Everything Josh Heupel said Monday while previewing Tennessee vs. Syracuse

Everything Josh Heupel said to start game week as Tennessee Football prepares for its season opener against Syracuse on Saturday afternoon in the Aflac Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta:

Opening Statement

“First of all, I want to wish Ben McKee, send him our best wishes. He has a fight on his hands. Prayers are with them. Look forward to seeing him back inside of this room really quickly. Just want him and his family know that we’re thinking about him. 

“Game week is finally here. Get a chance to go play in the Aflac Kickoff Game in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Great venue, great event, and great opportunity for us to go play a really good football program in Syracuse. We got 20 players from the state of Georgia, 15 guys from the Atlanta area. They’re going to have a lot of family and friends at the game, so great way for us to kick it off and find out where we’re at.” 

Where he thinks this Tennessee team is entering Week 1

“I like who they are, how they compete, how they’ve grown. You’re at the point in the year we got to prepare extremely well this week and get ready to go play. And game one, there is a lot of unknowns as far as what you’re seeing from the other side of the ball, their personnel, all of those things. You got to be able to communicate and adjust quickly and well during the course of a football game. But I like this team that we have. And they’ve handled themselves with great maturity. They’ve been extremely competitive. They’ve continued to grow. We need to do that this week and then go play.” 

What he can find out about this Tennessee team in a game that he didn’t see during fall camp

“At the end of the day, it’s the first time that you’re playing in front of a packed stadium. There’s knowns and unknowns of what you’re seeing on the other side of the football, their ability to communicate, and all 11 (players) play as one. For some of them, it’ll be the first live action in college — physicality and the speed. Running through the tunnel is different. Everybody remembers their first time inside of a packed stadium of this size. I certainly can remember mine. You get between the white lines, it’s 11 on 11. So being able to settle into the ballgame, do your job at a really high level are all things that are going to be really important.”

Tennessee’s roster turnover, how chemistry was emphasized over the offseason 

“It doesn’t just happen on game week. It’s something that we’re intentional on when we get back in January and start our offseason every single year. You guys have heard me say young guys don’t have time to be young. That’s in how they approach everything they’re doing every day. Our veterans doing a great job leading those guys, helping them grow as men and in the game as they embark on a college career and handling everything that comes with it. It’s constant growth and as far as building continuity or connection as a football team, those are things that we’re always diligent in. That happens when you’re inside of the building, in the weight room, on the practice field, but also all of the moments outside of the normal football action to develop relationships.” 

Tennessee’s quarterbacks and wide receivers’ body of work

“I really like all those guys. In the quarterback room, you’ve heard me talk about three guys that competed during the course of training camp. You’ve heard me talk about the wideouts. I love the traits, they’ve all been healthy here the last week and change, and so I’m excited about that group. Don’t have time to be young, play young, but I expect them to be ready to go play the way that they practice.”

If he anticipates Boo Carter to play vs. Syracuse

“Yeah, anticipate that. For all of us during the course of this week, still, learning, earning, taking a job and proving that you’re ready to.”

The challenges of preparing for Syracuse’s offense

“A lot of different personnel. All their shift trade motions. The communication is going to be important. I said it earlier, but, you know, tying all three levels of your defense together is going to be important in this. You gotta be able to win one on one matchups with the way that they spread the field, too. That’s in your secondary, but that’s also winning one on one matchups up front.”

If he has named a backup quarterback

“You guys will find out on Saturday, I guess, when the depth chart comes out.”

The importance of Tennessee’s tight ends helping Joey Aguilar

“Yeah, important for them to be in sync in the pass game. But as a tight end, you got multiple things that you got to do. They got to be elite at what we’re asking them to do in the run game, in the core, and then obviously in protection at times, as well. In this football game, all 11 being on the same page, doing their job at a really high level, is important. You gotta be efficient. First and second down, that’s part of creating big plays, too, and being able to convert on third down.”

How this Tennessee team can get better in the red zone

“Well, some of last year was penalties, where you get behind the sticks. You gotta play smart football down there. The efficiency of the run game is a big part of that, as well. And then if you are throwing football, you gotta be efficient with it. So a lot of what takes place in the middle of the field is important in the red zone. It’s hypercritical in the red zone because space is condensed and you gotta be really efficient whether you’re running football or throwing it.”

His confidence in Tennessee’s offensive line

“Really good. From the meeting room to how they’ve operated, communicated, been in sync in the run game, pass protection out on the practice field, as well. You guys keep talking about the guys that haven’t played, are new. As a coach, man, you feel like you’ve had a lot of time on task with these guys. There’s a lot of trust in the guys that will get their first action here.”

On how he feels about the wide receiver room

“Young guys that maybe came in in January or transferred in in January, I feel like they’ve done an elite job of being super mature, handling everything within the scope of our offense, played and competed at a really high level, made plays. Got great trust in those guys.”

The SEC going to nine conference games next season, if he has three permanent rivals he wants

“One last question I gotta worry about getting from you guys at media days or in those events. We finally checked one off the box. You know, this is the best conference top to bottom inside the country. What you face week in and week out, adding a ninth game, I think is exciting for everybody. Great venues, great games. So really excited about that.”