TENNESSEE VOLS FOOTBALL: Defensive back quietly gives Texas bulletin board material
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
Tennessee football knows better than to give actual insight on its weekly opponent.
Tennessee coach Josh Heupel can be crowned the king of coachspeak. His program runs a pretty tight ship when it comes to respecting the other team. All conversations often remain in-house.
But transfer defensive back TJ Metcalf, who faced Texas and Arch Manning a season ago while playing with Michigan in the Citrus Bowl, quietly gave one line to pay attention to during his availability on Sept. 21.
“I feel like they got a lot of speed,” Metcalf said, referring to Texas’ wide receivers. “I don't think they want to be physical, but at the same time, they do play a lot of good football.”
Metcalf's assessment will be put to the test against two of No. 1 Texas' (3-0) most touted receivers. Cam Coleman is regarded as one of the best pass catchers in the country, and he already has four touchdowns on 11 catches this season. On the opposite side, former five-star receiver and one-time Tennessee target Ryan Wingo lines up. Wingo kicked off the season with a seven-catch, 121-yard showing against Texas State.
That’s the type of challenge Tennessee’s secondary has been waiting for after three weeks against relatively untested passing attacks.
The Vols have only given up two passing plays of longer than 20 yards this season. They’ve given up six passing plays of 15-plus yards, five of which came against Georgia Tech. Even with the lack of tests, No. 14 Tennessee (3-0) is confident defensively.
“Coach (Jim) Knowles does a great job of scheming up who we play, making us comfortable in his play calling,” Metcalf said. “So all we gotta do is just go out there and play ball, fearless.”
Knowles’ game plan has remained vanilla as a result of the competition through the first three weeks. Tennessee still has a lot more to show, according to Metcalf. The secondary mustn’t break if the Longhorns choose to be a physical team on Saturday.
Metcalf’s confidence is about as much insight as Tennessee has offered on Texas. Heupel, meanwhile, stayed true to form when asked about the message to his team ahead of the matchup.
“There’s more media attention or whatever on this football game,” Heupel said. “At the end of the day, it’s the beginning of conference play. You’ve got to understand the quality of the opponent that you’re getting ready to play. Saturday will be electric in the stadium, but it comes down to winning each day, your preparation and practicing the right way to give yourself a chance.”
Heupel, a national championship-winning quarterback at the University of Oklahoma, Texas’ biggest rival, didn’t even break away from the coachspeak when asked about the added emotions of his background with the Longhorns.
His focus is always where his feet are — at least so he always tells the media.
“I think about this Saturday,” Heupel said. “That’s really what I think about.”
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos