One thing the coaches of the Volunteer football team wanted to improve heading into this season was team speed, especially on defense. The lack of quality speed on the defense last season was glaring, especially against the competitive programs on Tennessee’s schedule.

Hardly a week into fall practice, and the team speed and athleticism has already taken a massive leap forward, the assistant coaches said this week.

Defensive coordinator John Jancek oversees the entire defense, and he said he has noticed big strides in the team’s overall athleticism.

“I see progress athletically,” Jancek said. “It’s helping us make progress towards what we ultimately want to become, and that’s to be big, strong and athletic.”

Tennessee’s defensive backs coach, Willie Martinez, echoed Jancek’s emphasis on athleticism and versatility.

“The more versatile you can be,” Martinez said, “the better chance you have of playing good defense.”

Part of that newfound athleticism has come with the infusion of young, versatile players from the 2014 recruiting class. All the defensive coaches praised their youngest players, lauding their ability to play multiple positions and their overall positive demeanor.

Martinez applauded the leadership some of the freshmen are already showing, highlighting their championship pasts from high school. Players like Todd Kelly Jr., Elliott and Evan Berry all played on teams who won championships in high school, and Martinez said having players like that on the roster helps the team.

“We want to develop good habits,” Martinez said. “Being around champions means you’re going to get championship practices, championship meetings, championship everything.”

Defensive line coach Steve Stripling, in charge of some of the biggest players on the team, said he craves athletic defensive players.

“I prefer athleticism over size,” Stripling said.

Another thing the coaches noted has improved over last year’s defense is the vocal leadership of the unit.

“Our communication is so much better this year than it was last year,” Jancek said.

Coach Martinez shared Jancek’s sentiments.

“We want our guys to always be vocal. You got a better chance with a player-driven team than a coach-drive team.”

Martinez added that he and the other coaches “aren’t going to back off by any means,” but that it’s important for players to take control and for coaches to be more like mentors to them.

The addition of so many newcomers to the defense is reason for optimism, and fans have voiced their excitement over the recent recruits. But they aren’t the only ones.

“I’m fired up,” Stripling said at the beginning of the media session after practice. “We got a room full of big guys, and that’s great.”