Cooper Mays wasn't in position 'to play his best football' for Tennessee at Florida

GAINESVILLE — Updates throughout the week from Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel made it sound as though Cooper Mays would available for the Vols Saturday night at Florida. The starting senior center never got on the field, though.

“Just wasn’t available tonight at the end of it,” Heupel said after No. 11 Tennessee’s 29-16 loss to Florida at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. “Didn’t feel like he was in a position to play his best football.”

Mays missed his third straight game to start the season and for the second week in a row was dressed on the sideline. He went through pregame warm-ups Saturday but was snapping with third-team quarterback Gaston Moore.

Heupel said Wednesday on the SEC Coaches Teleconference that he was “excited” about the progress of Mays and on Thursday said he anticipated that Mays “would be able to play” against Florida.
But that was about as far as the Tennessee football coach was willing to go in terms of a status

“He’s done really good all week long,” Heupel said on Thursday, during his final media availability of the week. “I anticipate him being ready to play,” the coach said of his senior center. “He’s smart, competitive and communicates at a really high level. His experience is beneficial for us.”

Mays has been out since August 9 after undergoing what was described at the time as “a minor procedure”. He rejoined his teammates on the practice field last week and was dressed for Tennessee’s 30-13 win over Austin Peay on Saturday at Neyland Stadium. 

Ollie Lane has been the starting center through the first three games of the season, with Javontez Spraggins at right guard and JJ Crawford at right tackle. Miami transfer John Campbell has started at left tackle and Texas transfer Andrej Karic has started at left guard.

Heupel said last week that Mays had returned to the practice field for the first time since having surgery, but he would be held out against Austin Peay in hopes of being healthy for the Florida game.

“Cooper, he’s been with us on the field” Heupel said on September 6. “We will not play him in this one (against Austin Peay). That’s just in preparation for the following week, make sure that he’s 100 percent.”

Heupel said after the season-opening win over Virginia on September 2 in Nashville that the 6-foot-5, 305-pound Mays could return “hopefully pretty soon.”

“Look forward to getting Cooper back here, hopefully pretty soon,” Heupel said at the time. “And at the same time, what we’ve done with the guys that have been at center, but the moving parts that we’ve had, how they’ve competed and played, believe that we’ll find more out as we watch (the film), but I thought all in all, really solid performance from all those guys.”

Mays, a preseason Second Team All-SEC pick, started all 13 games at center last season, playing 894 snaps while not allowing a sack over the final five games. He played and started at center in eight games as a sophomore in 2021. 

Heupel confirmed the injury to Mays on August 10, after Tennessee’s first scrimmage of fall camp.

“Coop had a minor procedure,” Heupel said at the time. “He’ll be back, he’ll be healthy as we get closer to kickoff. I anticipate that being a couple-week deal.”