JD PicKell wants to see Squirrel White step up in place of Jalin Hyatt

Tennessee is counting on second-year receiver Squirrel White to take a step forward in 2023. With last year’s leading receiver Jalin Hyatt on to the NFL, White should get plenty of opportunity to see more targets.

Vols fans got a flash of what he can bring to the table in the Orange Bowl, when White led the team with nine catches for 108 yards and a touchdown. In a recent episode of The Hard Count, On3’s JD PicKell explains why he seems like a player poised to do more in Hyatt’s absence.

“For Jalin Hyatt, I am looking very squarely at Squirrel White,” PicKell said. “We saw a preview last year in the Orange Bowl. Nine catches for 108 yards, one touchdown. The key word, like I was saying with Jalin Hyatt, is speed. Squirrel White has been tracked during practice going 23 miles an hour. Folks, that is speeding in a residential area. For Squirrel White, the task will be to kind of replace that explosive play ability that Jalin Hyatt left.”

Squirrel White came to Tennessee in 2022 as a four-star and the No. 63 receiver in the class according to the On3 Industry Rating, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He immediately made an impression in practice with his speed and ultimately finished fourth on the team with 30 catches for 481 yards and two TDs.

In Hyatt, the Volunteers are attempting to replace a player who produced 1,267 yards and 15 touchdowns this past season. However, PicKell pointed out that White won’t be expected to replicate those numbers exactly, especially with Bru McCoy and Ramel Keyton both back as well.

“You don’t need to do 1,200 yards,” he said. “You don’t need to have 15 receiving touchdowns. But from the way that we play the game, we need to know that when those safeties creep up we need Squirrel White to win one-on-one in the slot and to go and get those deep touchdowns passes from Joe Milton. That’s gonna be a key part of this offense. Making good on the matchups and making good on when those safeties creep up when the defense tries to stop the run. That’s what we need to have there.

“Squirrel White, his speed and his skillset I think mirrors in a lot of ways what Jalin Hyatt brought to the table. Gotta have that home run ability.”

Tennessee led the country last season in both scoring offense and total offense and is expected to again put up big numbers under Josh Heupel. However, in addition to Hyatt, the Volunteers also lose starting quarterback Hendon Hooker and will need others to step up.

That’s where players like Milton and White come in. If they can both fill in those gaps, expect the offense to continue to be one of the best in the nation.