Trey Smith Has High Praise For 'Dynamic' Offensive Line, Talented Freshmen

Trey Smith has seen his fair share of ups and downs during his career at the University of Tennessee. He said, "this has probably been the weirdest camp I have ever been a part of, traditionally speaking."

However, for Smith, he has seen growth and opportunity from the entire offensive, and he shared those thoughts during a press conference on Tuesday. 

Smith said on the offensive line and freshmen, "We have a really great offensive room dynamic right now. A lot of players that want to get better, a lot of players that want to be great, a lot of players that want to dominate and push the ball in the SEC, and that’s what we’re going to have to do at the end of the day. In terms of younger guys, (Javontez) Spraggins definitely left an impression on me. He has a love for the game that a lot of the time younger players have when they first get to college, a certain passion of wanting to be great and doing the right things and trying to be consistent. He has a lot of things to learn, but as a freshman, who doesn’t at that point? Spraggins reminds me of someone who taught me everything I know in Jashon Robertson in terms of how he plays the game and presents himself on a daily basis, and I’ll be honest, the future is very bright for him if he stays on that path.”

The offensive line as a whole has had to adapt in a hurry with players missing time for contact tracing. Smith believes this offensive line has the mental make up to be dominant this fall. 

“In terms of the mental makeup of this line, I think it’s one of the first lines other than 2017 because we were trying to get after it too, that I’ve seen a large amount of guys really try to put someone on their back and try to do it consistently. It’s awesome to see. It’s awesome to see how Coach (Will) Friend has coached to this point and see how his coaching techniques are starting to come through. We’re starting to realize the purposes and schemes of these plays as well. This line has a great potential because of our makeup. Mentally we have a lot of guys that are trying to get after it every play," Smith said on Tuesday afternoon. 

Tennessee's offensive line projected to be one of the strength's of the team in 2020, if the Vols can get Cade Mays eligible and the talented freshman continue to provide depth, the unit could be one of the best in America.