Tennessee coach Butch Jones made a simple request Monday.
He didn’t want to talk about the civil lawsuit.
The civil lawsuit and its allegations are well-documented by now. The lawsuit alleges that Tennessee has created a “hostile sexual environment” by acting indifferent toward sexual assault. An amended complaint filed on Feb. 24 said that Jones allegedly told former player Drae Bowles he betrayed the team for helping a female who was allegedly raped by teammates A.J Johnson and Michael Williams.
Jones released a statement denying the accusations. When asked to expound upon his statement during Monday’s press conference at Ray and Lucy Hand Digital Studio, Jones made it clear he only wanted to talk about football.
“I made a statement, and I will stick behind the statement,” Jones said. “I’d appreciate it you could keep it to spring football today. That is what this press conference is all about.”
While the civil lawsuit has circulated in the national media and has resulted in plenty of negative publicity, Jones and his players maintained that the lawsuit hasn’t led to any distractions for the team.
Jones even said that this offseason has been the best since he has coached at Tennessee.
“Our players have been very focused, very driven,” Jones said. “We’ve had the best off-season we’ve had since we’ve been here. Very driven both academically and athletically. So, I don’t see (the off-field distractions) being an issue one bit. I can tell you this, I know they’re really excited to get out on the football field today and play football and do what they do. They’re worked hard to earn this right to go out and have a great spring football.”
As Tennessee’s starting quarterback, Josh Dobbs maintained that at a school the size of UT, distractions are just part of the job.
“The guys come in and they work. Off the field, there is always stuff going on no matter where you play, especially when you play at a place like Tennessee,” Dobbs said after Monday’s practice at Haslam Field. “There is always something going on outside.
“It really hasn’t been a distraction. We are focused on the task at hand, getting better this offseason, and getting better this spring. We are just excited to get back on the field and throw the ball around.”
Diversity Protest: Both Jalen Reeves-Maybin and Alvin Kamara attended the UTK diversity protest during the Tennessee-Ole Miss basketball game Saturday at Thompson-Boling Arena. The group protested the state legislature’s motion to remove state funding from the university’s diversity office. Both Kamara and Reeves-Maybin posted a photo on twitter of them holding a sign saying #mydiversity matters.
Jones said he supports his players taking a stand on social issues.
“They are just more than football players, they are students,” Jones said. “I respect that. Obviously, we support them. They have a platform and have a stage because they are student-athletes here at the University of Tennessee. As long as it is done the right way, it represents them. It represents our program. It represents the university. I full support them.”
Position Changes: Three Tennessee football players will switch positions during spring practice, coach Butch Jones announced Monday .
Austin Smith will move from linebacker to defensive end. Micah Abernathy will switch from cornerback to safety and Jason Croom will move from wide receiver to tight end.
“All three individuals have done a tremendous job this offseason in really embracing that,” Jones said. “I know we are looking forward as coaches to really seeing on the field with their different respective positions.”
It might only have been one spring practice, but Dobbs liked what he saw from Croom in his first practice in his new position.
“It’s been something he has put a lot of time and effort into at ending of last season throughout the offseason,” Dobbs said. “He hasn’t been out here since two years ago really, so it was great to see him out there competing and he did a great job making the adjustment.”
Injury Report: Jones said 11 players will miss spring practice due to injuries.
Derek Barnett, Kendall Vickers, Andrew Butcher, Kyle Phillips, Shy Tuttle, Chance Hall, Jashon Robertson, Evan Berry, Josh Malone, Joe Stocstill and Joe Young will all miss spring practice.
Jones said he expects all the players back by June when Tennessee begins its summer phase of the football program.
“I know these players are still going to work hard with the mental effort and mental intensity that it takes,” Jones said. “While practice is going on, they will spend a lot of time in the training room and the weight room doing the things that they can do to make themselves a better football player.”
