Some notes and observations from Tennessee’s indoor bowl practice on 12-13-16 as the Vols get ready to play Nebraska in the Music City Bowl.
Non-Contact
Running back Alvin Kamara, linebacker Darrin Kirkland, and defensive back Rashaan Gaulden were dressed in non-contact jerseys today but were practicing.
The team wasn’t in full pads on Tuesday as it remains in the early stages of bowl prep for the Music City Bowl, which will be played at 3:30 pm ET on Dec. 30 in Nashville.
Quarterbacks
The quarterback unit looked pretty sharp in passing drills. Quinten Dormady and Jarrett Guarantano showed signs of elite arm strength especially on some bootleg play-action drills. Josh Dobbs was also looking good in terms of accuracy, completing every pass that we saw in the open portion of practice.
Preparing for Nebraska remains the top priority, but you have to think that the coaching staff is keeping an eye on the young players as well for the start of the 2017 QB battles.
Receivers
The quarterback and receiving corps were the main draws today. Jauan Jennings, as usual, fought for every ball. In one rep, Jennings fell down on a route but still caught the ball while on the ground. He clearly practices like he plays. Overall, the group looked solid. Freshman Marquez Callaway had some drops, which certainly wasn’t tolerated by wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni.
Overall Energy
The team’s energy seemed to be fairly high. Several players were dancing and jumping around during the stretch period. In addition, the Circle of Life drill brought out some high energy from the players and coaches.
Many have questioned the enthusiasm of the team since the end of the season, but from what we saw, that doesn’t seem to be an issue in bowl prep. We’ll see if that carries over to the field in Nashville later this month.
