybe be a little bit more tedious about certain things. That’s what I have had to do this week. The guys also have to work on the little things, and I have to keep coaching it for those guys. The biggest thing is just finishing. Finishing rushes, and I have to coach that up and teach them how to finish too. So that’s on me. That’s not on them. That’s my job and no, I don’t change from week to week. Wins and losses, I treat the same to be honest with you.”
On how his players measure their success…
“Every snap, the guys think they’re going to win. That’s what you have to first put in their mind, that they can’t win every rep. And last week, they were a little disappointed with the outcome of the production, but also when we went back and watched the film, they saw where they could’ve been successful and they weren’t. So, it wasn’t like they were just so much better than us. Now they did a couple of times do a great job with their sets and with their hands, and we could’ve been a little bit more violent, but they saw where they could have done a better job and been more productive. We’re not worried at all about moving forward.”
On the improvement of Jordan Ross…
“I’m very pleased with him, from him understanding how to play. He’s gotten better every week to be honest with you. I said this a couple weeks ago. I mean he was showing it on the production side, on the stats, but he is doing a great job. He’s a young man who plays harder than anybody in my room. I can honestly say that, and they will say the same thing. He just has to learn how to do the little things, and he’s working on it diligently every day. So, he has a chance to be really good. He can take another step, and he will take another step. I think he has a chance to be a really, really good football player.”
On preparation for Kentucky’s offense…
“Well first of all, we’re planning to stop the run. They’re a very physical team. They like to get the ball on the edge, running backs run hard. The tight ends and tackles, they are very physical, and they do a good job with their hands. They’ve got a really good offensive line coach that we’ve been facing. He was in Kentucky, then he went to Alabama and now he’s back at Kentucky, so we’ve got a lot of respect for him. We know we have a challenge ahead in the run game, and then also they do a great job on play-action pass. so we’ve got to do a great job playing the run and then trying to convert on reversing the pass.”
On improvements made in the run defense…
“Just executing the game plan that Coach (Tim Banks) and the rest of the staff comes up with. Just doing a better job of executing the game plan, getting the guys to do the little things, and the guys doing the little things, so that was the biggest thing. We just have to continue to progress from that point, and also continue to do a better job tackling too. We’ve done that every week, from week one to now, so trying to do a better job from that part too. Coaching it up and the guys performing.”
Wide Receivers Coach Kelsey Pope
On the growth of Braylon Staley…
“Braylon is a fierce competitor. I think that shows on Saturday. Every time he shows up in the building, he’s got the same mentality. I think that approach is what helps him be successful. I think that approach is what gives him so much confidence. When you do that every day — even when games don’t start right, or practice doesn’t start right — you’re able to bounce back because you create enough habits. You create enough sweat equity to be able to bounce back and persevere through some of those situations. I think for starters, his approach and his mentality every day of trying to find a way to get better, I think is what contributes most to that.”
On Chris Brazzell II’s preparation leading up to the Alabama game…
“I really saw the same approach. As a wideout, sometimes you get it your way, sometimes you don’t. You have to always expect it, and if it doesn’t, you have to roll with the punches. I didn’t really see a different approach. I think he came into the Bama week with a really good approach, which he’s done for the most part this year. We look forward to getting that same approach and that same mentality at practice every week.”
On how the top three receivers are handling the workload…
“Yeah, I think they are. I think they handle it well. I think they all want to be out there. I think, especially, we had two young guys last year who didn’t get as many snaps as they wanted to. Now they’re in the position that they asked for. Obviously, you do see it late in games, but what we try to do as coaches is try to slow our tempo down, try to get in and out of personnels to try to maybe save their legs here and there. You can do some things schematically and with play calling to help them. But those guys want to be out there to compete every single snap, and that’s all I can ask for.”
On how much receivers can do during the week to stay fresh…
“Yeah, you have to make sure that you have a real unique plan for each individual guy. You have to be very intentional during the practice week with how much of the player load and volume that they’re getting on game day. For one, you have to get their legs back, and two, after you get their legs back during the week, you have to get their speeds ramped up to replicate what it’s going to feel like in the game. That’s something that Coach Heupel and I, and also our strength and conditioning, we’re very intentional about. We’re meeting about that almost once or twice a day to make sure we’re taking care of those guys.”
On the cleanliness of play in the receiver room…
“I think they’re handling it well. Some of the drops, obviously, we have to clean up. But I think that’s the offense as a whole. I think you determine that by, are they still getting separation? Does that technique still look clean? Are they winning one-on-ones? And from the first quarter to the fourth, that shows up. I think the focus piece is what has to be ramped up, and that’s obviously things that we’re addressing in practice.”
On the lack of deep shots against Alabama’s defense…
“I think naturally as you make plays down the field, defensive coordinators in this league aren’t going to let you live on the long ball. We’re able to adjust to that, as well. Now, what you do see is you see us getting different breakers, deep outs. You see us over the middle of the field, 15, 20 yards. That gives us the ability to run different routes and allow these guys to put that kind of stuff on tape. It also allows you to put that on film. So now, defenses can’t get tendencies about your breakers, about your routes, concepts, patterns. I think that shows up a lot this year, especially with the variety of things that we’re doing on offense. We ran a ton of routes the other night. We put a bunch of plays on tape, and you see guys at every single level getting open. It’s clear separation at the top. So, that goes back to Brent’s question. I think from the first quarter to the fourth, we’re creating separation. You just have to add the focus piece. I think you’ll create explosives, just not vertically. You’ll catch it underneath, and it’ll be more of an explosive after the catch.”
On Mike Matthews and Braylon Staley’s growth over the course of the season…
“I think one, handling volume. That’s physical and mental. When you step into that role, especially when coaches see that you can handle it, they’ll throw things on you to see how much capacity you have. So, handling the volume of information in the meetings, things that we’re installing, and then being able to handle the physical volume is where I’ve seen both of those guys take huge jumps. I think the next step for both of those guys is going to be just true playmaking ability consistently down the stretch. Mike (Matthews) made a huge catch on the fourth down. They were playing 2-man. We went on a dig cut, which is really tough to win on the 2-man. It was huge there. Braylon (Staley), I think that same drive, him and Joey (Aguilar) on the scramble rules, he converted, like a 3rd-and-6 or something like that, but converted on the cross over the field. Those types of situations, when the game is on the line, offense needs you, I think those guys’ next step is they consistently make those types of plays.”
On having three receivers towards the top in receiving yards in the SEC…
“I think for one, those guys are very talented. I think also to their credit, they come in here, they buy in and they work. I think what we’re doing on offense, what we’re coaching these guys, it translates. I think it’s as simple as that. I know a lot of guys, teams in this league, would love to have three guys who can go out and put up numbers. I think we’re showing it week in and week out. That has to stay consistent. We can’t get off our routine there. As long as those guys keep working and not start to look at those stats and not start to look at where they are in rankings, as long as they keep working, we’ll keep progressing. As soon as they start listening to newspaper clippings or they’re on Twitter, that’s where you start to stunt your growth. I think continuing to talk about maturity and being a pro from me, I think it’s going to help those guys continue to take steps and not worrying about what’s outside this building.”
On talking to players after drops and maintaining confidence…
“I think understanding the psyche of a receiver is unique. They’re fragile at times. They’re also really stern at times, so it’s important for me, having played the position, to be able to identify when and what they need. A lot of times after a drop is not the time to go crazy on these guys, because a lot of times they’re harder on themselves. I think you love them up first in those situations and then pull them back later on, and then get them whatever technique, clean-up. It may have been their eyes, it may be just focus. You get that cleaned up so they can implement it. I think there’s other times where receivers make a lot of plays, and we can get kind of big-headed. I think it’s time to kind of identify then like, we have to come back down to earth. We have be more even keeled, because with your emotions going high and low, there’s no way you can keep consistency. So, I think being able to identify that is the number one thing, and then implementing that where it’s needed.”
