The final stat line didn’t necessarily jump off the page.
Three tackles. One quarterback hurry. Zero sacks.
But when considering the increased workload abruptly placed upon freshman linebacker Jakob Johnson — who made his first-career start Saturday in place of suspended All-SEC senior A.J. Johnson — Tennessee head coach Butch Jones dished out a passing grade.
“Jakob did a very good job from the mental standpoint of getting us lined up, setting the front the right way, setting the schemes the right way,” Jones said at Monday’s press luncheon. “So he did a very, very good job. Really a remarkable job when you look at here’s a young man who’s a true freshman, hasn’t had much live game opportunities.”
With A.J. Johnson banned from all team-related activities amidst an ongoing rape investigation, all signs point to Jakob Johnson having, at the very least, another week of increased defensive responsibilities when the Vols (5-6, 2-5 SEC) try to become bowl eligible Saturday at Vanderbilt (3-8, 0-7).
And with extensive game reps now on film, the comfort level expects to increase for the 6-foot-4, 240-pound German, who Jones says is “probably the equivalent to a high school senior” given his limited exposure to American football.
“It’s definitely going to be great for him, just knowing what it feels like to play a whole game,” linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin said. “Knowing what your body feels like, knowing how to deal with each type of player. So it’s definitely going to be big for him to just review that film, and now, he’ll be comfortable. “So I look to see him stepping up even more this week.”
The Black Album: On Missouri’s opening drive of its 29-21 win over UT, running back Marcus Murphy corralled a screen pass, busted through a Cameron Sutton tackle attempt and sprinted up the visitor sideline for a 15-yard pickup.
Only Sutton didn’t immediately hop up, drawing medical attention from a throng of UT trainers.
“Just blacked out,” he said Monday. “It happens from time to time … This was the first time it had ever happened in game. They ran a couple things on the sideline just to make sure I was OK. I was just eager to get back out there and finish the rest of the game.”
But that didn’t happen instantly.
Sophomore Malik Foreman closed out the drive — as well as UT’s next defensive series — at cornerback, racking up one pass breakup in the process.
But back to Sutton.
Blackouts?
“From time to time, it just happens throughout the course of the day,” Sutton said nonchalantly. “I just black out and just keep walking. Nothing ever happens. Like I said, it was the first time it had ever happened in a game, but I can’t let that stop me from getting back out there and finishing the rest of the game.
“… It doesn’t happen every day. For the two seconds it does happen, I just black out and come back, and then just keep going about my business.”
Quarterback conundrum: In the midst of head coach Derek Mason’s inaugural season in Nashville, Vanderbilt has rotated four different quarterbacks — redshirt freshman Johnny McCrary, redshirt sophomore Patton Robinette, freshman Wade Freebeck and graduate student Stephen Rivers — this season. Three of those played during the Commodores’ 51-0 loss to Mississippi State.
“It’s a challenge in and of itself because each of the quarterbacks present different challenges for you,” Jones said. “They have different skill sets. So you always study your opponent and the little ticks, the little nuances, trying to give yourself a competitive advantage. But now when you have three to study, it makes it that much even more challenging.
“The preparation, Vanderbilt does a tremendous job with multiple shifts, trades, motions. They challenge your communicative process not just on offense, but defense. They do some good things schematically. Again, it’s going to be a challenge in and of itself, but when you’re facing a number of quarterbacks, it is a great challenge to prepare for.”
