Tennessee getting shifty on the outside
Friday morning's commitment of 2017 wideout Jacquez Jones a need Tennessee has prioritized on the recruiting trail: Guys who can get open.
Early in Butch Jones' tenure, it was all about attracting the big specimen wide receivers: Marquez North, Josh Malone, Preston Williams; big, long athletes that can mismatch with defensive backs and win physical one on one battles on the outside. But as big plays in the pass game have begun to decline in Knoxville, it's been evident that for all the talent on the outside that Tennessee has accumulated, it doesn't have enough guys that can create space and just go get open.
We saw Tennessee try to address that in the class of 2016. In addition to a couple of big bodies like Brandon Johnson (6-3) and Jeff George (nearly 6-foot-6), Tennessee made sure that it had some space players that can run routes and create separation like Latrell Williams and a really polished Corey Henderson. Even talented defensive back Tyler Byrd is going to be moving to wide receiver to add another dynamic player into the receiver room.
In 2017, Tennessee is taking it a step further. First it got KD Nixon out of Texas who is only 5-foot-8 but he's a burner. Now Tennessee has added another in that mold. Jacquez Jones out Clearwater, Fla. measured in at only 5-10, 165 pounds earlier this spring. At that size, he's got good athleticism (4.62 40, 4.2 shuttle) but it's functional athleticism. It shows up on film.
Jones is the type of player that will be able to work the middle of the field, find some openings and make plays after the catch. He'll be able to help a quarterback find some easy yardage with quick screens, shuffle passes and run-after-catch plays. Jones has a striking number of plays on film where he goes untouched. That's what Tennessee is getting in Jones and that's one thing the Tennessee offense has been missing.