All Eyes Turn To Vols' Orange And White Spring Game

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Vols are starting to turn their attention to Saturday's Orange and White spring football game, but not before coach Butch Jones noted that sophomore receiver Josh Smith for turned in an outstanding performance in Tuesday's practice.

"I thought (it was) a very productive day," said Jones. "We had some individuals step up. I thought Josh Smith had his best practice that he has had all year, catching the football, route running, so that was great to see."

Jones gave some insight as to the format for Saturday's Orange & White spring game. "It will be very similar to what we have done in the past in spring games," said Jones. "But it will be an event and by what I mean with that is there will be different things going on. Our fans love the one-on-one competitions, so we will have offensive line versus defensive line, we will have wide receivers versus DBs in the red zone.

"We will have a quarterback challenge also. We will do some kicking on air. Then we will go 11-on-11. Some of it may be thud because Jalen Hurd needs to get some repetitions and there will be some live situations as well. Right now we are thinking the first half will be two 15 minute quarters with running clock, the second half will be two 12 minute quarters with running clock. Then we will sprinkle in some individual events for our fans to see some of our freshmen, some of our other players as well."

The game is set to start at 4 p.m. The gates to Neyland Stadium will open at 12:30 p.m., with Fan Day getting under way at 1:30 p.m. The game will air on the SEC Network Alternate Channel and can be heard on the Vol Network. 

The rave reviews continue to pour in from the coaching staff and other players about freshman defensive lineman Shy Tuttle. The Midway, N.C., native has turned heads with his athleticism, instincts, and competitive drive.

An early enrollee and still only 19 years old, Tuttle made his mark in the third practice of the spring--the first of the year in full pads--when he tipped a pass and hauled in the interception. Head coach Butch Jones was among the impressed, stating at the time, "He came off the football and you could see the disruptive quickness, you could see the explosiveness."

Ten practices later, Jones has not changed his tune. On Tuesday he described the experiences Tuttle has gained through his early arrival as "invaluable." He continued, "Thank goodness he is here and he is learning our style of play. He is learning how to fight through mental fatigue, physical fatigue, the mental toughness, the mental conditioning that it is about ... So the 13 practices have been very, very big for him. He is very intelligent. He knows what he needs to do to continue to get better."

Those same sentiments came across in Tuttle's own assessment of his play this spring. The 6-3, 309-pound defensive tackle was quick to identify the areas requiring improvement.

"Just working on hands, leverage," Tuttle said. "Like I said, the little fine details that help improve your game."

Tuttle also admitted that the transition to college football was rigorous, thanks to the "style of play and the tradition, the standard of play that Tennessee has."

He has benefitted from some upperclassmen leadership, namely from redshirt junior Danny O'Brien. Limited due to injury this spring, O'Brien has been a persistent voice in Tuttle's ear.

"OB has been watching me and correcting me," Tuttle said. "He (gives me advice) about keeping my leverage down and coming in and watching film and doing extra stuff."

With all the hype surrounding Tuttle's ability and recent play, it is no surprise that some are already hoping he can make a similar impact in 2015 to that forged last season by sophomore defensive end Derek Barnett -- a freshman All-American and the UT record holder for most sacks in a season by a rookie.

"It gives me confidence (that I can make an immediate impact)," Tuttle said of seeing Barnett's freshman successes. "But it still shows how hard I've got to work. He works hard."

It's been a long journey of rehab for redshirt sophomore Josh Smith. Since undergoing ankle surgery last November, Smith has been working to get back to his old self. Smith is finally feeling like himself. Smith suffered the injury at Oklahoma "It's progressing a lot," Smith said of his development. "I feel like today was one of my best days this spring, and I'm kind of starting to feel like my old self again. It actually feels good. I'm kind of excited and I'm glad I took that step forward. But yeah, I feel like I'm getting there."

Smith credits the amount of conditioning that he's had for his current state as well as the opportunity for more reps in practice.

"I think it's the constant conditioning that we've had and all the reps I've had," Smith said. "I've had a lot of reps. I'm starting to get my conditioning back, and today I felt like I was a lot faster and more crisp in my routes. I actually felt like it was back to normal, so it was comforting."

Early on in practice, Smith was praised by head coach Butch Jone, which could be heard over the loud speaker. Those are words Smith hadn't heard in a while, and it's not a feeling he's going to soon forget.

"It felt good because I haven't heard that in a while," Smith said. "I was working and conditioning a lot to finally get that respect back from [Coach Jones]. I know he always has my back, and I always have his back. That's what I love about Coach Jones. I'd do anything for him, and he'd do anything for me. I'm going to do my job because I know he has my back, and I'm going to try my best to have his."

When asked about Smith's progression, Jones wasn't hesitant to again compliment the wide receiver's performance.

"He came out and he attacked things," Jones said. "Obviously, he is in better football condition, I think that is a byproduct of overtime, of practice. He played with confidence, caught the football and he was able to advance the football. Just played aggressively. Played like he played at the beginning of last season. So that was great to see."

Sophomores Cortez McDowell and Brett Kendrick may play on opposite sides of the ball, but they both are working hard to make the leap and earn more playing time for the Vols in the upcoming season.

McDowell, recruited to Tennessee as a safety, appeared in all 13 games last year on special teams and picked up some reserve minutes as a WILL linebacker, a position at which he is working exclusively this spring. That transition from safety to linebacker with a strong freshman season on special teams may sound like a familiar path, as it's nearly identical to the one taken by junior linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin. It's a great example for McDowell to follow.

"I definitely in the offseason watched a lot of [Reeves-Maybin]'s film," McDowell says. "His footwork, his eye discipline, and I just need to work with myself - and work with him as well - to be better at both of those to be like him in a different way. Just being around him and talking to him, it'll help me out."

McDowell has been working hard to improve, and the thirty pounds he's gained since stepping on campus last summer is physical proof. He says he's starting to settle in to that linebacker role.

"[I'm] definitely a lot more comfortable," says McDowell. "Just making sure I perfect my craft each day, each week to be the best linebacker I can be."

On the other side of the field, Brett Kendrick, a Knoxville native, is working at right tackle. Kendrick started two games last year, but says he feels more confident in himself now than he did last season.

"I lost my confidence sometimes last year, whether it was getting beat on a play or in practice, but I feel very, very confident right now in what I'm doing," Kendrick says. "I've put the work in the weight room. Coach [Dave] Lawson did a great job.

Kendrick says it's not just him that's improved this offseason, but also the offensive line as a unit.

"Everybody's starting to trust each other a lot. We've really improved on depth. People are stepping up. Dontavius Blair is stepping up. Having Coleman Thomas back, that always helps us to have a guy that played a lot last year, so I'd say our depth is getting a lot better and we're just growing together."?

Redshirt freshman Charles Mosley came to Tennessee with his position uncertain. Would he work on the offensive line or defensive line? As standout at Brighton High School in the Memphis area, Mosley starred on both sides of the ball.

The answer never came in his first college season as Mosley suffered a broken leg in a car accident prior to the start of training camp before the 2014 season.

Mosley returned to action on the defensive side this spring and practiced there for the first 12 sessions. But on Tuesday, he was wearing the white jersey of the offense.

"We moved Charles Mosley to the offensive line today from the defensive front just to see what Charles could give us," said Jones. "(It was a) very, very productive day. He will play defensive line in the spring game but we wanted to get some stuff on video and continue to evaluate what is his best position. But just like Charles, every day, just wants to help the team win and play any position that he can possibly play."

So Mosley's final destination is still unknown, and it could be open the change several times during his career on Rocky Top.

(E-mail Larry Fleming at larryfleming44@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @larryfleming44)