Tennessee assistant explains what Vols need to happen to 'have a chance' in the SEC
Tennessee Vols secondary coach Willie Martinez recently met with the media to discuss the upcoming 2022 season and he had plenty of insightful things to say. One thing in particular that Martinez discussed was what he believes needs to happen for the Vols to "have a chance" in the SEC. Unsurprisingly, it's going to be […]
Tennessee Vols secondary coach Willie Martinez recently met with the media to discuss the upcoming 2022 season and he had plenty of insightful things to say.
One thing in particular that Martinez discussed was what he believes needs to happen for the Vols to "have a chance" in the SEC.
Unsurprisingly, it's going to be all about depth for Tennessee this season.
Martinez thinks that's the biggest obstacle facing the Volunteers in 2022.
"We really want to play more guys," said Martinez last week. "We are trying to force ourselves in pushing the guys and obviously myself as a coach to continue to pour in as much as I can to make sure they understand what we're doing in our scheme. They got to prove it on the field. Ideally, we would like to play at least three to four corners, three to four safeties. If anything, it would be five."
"If you can get that four to five in those positions, and obviously STAR is in there, I would say if we could do that it would give us a chance in this league," added Martinez. "Obviously, if somebody gets hurt then somebody could just bounce back in there and it's next man mentality and they are ready to play."
Based on what we saw last season, we know the Vols' offense is going to produce at a high level. And we know the defense is going to be disciplined and aggressive.
The biggest roadblock that Tennessee will face is keeping the defense fresh. Because of the Vols' uptempo offense, the defense will be pushed to its limits. Competitive depth will help Tennessee level the playing field a bit. If the Vols can get quality depth on the defensive side of the ball, it will neutralize the defense's biggest hindrance to being an elite unit — which is obviously being on the field too often.
Tennessee has a chance to surprise some folks in 2022. Quality depth is the biggest thing this team needs this season to have a legitimate chance at their first 10-win season since 2007.
Featured image via Bryan Lynn-USA TODAY Sports
