Harrison Bailey will be the starting quarterback for Tennessee vs. Florida.
It will be a new era under center for Tennessee football, as Harrison Bailey will get the start at quarterback.
After getting off to a hot 2-0 start, the Tennessee Volunteers have dropped their last five games. There has been a myriad of reasons for the Vols’ downtick since the middle of October, but the inconsistent quarterback play of redshirt senior Jarrett Guarantano was certainly one of them. With the No. 6 Florida Gators coming to town, head coach Jeremy Pruitt has turned the page.
The playbook will not be an issue for Harrison Bailey at this point of the year
“I really don’t think the issue is the playbook,” said Pruitt. “Harrison’s a smart guy that’s worked really hard. It’s been more about opportunities and getting live opportunities, and he’s had a chance to do more and more of that as the season has went.”
“When you just talk about volume of work, really playing a little bit at the end of the Kentucky game, the Arkansas game and then a couple of weeks against Auburn has been really good for him, just for the speed of the game, to prepare him for the future. That’s been really, really good.”
“He works hard every single day and is developing a little bit more of a leadership (presence) around the rest of his teammates. That’s part of being a quarterback, is getting the other 10 guys to be at their best. Again, he continues to do what we ask him to do.”
Bailey was the No. 3 pro-style quarterback of the 2020 recruiting class out of Marietta, Georgia. At 6-foot-5 and 225 pounds, Bailey has the frame to grow into and become one of the best passers in Tennessee football history. Unseating the veteran Guarantano was not going to be easy, but we had a feeling Bailey would win out if Guarantano struggled as he did. This is good for Tennessee.
Look for the Vols to get better offensively in their remaining games with Bailey as the starter.
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