KNOXVILLE—Tennessee is over a week into fall camp and numerous position battles remain competitive while injuries are also mounting at several positions. In today’s Vol practice report we offer a few thoughts and notes from Monday’s morning practice.

Quarterbacks: There’s absolutely no doubt junior Justin Worley is in the lead for the starting QB job. He’s getting the vast majority of first team reps but continues to struggle with production. During Saturday’s morning scrimmage, I (unofficially) had Worley 2/11 passing. One of those incompletions was due to a Pig Howard drop, the others were overthrows. He also struggled to quickly make reads and failed to identify the open receiver numerous times. I haven’t seen him reach anywhere near a 50% completion rate in practice this fall. That said, of the four QBs he has the most control of the offense and seems to be the most comfortable in the pocket (even though he struggles with “happy feet”). Worley needs to step up the next few practices and be productive in team situations in order to solidify his lead for the starting job.

Nathan Peterman has been getting some looks with the first team and has been slightly more accurate than Worley the last few practices. Peterman, like Worley, has struggled to make the correct read quickly. He was sacked a couple of times Saturday and again today due to his indecision. Even with his indecisiveness, he may be Tennessee’s best dual-threat option at this point; he strung together a series of three-consecutive completions during team situations Saturday. The true freshmen QBs continue to show flashes, but haven’t been consistent enough to pose a serious threat to Worley or Peterman for first or second team reps.

Defensive Backs: There’s no doubt Justin Coleman has wrapped up one starting spot at corner. A junior who has played in every game since his arrival on campus, Coleman has been one of the most consistent players in fall camp and could be good enough that opposing teams will game-plan to throw away from him this season.

Opposite Coleman, Riyahd Jones was the favorite to win the job at the start of fall camp, but his recent knee injury may sideline him for significant time (more below). Even before Jones’ injury, freshman Cameron Sutton had been getting the majority of first team reps at cornerback. Butch Jones said yesterday the Vols will start a true freshman at corner and Vol defensive coordinator John Jancek echoed that view today. All signs point to Sutton starting opposite Coleman.

At nickleback, former Alcoa tailback JaRon Toney has a firm lead. He closed last season with four-straight starts and finished seventh on the team in tackles with 42. Freshman Malik Foreman will also see significant snaps
this season as will Michael Williams.

A redshirt freshman, Williams originally signed with Maryland to play football in 2011. He transferred to Tennessee to run track and was a productive member of the track team last year. He joined the football team this spring as a walk-on and has been getting serious reps with the first and second teams. Williams certainly adds speed to Tennessee’s secondary and has earned serious playing time this fall.

Injuries: The biggest injury news today is junior cornerback Riyahd Jones missing practice with an apparent injury to his right knee. Jones was challenging for a starting job at corner but looks like he’ll miss some serious time (though nothing is official at this point). I spotted him leaving the complex on crutches this morning and he was barely able to put weight on his right leg. It’s a tough blow for a Tennessee team which lacks depth in the secondary.

Several other Vols continue to struggle with nagging injuries. Tackle Mo Couch remains in a walking boot and didn’t participate in practice. He’s listed as day-to-day with an injured calf. Freshman receiver Paul Harris is also in a boot and worked out in “The Hole”, the area designated for injured players, and freshman corner Michael Williams joined him.

Malik Foreman and Josh Smith (who was working with the first team today) appear to be recovering from earlier injuries and were closer to 100% today. Some good news: Curt Maggitt is close to returning to full contact drills according to Vol LB coach Tommy Thigpen.

Position Changes: Freshman Jalen Reeves-Maybin worked at linebacker today, a move that makes sense on many levels especially considering Tennessee’s lack of depth at LB both this year and moving forward. Wide receiver Vincent Dallas, who had been working with the first team, moved to defensive back today in an attempt to add depth to the position. He played DB some last season and looked comfortable at the position this morning. The coaching staff will evaluate his performance the next few days. He could move back to receiver, only time will tell.

Check back tonight for some video footage of today’s practice.