PoinT/CounTerPoinT: The safety spot

With spring practice quickly on the horizon we continue our PoinT/CounTerPoinT feature to help you get ready for some much needed football.

PoinT/CounTerPoinT is an open debate on the major topics/storylines of Tennessee's spring camp. A camp with as much hype as Vols fans have seen in over a decade.

After debating what's most important for new defensive coordinator Bob Shoop in Tuesday's installment, we remain on the defensive side of the ball today as we discuss a big question mark and position battle this spring in the safety spot. We’ll hit the defensive line in the next installment of the series.

For me, the biggest question surrounding the safety spot is finding a leader. And that's why this spring is important for someone like Todd Kelly Jr. For the last few years, Willie Martinez and John Jancek had a great security blanket in Brian Randolph. Randolph was an extension of the coaching staff and fixed a lot of wrongs in the backend of the defense the last couple of years. Certainly Randolph made his fair share of plays but just as important if not more important was his ability to get guys lined up and correct mistakes.

The question for the safety position now is who will do that with Randolph's departure. Kelly is the obvious choice as he has the most experience in the safety spot. And with the fact that the Vol defense is replacing both safeties from a season ago, the leadership at that position in crucial to get in place this spring.

From a talent standpoint there is good competition already with some young players like Evan Berry, Micah Abernathy, Stephen Griffin and possibly a guy like Rashaan Gaulden, who could play nickel or safety. There is more competition coming with the class of 2016 in guys like Nigel Warrior.

But there's more than competition and talent needed at the safety position and that's why for me, the most important key to the safety spot this spring is to find the defensive quarterback who can right the wrongs on the back end eliminating big plays. - BH

I’m not sure 15 practices --- only 14 of them legitimate, since the finale is the highly orchestrated Orange & White Game on April 16 --- across six weeks of March and April is window enough for a backend quarterback to emerge for the Tennessee defense.

What I do think it is or can be is a time that the Vols’ coaches, and particularly Shoop and Martinez, see which defensive back is putting in the work right now that will allow that player or players to be counted in the fall.

I fully expect Todd Kelly Jr. to be atop that list. TKJ is the guy, after all, who we’re told watched countless hours of film --- in the hospital last fall as he struggled with infection following a tonsillectomy.

But he also has an innate sense for the ball and the big play. Kelly Jr. has six career interceptions in just five starts through two seasons. He’s also shown some pass coverage skills. And he’s majoring in biomedical engineering because medical school may be in his future. So he’s going to be just fine in the playbook.

So the spring must be when TKJ and the others begin to assert themselves as potentially dependable players willing to compete non-stop for their roles. The absences of Randolph and LaDarrell McNeil now means literally a 100-game void in Tennessee’s secondary, with Randolph owning 53 career appearances to rank among the most in Vols’ history.

That experience can’t be compensated for in a single spring camp. But the Vols’ safeties can begin to step in the right direction. --- J.B.

Shoop needs a trusted leader to emerge as quickly as possible in the backend of his defense because he needs to be able to trust that unit for his aggressive schemes. But gaining trust in a single spring camp under a brand-new coordinator may not be the most feasible goal.

These guys, however, can establish themselves as competitors both eager to earn the job and able to help the other gifted newcomers who will arrive this summer.