Former Tennessee Vols LB gives thoughts on Jeremy Pruitt and future of UT
One of the biggest stories to emerge from the Tennessee Vols' 47-21 loss to the Florida Gators last fall was Jeremy Pruitt's decision to kick linebacker Quart'e Sapp off the field. During Pruitt's post-game press conference he told reporters that Sapp refused to go in the game and was then asked to leave the field. […]
One of the biggest stories to emerge from the Tennessee Vols' 47-21 loss to the Florida Gators last fall was Jeremy Pruitt's decision to kick linebacker Quart'e Sapp off the field.
During Pruitt's post-game press conference he told reporters that Sapp refused to go in the game and was then asked to leave the field.
In the following days, Sapp addressed the situation via Twitter and said he didn't refuse to go in the game.
After the season, Sapp told The Athletic the whole ordeal was a big misunderstanding and that he and Pruitt agreed to move on from the situation.
Still, it's understandable if there was some awkward tension between Sapp and Pruitt/Tennessee. That's why it wasn't a huge surprise when Sapp chose to forego his senior season and enter the NFL draft (even though he's a fringe draft pick).
Based on Sapp's "interesting" final season at UT, I think it's worth listening to what he has to say about Pruitt and the future of Tennessee football.
Sapp recently talked with Music City Miracles and he was asked if the Vols are in "good hands" with Pruitt.
Here's what he had to say:
Yeah, they definitely are. Having been around him for a couple of months, I learned a lot from him in a short amount of time. He taught me things both as a football player and as a man. He’s installing a culture that’s going to win. They’re gonna be a winning program in the next couple of years. This upcoming fall is obviously huge for them. They just picked up a new offensive coordinator as well. Good changes are happening there.
Almost every former player in a program that plays under a new head coach will say that big things are on the horizon after they leave. It's typically the de facto response in these types of interviews.
But it's not often we get to hear these comments from a player who had a very public confrontation with the new head coach.
Pruitt and Sapp both tried to blow off the confrontation, which is the mature and correct way to handle it, but I think we'd be foolish to think there weren't some lingering hard feelings from both parties.
So when Sapp, despite that odd confrontation last season, has nothing but great things to say about the future of the program under Pruitt, I think it holds some weight.
Sapp believes in Pruitt and it's not because the UT head coach tried to be his best buddy and told him all kinds of lies (a la Butch Jones). He believes in Pruitt because he saw a good football coach and nothing more.
That's what Tennessee has needed since Phillip Fulmer was unceremoniously let go in 2008.
And now they finally have it.
Featured image via Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
