Why doesn’t Staley get much love?

#26
#26
BigBadVol said:
SW never kept his feet after a catch. He would go down every single time.

Staley is being mature and patient while waiting his turn. His dad Brian is a coach and has said everything is good. He has gotten stronger, faster and will contribute this fall. He’s slightly nicked up right now. He will be better than SW IMO.
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Truth… Squirrel knew how to get open but if he could have learned how to consistently stay on his feet when making a catch his YAC would have been through the roof. Loved what Squirrel did but it was so frustrating watching him leap to make acrobatic catches when the ball was on the money and no one was within two yards of him.
 
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#27
#27
BigBadVol said:
SW never kept his feet after a catch. He would go down every single time.

Staley is being mature and patient while waiting his turn. His dad Brian is a coach and has said everything is good. He has gotten stronger, faster and will contribute this fall. He’s slightly nicked up right now. He will be better than SW IMO.
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Tough kid. Jumped too much and habit of basket catching which got worse when he hurt his shoulder and couldn’t reach for the ball.
Leaving your feet when you don’t have or need to is no good. Brings more math into play and none of it is good math.
 
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#28
#28
Vol865 said:
Maybe, but track & field isn't football. I hope they're both great. Matthews gets more benefit of the doubt to most due to his rating and him getting in the field more last year. I've seen Squirrel play and haven't really seen Staley. So he's gotta prove it just like Matthews has to prove he was one of the best WRs in his class. Hype only lasts so long. Time to show its real.
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Of course it's not. But it is one of if not the best measurables of athleticism available and for a player who hasn't seen the field. 4A state championships in 200m and triple jump is about as good as it gets in terms of pure athleticism. Now can he catch a football while running that fast? Can he change directions? Does he have that dog in him like a Jennings or Bru? We'll see.

I agree on Matthews, but Staley's rating was pretty high as well. He was a 96 rated 4-star on 247 (Matthews was a 97 rated 4-star). The fact that Staley redshirted and Matthews didn't is an obvious sign that Matthews is ahead of him. I'm not disputing that. And I'm not saying we should crown Staley as the next great Vol WR. I've just never seen a player with as many accolades as Staley be completely ignored by the fans like this. It's just weird to me. Maybe his potential has been discussed, and I just completely missed it. Idk. But he and Matthews are the two guys on offense I most look forward to watching.
 
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#30
#30
bpalmer28 said:
Of course it's not. But it is one of if not the best measurables of athleticism available and for a player who hasn't seen the field. 4A state championships in 200m and triple jump is about as good as it gets in terms of pure athleticism. Now can he catch a football while running that fast? Can he change directions? Does he have that dog in him like a Jennings or Bru? We'll see.

I agree on Matthews, but Staley's rating was pretty high as well. He was a 96 rated 4-star on 247 (Matthews was a 97 rated 4-star). The fact that Staley redshirted and Matthews didn't is an obvious sign that Matthews is ahead of him. I'm not disputing that. And I'm not saying we should crown Staley as the next great Vol WR. I've just never seen a player with as many accolades as Staley be completely ignored by the fans like this. It's just weird to me. Maybe his potential has been discussed, and I just completely missed it. Idk. But he and Matthews are the two guys on offense I most look forward to watching.
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That's fair. Honestly forgot he was rated that high. But you never know. Could have Joshua Josephs/James Pearce situation where one is more prepared early on and then the other develops quicker. Hopefully they both have a great year.
 
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#32
#32
WillisWG said:
he caught 67 in 23 js. With Bru out, Donte out he became the primary target. I like Keyton and Weary but they're not Bru and Donte. Last year Bru and Donte were both a bit healthier and targeted more. Nature of the game.
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Sorry, after reading my post again, I did just skip over 2023. He was good that year. Made some incredible catches. He just couldn’t get it going in 2024.
 
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#33
#33
NighthawkVol said:
Sorry, after reading my post again, I did just skip over 2023. He was good that year. Made some incredible catches. He just couldn’t get it going in 2024.
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Yep played with a shoulder injury most of the 24. There were questions raised whether he should have been playing.

www.knoxnews.com

Should injured Squirrel White play through pain vs Kentucky? Tennessee football mulls options

Tennessee receiver Squirrel White has left the past three games with a nagging injury. Should the Vols use a healthy replacement against Kentucky?
www.knoxnews.com

In the third quarter of Saturday’s matchup against Alabama, Tennessee wide receiver Squirrel White was slow to get up before heading to the sideline. He has been playing through a shoulder injury in recent weeks, and ABC’s Molly McGrath had an update on his status.
“Tennessee wide receiver Squirrel White couldn’t fully lift his right arm to lift his helmet, but I’m told he is insisting on returning to this game,” McGrath said on the broadcast. “Greg mentioned, he’s been playing through this injury for a while now. He is refusing to let it keep him off the field, guys.”

 
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#35
#35
NighthawkVol said:
Let’s hope he’s better than 2024 Squirrel. We need the return of the slot WR. Squirrel showed a lot of promise as a freshman, then tailed off. Some of that was injuries, but some of it was just poor play and drops.
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Squirrel was just too small to hold up… Not to mention the dude was 5-7. I never understood why Tennessee brought him in, he was such a small target, and wasn’t fast enough to play in the sec at his size. Venus Jones was much better suited to play the slot in Heupels offense.
 
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#39
#39
jarnol32 said:
Squirrel was just too small to hold up… Not to mention the dude was 5-7. I never understood why Tennessee brought him in, he was such a small target, and wasn’t fast enough to play in the sec at his size. Venus Jones was much better suited to play the slot in Heupels offense.
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He made a lot of big plays before he got hurt. Kid played with a terrible shoulder last year. I can’t trash a kid that toughs it out like he did last year.
 
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#41
#41
NighthawkVol said:
Let’s hope he’s better than 2024 Squirrel. We need the return of the slot WR. Squirrel showed a lot of promise as a freshman, then tailed off. Some of that was injuries, but some of it was just poor play and drops.
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White should not have been playing last year, it was said he could barely raise one arm. So far he's been getting rave reviews at FSU. 28 catches this year would have put him 3rd in UT history
 
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#42
#42
jarnol32 said:
Squirrel was just too small to hold up… Not to mention the dude was 5-7. I never understood why Tennessee brought him in, he was such a small target, and wasn’t fast enough to play in the sec at his size. Venus Jones was much better suited to play the slot in Heupels offense.
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5-10 4.28 40
 
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#43
#43
NighthawkVol said:
Um…he’s missed 2 practices with injury. You gonna Wally Pipp Matthews and Brazzell too? They’ve missed more time than Staley.

It’s almost like you’re reaching to take a negative shot at the staff, but you would never.
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I don't have to reach all that far to find a shot at Heupel and this staff. Having said that, this is looking like "team soft" on offense and that's Heupel's baby. Competition makes everyone better. To stand pat and not take advantage in the portal is insane. Is there any WR...ANY...that we'd sweat entering the portal? If there is, I'm not seeing him. If his reasoning was that he's happy with the WRs they've recruited, it's a rather bold statement about their ability to evaluate and develop. If that's the case, he's got no excuses heading into the season. If there's an injury, no worries. We've recruited well enough to overcome whatever comes, right?
 
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#45
#45
Swiftybaby said:
Where is he now? He was average at best. Let’s not forget who was throwing it to him as well
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He's at FSU.

Let's not forget who the offensive coordinator was/is at Tennessee.

I'm not arguing that Staley isn't more talented than squirrel. I'm just pointing out that's he's yet to prove it, so to say he's better than Squirrel White is silly - for the mean time.

Prove it
 
#46
#46
LittleVol said:
He's at FSU.

Let's not forget who the offensive coordinator was/is at Tennessee.

I'm not arguing that Staley isn't more talented than squirrel. I'm just pointing out that's he's yet to prove it, so to say he's better than Squirrel White is silly - for the mean time.

Prove it
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Come on man, Staley is only 128 receptions behind Squirrel in the UT record books.

Squirrel's OC is some dude named Gus Malzahn, I don't know if he knows anything about football, but he said that his only concern about White was finding enough ways to get the ball in his hands.

I'm.woth you 100% LittleVol, saying a guy that can't get on the field is "better" than one of the leading receivers in school history is crazy talk.

With the QB situation we have right now, I trade just about any WR we have for a healthy Squirrel right now.
 
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