Tennessee receivers coach Kelsey Pope met with the local media on Tuesday afternoon following an impressive opener for the Vols’ receiver room and ahead of Saturday’s matchup at NC State.
Pope discussed what the strong Tennessee debut for Chris Brazzell, what challenges NC State presents and much more. Here’s everything Pope said.
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On if anything he saw from Tennessee WR Bru McCoy surprised him on Saturday
“I wouldn’t say surprised. It’s just really refreshing to see him, really. He’s got a step or two that I don’t think he had before. He’s lost a ton of weight coming back from the injury. But it was just awesome to see him back and in rare form. From our perspective as coaches, I’m sure from a fans perspective, you guys watched him, like it was great to see No. 5 back out there in Neyland. It was awesome.”
On seeing Tennessee’s wide receiver depth on display against Chattanooga
“I think the satisfaction, I think that that’s yet to come. I think going out and seeing those guys may plays was awesome. But I also think that there’s an accountability with having a deep room that you got to go show up. You’ve done enough to create an expectation. So I think the satisfying part and the best is really yet to come. We got to continue to work so that on each Saturday we can see those plays being made.”
On if the wide receiver rotations in the first half against Chattanooga is what should be expected to be seen for Tennessee this season
“Yeah, I mean we hope to play more guys. Like we’ve got a liberty in that room, we got a bunch of guys we trust which is, it’s been the first time we’ve really had that since we’ve been here. So absolutely we want to continue to play more guys. But to my previous point, like it has to be a trust aspect. Guys got to earn it every single week. And as they keep doing that they’ll keep seeing playing time, we’ll keep making plays.”
On Tennessee’s Dont’e Thornton having the success he had in Week 1, the work he has put in
“He was just able to play fast. He caught one early, which led to another. He got off to a hot start, which is awesome for him and really for our group to be able to see that because they feed off one another. But like we talked about last time, his biggest deal is just staying positive regardless if its good or bad things happening. He’s done that this offseason. And him gaining a ton of confidence. So as long as we keep him kind of training that way, I think you’ll continue to see him train as well as a player.”
On receivers wanting to work hard for a quarterback like Nico Iamaleava, who is going to put the ball where it needs to be
“I’ll tell you this, I played quarterback in high school and college and I played receiver at a high level for a long time. I’ve seen a handful of guys that receivers want to go play for. And you can see it, you can sense it. They love playing for their guy, like absolutely love playing for him. It’s infectious in practice, it’s obviously easy in the game because the crowd’s there and there’s adrenaline. But they absolutely love playing for their guy. And as talented as he’s, he’s an even better teammate and a better leader. So that’s a testament to him and the growth that he’s shown since coming on the campus. It makes our group, our camaraderie, it makes the chemistry that much better when those guys love each other and they play hard for one another. So they love playing for Eight Ball (Iamaleava).”
On what challenges the NC State secondary presents
“NC State is a veteran group. They got a ton of older guys. They’ll present some pictures on the back end where you gotta be ready for a ton of different coverages, looks. You just got to be ready for a ton.”
On the status of freshmen receivers Mike Matthews and Braylon Staley
“And as far as those young guys, they’re trending in the right direction right now. We’re going to continue to take it day by day with those guys. They’re training, they’re working hard to get back.”
On the outside receivers getting a lot of targets, what he saw from slot receivers Squirrel White and Chas Nimrod
“I think both of those guys played tremendous without the ball. We keep talking about the depth in the room. There’s a lot of things that comes with that you got to be able to handle. There are positives about that but if there’s depth in the room, it’s also only one ball. So every day won’t be my day, right? So what I challenge these guys to do is that even if I’m not a five, six catch guy on that specific Saturday, you got to go affect the game. You got to do it in the run game. You got to go be a great teammate without the ball. And if you watch Squirrel White and his tape from his weekend, it was his best game by far of him blocking on the perimeter. It didn’t matter if we were at the 50-yard line, we were on the plus two-yard line going in and he’s being violent and he’s playing hard in the run game. Chas was the exact same way. So both of those guys did a tremendous job and for me as a coach, those things are probably more fulfilling than the touchdown catches because you don’t see it. There’s no applause, nobody even notices it. It’s a character thing. And so I enjoy seeing those aspects being played out on Saturday.”
On Chris Brazzell’s first game in the system
“Chris did an awesome job, especially with him getting here and he’s really the newest guy in the room. He’s done an incredible job of getting himself prepared to play. He’s always in the building, like he’s truly done what it took to learn this offense and learn kind of how we operate and do things. If he continues to operate that way, you’ll continue to see good things from him.”
On Nathan Leacock running down a linebacker on an interception return
“Nathan Leacock’s play — that is what you want to see as a head coach, as a receivers coach, shoot, as an AD, because that gives you a glimpse of what your football team looks like. That is a kid who maybe he didn’t play as many snaps as he wanted to early. I don’t think he had a catch at that point. As soon as the pick was thrown, he didn’t bat an eye, he turned and sprinted in the opposite direction to go stop a touchdown. They had an opportunity to kick a field goal on that drive also I think they missed a field goal. We kept those guys out of the end zone and it is solely from that play. That is a kid who has battled injuries. That is a kid who has gone through adversity and he is fighting like crazy to go make a play and add value on the field. That shows you what type of culture you’ve got when a guy like Nathan Leacock — a young guy — he is exemplifying that. You have to imagine what that building looks like every day. To see him do that, Heup showed it in a team meeting. We praised him on the sideline. That was an awesome a play and that was really good by him. That is who Nate is. He is a fighter and he is going to keep swinging until the very last second. That is awesome to see.”
On why he believes the chemistry in the room is as good as it is.:
“There’s still some of that. They all still want the ball. They’re still receivers, but I think they truly love each other, man. It is easy to go celebrate for a guy I really care about when I know his family, I know what he’s been through. You know what I mean? Like it is easy to go celebrate with a guy who I’ve been in the trenches with, I’ve sweat with, I’ve sacrificed with. It makes it really easy. Even if I want personal success, man, I gotta go help that guy celebrate. And I think that’s what you’re seeing on the outside. But they all want the ball, which I want them to want the ball. We just gotta understand that man, some days it’s gonna be my day and if it’s not, I gotta go affect the game in a different way. I gotta go add value in some type of way.”
On if they anticipated the slot receivers not receiving a ton of targets or if that’s just how it played out
“Yes, really just how it unfolded. You’ve got no way to really predict it. Like, you know what coverages are coming, you got different beaters, a different position, but it really just happens how it happens most of the time. You get designated shots sometimes, you get designated calls sometimes, but it just happens that way, unfolds that way sometimes.”
On Chris Brazzell being the first guy on the field to warmup two hours before kickoff
“Yeah, he’s a gamer. He’s one of the most competitive guys on the team. Right before kickoff, he was screaming on the sideline. I was worried that something was wrong. It’s just, that’s his demeanor. He’s in it, he’s engulfed, he immerse himself in his game and, you know, Chris is one of those guys, he’s all or nothing. He’s going to do something 100 percent of the time full speed. And that’s why you see him out there that much. He loves the game, which gives him a shot to be really successful and really good at this game.”
