When the dust settled from Tennessee football’s 2024 season-ending loss at Ohio State and attention turned to the Vols’ 2025 roster, there was no stronger position than cornerback. Jermod McCoy and Rickey Gibson were returning starters, each performed well as sophomores and McCoy looked poised for an All-American junior season.
One game into the 2025 season and neither McCoy or Gibson are healthy. McCoy tore his ACL in January and is still working to return to the field. Gibson suffered an injury against Syracuse that will force him to miss “an extended period” of time.
Where does Tennessee turn with its top two cornerbacks sidelined? It starts with a pair of newcomers in Colton Hood and Ty Redmond. Both played extensively in the opener with McCoy missing the whole game and Gibson suffering his injury in the second quarter.
McCoy tearing his ACL early in the offseason allowed Tennessee to go out and get Hood in the transfer portal after spring practice.
Hood started across from Travis Hunter last season at Colorado and performed well. He lived up to an abundance of offseason hype in the opener, allowing just one catch for five yards on five targets. Hood recorded a game-high three pass breakups, totaled four tackles and had a first quarter scoop-and-score. His strong performance was good enough to earn him SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
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“Colton’s performed at a really high level from day one getting here,” Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel said Monday. “He’s smart, has had position flexibility. He learned multiple spots from when he first got here. Super consistent in his competitive makeup every day in the meeting room and on the practice field. … I continue to expect big things from him as we go throughout the course of the season.”
While Hood was the defensive player of the week in the conference, freshman corner Ty Redmond was Tennessee’s highest graded defensive player in the opener according to PFF. Playing 60 snaps after Gibson went down, Redmond allowed one catch for 28 yards on three targets. The freshman also recorded two pass breakups and four tackles.
After a strong debut, Redmond will continue to play more-and-more snaps as Tennessee’s competition stiffens beginning in two weeks against Georgia.
“I’m not surprised,” Heupel said of Redmond’s performance against Syracuse. “It’s how he’s performed throughout the course of training camp, but his growth during spring ball too. Smart football player, has great length. The ability to bend. Fundamentals and technique have continued to grow. He’s a guy that is very smart and understanding the scope of what we’re doing and then what offenses are doing as well.”
Tennessee has a few other options to bolster its depth at cornerback. Jalen McMurray can slide back outside after starting at STAR in the season opener. That increases the pressure on Boo Carter to play a full workload of snaps at STAR but the talented sophomore continues to work in the right direction. But for now, the newcomers Hood and Redmond look to keep Tennessee’s cornerback play at a high level.
