Tennessee football’s spring practice marches on as the Vols prepare for the 2026 season. After practice No. 5 in Knoxville, newly hired LEOs coach Andrew Jackson met with the media to give his thoughts on how things have gone.
Jackson joins defensive coordinator Jim Knowles’ staff after spending time at Penn State under him as an assistant defensive line coach. He was asked about who stands out in his room, the team’s pass rush and coaching with Rodney Garner out.
Here’s what Jackson said on Monday.
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On coaching without Rodney Garner here
“First off, starting with teaching the schemes and getting to know everybody, so it’s actually been an opportunity for me to spread out to just beyond the LEO room, meet some of the D-linemen, and get to some of how Rodney does things, but from the player’s perspective. So it’s been good. It’s been a little bit hectic, but we hit the ground running. It’s nothing I’ve ever done before, but it’s been a fast pace for sure.”
On the process of coaching without Garner
“Yeah, well, really just using the same verbiage. I mean, football coaches, we have a thousand different ways to say the same thing. So number one is just not trying to trip the kids up and use the same language has been tough. Trying to add the way I do things and, and mixing it in is a little bit of a challenge, but, you know, Coach Garner’s such a good coach, and he’s got these guys where they’re able to really coach me on how they do things and how the process goes, and we’re all able to get on the same page rather quickly in one week.”
On how practice works without Garner
“Well, you know Rod. You know, he’s not laying low. But he’s been on Zoom, so sometimes it sounds like the voice of God’s above us when he starts yelling in the air on the Zoom. So he’s been involved plenty. So just, you know, thank God through COVID, through Zoom technology, everybody’s gotten real efficient at that. So it’s been pretty smooth and easy to keep him involved as much as we can, even though he’s not here in the physical.”
On what he’s learned about the LEOs room
“They’re an eager group, and there’s a lot of football savviness and knowledge within the group. And there’s different various body types between the end and LEO groups. So you got guys like Chaz Coleman who are quicker, faster, right? You got guys like Mariyon Dye and Tyree (Weathersby) who are stronger power guys. So we’ve got the perfect combination of a mixture of bodies and people to mix in there. But they’re all heads-up, conscientious kids, and they’re able to pick up the stuff rather quickly.”
On his vocal coaching compared to Garner
“He’s definitely got a different intensity than I do. I’m a little more of a zen master than he is. So we’re on different ends of the spectrum. But, I think it’ll be a good Yin and Yang, good cop, bad cop type of deal when he gets back for sure.”
On what he wants to accomplish through the rest of spring practice
“Obviously, just pick up on the fundamentals and techniques. The playbook will come along, which the guys have picked up rather quickly, but just be masters of our technique. By the last week of spring, we just wanna see everything done cleanly.”
On what he’s seen from Chaz Coleman, Kedric Golston and Christian Gass
“Chaz, everything as advertised. He’s got the quickness, the speed, and the size. Gass, you know, it’s good to see him out there running around healthy for the first time. He’s gaining confidence in what he’s doing every week. And then for a young guy, Kedric Golston, man, he’s got all the tools. Maybe it’s a little bit fast for him at times, but he’s gonna be great.”
On why they wanted to add Tulane edge rusher Jodan Norman
“He’s versatile. I think he’s a guy we can see at both spots. He can play in the field then and play in the LEO position. He’s quick, he’s fast, he’s smart. Learning the way we do things and playing a little bit more different style as far as getting vertical, up the field more. But he’s a kid that you’re gonna like what you see from him in the fall.”
On what he likes about his pass rush
“It’s coming along. We actually had a really good day. We ran some more third and longs on Saturday and had a really good day providing pass rush. Xavier Gilliam actually was a guy that flashed big time at practice the other day, rushing from the interior. But it’s coming along. It’s really more so getting them to work together as a unit more so than seeing individual rushes. We got guys making sacks here and there, but making sure we’re balancing the pocket and playing team ball is really the goal that we’re looking for.”
