By Josh Ward

You know how offensive coaches like to talk about getting the ball to playmakers in space? They typically have someone like Squirrel White in mind when they say it.

Marquarius White may not look like an SEC football player when he steps off the bus. His
stature is one reason he received his nickname: he’s listed at 5-foot-10, 160 pounds by
Tennessee.

But White has his nickname for another reason: he can move. Really move. Along with playing football in high school, White was a sprinter in track. He finished second in both the 100- and 200-meter events at the Alabama High School Athletic Association State Championships last year with times of 10.68 and 21.58 seconds, respectively.
White’s speed translates to the football field.

Game speed

White, who enrolled at Tennessee in January and participated in spring practice, played both
receiver and defensive back in high school. He scored 17 touchdowns as a senior – 16 through the air, one on the ground – and helped lead his team to an undefeated season and 6A state championship.

That level of play brought attention from top SEC schools, including Auburn and Georgia. He
took official visits to both schools late in the recruiting process before deciding to stick with his
commitment and sign with Tennessee.

The Vols think they found a steal. A consensus 3-star prospect, White was ranked the No. 78
wide receiver in the nation.

That modest ranking means nothing now that he’s on campus at Tennessee. And White has
already caught the attention of Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker, who brought up White’s
name as one to watch last week at SEC Media Days in Atlanta.

The same happened following Tennessee’s first scrimmage this past spring – that being White’s
first ever college scrimmage.

He made multiple plays that led to points for the offense and drew praise from head coach Josh
Heupel.

“It didn’t feel like the tempo or the game was too fast for him at any point,” Heupel said.

Looking forward

That should lead to Tennessee’s coaches looking for ways to get White involved in the offense
this fall. So how big of a workload can he handle and how often will we see him?

White will try to answer those questions in fall camp. But his skillset should fit perfectly into what Tennessee wants to do: go fast and let the playmakers make plays.

This doesn’t mean White is ready to play Robin to Cedric Tillman’s Batman. Transfer Bru McCoy and returning receivers Jalin Hyatt and Ramel Keyton are first up in the
competition.

However, White can be a complimentary piece that Heupel will look to work into the receiver rotation.
White still has weight to add to his frame, and he has to show that he can make tough catches
and stand up to the physical nature of the SEC.

If he does all that, we might see White sooner than many people expected when he committed
to Tennessee in the summer of 2021.