If you need proof that Tennessee coach Josh Heupel is a players’ coach, just take a look at the Vols’ season-opening depth chart released on Monday. For those handful of players that didn’t make the list, perhaps Heupel will release a four-deep depth chart next week so that everyone is accounted for and no one gets their feelings hurt.
Tennessee’s depth chart, in case you haven’t seen it yet, is more of a roster than a listing of first and second teamers. There are 30, yes 30, “ors” on the depth chart which means the Vols may start one player “or” another player may start.
Does Heupel want the surprise advantage over Chattanooga in the Vols’ season opener on Saturday. No, he wants to be really, really nice to the many players who worked hard but won’t start at 12:45 against the Mocs. So he’s decided to use more “ors” than the Vols’ crew team.
That’s all well and good now, but it might be frowned upon in the near future as gambling is taken more into account in college football. Gambling is the driving force behind most sports nowadays, including the NFL, which doesn’t allow such shenanigans.
It’s just a matter of time until college football institutes an injury report so that gamblers can make the proper bet based on real information. Heupel probably won’t like that – or find a way around it – given his history of providing misleading information about injuries. However, there are ways around that too.
Former New England Patriots’ head coach Bill Belichick was famous for listing dozens of players as “questionable” every week to satisfy the NFL requirements. However, that’s where the comparisons between the two coaches end. Belichick was a dictator who ran a franchise that was legendarily hard on its players. By comparison, Heupel runs a kindergarten class. That’s not to say it can’t be successful.
There are plenty of players’ coaches that have had success. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney has won two national championships as a coach who is known for valuing his players’ feelings. While it may rub some old school football fans the wrong way, keeping everyone happy may well be the wave of the future. Why? Players have options.
Back in the day, players had to sit a year before playing at another school if they transferred. Sometimes they even had to pay for their own schooling after transferring. Now, a player can participate in offseason drills, transfer in the summer and be a part of another team in the fall. Yes, I know that seems bizarre, but it explains Heupel’s thinking to some extent. Plus, it fits his Kumbaya culture that has benefitted the Vols greatly to this point.
Heupel’s preseason depth chart is just one part of all that culture. Moreover, he doesn’t want any players easing up just because they weren’t named a starter on Monday. In some ways, Chattanooga can be looked at like a preseason game in the NFL. The Vols should win and win easily, but there might be some positions, such as left guard, that could use some in-game evaluations.
There is one particular “or” on Tennessee’s depth chart that caught my eye, the Vols’ Star position, which is a hybrid linebacker/defensive back role. Tennessee’s depth chart has redshirt sophomore Christian Harrison and freshman Boo Carter listed as co-starters at Star. That particular “or” makes a lot of sense.
As good as freshman Boo Carter is, there were some maturity concerns before he arrived on campus, per multiple sources in his hometown of Chattanooga. Publicly, at least, there haven’t been any issues with Carter, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Heupel declined to make him the starter just because of the unneeded ego boost it might provide.
Then, there’s Harrison, who has continued to work hard in his three seasons at Tennessee. Heupel may be trying to hide Carter, but my bet is that he’s actually trying to provide a bit of a boost to Harrison, who likely has already been passed by a younger player on the Vols’ “real” depth chart.
Carter isn’t the only freshman involved in a battle for playing time and he’s certainly not the only player on the Vols’ roster with far less experience than Heupel would prefer. Therefore, in some cases, Heupel may be truly undecided and need to see a player in a game situation. Besides, how much does it matter if one player starts or not, especially at a position like defensive tackle, in which the Vols will play several different players throughout the season.
Tennessee’s starters don’t really matter that much against Chattanooga. In fact, there might be some question as to who the first team really is until the Vols are truly tested, which should come against No. 24 North Carolina State on Sept. 7 in Charlotte, N.C. Even then, I’m not sure the starers matter.
Let’s say the game against the Wolfpack is close. Those players in the fourth quarter will be Tennessee’s first team. At that point, no one is going to ask who the starters were.
