Butch Jones offered a few minor updates on the injury front Wednesday morning after the Vols went through their first of two sessions on the day.
He was asked about the status of defensive end Corey Vereen and running back Carlin Fils-Aime.
“They were held out today,” Jones said. “They have undisclosed injuries – nothing serious – everybody wants to push the panic button. Gosh, I got 82 text messages about Cam Sutton, I don’t know where that came from.
“But you know, we’re fairly healthy right now at this stage in camp. You’ll hold certain individuals out. Brandon Johnson is the same way, he’ll be a little bit longer of a return than the other ones, but we’re all on schedule. That’s the thing. You have to pick your spots in training camp on when to hold guys out. And Corey is an individual who has proven it over time.”
Linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin, defensive lineman Austin Smith, receiver Jauan Jennings, defensive back Micah Abernathy and cornerback D.J. Henderson all worked in green, non-contact uniforms on Wednesday as well.
Jones also addressed the question of how many freshmen he expects to play this year.
“That’s ongoing,” he replied. “We’re going to rely on a lot of freshman to play, particularly on special teams. Right now, I would say most of the class will probably play, give or take a few. I see us playing a lot of freshman. We still need that depth on special teams and that competitiveness as well.”
UT had nine scholarship freshmen redshirt players last year due to either coaches’ decision or injury – Drew Richmond, Darrell Taylor, Sheriron Jones, Andrew Butcher, Tommy Townsend (no longer with program), Riley Lovingood, Quart’e Sapp, Vincent Perry and Venzell Boulware.
