Not much went wrong for Tennessee football in its season opening win over Chattanooga last Saturday at Neyland Stadium. The Vols led by 45-0 at halftime before coasting to a 69-3 victory over their instate FCS foe. Chattanooga didn’t even pass midfield in the second half while Tennessee covered the spread by 28 points.
But it was what happened on one of the plays that went poorly for Tennessee that said the most about the culture of Josh Heupel’s fourth team in Knoxville.
Chattanooga linebacker Kobe Joseph intercepted a Gaston Moore pass at the Mocs’ 20-yard line and had nothing but green grass between him and the end zone. But reserve receiver Nathan Leacock tracked Joseph down, and along with Moore, tackled the linebacker at the 10-yard line.
“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,” Tennessee receiver’s coach Kelsey Pope said. “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.
“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.”
Tennessee’s defense forced Chattanooga to go three-and-out and the Mocs missed the short field goal. Leacock’s effort was a seven-point swing. While that meant nothing in the outcome of the game it could be significant in a game later this season. That’s why Josh Heupel made sure to show the play in a team meeting.
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Josh Heupel played a clip from Tennessee’s win against Chattanooga in front of the entire team.
It was Nathan Leacock’s 60-yard hustle play tackle. pic.twitter.com/gBJmnHD6na
— Vol Report (@AllVolReport) September 4, 2024
Leacock is entering his second season in Tennessee’s program. He didn’t play as a freshman a year ago and is buried on the Vols’ depth chart this season. The Raleigh native is a third string receiver for the Vols and won’t play meaningful football this season barring serious injuries for Tennessee at receiver.
But he made the most of his playing time with his effort. Leacock also hauled in one catch for 13 yards in the win.
“That is a kid who has battled injuries,” Pope said of Leacock. “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.”
Leacock and Tennessee return to the field this weekend where they’ll face his hometown NC State Wolfpack at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. ET with Rece Davis, Kirk Herbstreit and Holly Rowe on the call for ABC.
