Tennessee Football: Vols spring football camp is back, more

Tennessee Football opened up spring practice today, and the road to the 2023 season starts now.

Josh Heupel officially opened up his third spring as the Vols Head Coach and has a highly talented roster that can make a run to the College Football Playoff this upcoming season.

Vols spring football camp is back

The hype surrounding the Vols football team is starting to build, and more and more talk about the Vols making a run deep into playoffs has Tennessee fans getting excited. The first practice of the spring today was a success, and there are many different takeaways.

Here is what On3 Sports had to say after the first spring practice concluded:

"“Quarterback Joe Milton looks to assert himself with the Vols now void of a starting quarterback after Hendon Hooker’s graduation. Milton had a very strong showing in Miami with three touchdowns and no interceptions against Clemson.In his first start of 2022, he led the Vols to victory over Vanderbilt, going 11-of-21 passing for 147 yards and a touchdown to Walker Merrill, while finding Jalin Hyatt on a 61-yard bomb on UT’s opening drive of the game for his longest completion of the night.One newcomer who looks the part is Dont’e Thornton who comes from Oregon. He watched the Vols last season and was impressed by his recent comments on Vol Club Confidential.“You look back at last season and they had the number one offense in passing,” Thornton said. “I said I want to come into an offense that’s established with a quarterback coming back that knows the whole offense. I just felt like it was the best fit for me. I definitely say Joe has the strongest arm I’ve seen,” Thornton said. “And then Nico is a younger up and coming Joe who has a strong arm too.”"

Three players to look out for this upcoming season.

Nico Iamaleava, the new No. 1 2023 prospect, is a 5-star quarterback from Long Beach, California. Nico recently jumped the previous No. 1 ranking prospect, Arch Manning. Tennessee football fans are all too familiar with the Manning family and even have a street named after Arch’s uncle, Peyton Manning. Arch and Nico are neck and neck in most rankings, and it’s exciting to see Nico finally get the respect he deserves. On3 sports described Iamaleava as a taller, big-armed quarterback with some of the best natural physical tools we’ve seen from a quarterback in the last few recruiting cycles.

Nico was wearing the No. 12 jersey at practice today, which is pretty interesting because he usually wears the No. 8 jersey. I wonder if this is a permanent change or a trial run in practice.

The next Tennessee football recruit in the top 50 is Daevin Hobbs. Hobbs is a 6-foot-4-inch, workhorse defensive lineman out of North Carolina. The 5-star recruit was deciding between Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, and Ohio State. Vol nation might’ve landed the missing piece of their defensive puzzle. On3 sports describes Hobbs as a top athlete who projects a high upside as an interior pass rusher.

The final top 50 recruit is 4-star wide receiver Nathan Leacock. Leacock has a potent combination of size, height, and speed. The 6-foot 3-inch receiver will likely fill the shoes of the senior NFL prospect Cedric Tillman. Nathan should be able to fit in perfectly into this role, as he is almost identical in size, speed, and strength.

More media from the first spring practice: