‘He ain’t scared of sh-t’ — Tennessee Vols player has strong opinion of talented freshman teammate David Sanders, Jr.
The incoming five-star talent has made a quick impression
The Tennessee Vols will have a very different-looking offensive line this season. With 4 of 5 starters from last year gone, it will be about as different of a unit as any, with the exception of perhaps the wide receiver room and starting quarterback.
However, there’s plenty of talent coming into help offset those roster losses, including former Notre Dame IOL Sam Pendleton, former Arizona IOL Wendell Moe, and five-star OT David Sanders, Jr.
Regarding the latter, the only returning starter on the line, tackle Lance Heard, had some positive thoughts on his new linemate Sanders when he met with the media on Tuesday ahead of the start of fall camp.
“I like Dave, I like his mentality,” Heard said. “He ain’t scared of shit – he ain’t scared of nothing, I’m sorry. Great worker, man. He listens. Very coachable. I like that about him.”
When asked how rare that mentality is for a true freshman, Heard grinned.
“Got to be one of them ones. I mean, he comes in with that mentality that I like. He can get aggressive.”
Sanders, Jr. comes into a challenging spot, as he’s going to be tasked with handling a starting spot on an offense that will have mostly brand-new faces at just about every position, including those trying to work in and learn the offense alongside of him on the line. And the challenges beyond fall camp are coming quickly, as Tennessee will have a Syracuse team in the opener who won nine games in 2024, with Georgia to follow at home two weeks later.
However, Sanders, Jr. comes in with the size and frame to step in and succeed quickly at 6’6″, 305 pounds. He also appears to have a fearless and tough mentality, at least according to his teammate. We’ll see soon enough if he can make that translate quickly to success on the field, which Tennessee’s new-look offense very much needs.
