Tennessee coach sends message to Vols' wide receivers ahead of home game against Kentucky
The Tennessee Vols' offense hasn't hit its stride yet this season for several reasons. One reason is because redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava is still settling in as an SEC starter. Part of Nico settling in is getting on the same page with his wide receivers. There have been some throws this season that Iamaleava […]
The Tennessee Vols' offense hasn't hit its stride yet this season for several reasons.
One reason is because redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava is still settling in as an SEC starter.
Part of Nico settling in is getting on the same page with his wide receivers. There have been some throws this season that Iamaleava would love to have back. There have also been some good throws from Iamaleava that haven't been hauled in by his receivers. Both positions have room for improvement.
Tennessee wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope met with reporters this week, ahead of the Vols' game this weekend against Kentucky, and he had a message for his receivers.
Pope doesn't want his receivers pointing fingers when plays aren't made (and that's not the case at UT). Instead, he wants them to ask themselves what they can do in order to do the job better.
"I think the best athletes take accountability in every sport," said Pope. "Like what could I have done better to make that play? I played the position and my response was always, I'm not going be the one to be responsible for an incompletion. And that's been my message to these guys. No matter what location, the ball is low or not thrown, it don't matter. I got to be available and I got to be ready to make a play whenever that time comes. That's ultimately why we play wide out — you got to be a playmaker. That's just a part of our job. So that's kind of the message, not to necessarily point the finger of who is fault, but what could I have done to get the job done a little bit better?"
One way that Tennessee's receivers can be better is by settling in to games quicker.
Pope, however, doesn't want his receivers to "press" early in games because of that mindset.
"I think these guys, they understand we got to make more plays as an offense, not just a receiver room," said Pope. "But I think once you start to press that creates anxiety. And then I'm not being natural in playing football. I think all these guys got to focus on is how do I do my job to the best of my ability? It's that simple. And if we do that at every position, every play, man, we'll continue to roll. And you'll start to see explosive plays, you'll start to see more of the high- powered stuff that these guys are wanting to see."
Tennessee's offense isn't far from firing on all cylinders. Plays are there to be made, the execution has just been a little off. The more these guys play together, the better execution we'll see on Saturdays. This team is still building chemistry with each other. And once they get that chemistry down, this Vols offense will be capable of being the most explosive offense in the nation.
The secret to quickly unlocking Nico Iamaleava’s talent has been discovered, but Tennessee might not be willing to do it
Kinda a catch 22 for the Vols
