Tennessee Vols Midseason: Five Things to Address During Bye Week
Oct 10, 2015; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Josh Smith (25) catches a pass and runs for a touchdown during the first half after the game at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
3. More Consistency at Wide Receiver
Tennessee is loaded with four-star and five-star recruits at wide receiver. But after six games on the year, they have still come up short when it comes to living up to their hype.
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We just put a lot on Joshua Dobbs for being inconsistent, and yes, it was very well-deserved. But we have to put some of this on the wide receivers. They have dropped way too many passes, which they did again on Saturday.
And too often they are incapable of making a big play unless the ball is thrown perfectly into their hands.
That is not what they were recruited to do.
Butch Jones brought them in to make big plays in big moments, even if things don’t go perfect. To be fair, some of this is on Mike DeBord’s play calling, refusing to give his receivers too many chances to make plays downfield.
But when they have had chances, too often they have come up short.
The Vols need their receivers to step up and make big plays if their passing game is going to continue to look like what it did against Georgia.
To be fair to one guy, Josh Smith has stepped up and filled the role as slot receiver perfectly, and he has been consistent in replacing Pig Howard.
But the same cannot be said for the playmakers on the outside. If they can’t get it together, the passing game will still be frustrating to watch.
It’s time for that Wide Receiver U title to ring true once again.
Next: #2: Better Utilize Alvin Kamara