In just a few hours, we’ll see Tennessee’s shiny new offense take the field for the first time in a real live game. When we think about what it’s going to look like, our mind naturally goes to the quarterbacks, running backs, and wide receivers. But what about the offensive line?
The front had a lot of “beef” under Jeremy Pruitt, while Jim Chaney carried out a more traditional pro-style attack. Tennessee wanted to control the scrimmage line in 2020, and apparently it had the parts on paper to do just that. However, as you know, that didn’t happen and Tennessee finished 3-7. After Jeremy Pruitt was fired, it made sense, of course, to go in a completely new direction.
Stepped by Josh Heupel, who worked to turn his inherited roster into a leaner, faster attack. That meant slimming down some offensive linemen and getting them in the best shape of their lives to prepare them for warp speed.
Now in Spring and Fall Camp, players have seen enough of the system to have an opinion. On Monday, Tennessee launch offensive guard Jerome Carvin described what he loved about the new approach.
“I love to just stand up and watch the defense not put their hands down and stand up and gasp,” said Carvin. “As offensive linemen, we love that. It’s like a shark that smells blood in the water. I feel like that somehow. I love to just fly off the ball and see how the defense isn’t even set up yet. It is great.”
That’s exactly what Josh Heupel is hoping for. Many teams have spread attacks, but few are playing at the pace he wants. It worked in the AAC, it worked in the Big 12 – and it really worked in the SEC in Missouri. How fast can Tennessee get it up to speed? We’ll find out on Thursday night, but we’ll get a really good snapshot of it when Pitt comes to town on September 11th.
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