Following a bye week, the Vanderbilt Commodores will play the Tennessee Volunteers this Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CDT at Neyland Stadium. To get the inside scoop on Tennessee, The Hustler went Behind Enemy Bylines to speak with Caleb Jarreau, Sports Editor of The Daily Beacon.
The Vanderbilt Hustler: How has Tennessee improved or regressed from last year?
Caleb Jarreau: I would say Tennessee has probably regressed from last year which was to be expected with the loss of Hendon Hooker at quarterback. I don’t think very many people saw the effects that Hendon Hooker had. The identity of the offense is also different from last year. You have an offense now that is a lot more run-heavy than pass-heavy. Last year, it was a pass-heavy offense. You got Jaylen Wright leading the way,he’ll probably be a 1000-yard rusher after this week. And then you have Jabari Small who has also helped lead the way on the ground. So overall, I’d say the identity of this team has changed from last year from that pass-heavy team with Joe Milton playing Vanderbilt last year and playing very well. The defense has improved from last year.
VH: Can you describe the environment of Neyland Stadium?
CJ: When you talk to a lot of recruits and fans, Neyland Stadium is one of the best stadiums in the country and compares with Death Valley or Florida’s Stadium. This past week, when Georgia came to town it was probably the best environment Tennessee’s had all year. All in all, I would say Neyland Stadium is probably one of the best in the SEC in the country. And that’s not just for me, but that’s from everybody who I’ve talked to from fans, recruits, coaches, home players and away players. During SEC Media Day, a lot of players said that Tennessee was one of the loudest stadiums they played in and compared it to the Swamp, which is considered the premier SEC environment.
VH: What is your score prediction for Tennessee vs. Vandy?
CJ: I have no idea maybe off the top of my head like 35-14 or 35-17, something like that? Just because I don’t know how much we’ll be able to run up the score. I think you’d like to get some of your younger guys reps because a lot of those guys are either locked into a redshirt year or aren’t redshirting at all and that decision has been made. So like a Nico Iamaleava. You want to get him live game reps because he’s your quarterback next year. So you need him to get reps. Hopefully, he’s your quarterback in the bowl game honestly, thinking of splitting time with Joe Milton there.
