Tennessee football: Five Akron Zips to watch for against Vols

Given the nature of the sport and the fact that the Akron Zips have a new head coach, it’s no surprise that many of their key players are transfers. Tennessee football has actually faced some of them when they were on other teams the same way Joe Moorhead faced some current Vols when he was with the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

If Akron is going to have any chance in the world in making this a game, and they likely don’t have that chance, they’ll have to rely on a few of those transfers to step up and make huge plays. On the other side, UT’s best chance to keep Akron from threatening is to shut those players down.

Most of these players are the usual suspects when it comes to positions you expect to find weapons, but part of that is due to the scheme Moorhead runs too. Let’s go ahead and break down who will stand out the most. These are the five Akron Zips to watch for against Tennessee football on Saturday.

These Akron players will be key against the Tennessee football Volunteers.

6’2″ 195 pounds

Three players for Akron have interceptions this year: Jalen Hooks, Tyson Durant and Zach Morton. Durant is a backup cornerback, and Morton is a backup defensive end. As a result, Hooks is the guy who has already been a playmaker for Akron and is most likely to serve as one again, which is why he gets the nod on the back end.

As of right now, Hooks is the anchor at cornerback in a secondary that is capable of disrupting a lot of passing downs. He’ll be the guy locked up with Cedric Tillman one-on-one, and while all signs point to Tillman winning that battle with ease, don’t sleep on what Hooks can do.

Of course, the issues is that Tennessee football doesn’t throw that many interceptions to begin with, but if Hendon Hooker does make a mistake, Hooks could be the guy who cashes in on it. He is probably the guy most likely to cash in on it, and the defensive performance will depend on what he can do on his side of the field.