'22 TX WR Evan Stewart (Oregon)

[OrangeMoundTNVol]

With Mike Matthews, Bru and Brazzell we don’t really need to overpay for this kid. Would be a luxury but Matthews look more than capable of making plays year 1 as the fourth WR. I say let’s ride with what we’ve got, but would understand adding this guy as well.

 

[smokeyz1]

I would love to see them use Bru as a WR/TE this year. Can line him up wide or tight without subbing anyone. Would make him a double hard to guard weapon. Could sell it to Bru as his future best value in the NFL.

 

[Memphisvol87]

With Mike Matthews, Bru and Brazzell we don’t really need to overpay for this kid. Would be a luxury but Matthews look more than capable of making plays year 1 as the fourth WR. I say let’s ride with what we’ve got, but would understand adding this guy as well.

I agree with overpaying but I also think you take whatever weapons you can get. Injuries are always an X factor and I’d love to see what they draw up with 4 of them on the field

 

[Jackcrevol]

With Mike Matthews, Bru and Brazzell we don’t really need to overpay for this kid. Would be a luxury but Matthews look more than capable of making plays year 1 as the fourth WR. I say let’s ride with what we’ve got, but would understand adding this guy as well.

we could use a burner. but I think most logical thing to do would be to add to DL, Secondary, or OL in some capacity.

 

[Vfl2407]

With Mike Matthews, Bru and Brazzell we don’t really need to overpay for this kid. Would be a luxury but Matthews look more than capable of making plays year 1 as the fourth WR. I say let’s ride with what we’ve got, but would understand adding this guy as well.

So no Squirrel?

 

[Smokey'sHandler]

With Mike Matthews, Bru and Brazzell we don’t really need to overpay for this kid. Would be a luxury but Matthews look more than capable of making plays year 1 as the fourth WR. I say let’s ride with what we’ve got, but would understand adding this guy as well.

I agree at some point we need to start getting our HS recruits some decent run behind the top 3. It’s wild to think that we could finish out year 4 of the Heupel era with Squirrel being the only of his HS WR recruits to really contribute. TBH a 2 deep shown below would be more than capable of producing at a high level with good QB play:

WR1 - Bru, Matthews
WR2 - Squirrel, Staley
WR3 - Brazzell, Nimrod

 

[Jackcrevol]

Well things have changed drastically with this kid, looked like a forgone conclusion to Texas early on imo. But now I think we or FSU may have the best shots, Bru coming back won’t really affect this imo. We ain’t gonna hit the offer he wants (it’s a lot) but no one really is, so he may just end up with where he’s more comfortable.

Still dont buy the Bru talk. Its surprising to say the least, and, makes me feel for the guy, if true.

Feels like he absolutely loves TN. Hope we made him a ridiculous NIL offer. Was really hoping for him that he'd get really good news from the Docs and head to NFL. Just with his age.

 

[VolAroundTheWorld]

Our entire WR room could use a really good off season in the weight room. We need to be able to be more physical off the line of scrimmage and in run blocking. We really missed Bru in that capacity once he got hurt. I’m also excited to watch their development as a room this year with Nico as QB. Curious to see the kind of energy his leadership can bring out of his teammates.

 

[Smokey'sHandler]

Still dont buy the Bru talk. Its surprising to say the least, and, makes me feel for the guy, if true.

Feels like he absolutely loves TN. Hope we made him a ridiculous NIL offer. Was really hoping for him that he'd get really good news from the Docs and head to NFL. Just with his age.

I felt for the guy the minute I noticed his foot laying sideways on the turf. It’s been advised of him that coming back is his best option. If he goes the professional route he won’t be able to participate in pro days/combines. He will still be injured come the draft which will come with more questions/concerns. His outlook will be UDFA at best at this point. Come back play a year, show that it is healed then go through the process. With his outlook right now he will more than likely be able to make more on NIL at UT than going pro.

 

[OrangeTsar]

i am getting so sick and tired of this old worn out excuse of "culture" when we do not go after top talent. if the team and the coaches are not able to manage the culture of the locker room, then there is a locker room problem already

A large part of managing the culture of a locker room by the coaches is deciding who gets INTO the locker room. And believe me, a serious malcontent, no matter what the talent level can be a cancer that tot’s away team cohesion and unity. There are some players that you simply do not want infecting your team and I will support a coach passing over someone like that.
Now that doesn’t mean that you can’t win without talent not saying you can win with just “five star hearts”; but you have to be careful and get the right talent and that does mean sometimes passing someone over

 

[CAVPUT]

With Mike Matthews, Bru and Brazzell we don’t really need to overpay for this kid. Would be a luxury but Matthews look more than capable of making plays year 1 as the fourth WR. I say let’s ride with what we’ve got, but would understand adding this guy as well.

No offense and I really hope you're right about Matthews, but let's be honest. No one knows what he's going to be capable of as a true freshman. Some teams didn't want him as a WR but a safety instead. If he were such a slam dunk at WR, there shouldn't be any discussion of DB with him. I never get too worked up over a first year player. It's a big jump both on and off the field. Not apples to apples, but everyone was proclaiming Thornton as the second coming of Randy Moss, but we see how that turned out....and he was an older player. No, IMO, we still need a burner for Nico to throw to....unless it's Stewart. If it does come down to him and Matthews, I'll take my chances. Just a bad feeling about this Stewart cat. Guess it's the whole barrel and bad apple deal.

 

[RiseToTheTop]

Once Bru got hurt the WR room looked horrible. We need all the talent we can get. Your no.1 WR can’t be 5’10 160lbs in this league.

 

[NighthawkVol]

I’m no doctor but have a hard time thinking Bru would be 100% by Fall camp. Seems we still need a baller WR.

That’s my concern too. Although he is reportedly ahead of schedule. He’s working with the top foot doctor for athletes in America (supposedly) out in California.

 

[CAVPUT]

No judgment from me, but the message board chatter (so TIFWIW) on the guy is that he doesn’t go to class, smokes a lot of weed, and along with several others from the ATM 2022 class, completely ran over Fisher. Took himself out of the last four games of their season and it wasn’t for injury. Like some have said, not a criminal or bad seed, but expected a different set of rules to apply to him, and that can disrupt culture on a team. An undeniable NFL talent if he locks in on doing the work he needs to, but do we have the WR room leadership to bring that out of him?

Any fan who experienced the Kelly Washington era will tell you that having a character like that in your locker room is akin to walking blind through a minefield. I still think Fulmer lost a ton of respect from his roster based on how he handled Washington. Once you lose that it's very hard to get it back. Those bad seeds are sown over 3-4 classes and the effects linger/are passed on. Not worth the risk IMO.

 

[Smokey'sHandler]

No offense and I really hope you're right about Matthews, but let's be honest. No one knows what he's going to be capable of as a true freshman. Some teams didn't want him as a WR but a safety instead. If he were such a slam dunk at WR, there shouldn't be any discussion of DB with him. I never get too worked up over a first year player. It's a big jump both on and off the field. Not apples to apples, but everyone was proclaiming Thornton as the second coming of Randy Moss, but we see how that turned out....and he was an older player. No, IMO, we still need a burner for Nico to throw to....unless it's Stewart. If it does come down to him and Matthews, I'll take my chances. Just a bad feeling about this Stewart cat. Guess it's the whole barrel and bad apple deal.

I think Matthews is an elite athlete that could contribute at a high level on both sides of the ball. If you watch his highlights you see an elite player with the ball in his hands. The key for him in his Frosh year will be how quickly he picks up the nuances of the offense and match the physicality of SEC DBs.

I may be of a different school of thought that we don’t need another burner but another guy who can go toe to toe with man coverage on the outside and win on the short to intermediate routes. This is an area we were severely lacking this year and it showed in our how we schemed around it. If all we needed was a burner Thornton would’ve thrived this past season.

 

[VOLINVONORE]

No offense and I really hope you're right about Matthews, but let's be honest. No one knows what he's going to be capable of as a true freshman. Some teams didn't want him as a WR but a safety instead. If he were such a slam dunk at WR, there shouldn't be any discussion of DB with him. I never get too worked up over a first year player. It's a big jump both on and off the field. Not apples to apples, but everyone was proclaiming Thornton as the second coming of Randy Moss, but we see how that turned out....and he was an older player. No, IMO, we still need a burner for Nico to throw to....unless it's Stewart. If it does come down to him and Matthews, I'll take my chances. Just a bad feeling about this Stewart cat. Guess it's the whole barrel and bad apple deal.

If Matthews is not starting or playing 20 snaps a game, our WRs will be the best in the history of the SEC.

 

[wisvol22]

I’m no doctor but have a hard time thinking Bru would be 100% by Fall camp. Seems we still need a baller WR.

While it looked gruesome, it was an ankle dislocation fracture, which is much better than tearing an Achilles or ACL. Judging by other athletes who had the injury, it’s a ~6 month recovery time, so he should be ready by fall season for sure. I’d imagine he’s certainly out for spring ball though.

 

[Jackcrevol]

Same here. Didn't pay off my school loans until my forties. Worked my backside off for 40 years. Not the least bit interested in "gifting" my hard earned money on....as you put it...privileged athletes. This is no longer the college football I grew up watching and loving. I watch and cheer, but it's just different now....and not for the better IMO.

we watch people give up their bodies to sport, for what? entertainment? you strict capitalists can appreciate what the market has dictated the value for these athletes.

paid off my loans in my 30's. my opinion on school loan forgiveness/deferment aside, athletes should be compensated. and if i'm personally benefiting from it. i feel obliged to help. how does our differ from tipping your waiter?

as far as the regulatory stuff, no clue. i just know that the ncaa couldve and shouldve acted sooner. but here we are

 

[VolNRaleighNC]

Same here. Didn't pay off my school loans until my forties. Worked my backside off for 40 years. Not the least bit interested in "gifting" my hard earned money on....as you put it...privileged athletes. This is no longer the college football I grew up watching and loving. I watch and cheer, but it's just different now....and not for the better IMO.

This x 1,000,000,000

I watch the Vols in a vacuum 99.9%. Honestly the Citrus Bowl will be the only football I watch this post season just to see Nico and the young guys.

 

[MemphisVol3]

The defense is a problem.

Biggest problem was in the secondary (lack of talent/athleticism). We’ve slowly been upgrading there so hopefully we see a difference in this next year or two.

 

[bpalmer28]

Same here. Didn't pay off my school loans until my forties. Worked my backside off for 40 years. Not the least bit interested in "gifting" my hard earned money on....as you put it...privileged athletes. This is no longer the college football I grew up watching and loving. I watch and cheer, but it's just different now....and not for the better IMO.

 

[Vol737]

i just know that the ncaa couldve and shouldve acted sooner. but here we are

Agree. They got neutered by the California Supreme Court ruling and then were too scared to try to regulate NIL. NIL should have never been what it has morphed into at the speed of light. That’s the danger of being reactive instead of proactive…and not being able to read the writing on the wall.

 

[OrangeMoundTNVol]

So no Squirrel?

Of course, that’s why I pegged Matthews as WR4. In this system it’s almost as if the slot is a totally different position than out wide. The guys I named are all outside guys

 

[OrangeMoundTNVol]

Our entire WR room could use a really good off season in the weight room. We need to be able to be more physical off the line of scrimmage and in run blocking. We really missed Bru in that capacity once he got hurt. I’m also excited to watch their development as a room this year with Nico as QB. Curious to see the kind of energy his leadership can bring out of his teammates.

Agree here, need more physicality. Which what makes Matthews instantly stick out to me. He is also a 5 star safety that brings the wood, so he naturally plays the Wr position with that same approach. No finesse in this kid, DB better buckle up his chin strap. I can’t really see a situation next season where he doesn’t contribute. Just totally different skill set from the rest. No one else is physical except Bru

 

[OrangeMoundTNVol]

No offense and I really hope you're right about Matthews, but let's be honest. No one knows what he's going to be capable of as a true freshman. Some teams didn't want him as a WR but a safety instead. If he were such a slam dunk at WR, there shouldn't be any discussion of DB with him. I never get too worked up over a first year player. It's a big jump both on and off the field. Not apples to apples, but everyone was proclaiming Thornton as the second coming of Randy Moss, but we see how that turned out....and he was an older player. No, IMO, we still need a burner for Nico to throw to....unless it's Stewart. If it does come down to him and Matthews, I'll take my chances. Just a bad feeling about this Stewart cat. Guess it's the whole barrel and bad apple deal.

Those DB offers UGA/Bama come along the lines of Pruitts way of thinking. They will almost always push a kid to defense if he is elite on that side of the ball. Which is why they always have strong DB play. Matthews pops on film, he broke his HS career receiving record with subpar QB play. His catch radius is nuts and he fights through contact for the ball. That will go perfect on those comeback routes Heup LOVES to run. Him and Bru you can still throw it to them with a DB in their face. Nimrod/Webb/Thornton not so much, they need to open.