Special Teams Could be Special
Replacing Michael Palardy’s kicking and punting production from 2013 will certainly be no small task, but Aaron Medley and Matt Darr are off to a strong start in their attempt to do so. Medley looks like he has a long and successful career ahead of him at placekicker. He has been very consistent in the times we have seen him kick and has been praised by his coaches for his focus during high pressure situational kicks. Medley has an extremely strong leg, easily punching kicks through the uprights from 55-yards and beyond and is kicking with a lot of confidence. George Bullock has also put together a strong camp and looks to provide some depth at placekicker.
Matt Darr has had one of the most impressive turnarounds of anyone on the team over the last twelve months. Last year at this time Darr was inconsistent and slow in his punting and looked like he’d never be able to do it at the SEC level. Fast-forward a year and Darr is looking like he could prove to be a real weapon for Tennessee this season. He is kicking fast, high and deep on a consistent basis and looks like a completely different player.
The Vols should also look to have quite the arsenal of players to be featured in the return game. Cam Sutton and Devrin Young each have home run potential on the punt return unit due to their vision, speed and fluidity. Pig Howard is another player who has the potential to do some damage in that area as well as the coaches continue to feel more and more confident with him. However, at this point Howard looks like he will be the first guy back deep on kick returns thanks to his burst and ability to cut through defenders to find running lanes. Players like Josh Malone, Jalen Hurd and Vic Wharton have also gotten looks on kick returns, so the Vols will certainly have options at that position.
Tennessee’s coverage units were actually very good in 2013, but expect them to be even better in 2014. The added speed from the freshman class and their willingness to work hard on special teams will have a huge impact on the field.
