Head Coach Josh Heupel Postgame Press Conference April 24, 2021
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Head Coach Josh Heupel Postgame Press Conference April 24, 2021 Opening Statement “Today was a great day for Tennessee football, obviously our first spring football game as a new staff with our players. I’m so appreciative of the fans that came out and were a part of our attendance today. With the uncertainty of the weather, they still showed out in great fashion and brought a lot of energy to the stadium. I know our players and staff appreciated that. To the VFLs that came back, there were so many that came back and were a part of this weekend with our current players. The guys having the opportunity to all get together brought a ton of energy to the program. For me, and I spoke about this in my introductory press conference, being able to learn from VFLs and what they’ve learned, but also understanding that this is a Tennessee football program that is together always and forever—former players and also current players as well. It was a great weekend. I want to mention one guy in particular, just a unique opportunity to get to spend time with Al Wilson. It’s a big year for him being inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Obviously, he’s one of the greats that has ever played here, so getting the opportunity to get to know him and who he is and what he’s about and what he’s giving back to Tennessee football. It was a great opportunity to get to spend some time with him. “I’m proud of this team this spring. In the short amount of time that we’ve been here as a coaching staff, the growth they’ve shown, the accountability that we’re learning to have every single day, not only to themselves but to each other is really important for where we are and where we have an opportunity to go. It’s a group that’s becoming connected, playing for each other and growing in the right way. I’m proud of what they’ve done here. Obviously, we have a big portion of our offseason here coming up as we get into summer conditioning.” On the quarterback competition today versus the rest of the spring … “It’s tough to compare them individually today with the rotation of how the game unfolded. To piece that all together I think would be unfair for my recollection of what they actually accomplished during the course of game and in each drive. I think it’s been a total group effort. They’ve come a long way in the last 14 days leading up to today. If you break up spring ball into thirds, every five practices, you’ve seen exponential growth from all of them. Their command of what we’re doing, their ability to get lined up, get their eyes and feet in the right place, be accurate with the football. I think the last three or four practices have been all of their best practices. I thought they played really efficient today. There were a couple times where they maybe needed to get rid of the football a little quicker if they were in a real, live situation. That’s a little bit tough to judge when you know you’re not live as well. They did a really good job taking care of the football besides the one interception where Warren Burrell makes a great break on the football and turns it into six points and a momentum changing play right there. I’m proud of what each of them have done this spring and thought they operated really well today. They had great composure out there today.” On how his first spring has gone and the offensive skill positions … “I thought we had very little understanding of how it’s actually going to play out when we started spring. Going into our first spring scrimmage, they operated and handled some things really well. There’s still some uneasiness in not knowing what we’re doing. Today I thought the skill position players had probably their best day as far as operation, command and control in what they’re doing. Being in the right spot, quarterback and wide receiver being in the same spots. As far as what they’re seeing from the defense and being able to sit in holes, run versus man and being in the right place. I think we’re going to continue to get more efficient in the pass game as we go through the summer and into training camp obviously. We have a long ways to go, but you saw some really positive things. You saw guys on the perimeter make some competitive plays and obviously the game ends with Cedric Tillman making a huge play on the sidelines. I think a lot of those guys are starting to gain a lot of confidence in what we’re doing, but how they can operate and grow as players. You’ve seen Tillman get better every single day. You’ve seen Velus Jones Jr. get better every single day. Jalin Hyatt, who was out in the early part of spring, in the last two or three practices has really gained a great grasp of what we’re doing. There’s some playmakers out there and we have to continue to develop them. But that group has gotten better. The running back position is starting to learn how to play with pad level. They’ve done a great job of taking care of the ball all spring long. They’ve gotten better in their pass protections. We’re nowhere near where we need to be with depth at that position, but I think we have a great opportunity to grow and develop it.” On if he expects movement with quarterbacks coming or going and if there is any new information on suspended players … “I don’t have anything final on that situation. As soon as we do have something finalized, you guys will be notified of that. I think the quarterback position, just like every position on your roster with the transfer portal and where we are, you have an opportunity to continue to add guys into your program here as you get towards the end of the semester and lead into May when guys are back and you start summer workouts.” On his takeaways from the offensive and defensive lines … “I thought there was some back and forth there. I thought offensively, we were able to get some things going in the middle portion of the scrimmage with the run game. The defense did some things changing the line of scrimmage today. It’s been back and forth though. I feel like we’re developing some depth on the offensive line. We need some depth on the defensive line at that position. We have to continue to develop the guys we have and potentially add some guys there.” On what is at the top of his to‐do list as the team begins preparing for fall camp … “I think it’s still the growth and accountability – the ability to do what you’re supposed to, when you’re supposed to and how you’re supposed to all the time, not some of it. We’ve come a long way in that and we still have a long way to go. There’s accountability to yourself. There’s accountability to your teammates. We’re learning how to have the locker room be accountable to each other. There’s starting to be a sense of ownership from some of our guys inside the locker room. They understand the standard of what it’s going to mean to be a Tennessee football player. We’ve got to continue to connect. We’re early in our development there. When I say that, I’m talking player‐to‐player, but I’m also talking about coach‐to‐player as well. We build the foundation of who Tennessee football is going to be. When we finish the semester and we get back, we’ve got to continue to develop ourselves personally, as far as the strength and conditioning side of it with football team. We’ve got to get stronger. We’ve got to develop our speed. We’ve got to continue to learn how to play with better pad level. All of that comes from what we do inside of strength and conditioning. We’ve got to continue to develop there. In June and July, our offseason, will be absolutely critical to put ourselves in the right position heading into fall camp.” On how much of his offensive scheme he inserted into the spring … “We’ve got a lot of football left to put in. We’re nowhere near a complete playbook on either side of it. I thought we did some really good things in fundamentals and technique on the special teams side. There’s a lot of our scheme that still has to be implemented, as well.” On how important his approach of using positivity when coaching is to the team … “I think it’s important to set a clear standard with your players so they know what to expect inside of our building every single day. We’ve got to be really clear that you’re going to hold that standard true. There are consequences when you don’t do things right. At the same time, your interaction with your players has to be consistent and the message has to be positive as we all come together.