When it comes to college football, pay attention. Life moves pretty fast, especially when it comes to Tennessee’s receivers.
Think about this: We all had it figured out a year ago. Incoming transfer Dont’e Thornton was going to join bona fide star Bru McCoy, jitterbug Squirrel White and a crew of proven players like Ramel Keyton to assemble a daunting crew of pass catchers. Well, we all know how that worked out. The Vols suffered a major injury to McCoy in the first month of the season and the rest of the group was banged up for much of the remainder of the year. Thornton also eventually suffered a season-ending injury, just like McCoy. A void at receiver shouldn’t be a problem this season.
The Vols seem to have more depth than they did last season in the immediate and not-so-distant future, which could be important once again this season if injuries plague the Vols at receiver.
There is no question that Chris Brazzell II will be a factor this season after transferring from Tulane. The 6-foot-5, 200-pounder has the ability to play most any position, including slot receiver, in Tennessee’s offense. The key for Brazzell and any new, incoming player is to develop chemistry as soon as possible with starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava.
“Me and Nico have a good relationship,” Brazzell said. “It’s more of the plays on my end. Being able to know my assignment, play fast versus thinking before the play and not being as decisive during the play.”
Much like McCoy, Brazzell is a big, physical receiver that can attack the ball in the air and feed off press coverage. Brazzell can also be a force in Tennessee’s receiver screen game, which the Vols are likely to rely on less this season than in 2023. Still, Brazzell has that physicality whenever he has to call on it.
“It comes from within you,” Brazzell said. “If you want to block, then you can block. If you don’t want to block, then you probably are going to not be able to block. It is a mindset thing for sure.”
Brazzell and McCoy, who is 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds, will be one of the biggest duo of receivers in college football this season.
“Having Bru back, it’s crazy,” said Brazzell, who caught 44 passes for 771 yards and five touchdowns for Tulane as a freshman last season. “He’s a guy who plays physically, plays fast and knows his assignments. Having him back makes me go like, ‘Okay, I got to play fast. I got to play physically. I got to know my plays. He’s busting his butt every play and knows his assignment every play.”
Tennessee receivers coach Kelsey Pope has seen enough during preseason practice to know that Brazzell is ready to go.
“He’s dialed in,” Pope said. “When he first got here, I don’t think he had a true expectation of what it took in this building and in this league to be successful. Right now, he’s in a really good spot. He’s dialed in.
“He’s getting extra meetings. He’s getting extra film. He’s doing a great job of preparing. I think as long as he does that and continues to do that. He’ll give himself a shot.”
A shot? That seems like a massive understatement.
