Josh Heupel: Every position is up for grabs at Tennessee

Tennessee football is coming off a successful 2021 season and is looking to take another step forward under head coach Josh Heupel in 2022. After going 7-6 overall with a 4-4 mark in SEC play, the Volunteers return plenty of experience from last year’s team and also brought in new talent that should give them numerous weapons at many different positions.

While players such as quarterback Hendon Hooker, who threw for 2,945 yards and 31 touchdowns compared to just three interceptions last season, tight end Princeton Fant and linebacker Solon Page III are all returning for Tennessee, Heupel’s club also brought in some highly-touted freshmen and transfers.

Meeting with the media Saturday after the Volunteers’ first scrimmage of the spring practice period, Heupel was asked how the team’s newcomers were looking – but quickly said that every position is up for grabs heading into the season.

“The opportunity’s big for everybody,” Heupel said. “Every position is up, man. You’ve gotta go compete and gotta earn it. It’s important – nobody in your program can rest on anything … what happened a year ago, what happened a day ago, what happened the previous play – none of that matters.

“So being able to reset and compete the right way is something we’re emphasizing with our entire roster. For our young guys, it’s a great opportunity to understand what the feel, the flow and the speed of the game is actually going to be like on game day. For them, I expect them to make huge strides from the first scrimmage to the second scrimmage – just like they have as soon as we put pads on. Feel like they’ve continued to grow every single day.”

Year Two of the Josh Heupel era at Tennessee is scheduled to begin on Saturday, Sept. 3 when the Volunteers host Ball State at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville.