2. Harrison Bailey will move up to second string quarterback.
This will happen sooner rather than later. Harrison Bailey was a big commitment for Tennessee football when he first announced. Then he had a dominating senior season in high school and was bumped up to a five-star quarterback. Being an early enrollee, he is in prime position to immediately contend for playing time, and Jeremy Pruitt and Jim Chaney will give him that chance.
At 6’5″, Bailey is gong to surpass JT Shrout, Brian Maurer and even Kasim Hill as the No. 2 quarterback by the time spring ball ends. He will prove himself that much. Jarrett Guarantano is too great of a practice player, which he showed the past two years, to lose his job to Bailey as the redshirt senior who is familiar with the system.
However, Maurer and Shrout both started games last year and proved ineffective. Hill is a dual-threat quarterback who has likely lost his rushing edge due to injuries. Jimmy Holiday, despite being an elite athlete, will likely move away from quarterback when the spring ends, and if that prediction of ours holds, Bailey has a direct path to being the No. 2 quarterback.
The only thing that may hold Pruitt and Chaney back from doing this will be if they want to redshirt him this year knowing Guarantano is their guy. But Bailey appears to be the type of quarterback who could immediately contend for that No. 1 spot, and with him being the future, they’ll want to give him experience as the backup this year. So he’ll earn that role.