Tennessee football: J’Marion Gooch a crucial loss given new system

It was a bad start to the week for UT athletics in general with both basketball programs losing, and things weren’t much different for Tennessee football. The Vols lost a third signee in their 2021 recruiting class, something that was to be expected given how late they hired Josh Heupel.

Anyway, Ryan Callahan of GoVols247 reported that in-state offensive lineman J’Marion Gooch had been let out of his National Letter of Intent. Gooch joined running back Cody Brown and defensive end Dylan Brooks among 2021 UT signees being released.

On paper, Gooch seems like the least significant loss for Tennessee football. Brooks and Brown are four-stars across the board, while Gooch is just a three-star.  We should also note that Brooks in particular is going to a position of severe need.

Gooch’s profile, though, would have made him a great fit for the Vols’ new offensive system that is to come under Heupel. Standing between 6’7″ and 6’8″ and weighing somewhere between 340 and 360 pounds, that wouldn’t seem to be the case given the fact that he is a power blocker going to a spread offense. His profile focuses on his ability to run block.

However, the product of King’s Academy in Seymour, Tenn. who transferred to Gallatin Senior High School in Gallatin, Tenn. last year is also known for his quickness. Matt Ray of SI.com noted that Gooch, who initially flipped to UT from the Auburn Tigers was raw and struggled with pad height and leverage but still touted his athleticism and his size.

Brent Hubbs of Rivals could only tout that elite combination. The consensus is that Gooch can maintain blocks, won’t be overpowered and is incredibly agile. With that type of agility, his weaknesses are even less likely to hold him back in Heupel’s spread than they were in Jim Chaney’s pro-style offense.

Also, despite running a spread, run-blocking is crucial in Heupel’s schemes. Sure, last year he threw it over 40 times a game. But in his most successful year with the UCF Knights, 2018, he called barely over 30 pass plays while calling over 45 run plays a game. They threw it only 39 percent of the time that year.

Meanwhile, the Vols’ offense under Jeremy Pruitt and Jim Chaney together never failed to throw it more than 40 percent of the time. Simply put, despite the tempo, it’s not like Heupel aired it out more then Chaney did.

This isn’t to say Heupel won’t throw it, but he’ll definitely use balance, and a guy who can maintain blocks would have been a big help for Tennessee football. With the loss of Wanya Morris, he would have even been a bigger help. However, Heupel has other options. It will just make the spring more interesting going forward.