Daune Morris said his biggest improvement happened between his ears.
De’Rail Sims has seen where the work happened.
Sometimes, it came after everyone else had left Tennessee’s football facility. Other times, Morris arrived early while his teammates were in class.
The sophomore running back wanted a larger role. Sims began seeing him put in the work required to earn one.
“He did a good job from the spring all the way through the summer in terms of taking ownership of his responsibilities, being in the building, doing extra work,” Tennessee’s running backs coach said Tuesday.
Morris rushed for a career-high 98 yards on 10 carries in Tennessee’s 45-24 win over Georgia Tech. His night ended with a career-long 47-yard touchdown that gave the Vols their final score.
The performance came one year after Morris struggled to find consistent playing time as a freshman.
Morris said after the win that his biggest leap has been mental. A better understanding of Tennessee’s offense has allowed him to stop forcing opportunities and play faster when they arrive.
Sims has watched that process develop.
“He’s kind of got that [Dylan Sampson] approach where he comes back when everybody’s kind of gone, or he gets back over here early when people are in class and does a really good job of getting that extra film time in,” Sims said. “He understands what he wants, and he understands the work that he has to put into it.”
The “D-Samp approach” is a significant comparison.
D-Samp is former Tennessee running back Dylan Sampson, whose preparation and approach became a standard inside Sims’ position room.
Morris is beginning to follow the example.
Sims said part of the change has simply come through maturity. Morris now understands the expectations inside Tennessee’s program after experiencing them for a full season.
His position coach has made sure those expectations remain high.
“I always tell them guys, I’m never going to allow you to be average,” Sims said. “I’m going to push you to be elite every single day.”
Morris has responded.
“He took pride in that,” Sims said. “He’s done a good job maturing in that aspect.”
Now, Tennessee is beginning to see how Morris can complement the rest of its backfield.
Bishop and Javin Gordon can provide physicality between the tackles. Morris gives the Vols something different when he enters.
Speed.
“You saw him get comfortable, and you saw him do a really good job fast,” Sims said. “It was a change of pace when he got in the game.”
That can become particularly valuable as Tennessee wears on a defense.
“You kind of get the understanding, those other guys get in there, they kind of pound them up a little bit,” Sims said. “Now all of a sudden, you’ve got a change-of-pace back that’s coming at you. It’s a little bit different. It does present problems to the defense.”
Morris’ 47-yard touchdown offered the clearest example.
After Tennessee repeatedly attacked Georgia Tech on the ground, Morris found a crease and accelerated through the Yellow Jackets’ defense for the longest run of his college career.
There is still another step required before Morris becomes the complete back Sims wants.
Pass protection.
Sims saw mistakes there Saturday and said Morris needs to slow his eyes down in protection.
“Run game-wise, you saw him get comfortable,” Sims said. “Just got to continue to keep growing in protection game, and he’ll be just fine.”
That’s the next challenge.
But Morris’ path toward a larger role has become much clearer.
The extra film sessions and early mornings helped him understand Tennessee’s offense. That understanding helped him play faster.
And when Morris finally saw daylight Saturday, there wasn’t much hesitation left.
