Tennessee Vols morning report: Josh Heupel presser, VFL death
Coming off their heartbreaking loss to the Pittsburgh Panthers, the Tennessee Vols now have to focus on their next game. How Josh Heupel gets them ready to face the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles is a huge question, but he addressed that on Monday.
Our morning update on Rocky Top leads with both of Heupel’s speaking engagements from the previous day, including his weekly press conference. That’s not the only football news we have to cover either. Press conferences from the players also made news, as did an update on a time for another UT game.
Unfortunately, a former Vol suffered a tragic death, and we have to mention that as well. We’ll close with coverage of an ongoing women’s golf event that began Monday and will continue into Tuesday. Let’s start, however, with the football news.
Josh Heupel holds weekly media session – UTSports
As the Tennessee Vols football team prepares for the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles, head coach Josh Heupel met with the media Monday. Heupel noted that junior college edge rusher Byron Young would finally be eligible Saturday but didn’t have an update on Joe Milton III’s health. Here’s a bit of what else he said.
"“Obviously, we’ve got to be a lot smarter in the way that we compete; that showed up in particular on offense, at times on defense. I told the players today, the great thing about it is you go back and watch the tape—we finished with the team meeting before we went on the field today—after they got a chance to watch it, those are all controllable by us. We can be a smarter football team.”"
Players discuss state of the program – Austin Price, VolQuest.com
On the heels of their loss to Pitt, Tennessee football place kicker Chase McGrath, offensive lineman Jerome Carvin and edge rusher Tyler Baron spoke with the media Monday. Carvin discussed the overall play of the line last Saturday. Here’s a bit of what he said.
"“We played hard. We’re always going to do that. We’re always going to play with effort (and) play with strain, but in ball games like that, you can’t make MAs (missed assignments), you can’t have mistakes because those things will cost you and it’ll cost you the ball game.”"
Baron talked about having to respond to the loss. Here is how he described the situation ahead of this week’s matchup against TTU.
"“I think we’re going to respond better that we have since I’ve been here. I’ll stand by that. We are a totally different team than we were after any loss last year.”"
McGrath talked about his early success and what has gone into it. This is what he said about everybody involved.
"“Our special teams unit, we’ve put in a lot of work this offseason and Paxton (Brooks) is a great holder. Matthew (Salansky) is a great snapper. I have full confidence in them to do their job, which is a big thing for me. Having trust in my snapper and my holder to get the ball down on time is everything. They’ve made my job really easy so far.”"
Knoxville Quarterback Club features Josh Heupel – Grant Ramey, GoVols247
In addition to his weekly media session, Tennessee football head coach was also the speaker at the Knoxville Quarterback Club event Monday. Heupel discussed the state of the program after his team’s loss to Pitt. Here’s a bit of what he said.
"“I know everybody here is disappointed with the outcome the other night (against Pittsburgh), no more than I am and really no more than our players are inside of that locker room. There was a ton of work that went into Saturday. Disappointed with the outcome. The positive side of it is, if you’re going to build a program, the heart is the most important muscle in the body. And our kids showed heart. They competed hard for 60 minutes.”"
Former Vol Parys Haralson passes away – 49ers.com
Tragically, former Tennessee Vols football defensive lineman Parys Haralson passed away at age 37. Haralson played for UT from 2002 to 2005. He was with the San Francisco 49ers from 2006 to 2012 and the New Orleans Saints from 2013 to 2014.
"A nine-year NFL veteran, Haralson played in 118 games (88 starts) and registered 380 tackles, 28.0 sacks, five fumble recoveries, three forced fumbles and five passes defensed. He was originally drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round (140th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft."
Florida game set – SECSports
When Tennessee football faces the Florida Gators on Sept. 25, it’ll be a night game. The two will square off in The Swamp at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.
"The Saturday SEC Network triple-header on September 25 will feature Georgia at Vanderbilt in the first game of the day, Georgia State at Auburn in the afternoon window and Southern Miss at Alabama in primetime.The SEC on CBS game will feature Texas A&M vs. Arkansas in Arlington, Texas, with kickoff scheduled for 2:30 CT / 3:30 ET."
Women’s golf begins Cougar Classic – UT Daily Beacon
Monday marked the start of the Tennessee Lady Vols 2021-2022 golf season, as they began the Cougar Classic at Yeamans Hall Golf Club in Charleston S.C., hosted by the Charleston Southern Buccaneers. They will complete the event Tuesday.
"The Lady Vols finished 14th out of 17 schools in the first tournament of head coach Diana Cantu’s career at Tennessee. This will be the Lady Vols’ 30th season as a division one program."