Tennessee football: Vols should not use DT Shy Tuttle in first 2 games

Even if Tennessee football defensive tackle is ready to go, the Volunteers should not play him against Georgia Tech or Indiana State.

After two season-ending injuries his freshman and sophomore years, Tennessee football junior Shy Tuttle seemed to be a work in progress to get fully healthy for this year. But his progression has been shockingly fast.

Now, the 6’2″ 308-pound junior could be a staple in the rotation much earlier in the season than people thought. An article by Ryan Callahan of GoVols247 now says that defensive line coach Brady Hoke has not ruled out using Tuttle in the first game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.

With only one proven defensive tackle on the Vols right now, Kendal Vickers, it could be tempting to put Tuttle in.

After all, Georgia Tech does return most of its offensive line, the strength of its unit. Paul Johnson will use that line to continue his triple-option system.

So Tuttle could definitely be useful.

However, Butch Jones and the Vols shouldn’t turn to him.

Tuttle is still trying to get back to full health, and while he may be ready to go on Labor Day, he’s not likely to be 100 percent. As a result Tennessee football is taking a huge risk.

The nature of Johnson’s offense requires that Georgia Tech use a lot of cut blocks. It’s something that got Kentucky Wildcats coach Mark Stoops furious at Johnson in last year’s TaxSlayer Bowl after injuries to defensive linemen Courtney Miggins and Alvonte Bell on back-to-back plays.

Given Tuttle’s history of leg injuries on dirty blocks, Georgia Tech is the last team he needs to play against.

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Yes, it is important to beat the Yellow Jackets. But that’s not a conference game. And playing Tuttle could cause him more damage long-term.

So the Vols should try to pull it out and shut down that offense without him. That may put more pressure on the other guys in the middle, but it’s high time many of them step up.

We already know that Kendal Vickers is reliable. Meanwhile, it’s time for junior Kahlil McKenzie to live up to his five-star billing. Alexis Johnson and Quay Picou had lots of hype too that they now need to reach.

Meanwhile, Jonathan Kongbo and Kyle Phillips both are healthy and ready to go on the ends. And both were five-star guys, while Darrell Taylor, another end, was a four-star. So it’s time the two juniors and redshirt sophomore respectively reach their hype as well.

Bob Shoop’s unit should be able to get by Georgia Tech with those guys. It’s just one tough game to make up for Tuttle’s absence.

After that game, there’s definitely no reason to play Tuttle against Indiana State either.

Tennessee is just too good to need him. The only excuse would be to put him for in a couple of series so he could get some live in-game action before Florida.

However, Tennessee football scrimmages are more competitive than Indiana State should be. So even with the live action excuse, Tuttle still has no reason to be there.

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Florida, as always, is the most important game of the year. Given Tuttle’s history and Tennessee’s first two opponents, the Vols should not use him at all until then. They don’t need him for one, and he’s at serious risk for re-injury in the other. Tennessee football will likely need Tuttle to beat the Gators. No need to potentially ruin that chance beforehand.

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Tennessee football: Vols should not use Shy Tuttle in first two games

By Caleb Calhoun | Aug 26, 2017

Even if Tennessee football defensive tackle is ready to go, the Volunteers should not play him against Georgia Tech or Indiana State.