Butch Jones spoke to the media on Monday, previewing Tennessee-Georgia and giving an interesting closing statement.
Here are the notable things he had to say.
That Final Question…
There was a rather odd ending to Butch Jones’ Monday press conference.
When a reporter asked about how Shy Tuttle sustained his injury, Jones snapped back at the media.
This was his full response to the question.
“Football is an emotional game, it’s a competitive game. The injury was caused not by a teammate, he landed on a helmet. And that’s the truth. We have to understand, what do we want out of our media? This place with the drama…again these are kids. We all have children. We’re all adults. Are we focused on Tennessee football, from a recruiting standpoint and all the positive things we’ve done? From all the positive things this football program brings to the community. This great fan base. Are we in the reality world of TV? I think all of us as human beings have to self check ourselves. You may not like that answer, but I’m a father. I have three boys. I think we sometimes have to put ourselves in the role of a parent as well. I understand you all have jobs to do. My expectation as the head football coach is I’m the caretaker of Tennessee football. I’m here to develop and grow a football program, recruiting the best possible student athletes to represent the University of Tennessee, and win football games and graduate our players. I take that very seriously. Also, I love our kids, and I’m going to protect our players and our program. And sometimes the negativity is overwhelming. And if everyone are Vol fans, how do we let our opponents us this in recruiting process with fake news? We have to check ourselves; what are we here for? What are the values and principles that guide our life every single day? I appreciate everyone in this room. You guys have a job to do, and I’m respectful of that. I’m friends with a lot of you guys in the room and I appreciate it. But also, there comes a certain time when enough is enough. So, thank you. You guys have a great day. I look forward to seeing you on Wednesday. Go Vols.”
When another reporter asked him earlier in the press conference about being a home underdog to Georgia, he had a similar, but shorter response.
“I don’t pay attention to that. We’re responsible for what we create on a daily basis,” Jones said.
Injury Update
Shy Tuttle and Jashon Robertson are both expected back on the field this weekend.
Evan Berry, however, will not play.
In terms of Jauan Jennings, the junior wideout will have to obviously miss the one year anniversary of his Hail Mary against Georgia. But Jennings hasn’t been on the sideline since he got hurt in week one.
Jones says that isn’t a big deal and that it’s being looked into too much.
“You guys look for everything,” Jones said. “You’re running a reality TV show that feeds off of drama. He’s in the building everyday doing a great job with recovery. He is an extremely competitive young man. It bothers him being on the sideline because he feels like he can’t help his football team… that’s his decision.”
Looking to Georgia
Butch Jones still wasn’t pleased with his team’s performance on Saturday. And it came in large part because of his team’s lack of energy.
He thinks it will be an aberration.
“We talk about the different things that make up the structure of our football program, little things that people don’t see…it starts with energy and passion,” Jones said. “I thought it was very lackluster. It has been an isolated incident. We’ve shown some passion and energy. That’s something we won’t tolerate. You can make a lot of excuses for it, but there is no excuse for a lack of passion and energy.
“It’s going to be a very physical football game.”
Quarterback Update
“There’s a lot more pressing topics than the quarterback conversation,” Jones stated when asked about Quinten Dormady and Jarrett Guarantnao. “The average person looks at it and says the quarterbacks. Play of the quarterbacks are a byproduct of everyone around them. Too much praise when things go well and too much blame when things don’t go well. Quinten did good things. Every game is a learning experience. They’ll continue to get better.”
He also added that some of the incompletions were due to receivers going too deep on routes.
Plus, Tennessee was often in second or third and long. Jones said that killed his offense’s rhythm.
“We were never ahead of the sticks. You’re not going to have much success if you’re not staying on schedule.”
Quinten Dormady fumbled on his first read option attempt of the game against UMass. And Guarantano never got to run the option when he was in.
Jones expects more QB runs moving forward,
“It’s evolving. But again, like we spoke about last week, there are so many ways to involve the quarterback. He has a key read attached to it. Sometimes he has to keep the football, and there were a couple of times we thought he should’ve kept the football,” he said.
Defensive Improvements
A couple of new guys made big contributions against UMass. Shaq Wiggins and Quarte Sapp both played a lot of snaps with Sapp earning his first career start.
Both players will see the field a lot moving forward. And both are still in the midst of a “learning experience” according to Jones.
“I was really pleased with Shaq,” he said. “He had a whole different mindset and determination starting last Monday. He approached everyday like it was gameday. I thought it showed when he had his opportunity in the game…we’re going to continue to need that moving forward.”
In terms of the linebackers, this was Jones’ response to their growth.
“Typical of our young football team. They’re evolving….the big thing they’re learning is the art of communication. There were way too many times we were misaligned…in terms of a physical standpoint, I was pleased.”
On the defensive line, Tennessee recorded seven sacks against the Minutemen. Kyle Phillips had one of those sacks, and Jones continues to single him out as a big mover on the depth chart.
“I was really pleased with the continuing improvement of Kyle Phillips,” he said. “He’s getting better each and every game. The ability to go from run to pass, being able to convert your technique. We were able to change the line of scrimmage. It was a relentless approach. We’re going to play agianst a very talented and physical Georgia offensive line.
“(The defensive line) is one of the stronger leadership groups of our football team,” Jones added.
