Tennessee football five-star freshman offensive tackle David Sanders Jr. got his first taste of college action last Saturday. It couldn’t have come at a much more pressure-packed time, either. Sanders entered the game after Jesse Perry got hurt in the midst of a game-tying drive with little time remaining in regulation.
While Perry did return after the drive that was sealed with a touchdown, Sanders played 11 snaps. The final play was a quarterback power to his side of the line that Joey Aguilar punched in for a score.
On Wednesday, after Heupel had the chance to watch the film and analyze every movement, he gave his thoughts on what Sanders did in his debut.
“Thought he went in and handled himself extremely well,” Heupel said. “First action of the season, seven minutes and change in the ball game on a drive where you got to go score and tie it up. It was something I pointed out to everybody in our team room. I just used the word prepared, right? He was prepared for that moment when he went in and executed and handled himself the way he needed to to go score on a drive. Man, we’re gonna need them all as the season continues. Fight, strain and compete. And take what you want— individually and ultimately as a football team too.”
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In his drive, Sanders pass blocked on five plays. In this time, he was given a 45.3 grade. He run blocked on the other six, earning a 59.1 mark.
After the game, Heupel was also asked about the debut of Sanders. He recognized the tough situation he was put in and thought he’s handled the early adversity of his career well.
“I thought he went in there in a tough situation, getting first action, responded, played really well,” Heupel said. “It’s a great example to young guys that haven’t been in this game that you don’t know when it’s coming, but it’s coming, you better be ready. It’s during the course of play, 60 minutest, it’s week to week, and it’s great to have him back. That’s a young guy that has had to deal with an adverse injury right out the gate, handled it well. He was a great teammate and has wanted to be on that field. As a coach, you deal with a lot of hard moments, too. When he got the word that, man, he was cleared— that’s one of those great moments that stays with you, too.”
Now, Tennessee has an open date and will not play in a game this upcoming weekend. This gives UT two weeks to prepare for Arkansas to come to town after the Razorbacks won in Fayetteville a year ago.
