While there are plenty of things to talk about before Tennessee kicks off its regular season slate in 19 days, one storyline from late last week has started to take over the UT news wire.
After suffering a torn ACL in January, missing spring camp, and being limited during summer and early fall workouts, Tennessee star cornerback Jermod McCoy made his return to the field on Friday to go through drills with his positional teammates.
McCoy is still limited in what he’s doing, and so is the media in terms of what we’ve seen during practices since his return. But his movement on the field, combined with him wearing a defensive orange jersey rather than a non-contact red jersey, is a huge positive sign for Tennessee’s roster.
It’s still unclear what McCoy’s timetable looks like in terms of being able to play full-speed on the field, but optimism is increasing just from seeing him out on the practice field with his teammates.
When he’s on the field, McCoy is a game-changing cornerback capable of covering the opposing team’s No. 1 receiver. And even despite the injury, he’s still racking up preseason nods. He’s been named to the Jim Thorpe Award watch list, the Nagurski Trophy watch list, and the Lott IMPACT Trophy watch list, and has been named a First Team All-American from Athlon, Pro Football Focus, Sporting News, and Walter Camp. He’s also been named a First Team All-SEC selection by Athlon and the SEC media.
Add another honor to his resume on Monday.
Chris Low released ESPN’s 2025 preseason All-America team on Monday, with McCoy earning one of the two cornerback slots alongside Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore. He’s the only UT player listed on the first or second team.
“The only question with McCoy is his health after he tore an ACL in January while training at home,” Low writes. “The Vols hope to have him back for the start of the season in some capacity, but there’s no timetable at this point as he continues to recover. McCoy, who started his career at Oregon State, was the backbone of Tennessee’s secondary last season. He tied for the team lead with four interceptions, and the Vols allowed just 11 touchdown passes in 13 games.”
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Josh Heupel spoke on McCoy’s return to the practice field following Tennessee’s first fall scrimmage on Saturday morning in Knoxville.
“Yeah, cool moment for Jermod. Big moment getting back on the field, doing some of the individual work,” Heupel said. “It was cool to see the way his brothers were excited for him in that moment and how big that was, too. He broke us down before practice. And he’s done an elite job throughout his rehab, and there’s still more that he’s got to continue to do, but excited to get him back out with us.”
McCoy transferred to Tennessee after spending his freshman season with Oregon State in 2023. He immediately became an impact, standout player with the Vols during his sophomore season in 2024.
Often tasked with covering the opponent’s top wideout, McCoy earned the highest PFF grade among Tennessee’s secondary and was the third highest-rated player on the Vols’ defense in total. He recorded 44 tackles (26 solo) with four interceptions, picking off Oklahoma’s Jackson Arnold, Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, UTEP’s Skyler Locklear, and Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more notes on Jermod McCoy’s return to the field as Tennessee goes through the back end of fall camp this month.
Check out ESPN’s All-America list here.
