How Tennessee’s linebackers fare against the Mocs
Knoxville, Tenn. – Chattanooga’s defensive tackle Marlon Taylor said he’s not looking forward to hearing Rocky Top play in Neyland Stadium.
If the game goes anything like it did for the Mocs against Alabama a year ago where they lost 66-10, he’ll get sick of it pretty early.
Taylor is tabbed to win the Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Year.
At the same time that he’s vocally expressing his dislike for the playing of Rocky Top, he’s also expressing his eagerness to have the stage of Neyland Stadium to showcase his talents.
Who can blame him, I think anyone could appreciate the scale of Neyland Stadium.
During the Mocs’ weekly press conference the tackle had some interesting things to say.
For starters, he thrives off the complement of a double team and equally dislikes when a team doesn’t double up when he’s on the field. Adding that it’s a rare occasion to have a standard hat-on-hat matchup.
A year ago, Taylor started all 13 games as the center of the defensive front. He registered 30 tackles with 9.0 for loss and 5.5 sacks, and a fumble recovery.
Taylor also posted the 10th-highest run defense grade among FCS interior defensive linemen, which ranked No. 1 in the SoCon.
On the Mocs’ roster, it lists him at 6’2″, 317 pounds.
On the other side of the ball, Tennessee’s offensive line is essentially 6’5″, 330 pounds. So maybe depending on run design, he gets double-teamed but it’ll be interesting to see how often that happens.
Marlon is just one of seven returning players on defense for the Mocs.
The same is true on offense which is led by veteran quarterback Chase Artopoeus.
How Tennessee’s running backs are looking ahead of game one
Artopoeus started 10 games before suffering a shoulder injury. So he was not quarterbacking when the Mocs lost to Alabama 66-10 at the end of the regular season.
Still, the Mocs finished Top 20 in the FCS is a number of offensive categories, from yards per completion (7th, 14.29), to total offense (20, 256.3) and pass TDs (20, 20).
Artopoeus finished his junior year completing 187 of his 298 pass attempts for 2,672 yards and 20 touchdowns.
A level of efficiency that’ll be a nice test for the Vols defense, because structure-wise the Mocs run a similar offense.
To keep the Mocs at bay, Tennessee will rely on its linebackers like Keenan Pili who will certainly be looked to set the tone and get the defense lined up.
“We anticipate someone who’s going to be very active, very aggressive, and someone that’s going to be running sideline to sideline,” said Linebackers coach William Inge. “Someone who will be making all kinds of plays and everyone will know where No. 11 is on the football field. That’s kind of our vision, that we want to create for him, and the one thing that allows us to do that is that what he’s shown thus far and he’s got the capabilities of being able to do that and it’s our responsibility to push him to where he can be one of the best linebackers in the country, and he can be that and do that, for sure.”
Since coming to Tennessee in the spring, Inge has consistently made tackling a priority. Any time they’re in pads he’s looking for teachable moments, reinforcing footwork and body position to make sure they’re set up in a spot where they can make clean and sound tackles.
“Everybody is taking care of each other and when you have a chance to make your tackles, it’s literally a one shot, one kill mentality, to where you’re making your tackle, you’re doing what you’re supposed to do and you’re making a play you’re supposed to make when you’re at the point of attack,” said Inge.
One of the guys who’ll see valuable playing time is freshman Edwin Spillman, Inge said he’s progressing at a high level.
“He does not get moved when he is in there fitting,” said Inge. “As a player who is learning and growing, it’s great to see the things that he does on special teams. He is someone who has a great role in our room, and it’s awesome to see him learning every day. It is actually special to see him coming on with his smile and he’s learning and when you have Keenan Pili and Arion Carter putting you up under their wing, you can only go up. So, it is great seeing him continue to excel.”
The same can be said for Arion Carter’s development. A year ago he said he made a few bone-headed mistakes simply because he didn’t fully understand the defense and what they were trying to accomplish.
Now after hundreds of hours of film study and translating that to the practice field, he has a renewed sense of confidence entering this season.
“It has been really encouraging,” said Carter. “Taking things from the classroom to the field, being able to execute and see yourself making the play, and going out to do it gives you natural confidence as it is. One thousand hours of doing it over and over again has gotten me to this point. I feel like there are a lot of things we need to work on, but we are a lot better than what we were, including myself.”