Notes and Observations from Day 2 of Tennessee Spring Practice

Tennessee hit the field for Day 2 of spring practice on Thursday. While the Vols’ routine is mostly set at this point, we do have a few notes and observations.

Tennessee hit the field for Day 2 of spring practice on Thursday.

While the Vols’ routine is mostly set at this point, we do have a few notes and observations.

Injuries/Linebacker Update

Trel Riley and Juwan Mitchell both remained in yellow jerseys Thursday morning.

Trel still worked through defensive line drills, while Juwan stood near the back during linebacker workouts.

Jeremy Banks remains at starting middle linebacker, with Aaron Beasley to his right and Solon Page to his left.

Coaches Staying Active 

Kelsey Pope continues to impress as the wide receivers’ coach. He was vocal on Thursday morning and took several chances to show the same hands-on approach that we saw from Kodi Burns.

Alex Golesh and Rodney Garner remain active as well.

Pope, Golesh and Josh Heupel also reinforced their approach with player interactions during drills.

Pope gave high praise to Walker Merrill, who used a nice catch and crisp route to show that he’s bounced back from injury with gusto.

Golesh gave specific instruction to Julian Nixon on an explosion drill, while Heupel stopped Justin Williams-Thomas to address ball carrying and control. 

Linemen Separating

The offensive linemen rotated through similar drills as Tuesday. A few went off to the side to work on the sled as Glen Elarbee coached another group through alignment and steps.

Defensive linemen remained on their sled under the chute, albeit after working through bag drills.

Tayven Jackson still looking comfortable

After starting well on Tuesday, Tayven Jackson continues to look comfortable with the Vols.

He joked and danced with Joe Milton, looked calm and collected during routes-on-air and has seemed to fit into this group well.

Consistent Energy

No matter the position group or coach, the energy throughout the team is consistent.

The excitement was palpable again Thursday, even with a drop in temperature outside.

Cover photo via Tennessee Athletics Communications