Vols Hold First Major Preseason Scrimmage!

[Sequatchie]

Here is some info I got on the scrimmage the Volunteers had Saturday at Neyland Stadium!

 

 

The offense scored 13 touchdowns in Tennessee's 117-play scrimmage Saturday afternoon at Neyland Stadium, but numbers aren't everything at this stage of the season.

 

Most of the scores came in goal line or red zone situations with only five touchdowns coming on drives longer than 20 yards.

 

Outside of the seemingly unstoppable Casey Clausen to James Banks connection, which netted three touchdown passes, Saturday's scrimmage was a wash.

 

"The defense had a better day as far as stopping the run,'' said UT tailback Gerald Riggs, who led the runners with 64 yards on 17 carries. "It was an average day for us running the ball.''

 

The Vols' running backs combined for 117 yards on 44 carries (2.65 per carry), and the longest run of the day was just 18 yards.

 

Tennessee's passing game did most of the damage with Clausen under center. The senior quarterback engineered scoring drives of 65, 65 and 60 yards.

 

"The first team was pretty sharp,'' UT offensive coordinator Randy Sanders said. "I'd like to see more plays from the other receivers. I'm not disappointed with where we're at right now, but we're not ready to play Fresno State.''

 

Ditto for the defensive unit, which despite its relative success against the run, is still not up to par with past units.

 

"Defensively, we gave up too many big plays to call it a success,'' Fulmer said. "The main thing is to get better on the defensive front. There wasn't much of a pass rush, and just not much happening from that area.''

 

Walk-on Matt McGlothlin, who started at one of the defensive tackle positions, said there needs to be an attitude adjustment.

 

"I believe everybody has got to get a mean streak to them,'' he said. "Just come out here and bust some heads.''

 

Linebacker Kevin Simon agreed.

 

"The defense has always been the headliner, but now the offense is getting the best of us,'' Simon said. "The attitude and mentality can't just be held by four or five guys. It's got to be 11 of us across the board and the four or five others that will be playing every game.

 

"But there's no reason to be discouraged, because we'll see everything we did wrong in the film room and it can be corrected.''

 

Senior safety Rashad Baker continued to have the most impact of the defensive captains. Baker delivered a vicious hit on Jonathan Wade that separated the track star from his helmet.

 

To Wade's credit, he returned to action immediately and rebounded with a three-catch, 116-yard day.

 

Wade took a quick pass from James Banks, slipped Brandon Johnson's tackle and raced 80 yards to the end zone.

 

Wade's performance leaves the UT coaches with a dilemma of sorts. They have been considering moving him to cornerback where the team lacks both numbers and talent.

 

Fulmer said he is still considering the move, but gave no indication as to when or to what extent he plans on playing Wade on defense.

 

Freshman receiver Bret Smith also showed his talents, beating former high school teammate Rashaun Fellows on a deep route and hauling in a 67-yard bomb from Rick Clausen.

 

Backup quarterback C.J. Leak looked to solidify his spot as the No. 2 quarterback, going 6-for-10 for 53 yards and managing the game clock and pass protection competently.

 

"It has to do with my understand of the game,'' Leak said. "Physically, I feel a lot better and my confidence is good. This is the best I've felt since my freshman year at Wake Forest (1999).''

 

Perhaps the most disappointing position in Saturday's scrimmage was the place-kicking. Freshman James Wilhoit was uncharacteristically inaccurate, missing two extra points and three field goals from 37 yards or closer. Philip Newman fared better, but only marginally.

 

"Our kickers struggled,'' Fulmer said. "They are better kickers than that - both of them.''

 

 

Injury Update: Defensive tackle J.T. Mapu suffered a sprained left knee on the first play of the scrimmage and is expected to be out up to two weeks.

 

Fullback Troy Fleming suffered a hip pointer during punt protection and is expected back Monday.

 

 

Sitting Out: Linebacker Kevin Burnett (knee), cornerback Jabari Greer (ankle), receiver Jayson Swain (groin), tailback Corey Larkins (ankle), receiver Robert Meachem (knee); cornerback Antonio Gaines (knee); receiver C.J. Fayton (excused absence); defensive end Parys Haralson (nose); quarterback Jim Bob Cooter (shoulder).

 

 

Beep Beep: Former Austin-East Roadrunner Cory Anderson made the most of his opportunities on defense, recording two sacks.

 

"Cory made a couple of plays and was around the ball,'' Fulmer said. "He's got to learn to play hard all the time.''

 

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KNOXVILLE (Aug. 16) -- Casey Clausen threw three TD passes to wideout James Banks, while Gerald Riggs and Jabari Davis each scored three times during Tennessee's first full-scale scrimmage of the fall at Neyland Stadium late Saturday afternoon.

 

The Vols started on offense with Victor McClure at tight end, Michael Munoz, Chavis Smith, Scott Wells, Anthony Herrera and Cody Douglas up front, Casey Clausen at quarterback, William Revill at fullback and Cedric Houston at tailback, with wideouts Tony Brown and Mark Jones.

 

Defensively, up front were Karlton Neal, J.T. Mapu, Matt McGlothlin, Constantin Ritzmann, with linebackers Robert Peace, Kevin Simon, Jason Mitchell and defensive backs Rashad Baker, Jason Allen, Gibril Wilson and Antwan Stewart.

 

Clausen completed 12-of-23 passes for 163 yards, with TD tosses to Banks of 25, 3, and 13 yards and a fourth scoring toss to Victor McClure covering 4 yards. For the day, Banks had four catches for 60 yards. He also threw an 80-yard TD pass to Jonathan Wade, who had 115 yards receiving on 3 catches.

 

"Some good things obviously happened," head coach Phillip Fulmer said. "In the passing game, I was really impressed with the way Casey managed the game and made some throws. C.J. Leak, I think, took another nice step forward. There are still some things from a management standpoint he needs to continue to work on."

 

Riggs carried 18 times for 48 yards, scoring on runs of 5, 2 and 1, while Davis ran 13 times for 39 yards with scoring runs of 1, 3 and 1 yard. Cedric Houston carried five times for 20 yards with a 1-yard TD run. Not be outdone by his older brother, Rick Clausen threw a 67-yard TD pass to freshman Bret Smith.

 

Defensively, Brandon Johnson had an interception and return of 36 yards. Omar Gaither had two tackles for loss and two sacks in a 6-tackle day. Marvin Mitchell had a fumble recovery, tackle for loss and a sack, to go with 5 solos and 1 assist. Stewart had 2 tackles and two pass break-ups. Rashad Baker had three tackles to go with a pass break-up on a solid hit of Wade across the middle in the early going.

 

"We obviously gave up too many big plays to call it a success on defense," Fulmer said. "But I bet when we watch it on film there will be a lot of things we're glad we had a chance to see. We've got a number of guys banged up and we need to get those guys back on the field."

 

Dustin Colquitt punted 12 times for a 46.9-yard average. John Henderson punted three times for a 39-yard average. James Wilhoit kicked four of six field goals, with a long of 51, while Philip Newman kicked three of six, with a long of 45.

 

"Kickers struggled there in the scrimmage," Fulmer said of some early missed PATs. "They kicked it a little bit better at the end in the drill work. We hadn't intended to do that but I thought for their confidence they needed it. They're better kickers than that, both of them are, and I think they'll be fine. Better now than later."

 

"I don't we had any serious injuries today. It looks like Mapu will be out a week or two with a sprained knee, so hopefully we'll have him back for the first game. He's a tough guy."

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Reports from some of the Tennessee messageboards seem to think that Gerald Riggs will seee a lot of action in 12 days against Fresno St.