Tennessee Football Spring Game 2017: 5 things to watch for
By David Rouben
1. Life after Josh Dobbs
It almost feels like Josh Dobbs has been at college as long as Perry Ellis. But now that he’s gone, the Vols have to adjust to life without him. It won’t just be an adjustment for the players – this will be Jones’ first season with someone else as his quarterback.
Luckily for Jones, he’s got two options that are eager to prove themselves. At this point, junior Quinten Dormady and redshirt freshman Jarrett Guarantano have separated themselves from the pack and are the two favorites to land the Tennessee starting job. While both of them should get reps in during the Spring Game, the younger Guarantano should be the starting quarterback under center.
Dormady is no pushover and has already played 10 games in a Vols uniform. He has 357 yards and a touchdown and will be a familiar face for Jones. But Guarantano, the 60th overall player in Tennessee’s 2016 class, has excellent downfield passing ability and is mobile. And nowadays, college teams will almost always value dual-threat quarterbacks.
Guarantano might have a hard time winning over the dressing room. One receiver, Josh Malone, even declared for the draft to avoid catching passes from a new quarterback. But his talent should speak for itself, and playing for Tennessee will be a great way for him to prove he can be a leader.
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No matter what Tennessee ends up doing this year, pleasing their fans will be damn near impossible. That said, the SEC East should be just as wide open as it was last year. But it’ll be fascinating to see how far this roster can take them.