Tennessee Vols assistant had an amazing response when a player made a huge mistake against LSU
Tennessee Vols running backs coach Jerry Mack met with reporters on Tuesday and his response to a question about true freshman running back Dylan Sampson stuck out to me. Mack was asked about Sampson's mistake in pass protection against LSU that resulted in quarterback Hendon Hooker taking a huge hit and fumbling. Sampson failed to […]
Tennessee Vols running backs coach Jerry Mack met with reporters on Tuesday and his response to a question about true freshman running back Dylan Sampson stuck out to me.
Mack was asked about Sampson's mistake in pass protection against LSU that resulted in quarterback Hendon Hooker taking a huge hit and fumbling.
Sampson failed to pick up a blitzing safety, but he managed to salvage the play by recovering the fumble and advancing it for positive yards.
Mack's response to the question about Sampson was absolutely perfect. He didn't slam Sampson to the media or throw him under the bus. He didn't really even criticize the true freshman. Instead, he simply acknowledged the mistake and then praised Sampson for the way he picked up a couple of yards and turned a negative play into a positive.
"Great learning moment," said Mack of the missed protection by Sampson. "He made the best out of it when he picked up the ball and went ahead and turned it into plus yardage. For the most part, he just never got his eyes to the opposite side, and that's one thing we talk about. In that environment, big-time environment, LSU, he's back at home, he gets his eyes fixated on one defender as opposed to understanding he has a secondary, another read to that entire protection. He just never got his eyes back over there and by the time he saw it, it was too late."
"But he didn't make a bad play worse," added Mack. "He picked up the ball, got vertical, and turned it into something positive. That's something we talked to him about on the sideline and obviously, Hendo (Hendon Hooker) talked to him about it. That's something that, he was embarrassed about it, and to make sure that it never happens again, he was in tune for the rest game. He's been in tune in practice this whole week as well."
We heard a lot of talk from players last year about the militaristic style under previous head coach Jeremy Pruitt. That approach from Pruitt constantly had players on edge and playing tight.
Under Josh Heupel and his staff, the vibe is much different. Players aren't living in fear of making mistakes. Obviously, they want to limit mistakes and they don't want the ball on the ground, but players aren't playing with a "just don't screw up" mentality. Instead, they're playing free and loose. And that's because of coaches like Mack who understand that mistakes are teaching moments and can be beneficial as long as players learn from them.
Tennessee's staff is truly putting on a coaching clinic under Heupel, which is a big part of why the Vols are 5-0 heading into a huge showdown with Alabama this weekend.
Featured image via Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
