Everything From Tennessee RB Star Thomas In His Tuesday Media Availability Session

On how he feels like the running backs did in the Georgia game…

“I mean, I feel we did good, but I feel like we could have done way better than what we put out there. Feel like we could have made more plays. I feel like we left a couple plays out there that we should have made.”

On what the energy and intensity were like at practice…

“I mean, it was good. We came in the same mindset we had last week, the week before that. Come and practice hard, taking it day by day, just getting better, using this week to get better and focus on UAB now.”

On how he is doing in pass protection…

“I feel like I'm doing good, but I feel I have a lot more things I can get better at in pass protection. Everybody in the room feels like something we can all get better. We try to call each other out on it and with the coaches and stuff and get their opinion on it too.”

On what is the toughest part of being good at pass protection….

“I feel like just the part of just when you make contact using your hand to reshoot because old guys like to once you do make contact with me, like to swim, and you know how defense players they got all the moves and all the tricks and stuff. It's just really getting used to reshooting your hands, re-fin on them.”

On how the run game performed against Georgia….

“I feel like as a group, we left a couple plays out there that we should have made and could have been a lot better from seeing things, seeing the holes more clearly, and stuff like that.”

On scoring 21 points in the first quarter….

“We couldn't really even tell, we were playing, you know what I'm saying? We had put up no points beacuse we were just trying to keep the main thing, the main thing, and play four quarters and not just think that we put up no points in the first quarter that the game was just going to be easy from then on. We were just trying to keep the same mindset of keep going forward, keep taking it to them.”

On if he expects it to eventually come for him with the success he has had at various schools and programs…

“Not saying like in an arrogant way, but I just know like the work that I put in and know like how I go about coming in to work. I just trust in the work that I put in, knowing that the work that I put in in the summer, from like the spring, from the summertime and all that, is gonna go out and I'm gonna play well everywhere I go. I give it all to God to like without him, I wouldn't be who I am.”

On his experience playing at New Mexico State and how teams approach playing SEC opponents..

“When you're at a school like I was in New Mexico State, our mindset was we're gonna take it to those guys, let them know that we're here to play and we're here to take what they work for. We're here to put the world on, let the world know we're here to stay, too. We're here to be one of those top teams in the country, too. That's what our mindset was, and I'm pretty sure they had the same thing. With us going forward, as a Volunteer, we don't care who it is going out there. We just wanna go out and play our best game and give everybody our best.”

On what he sees from UAB defense…

“They do a lot of crazy things on third downs, from blitzes and stuff. The linebackers like to flow with the play and like to fit the gaps quickly and stuff.”

On playing with Diego Pavia at New Mexico State…

“ He was great, man. He was funny. He was a dog. He came in every day ready to work. He got that mindset that can't nobody mess with him. Whatever it is, he's gonna win. I mean, and it kind of fell back on me a little too. I picked up on some of the things that he had. When you've got a quarterback like that, that's good, man. To have that kind of mindset that he has. Joey got the same mindset. Like ain't nobody, it ain't nobody that I feel better than me when I touch this field. Who wouldn't want to go out there and play behind, play with their quarterback like that?

On the difference between Pavia and Joey Aguilar….

“Yeah, they're different in that way. Pavia, more of a I'm going to let you know it. Joey is more of a laid-back, but you're gonna hear about it after the game.”

On how the running backs have been involved in the passing game…

“I feel like it's been going good. I just feel like we just gotta lock in and be more focused on when the time come, when it is the ball comes to us and look it in. I think just us being calm, letting the game come to us, a lot has been good in the past game for us, too.

On Aguilar being even-keeled and his mindset…

“I mean, he never overthought the moment. When it was down, he would come and be like, calm down, we got this, You know what I'm saying? Next play, next drive, somebody's gonna make a play. Like he always says that on the sideline, and just you got a quarterback like that, man, like it's hard not to go out there and play hard for him. You know what he's going to go out there and do.”